Snowed In Read online

  “It’ll be an adventure,” he said.

  “Like you know about adventure. Chase has been working here forever,” Nathalie said.

  “Not literally forever,” Chase said. “First I had to learn how to walk and talk, and then I had to wait until I was tall enough to see over the counter—”

  “He’s such a smart mouth,” Nathalie said, interrupting him. “So what kind of fudge do you want? I’ll get it for you.”

  She walked around behind the counter, and I turned my attention back to the various choices. “What do you recommend?”

  “Depends on what you like,” Nathalie said.

  “We’re famous for our marble walnut,” Chase said. “White and milk chocolate swirled together with nuts mixed in.”

  I glanced over at him and smiled. Nathalie’s opinion of him baffled me. He wasn’t a jerk at all.

  “That’s what I’ll try,” I said.

  “How much do you want?” Nathalie asked.

  “She’s new to the island. Give her a pound. My treat,” Chase said.

  I felt my grin broaden. I never say no to free fudge. Especially when it comes from a hottie.

  “Don’t be flattered,” Nathalie mumbled as she grabbed a tissue and then a hunk of chocolate. “He gives freebies to all the girls. It’s the only way he can get a date.”

  I found that hard to believe. I figured he could have a date anytime he wanted. Of course, there were probably more choices in fudge than in girls on the island.

  “Girls are like fudge,” Chase said, like he was reading my mind. “You have to sample them all before you settle on your favorite.”

  He winked at me. I felt an instant connection, because that was the exact same way I felt about dating.

  My cheeks grew warm, and I wondered if it would make me look cheap—slutty even—to go out with Chase just to get free fudge. But then, I wanted to go out with him anyway, even without the freebie.

  “You are so lame,” Nathalie muttered to Chase.

  “Nathalie is so predictable,” he said to me. “Chocolate pecan. She never tries anything different.”

  “Don’t have to, when you start out with the best,” Nathalie said.

  Are we really talking about fudge here? I wondered. Because it sure seemed to be a heated conversation if it was about candy.

  Maybe because they worked together, they just got on each other’s nerves easily.

  “I’ll pop some divinity in here too,” Nathalie said, putting the box of fudge and a small bag of divinity into a larger sack.

  “Thanks,” I said, taking them from her. “Sure I can’t pay you for them?”

  “We’re sure,” Chase said, before Nathalie could answer.

  “Thanks again.”

  “Anytime.”

  “Not literally anytime,” Nathalie said. “We are, after all, a business, and we’re supposed to be interested in making a profit.”

  “She’s no fun,” Chase said. “I’ll bet you’re fun.”

  Were we flirting? Maybe we were flirting.

  “I’m a laugh a minute,” I said. I laughed. “See? In sixty seconds I’ll have another one.”

  He laughed really loudly, his eyes twinkling. “You are fun.”

  “Okay, I think we’re done here,” Nathalie suddenly announced.

  “We’ve been getting orders all morning,” Chase said to her. “Why don’t you box them for shipping while you’re here?”

  “Because it’s my day off.”

  “You ship fudge?” I asked.

  Nathalie looked back at me. “Sure. You want to ship some somewhere?”

  “Yeah, to my friend Tara back home.”

  “I thought this was home,” Chase said.

  I shook my head and gave him a wry grin. “Old habits are hard to break.”

  “I can imagine. I’ve only ever lived here.”

  “I think it’s going to take more getting used to than I thought.”

  “You just need someone to show you the ropes, and fortunately for you, I know the ropes really well.”

  “Shipping the fudge,” Nathalie said, in a singsong voice, interrupting our conversation and slapping a form and a pen on the counter. “Fill out the shipping info. I’d do express so it gets there fresh.”

  I filled out the form, then made my fudge selections. I went with a variety—one quarter pound each of milk chocolate, key lime, rocky road, and chocolate walnut.

  “She’s going to love these,” Nathalie said, closing up the box and taping my order sheet on top of it. “I’ll go prepare the shipping label and get this boxed up so it’ll go out today.”

  She disappeared through a doorway.

  “Wow, she must really like you,” Chase said.

  “I like her.” I moved back toward the door, back to where he was working, very close to the front window. I guess for tourists he’d be an added attraction.

  “Thanks again for the fudge.”

  “Hey, no problem. Although Nathalie’s right, I just give it away to get dates. So when do you want to go out?”

  “You’re not serious.” I’m a firm believer in speed dating, but this was warp speed.

  He shrugged. “You got a boyfriend?”

  “Well, no.”

  “Your calendar already filled?”

  “I just got here.”

  “So you’re available.”

  You are available, Ash, I thought.

  “You move really fast,” I pointed out. I mean, I knew what the guy looked like, but I knew absolutely nothing else about him. Except that Nathalie said he was a jerk. But he didn’t seem to be a jerk. Maybe he was one of those psychopathic types who appear normal until the cops take a look in his basement.

  “Have to. New chicks don’t last long. So can you blame me? The one thing this island lacks is variety in babes.”

  “How about variety in guys?”

  He grinned. “We’re lacking in that, too. I could be the best offer you get all winter.”

  But I had standards, even when it came to dating. I needed a few more details.

  “I researched the school. It’s going to be so different from what I’m used to. Are you a student there?”

  “You bet. Senior. Counting the days until I get off this rock.”

  “This rock?”

  “That’s what we call the island when we’re not happy with it.”

  “Why aren’t you happy with it?”

  He looked toward the door where Nathalie had disappeared. Then he turned his attention back to me. “Let’s just say that sometimes it’s easy to be invisible.”

  With so few people, I couldn’t imagine it, but I thought maybe more was going on here than I realized.

  “So, you wanna go out?” he asked.

  “We just met.”

  “Yeah, but you’re a laugh a minute. I like that in a girl.”

  “I’m not really a laugh a minute.”

  “That’s okay. I don’t really give away free fudge for dates.” He paused, grinned broadly. “Usually. Come on. Go out with me.”

  I felt a small thrill. Maybe online dating wasn’t going to be in my future after all.

  “Where do people go on dates around here?” I asked.

  “Lots of places. We could go to V.P.”

  “V.P.?”

  “Village Pub.”

  “Sounds like a bar.”

  “Nah, it’s where all the kids hang out. Pool, darts, getting together…How ’bout Friday night?”

  I was in town half a day and I already had a date. How many guys were on this island? And what were the odds that I’d connect with another one as easily as I’d connected with Chase? Amazing.

  I gave him a huge smile. “I’m there.”

  “Great.”

  I held up my sack. “And to think, I thought I only came in here for fudge.”

  “And if you were smart, that’s all you’d be leaving with,” Nathalie grumbled, coming out from the back room, tugging on mittens.

  I just