"Hello?" Harlow lost her breath at the sound of his voice. She had missed the sound of his voice. She didn't realize how much she had truly missed him. "Hi." She held the flip phone tighter with both of her hands.
"Hello?" The male voice repeated again, unable to hear the whisper on the other end. "It's me." Her voice came out stronger now, as she wiped away the tears that had formed in her eyes. The exhale of a shaky breath came out on the other end of the phone line. "You shouldn't be calling me." His words held disapproval but his voice held love. "I know, but I miss you."
"I miss you too, but it's too dangerous to contact me." Harlow wiped away more tears, unable to stop her heart from breaking. "I know, but I- I just needed to hear the sound of your voice."
"I'm happy to hear yours too, it tells me you're safe." She nodded her head, smiling as more tears fell. "I'm going to go now." She let out a small sob but nodded her head; "Okay. I love you Seth." Her brother's voice came out clouded with emotions; "Love you too Sage."
The line then went dead, and Harlow slowly pulled the phone away from her face. Staring down at it, she flipped it closed and mentally marked off two of the unbreakable rules of being in the witness protection program that she had broken. Harlow stuffed the burner phone under her pillow for the time being and curled into her blankets. Lady Luck jumped on the bed, meowing as she did. Harlow reached out to the cat, rubbing her as more tears formed in her eyes.
~~~
"Damn it."
"What is it and why are you still home?" Harlow hopped off the last stair and swung herself into the living room. Viviana was laid out across the crouch, her laptop on her legs. She glanced up at Harlow, who was still in her flannel pajamas and fuzzy slippers.
"There was a massive storm last night- knocked out both the power and the WIFI. My office is closed today. So I'm doing some case notes here." Harlow, as her friend spoke, turned and opened up the curtains. Her mouth fell open, before curling into a smile. Snow. Their whole street had been transformed. Thanksgiving was still two weeks away yet the street was a scene straight from a Christmas movie. Everything was covered in a blanket of thick white, fluff.
As Harlow stood, captured by the view, it was then she realized how cold their house actually was. Closing the curtain, she turned back to Viviana, who was hidden under a thick blanket with a warm fire burning in the fireplace.
"Does this always happen? The power going out when it snows, I mean." Harlow grabbed the only spare blanket and wrapped herself in it. Viviana, who was typing away on her laptop, stopped. "Yeah, don't worry, I called the electric company already and they said power should be back up by tonight. Hopefully." Harlow nodded, glancing at the fire in the fireplace. The few logs they had resting next to it were the only ones they had. The two women had been preparing for the winter months, but thought they had more time before they needed to buy firewood.
"I think I'm going to suit up and then take a little bike ride into town to get some more firewood."
"Okay, just be safe, you're not a good driver on a dry road."
Harlow huffed, and left her friend alone. Changing into her warmest clothes, she left the house feeling ready for the weather. It would be a lie to say that Harlow wasn't excited about going out in the snow.
Growing up she had been lucky enough that her family had a cabin in the Southern California Mountains. They went up every winter season and took part in all of the winter sports. This was the first time that snow had ever come to her. Bundled up in her favorite parka, Harlow took off down the street. It was a beautiful ride, and Harlow felt grateful she decided to take it.
Until the wind chill felt that she froze off all of her exposed face. Instead of going straight to the hardware store as she turned onto Main street, Harlow stopped at the corner coffee house. She rested her bike in the rack, but didn't bother to lock it up.
Unlike California, no one in St. Dalton would consider stealing someone's bike. It was nice.
Stepping into the coffee shop, Harlow was surprised to be greeted by great warmth. "Wow," her frozen body welcomed the heat. Stopping at the counter, she let out a sigh as the vent above her wrapped her in more heat.
"Hi, what can I get you?" Harlow's eyes sprung open. "Oh, hi, just um, a medium coffee please." As the woman rang up her drink, and she paid her, Harlow closed her eyes once more trying to absorb as much warmth as she could.
"We have a backup generator. My grandfather, who first opened this shop, believed that on the coldest days hot coffee is needed most. So when the power goes out, the generator kicks up. Give the town some time to wake up and soon enough we'll be packed. You're lucky to have beat the crowd." Harlow opened her eyes, as the girl brewed the coffee. "That's a wonderful story."
"You're new here, huh?" She gave the worker a small smile, and nodded her head. "Yeah, I am, Harlow." The worker placed the coffee cup in front of her and shook her hand. "I'm Leslie, nice to meet you. Can I ask what brought you out into the cold? I mean, our coffee here is good but you're one of the first today."
Harlow stirred in some cream, taking a small sip of the hot coffee. "Oh, well my housemate and I lost power so I thought I'd come into town and get some firewood. She said the power should be back on by tonight but we only have a few logs. "
"Who's your housemate?" By this time Harlow had taken a corner seat. It was plush, and warm thanks to the small potbelly stove. Leslie came out from behind the counter- a mug of tea in her hands. The two girls were the only ones in the shop, and outside only a few people dared to go out into the air. Leslie took a seat across from Harlow.
"Viviana Rosemond." Leslie's face lit up at Viviana's name. "Oh- so you're Viviana's friend! My brother Andy told me about you- he met you last week at the fairgrounds?" Harlow nodded her head. She forced the hot coffee down as a way to delay her response. "Yeah, I remember him." Harlow quickly stood, " I think I'm going to get going. I don't want to miss out on getting the best firewood. Have a nice day." Harlow was pushing open the door just as Leslie was giving her goodbye.
~~~
Leaving the hardware store, Harlow thanked the shop owner once more. She placed the few piles of wood next to her bike. Grabbing her first pile of wood, she placed it on the small rack over her back wheel and secured it with the bungee cord the store had sold her.
"Need help?" She jumped at the voice, and stood up. Colton stood on the other side of her bike, bundled in his own jacket and boots. "Oh no, it's fine, I'm fine. I got it." Harlow waved him away just as the cord suddenly popped back up, nearly hitting her face. With a pounding heart, she watched as the wood fell onto the damp concert. Colton looked from Harlow, then the wood before looking back at her. Pushing her lips out, Harlow could feel her fingers starting to go numb already. "Okay, fine." Harlow took a step back as Colton picked up all the loose wood. Colton re-bundled it and hooked it on her bike. She grabbed the second bundle and passed it to him. As she finished her coffee, he grabbed the last bundle and carefully secured it to her bike. She tossed the empty cup in the near by trash.
Standing, Colton dusted his gloves off. "There you go, did- did you ride your bike here?" Harlow nodded her head, grabbing the handle bars. She hopped on, trying to give him a que to leave her alone. "Yeah, I'm not exactly sure how to drive in any weather that's not sunshine or light rain. So I took my bike to be safer."
"Well, I can drive in weather that's not sunshine or light rain so why don't we stick your bike in the back of my truck and I can drive you home." Harlow felt her face flush a little, and she got goosebumps as their eyes met.
"Oh, thank you, but I'll be just fine. Goodbye." Harlow quickly turned, and took off down the street.
Turning off of Main, Harlow sighed. It seemed that no matter where Harlow went, she was surrounded by people who knew Colton and-or Viviana. She was suddenly questioning why the FBI thought a tiny town would be the perfect place to start over. It seemed like everyone in this town knew each other, and they knew she didn't belong.
In that moment of her mind being lost in thought, Harlow was quickly brought back. Tugging on her hand brakes, Harlow attempted to not run the stop sign on the empty road. However, her tires slid along the road as they hit a patch of black ice. Harlow fought to keep up right but quickly decided that she would not be able to succeed. With only one thing coming into her mind, Harlow steered herself straight into a large pile of road-snow. Her tires were stopped instantly, freezing in place by the snow. Her body, still moving with the momentive fell forward with a small squeal into the snow pile. Popping her head up, she did her best to wipe the black sludge from her face and not gag.
She wiggled and rolled herself out of the snow, the road to her back. As Harlow fought with the snow, the sound of a car stopping filled the air. Looking back, a black truck had pulled over to the side of the road. The driver opened their door and their head popped up over it. "Hey- you okay?"
Colton's head disappeared and then he came around the front of the truck. "I saw you hit that patch of black ice." Harlow nodded, looking up at his outstretched hand. After a second more struggle, Harlow took Colton's outstretched hand. As Colton pulled her up, the only thing Harlow could think about was how perfect hers fit into his.
"Thanks, I'm fine." Letting go of his hand, she began to brush the snow off of herself. "I thought you said you took your bike because it was safe?" Harlow glared at him. "I said safer, as in safer than my car." Satisfied, she stopped brushing herself.
Colton gave her a small laugh, and smiled. "Well, will you let me drive you home now- as a friend?"
Harlow glanced at her bike, which was lying sadly in the snow and then at Colton's running truck- most likely with the heat running on full blast. Without looking at him, she bent down to get her bike, "I'll help you load my bike into the back."
He shook his head, grabbing her bike from her "Oh no, you get into the cab and warm up. I'll do it." He sat it against his truck. Colton then opened the passenger side door, holding a hand out for her to hold onto. For the second time that day, she took it.
She had been correct in the thought that the cab was warm. The warmth surrounded Harlow as soon as Colton closed the door. The cab shook slightly as Colton placed her bike in the back of the cab. When he opened his door a blast of cold air came floating in but was quickly replaced once he closed it.
"You sure you're okay?" He pulled out onto the street, glancing over to her.
"Yeah, yeah, the snow broke my fall." She glanced at him for a second, realizing how close they were in his truck.The scent was almost intoxicating, like nutmeg and pine. A perfect scent for the holiday season.
She pointed, " At the next stop sign, take a right." He nodded his head, turning his eyes back to the road. "I'm happy you're okay." Harlow glanced away, realizing that she had been staring at his hands on the steering wheel. Even with her gloves on, her hand had fit so perfectly within his. When she said nothing, Colton glanced over at her, "You sure you're okay? Do I need to go to the hospital?"
"No, I'm fine, thanks. Take a left here." Rolling her lips, Harlow took a quick breath, "Um, maybe we could, you know, go get coffee later this week? As a thank you for helping today. If the offer is still open I mean, I know I turned you down a few days ago so I can understand why-" He cut her off, "Sure."; looking like he just won the lottery. "When do you want to go?" She looked away, thinking. "I don't work Monday, so maybe then?"
"Okay, Monday at eleven?"
"Sure, oh that little yellow one third on the right, is ours." Colton pulled up into their driveway, and before he could open her door; Harlow was out of the cab. She needed to get out before she got drunk off of his smell. Colton followed, opening the truck bed for her.
"Thanks again," Harlow rolled her bike out of the cab and towards the side of the garage. As she unloaded the wood into the pile, she heard him pull away. Unlatching the wood from her bike, she carefully stacked them along the garage floor.
Bringing in three logs with her, Harlow stopped in the mud room to remove her outward winter layers. She clicked the switch on the wall, but nothing happened. The power was still out, and she could swear the house had gotten colder. Shaking her head, she removed her cap and ran a hand through her hair. Feeling the cold air on her head, she quickly put the cap back on. Carrying the logs into the living room, she placed them on the small holder.
Viviana was still on the couch, only now she held a book in her hands. "Was that Colton's truck I saw in our driveway?" Harlow took a seat in front of the fire, rubbing her hands over the heat.
"Uh, yeah it was." Harlow made sure she kept her gaze at the fire as she went on, "I kind of-sort of- crashed my bike. He happened to be driving down the road and offered me a ride home." Harlow glanced over at Viviana, her eyes still on her book though she was actively listening.
"So I took it." Viviana hummed from where she still laid on the couch. "I also asked him out for coffee on Monday.We're meeting at 11."
"What-wait?" Harlow spun around, knowing she would have to face her friend. Viviana placed a bookmark to save her place and sat up.
"Yeah, well, he stacked and locked down all the wood on my bike. Then when I crashed he drove me home." Harlow gave a defeated shrug. "A coffee date is the least I could offer him."
Vivana sat her book to the side before sliding down to the floor. "I mean, I guess.Did he ask you out?" Harlow moved closer to the coffee table, and shook her head. "No, I asked him." Viviana's face went blank, and she slowly nodded her head. "Okay." Harlow frowned but was unable to respond due to her phone ringing. Picking it up, it was her work, giving her the day off due to the snow. Harlow took that as an opportunity to leave the room to change.