Danica watched out the window, taking in the shops and buildings of Wilder River. The Sleigh Bells Chalet motel, the vestigial local newspaper office, the bank, the hot cocoa shop. From atop Main Street, the ski resort presided over the town.
“It’s quaint,” she said.
“It’s your home.”
She looked at me and nodded. “Yeah, I feel that.”
“Good.” I didn’t look at her. If I had, my heart might have exploded. She was so lost, so beautiful, and needed someone so much. If she’d known, she wouldn’t have wanted that person to be me.
We arrived at her gym, which was named Constant Energy. Nice—it reminded me of her middle name, Constance. I helped her down, and we stood on the ground beside the door of the truck. I might have been standing closer to her than was necessary. Her floral scent wafted through my senses.
“The kids are going to be freaked out by this thing wrapped around my head. It’s like I’m transitioning into being a mummy, starting at the top. Help me take it off?”
“Is it too soon for that?”
“They said I could remove it tonight anyway.” She patted around, as if feeling for the end of the bandage.
I stepped forward and took her hand. Slowly, I guided her fingertips to the fabric’s edge.
She looked up at me and breathed a soft, “Thanks.”
That sole whispered word brushed through me like a feathery storm. Lifted me. Lightened me. “Uh-huh.”
It took some doing, but she finally unwrapped her forehead. With a gentle caress, she touched what looked like a tender area. Yowch. I hid a wince.
“What color is it?”
“You’ve seen a plum, right?”
“Red plum or black plum?”
How like Danica to ask that question. “The last one.”
Her face fell. “It will freak them out.”
It might. “One sec.” I went back to the driver’s side and reached behind the seat. I came back to her with a truly worn baseball cap. “Wanna try it?”
She planted it on her head, sweat-stained brim and all. Her hair’s curls sproinged out in all directions from it, and if I hadn’t been well and fully smitten with her in the past, this image of her would have killed all hope of ever falling for another woman.
“You’re staring. Does it look ridiculous?”
I cleared my throat and gave a nominal shake of my head. If I’d answered, I would’ve told her she was a goddess and possibly fallen at her feet in pure worship. “Let’s go inside.”
She took a quick look at herself in the side view mirror of the truck. “Oh, my hair’s a mess.” But she followed me toward the door. “This is a mistake, Jeremy. The kids are going to feel bad when they expect me to remember them, and none of them will look familiar. I can’t remember a single name.”
“Oliver. You remember Oliver, right?” Now, I prayed Oliver’s class time was between four and four thirty p.m. “You can start with one, and go from there.”
With a little gulp, she nodded and gripped my elbow. “You’re right.”
“I often am. More than you realize.”
“What does that mean? Did we fight at some point, or something?”
“Or something.” I held the door for her, and she went inside.
Immediately, a petite brunette with close-cropped hair dashed toward us. She slammed into Danica with an intense hug. “You’re out! Oh, Danica! I am so glad to see you.”
“Hi?” Danica looked to me, pleading for a save. “This is Jeremy. He gave me a ride, since I’m not cleared to drive for a while. And other reasons.”