A few minutes later, we were back on track, I hoped. “Ok, Diesel, that dude said the road should be coming up here on our right, but honestly, I have no idea where the hell we are. If you ever let me leave the house again without grabbing my GPS, you’ll sleep on the porch for a week.” Diesel cocked his head to the side and lifted one ear at me. I reached over and patted the top of his head.
Suddenly, I slammed on my brakes and jerked my truck to the right, almost missing the road we needed to get back to the highway. Thunder crashed so loud it shook my truck, and lightning lit up the gloomy sky. My truck splashed and pounded its way through deep puddles on the country road. I was never so thankful for my truck lift than at that very moment. An orange blinking light up ahead caught my attention. As I got closer to the wooden bridge, my hands gripped the steering wheel tight in frustration. I took a deep breath and counted to ten as I watched the blinking light on the orange saw-horse in front of me. The saw-horse had been stenciled with the words BRIDGE CLOSED and had yellow caution tape all over it.
“Well buddy, that damn blueberry pie joke might just turn around and bite us in the ass, huh?”
Once again, I turned the truck around and started back where I came from. On my right, I noticed another dirt road that looked like it led further into the middle of nowhere.
“Eh, what the hell. Why not?” I said out loud as I turned the wheel and followed it. At this point, I was so lost I didn’t really care where I ended up. I drove a couple hundred yards in thick mud and sighed as I pulled up to a house. This wasn’t a road after all; it was a fucking driveway. Go figure.
“So, do we knock and ask for directions or just turn around and go at it on our own?” Diesel got up, stretching his front legs out as far as he could and leaned over and licked my face. I pulled back and playfully pushed him away. “You’re right, we don’t need help, damn it.”
I put the truck in reverse, turning to look out my back window and heard the unmistakable sound of tires spinning. My chest tightened as I pushed the gas pedal again. My entire truck shook as the tires spun round and round, digging deeper into the mud.
“No, no, no, NO!” I slammed my fist down hard on my steering wheel. My chest heaved in anger as I scanned the property for any sign of a vehicle that might be able to pull me out.
Nothing.
Squeezing my phone, I had to fight the urge to throw it as I looked down and saw the battery light slowly fade. Dead. I laid the side of my head down on my steering wheel and stared at Diesel, who was wagging his tail with his tongue hanging out, happy as can be. The ridiculousness of my situation overcame me as I started laughing deliriously until there were tears in my eyes.
“Okay, you hang here and be a good watch dog. Make sure no one drives off, and I’ll go check it out.” Diesel yawned and laid his head down on the center console as I hopped down from my truck and made my way through the muck toward the front door.
A wooden sign hanging next to the front door read Cranberry Inn. I had no idea what town I was in or if I was even still in fucking Minnesota, but ironically this might not have been the worst decision after all. Hopefully we could hang here for the night and head home tomorrow morning. A deafening clap of thunder rattled my chest as I reached up and knocked on the door.
“Ow!” I rubbed the spot on my forehead now sore from being poked over and over by a tiny finger.
“Mom! Mom! Wake up! Look at all the rain!” Lucy and Piper jumped up and down on my bed like it was Christmas morning. I wish I shared their enthusiasm. I was cocooned in my warm quilt, dreaming about palm trees, sandy beaches and fruity drinks with little umbrellas in them. I had no desire to get out of bed and face the day, the rain, or my mom. However, duty called and my girls were asking for breakfast. I sat up in bed, pulled on my slippers and robe and glanced over at my two angels looking out my bedroom window, giggling about all the rain.
“Come on, you two, I’m starving.”
While I got busy making monkey bread, the girls’ favorite treat, Fred kept them preoccupied playing Candyland in the family room. Mom’s eyes were glued to the TV, not wanting to miss the latest storm update. A fire was blazing in the fireplace, and other than the house being empty of guests, it felt like a normal day.
I was standing at the counter, mixing melted butter and cinnamon in a bowl, when my mom came up next to me and rested her head on my shoulder.
“I love you, you know that, right?” she asked.
“I do. I love you too, Mom.”
I leaned over and kissed her cheek, knowing that was her way of apologizing for last night. We didn’t argue often, and I can’t remember a time where she made me cry. It wasn’t really her that made me cry though; it was more the painful memories of my relationship with Zach and doubt that I’d ever find the perfect man for me and the girls.
Suddenly, there was a loud knock at the door. We all looked at each other, wondering who would be out in this weather. Before Mom could even make a move toward the door … another loud knock. She hurried out of the kitchen, with Fred right behind her. The girls and I hung back. I heard talking and a few minutes later, Mom reappeared in the kitchen with a beautiful redhead who looked to be in her early 40s and a little girl who I guessed was about the same age as Piper and Lucy.
“Kacie, this is Catherine. Catherine, this is my daughter, Kacie. Those are her girls, Piper and Lucy,” she said, turning toward the girls who were already by her side, anxious to meet their new friend.
I wiped my hands on a dishtowel and went over to shake hands with her.
“Hi Catherine, nice to meet you.” I smiled warmly.
“Nice to meet you too, Kacie. This is my daughter, Jenna.” She wrapped her arm around the shy little girl that was hiding behind her. “Sorry to barge in on you guys like this. I drove as far as I could, but the roads are getting worse by the minute, and the bridge at the end of the road is closed. I didn’t know what else to do.”
Her voice cracked as she held back tears.
“Oh, it’s no problem.” My mom rushed over and put her arm around Catherine’s shoulders. “All of our guests left early, so there’s plenty of room. Besides, Piper and Lucy will be thrilled to have someone else to play with.”
With that, Piper and Lucy took Jenna’s hand and pulled her over to join in their Candyland game.
There were three more knocks at the door that day, everyone saying the same thing. The roads were too bad to continue and they were desperate for a place to stay. Henry and Melissa, a sweet older couple, were first. Next was a spunky, cute college-aged girl named Ashley, who I thought I could get along with the next couple days, and last came a set of middle-aged sisters named Pat and Sue who were on their way to an antique show in Wisconsin.
Mom was thrilled as she went into full-on hostess mode. She was in her glory when the inn was full. She lived for it. The house was full of chatter all afternoon; people comparing their encounters of stuck cars and flooded roads. It was late afternoon and I was just taking a huge batch of my fabulous chili off the stove for dinner, when I heard another knock at the door. Mom was out on the back deck grabbing more wood for the fire. With the noise level in the house, I wasn’t surprised Fred didn’t hear it, so I wiped my hands on my shirt and headed up front.
I opened the door and my breath caught—I wasn’t sure if it was because of the ear-shattering thunderclap that came into the house with the swing of the door, or the man standing on the porch. The tall, wet figure stood in a black North Face hoodie and a baseball cap. His hands were shoved in his jean pockets. The wind was whipping around him and his cheeks were bright red, but he looked up at me from under long, thick lashes and smiled a big sexy smile. I swear the corners of his perfect teeth sparkled, like they do in the movies.
