Hollywood Harlot

Chapter 5

Fear began creeping into the corners of her mind, but Bella pushed it away. She was in a dangerous situation, and she had to keep her cool to try to get out of it. Hopelessly, she looked around in all 360 degrees, but all she could see was the blinding snow blocking her view in every direction. Conditions were worsening by the second. How had she not known the weather was going to be so bad? Bella’s stomach started growling, reminding her she hadn’t even eaten breakfast. How wonderful it would be to be inside the warm, safe lodge, curled up by the fire, with a plate of hot breakfast and some hot chocolate in her hands. Bella sighed. Wishful thinking like that was not going to help her get out of the predicament.

She put her hand up against the pine tree she stood nearest to.

“Okay,” she said, once again talking out loud. “Time to make Ms. Janett proud.”

Bella thought back to her Scouting days as a child. Her pack leader had followed her for all six years of the elementary program, and if there was one message she drilled in them over and over again, it was, “If you get lost, stop moving. A stationary object is easier to find than a moving target.”

“No more walking,” Bella said, desperately wishing she had a whistle with her, like they’d always had as Scouts. After her mom had passed away, her dad hadn’t really known what to do with her, though he really did try, at first. Signing her up for Scouts and attending hikes and campouts with her had been his attempt at bonding, and it had worked when she was younger. But as she’d gotten older and more interested in boys and makeup than hiking and fishing, he had become more and more distant. Still, now stranded in the snow alone, she appreciated all those meetings she’d sat through learning about wilderness survival.

She’d wait. Jake would come find her, eventually. She didn’t even take a second to wonder at her complete faith he’d find her- somehow, she just knew within her heart that he would. She couldn’t have wandered that far off the path, and if she’d been paying better attention last night to where they’d been going, she wouldn’t have gotten lost at all. She silently cursed herself for one too many drinks with Jordyn the night before. But one of those warm mugs of chocolatey alcohol right about now wouldn’t be bad. She shook her head, no magical drink was going to mysteriously arrive and save her. For now, she only had herself to count on. She’d been taking care of herself for a long time, and she could do it now, too.

Bella knelt down at the base of the tree and began scooping a burrow out of the snow. She knew she had to stay dry and she had to stay as warm as she could, and a little snow cave was her best, and really only, option at the moment. As soon as she’d burrowed out a big enough space for her to get into, she crouched down into her little snow nest. She perched on her feet, grabbing her knees, and knew she couldn’t sit there like that for long, but that it was the warmest thing she could do for as long as she could stand. And then she waited.

Protected in her nest, the winds at least weren’t so biting and bitter, but it was still extremely cold. Time passed, but Bella honestly had no way of knowing just how much time had gone by. Her phone- her only source of telling time- was dead. She couldn’t see the sun through the storm, not that it would have helped her much anyway, because her basic Scouting skills pretty much ended with her knowledge to stay still and hunker down when lost. So she listened, sitting in the cold storm, straining her ears for any sign of help.

Suddenly, in the distance, Bella saw a faint light. It moved closer and closer until Bella could make out a pair of headlights. It was a snowmobile! Bella leapt up from the ground and began waving her frozen arms.

“Here! Here!” she shouted. “I’m here!”

For one terrifying second, the headlights seemed to turn away from her, but then they began speeding in her direction. As the snowmobile approached the thick woods, the rider skidded to a halt and jumped from the vehicle, running toward her.

Even though he was shrouded by a heavy winter jacket, hat, and ski mask, Bella knew in her heart it was Jake. She raced toward him as he opened his arms wide and she jumped up into his embrace. He squeezed her tight and then tore off his mask, revealing his handsome face to her. Her heart leapt at the sight of him. He grabbed her face in his gloved hands and stared at her intently with his icy blue eyes.

“Bella,” he growled, and he smashed his face down on hers, covering her shivering lips with his warm, delicious ones. Instantly, heat began radiating from the place where they connected, sending tingling sensations all over her body. After just a moment, he softened his kiss, lightly caressing her lips. She kissed back, never in her life having been so grateful to see someone.

Just as quickly as it had begun, the kiss ended. Jake pulled his face back from hers and in one swift motion, he swept her up into a fireman’s carry.

“Jake!” she protested, gently pushing at his chest, but she was suddenly struck by how exhausted she felt, and she gave up the fight immediately. She melted into his strong arms as he strode toward the waiting snowmobile. He gently placed her down on the seat and simultaneously pulled out a two-way radio.

“I’ve got her!” He barked into it, then zipped it back in his pocket as he was already taking off. Bella wrapped her arms around his torso and leaned against his broad back. He felt so good. She let her eyes close for just a moment.

Before she knew it, the snowmobile was stopping again. Bella opened her eyes and blinked. Apparently she’d dozed off on the ride back to the lodge. She was mad at herself for falling asleep because she’d really wanted to see how far off course she had gotten herself.

Jake hopped off again and unceremoniously, yet gently, scooped her back up. In just a few giant strides, he carried her through a side entrance to the lodge and up a set of stairs in the back. On the second floor, he carried her down a hall to another beautiful room overlooking the property, complete with yet another gorgeous fireplace.

He quickly carried her to the fireplace where Jordyn and an older woman and man were standing. The man looked just like Jake, but with silver in his hair and smile crinkles at the corners of his eyes. Bella instinctively knew they were Jake’s parents.

He laid her carefully down on a chaise lounge that was pulled up right next to the fire and began removing her jacket and gloves. Jordyn took off her hat and boots as his mom laid a heavy, extremely thick blanket over her entire body.

“Jake!” Bella said in alarm. “All of this really isn’t necessary.”

“It really is,” he growled, and Bella knew from the look on his face that she shouldn’t say anything else. Jordyn grabbed a white plastic pouch from the table and began massaging it, and then lifted the heavy blankets from Bella just long enough to place it on her chest.

Jordyn leaned down toward her and put a gentle hand on her shoulder. “Dry heat is best for mild hypothermia. We’ve seen our fair share of it around here.”

Bella nodded as she watched them all move around in a flurry of activity. It did appear as if they had the procedure down to a science, everybody moving with a specific purpose.

Jake carried a steaming mug to her and leaned down close to her face.

“Are you okay?” he whispered, his eyes searching her face for an answer before she could even respond.

She nodded and he handed the mug to her. “Decaf,” he said. “Drink it.”

Bella made a face. She was not a coffee fan.

“Drink it,” he said again, louder that time, as he began walking toward the door.

“I really do think she’s okay, honey,” his mom called out to his retreating back.

“And you’re not a doctor!” he barked back, before disappearing from the room without another word.

Bella stared up at Jordyn with wide, unblinking eyes.

“What on earth is going on?” she asked.

Jordyn pulled up a footrest next to where Bella lay. She nodded at her parents, who smiled at Bella and then quietly slipped out.

“Oooo, is he MAD,” Jordyn said chuckling. “He must really, really like you. You’re totally fine. He’s just gone a little crazy.”

Bella shook her head and sat up a little in the chaise. “Is he mad at me??”

Jordyn shook her head, “Oh, no, honey, not at all, he’s mad at himself.”

“But…why?” Bella asked.

“When it started getting late and you hadn’t arrived for brunch, Jake got worried about you and he headed back to the cabin to check on you. You should have seen him come barreling in here the second he realized you must have gotten lost in the snow! He had wild eyes! Of course, we’ve had people get lost before, so we know what to do, but I swear, he had activated the Search and Rescue team, called the cops and also the rangers for the National Forest our property butts up against, and called all staff to get in on the search. He was out on his Artic Cat searching before half of us even knew what was happening.”

Bella took a slow sip of the foul drink, but admitted it did feel nice and warm going down. “How long was I missing?”

Jordyn shrugged. “I’m not sure how long you were out there before we realized it, but we only searched about an hour.”

Bella shook her head. “It’s mortifying. I can’t believe I got lost. I’m so sorry to ruin your day. You should be focusing on the wedding!”

Jordyn smiled and laid her hand gently on Bella’s lap. “Oh, I don’t mind that at all! I’ve had all of the preparations done for ages now, so there’s really nothing to do. You just added some excitement to my day, in fact!”

Bella covered her face with her hand. “I really can’t believe I caused such a big scene.”

Tucking the blankets around Bella’s legs, Jordyn said slyly, “I know you told me you and my brother just met yesterday, but he’s already smitten. Please be careful with him.”

“Oh, no, it’s really not like that,” Bella said. “I…I’m not looking for anything. The last thing I want right now is a relationship.”

“Okay…” Jordyn started to say, but was interrupted when the door burst open. Jake stormed over to where the two ladies sat talking and leaned down to Bella’s face again, getting just an inch or two away. He squinted at her and then stood abruptly up.

“She’s here,” he barked needlessly, and a pair of paramedics walked to where she sat.

“Oh, no,” she said, “That’s really not necessary.”

One of the paramedics, a young looking girl with red, bouncy curls, smiled warmly at her. “Let’s just check you over quickly, then, and we can leave you alone.”

Bella rolled her eyes but allowed them to check her blood pressure and temperature, listen to her heart, and scan her feet and fingers for signs of frostbite.

“Most likely mild hypothermia,” the older medic said to Jake, “And of course you know, you treated it exactly right.” He turned to face Bella. “Stay inside today, keep drinking warm fluids, probably don’t go have a snowball fight, but you’ll be just fine,” he said, filling out some paperwork on a clipboard. He handed the board to Jake, who signed it, and then the two paramedics picked up their bags and left.

“Leave,” Jake said, staring at Jordyn.

“Yikes, you don’t have to say it like that,” she said, holding up her hands. “See, I told you,” she play-whispered to Bella, who frowned a little.

As Jordyn left, Bella stuck her chin up. “That wasn’t a very nice way to talk to your sister!” she pouted.

“Bella! My God!” he groaned again, sitting down on the couch with her, his thigh brushed up against hers. She began to blush immediately.

He leaned close toward her, and for one sweet second, she thought he was going to kiss her again.

“Bella, I am so sorry I left you on your own. I should have never done that. You could have died out there,” he said quietly.

Bella smiled at him. “I think that’s a little dramatic. And I don’t think anyone knew how fast that storm was going to come up.”

“I know we just met, but you’re special somehow. I don’t know what I would have done if anything had happened to you.”

Bella put her hand on his shoulder. “I’m okay now. I’m here. You found me. You saved me.”

“Bella,” he groaned, finally closing the minuscule gap between them and gently kissing her again. The second his lips touched hers, she wanted more, and she leaned into him, pushing her lips harder against his, and teasing his lips open with her tongue and sliding her tongue into his warm mouth. She flicked the tip of his tongue with hers, and he groaned deeply. Suddenly needing even more, she pulled her hands out from under the blankets and pulled at his sweater so she could sneak her hands directly onto his warm, tight waist. Little sparks shot out from where they connected, and she briefly wondered if it was her hands warming back up again or simply the magic of his touch. She tugged at his back, scooting him closer still, and he put his arms behind her head, firmly grasping her neck.

She moaned quietly and he froze, then gently pulled back.

“You have to take it easy,” he whispered, breathing heavily.

“I don’t want to,” she said back, matching his tone.

He ran his hands through his hair and shook his head. “My God, neither do I. But I’m stopping for you. This is for your own good.”

He stood up and tucked her back under the covers, and leaned down to gently kiss the top of her head.

“I’ll be back,” he said simply, and turned to walk off, leaving Bella staring after him, gently touching her bruised lips, wondering what had just happened, and already wanting more.