Snowstorm at Cedar Creek Read online

  About Snowstorm At Cedar Creek

  CHILDHOOD FRIENDS

  Annie Pope loves Finn Burton, and he loves her too—as a friend. Even after they both begin college, they return every year to their families’ next-door summer cottages, work summers at the local food market, and spend all their spare time together.

  * * *

  MAKE CHOICES

  But when Finn graduates and takes off backpacking through Europe with his college girlfriend—a girlfriend he’s never mentioned to Annie—she’s forced to face facts. She is merely the sister he never had, and he’s the boyfriend she’ll never have.

  * * *

  THAT TIME CAN’T ERASE

  Two decades later, life hasn’t turned out as Annie had hoped, but she’s come to terms with it. In fact, she’s content with her life—that is, until her daughter and Finn’s son show up and announce they’re getting married, bringing Finn Burton back into her life.

  * * *

  BUT CAN LOVE?

  Now they’re both trying to be the good friends they’d once been. But does friendship feel like this?

  * * *

  A sweet, small-town romance about the power of friendship and the serendipitous nature of love.

  Also by J.L. Jarvis

  Cedar Creek

  Christmas at Cedar Creek

  Snowstorm at Cedar Creek

  * * *

  Pine Harbor

  Allison’s Pine Harbor Summer

  Evelyn’s Pine Harbor Autumn

  Lydia’s Pine Harbor Christmas

  * * *

  Holiday House

  The Christmas Cabin

  The Winter Lodge

  The Lighthouse

  The Christmas Castle

  The Beach House

  The Christmas Tree Inn

  The Holiday Hideaway

  * * *

  Highland Passage

  Highland Passage

  Knight Errant

  Lost Bride

  * * *

  Highland Soldiers

  The Enemy

  The Betrayal

  The Return

  The Wanderer

  * * *

  Highland Vow

  * * *

  American Hearts

  Secret Hearts

  Runaway Hearts

  Forbidden Hearts

  * * *

  For more information, visit jljarvis.com.

  * * *

  Sign up for the J.L. Jarvis Journal.

  Snowstorm at Cedar Creek

  J.L. Jarvis

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Epilogue

  Acknowledgments

  About the Author

  SNOWSTORM AT CEDAR CREEK

  * * *

  Copyright © 2021 J.L. Jarvis

  All Rights Reserved

  * * *

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  * * *

  The scanning, uploading and distribution of this book via the Internet or any other means without the permission of the publisher is illegal. Please purchase only authorized electronic editions, and do not participate in or encourage electronic piracy of copyrighted materials. Your support of the author's rights is appreciated.

  * * *

  Published by Bookbinder Press

  bookbinderpress.com

  * * *

  ISBN (paperback) 978-1-942767-44-2

  ISBN (ebook) 978-1-942767-43-5

  1

  Annie Pope had never thought she was asking for much. From the time she was twelve, she’d had three goals in life—go to college, have a stellar career, and marry Finn Burton. Annie was a practical girl. It wasn’t as if Finn was perfect. She’d known him for too long to believe that. But he was perfect for her.

  For one thing, his family’s summer cottage was next door to hers. While year-round next-door neighbors would have been even better, Annie came to terms with the situation. In fact, she’d decided it was much more romantic because she had all year to remember the previous summer, to wonder what Finn might be doing, how much older he’d look when she saw him again, and whether this would be the summer he’d finally love her back.

  If she could go back and talk to her twelve-year-old self, she would tell her it would all turn out just as she’d hoped. She’d be lying, of course, but some things were better left unsaid.

  Here she stood, key in hand, at the door to the cottage that had been in her family for three generations. And now, two weeks before Christmas, she was making it her full-time home. Between falling in love with Finn Burton and this moment, thirty years had passed. Spoiler alert—Finn had not fallen in love, at least not with Annie.

  She was fine with that now. Still, she looked up at the decades-old horseshoe that hung over the vacation-house door, and she scowled. For years, she had run to the door like she was making a touchdown because her grandmother had told her the first one to pass under the horseshoe got to make a wish. Grandma hadn’t exactly lied. She’d just left out the part where the wish wouldn’t come true.

  At least now Annie knew. This would not be the year Finn loved her back.

  Annie soaked in the sight of the familiar stone-and-clapboard cottage that sat beside Cedar Creek, which wound its way through the tall trees. Crisp air stirred the bare branches and tossed about dried leaves. The sight warmed her heart and made her smile. She was home.

  When her corporate job shifted to working from home, Annie put her Manlius, New York, house on the market and headed for the family cottage at Cedar Creek in the Adirondack Mountains, her favorite place in the world. With a satisfied sigh, Annie went to her bedroom and, dispensing with formalities, pulled off her bra. She wouldn’t see another human until she drove into town for some groceries, so comfort was the rule.

  After setting out food and water for her cat, she tugged a sweatshirt over her head and pulled the ends of her mouse-colored shoulder-length hair free. On her way back to the car to unpack, her phone rang. She reflexively glanced at the old rotary-dial wall phone that hung in the kitchen, long since disconnected, and pulled out her cell phone. She smiled when she saw her only child’s college graduation photo on the screen. “Hi, Ella. I just walked in the door.”

  “Good. Mom? Are you busy tonight?”

  Annie wrinkled her nose at the odd question. She’d left Ella nearly four hours before, packing boxes in her childhood bedroom. “Uh, let me check my calendar. No.” She began a mental list of possible problems. Burst pipes? Tripped circuit breaker? Maybe just a clogged toilet. Had the realtor called? “Like I said, I just walked in the door. Is everything okay there?”

  “Yeah—sorry—everything’s fine! I just…uh...”

  What’s that? Is she suppressing a giggle?

  “I… I’ll be there in four hours,” Ella said. “Don’t worry. Everything’s fine.”

  That is a smile. I can hear it in her voice. She is definitely smiling.

  “Ella, what’s going on? You’ve got that sound in your voice.” Now that was an absolute giggle, but a secretive one.

  “Don’t worry,” Ella said. “It’s all g
ood. See you soon!”

  “But—”

  “Oh, and Mom?”

  “Hold on. You can’t just call and—”

  “Put on a bra,” Ella mumbled, her voice sounding muffled. “Connor’s coming with me.”

  “Connor?” That was a significant item she’d slipped in, as if Annie wouldn’t notice.

  Ella said, “Connor Burton.”

  Annie rolled her eyes. “I know which Connor.”

  What I don’t know is why Connor Burton—Finn Burton’s only child—is with you or why he’s coming up here. With my daughter!

  Ella laughed. “Gotta go, Mom. See you soon!”

  Annie managed, dropped jaw and all, to get out a goodbye. She slipped the phone into her pocket and stared at the wall.

  Calm down. Don’t jump to conclusions.

  There were any number of reasons for Ella to bring Connor here. For instance, they’d gone to the same college, so they’d stayed in touch. That had always seemed so coincidental, the way they’d both wound up at the same school and had run into each other within minutes of arriving at freshmen orientation. But Ella barely spoke about him. To be honest, Ella barely talked to Annie at all anymore. But wasn’t that what college was for—to help young people become independent? Four years later, Ella and Connor were still friends—real friends—not like Annie and Finn. Annie had watched for signs that history was repeating itself, but Ella seemed completely happy. In fact, she was far more well-adjusted than Annie had been at her age.

  So Connor’s there at the house. He was probably just passing through on his way to… somewhere. You’re imagining things. Why shouldn’t he stop for a visit? Friends do that sort of thing. And, as friends, why wouldn’t he and Ella share a ride to the family summer homes? Except then they’ll be short a car while they’re here.

  And then there was Ella’s change of plans. She wasn’t supposed to arrive at the cottage for another few days. There was no way she could be finished packing already. Two decades of handmade jewelry, elementary-school dioramas, and God knew what else were crammed into her room—and that wasn’t counting whatever was in the closet!

  Annie leaned over the kitchen sink and peered through a crack in the blinds. Finn’s cottage looked the same as usual. What was not usual was Connor coming here at all. No one but tourists had stayed at that cottage in a year. Vacation renters had come and gone, all overseen by a property manager Annie had run into one day by the mailbox. The property manager had said Finn’s A-frame was a popular rental. Annie wasn’t surprised. His wife had made sure the place was completely remodeled with a cozy but state-of-the-art kitchen and a modern soaker tub to die for in the bathroom. Gleaming hardwoods and stylish furnishings finished it off. Annie’s heart had sunk the first time she’d seen it—not that it wasn’t gorgeous. It was. It just didn’t look like the cottage she and Finn had run into with red, sweaty faces to gulp glasses of water between childhood adventures.

  Annie heaved a sigh. She didn’t blame Finn, exactly. Georgina had impeccable taste that was undoubtedly driving renters to stay at their cottage. It was a win-win. Finn was making money renting the cabin, and Annie didn’t have to run into him anymore. Or maybe it was the other way around. After all, it had been a full year since she’d seen him. And now Connor was on his way, for reasons unknown. She rolled her eyes. Or because his family owned the place. Who wouldn’t enjoy parking oneself in an Adirondack chair by the creek, enveloped in the thick scent of pines and the sound of creek water rushing over the rocks?

  Annie, you are blowing this out of proportion!

  She did that sometimes. She blamed it on living alone. With no one to bounce things off except her cat, Mr. Willoughby, her overactive mind sometimes got the better of her. She took a few deep breaths.

  Everything’s going to be fine, and if it’s not, I will deal with it.

  Oh! The car! She’d left the car door open. She rushed outside to unload it. She wasn’t worried about theft. Her luggage was more likely to be mauled by a bear than stolen by some passing hiker. It was her car battery she was worried about. She exhaled and got busy. She had a house to air out. And a bra to put on.

  Really, Ella!

  Three and a half hours later, Annie lit a scented candle, emptied a bag of chips into a bowl, and arranged the cookies on one of her grandmother’s plates. The cookies were store bought, but she hadn’t had time to bake. She thought about starting a fire, but she didn’t have any logs. Before she had a chance to go outside and check the wood pile, an aggressive knock at the door made her flinch.

  Annie turned on the porch light and squinted through the door’s beveled-glass window.

  “Annie, it’s me—Finn.”

  Annie opened the door and stood staring. “Finn?”

  “Hurry, it’s freezing out here.”

  His dark eyes searched hers with an unsettling glint that still made her chest flutter. He gently touched her shoulder to nudge her aside. She stood uselessly by while he rushed in and shut the door behind him. He took off his jacket, hung it on one of the hooks on the wall, and turned, flashing one of those grins that used to make her knees buckle—and still did.

  “Finn?” With all the questions racing through her mind, was that the best she could do—a feeble Finn?

  How about, why are you here? Do you know Connor’s on his way too? And let’s circle back and discuss why you’ve appeared on my doorstep, and my heart is now pounding like it’s 1991.

  “We’ve only got a few minutes. Annie, are you okay? Come here. Let’s sit down.” He ushered her to a chair at the old kitchen table then got a glass from the cupboard. He knew right where to go. The glasses were in the same place they’d been since Annie and Finn were children.

  Annie took a sip of the water he brought her then set the glass down while Finn pulled his chair closer.

  “I am so sorry, Annie.” Headlights glared through the window. “Oh, crap. I was hoping we’d have time to talk, so we’d be on the same page.”

  Annie’s stomach turned over. She wasn’t sure why, but Finn obviously knew something she didn’t, and she knew him well enough to trust his reaction. She was starting to imagine worst-possible scenarios when Ella walked in with Connor at her heels.

  Connor paused, clearly surprised. “Dad?”

  “Close the door.” Finn’s face barely moved except for a slight narrowing of his eyes.

  For the first time, Annie sat back and took a good look at him. Finlay Hilderman Burton. The subject of so many wishes and dreams—dreams that had loomed front and center for most of her formative years. Finn looked good—better than good. He wore that salt-and-pepper look well. And his athletic frame had, if anything, gotten fitter. Tiny lines extended from the corners of his dark eyes. But it was that intense gaze of his she remembered the most.

  “Mom?”

  Absently, Annie glanced at her daughter. Annie, wake up! You’re a terrible mother. She fixed her eyes on Ella’s newly cropped brown hair that didn’t quite touch her shoulders. It looked neat and grown up.

  “Mom? Hello. Are you okay?”

  Annie attempted a carefree shrug. “Yeah. Yeah, I’m fine.” Is this what a psychotic break feels like? Her eyes flitted downward but not without seeing the concern on Finn’s face.

  He reached over and barely touched her shoulder with his fingertips. There went the butterflies—down to her stomach. Then he gave her that look—the same encouraging look he’d given her the first time she’d swung over the creek on the tire swing. It had been more effective when she was seven.

  “Why don’t we all go sit in the living room?” He said it gently, but it wasn’t really a question.

  As they all headed out of the kitchen, Connor gently touched Ella’s back. That’s different. Eyes fixed on his hand, Annie froze in her tracks while Ella and Connor walked on ahead.

  Finn peered at her. “Annie?”

  Finn was always the one to be steady and calm in the face of a crisis. Annie wondered what that must feel l
ike. She resumed her walk to the living room. Ella and Connor had positioned themselves on the sofa, leaving two adjacent armchairs for Annie and Finn.

  Connor was a clone of his mother with his dirty-blond hair and Northeast Coast old-money bearing. Annie could still hear Georgina that first summer whining about how she preferred Newport over the mountains.

  “Mom…” Ella’s voice trailed off.

  Connor put his hand on Ella’s and drew in a breath. “Annie...” he said. They were practically family, or used to be, so the kids had always called each other’s parents by their first names.

  “We’re getting married!” Connor announced.

  2

  Finn stole a sideways glance at Annie. “It’s an ongoing discussion.”

  So Finn knew? Of course he knew. That's what he wanted to tell her.

  “Married?” It wasn’t as though Annie hadn’t guessed. It was near the top of the dozen or so options she’d come up with in the four hours since her daughter had called. “I didn’t know you two were dating.”