Chapter Five

Jessica was in a much better frame of mind when she returned to Cabot Cove. She and George spent Sunday relaxing at his flat and they were able to discuss a few things like where each of them saw their relationship unfolding. George promised to never make decisions that involve her without getting her opinion at the very least and Jessica promised not to avoid his calls. She wasn't certain he really wanted to speak with her while she was in an irate frame of mind but she would do it since she promised.

Even though he wasn't a hundred percent recovered, he insisted on taking her to the airport. He gave her a hug and kissed her cheek before she took pity on him and kissed him deeply. He held her in his arms a few moments longer. He touched her cheek with his fingers before clasping her hand.

"Til we meet again, Jessie," he said softly.

She nodded with tears threatening. Goodbyes were so difficult.

Her novel was coming along smoother now. She was furiously trying to finish the last few chapters. She would have to take time off for the Christmas holiday with all the parties she has been invited to attend but after she was basically a recluse all autumn, it would be nice to get out.

Seth was coming over to make dinner tonight. Eggplant Parmesan with his Risotto Especial, and she had the makings of a Caesar salad to accompany it. It was a busy flu season for the doc so a nice quiet evening would be wonderful.

After dinner they settled in front of the chessboard and got comfortable.

"I must say, your book must be nearing the end," he muttered. "You're actually focusing on the match."

"Don't try to distract me so I'll let you win," she commented. "I have about five chapters left and I hope another three days will do it for me. Eve Simpson's party is in five days and that kicks off a busy week for me."

"You'll let me take you?"

"Of course, Seth. It wouldn't be much of a party without you. I just hope there aren't any emergencies." She made a move which made him frown in concentration.

"Did I mention that I beat George three games in a row?"

"You never said much about what you did over there?" Seth's tone wasn't accusatory but she did arch an eyebrow at him, which he missed.

"Well, I wasn't there long enough," she responded.

"And you went back the week before last and didn't say much then either."

"Seth, I told you, George was ill the entire time. He mostly slept and I watched him do it. He even missed work!"

"And you played nursemaid?" He had a smile playing around the corners of his mouth. "I can't recall you having talent in that area."

"I just channeled my inner-Seth and grumped about while pushing fluids and taking his temperature." She smiled fully at him.

She saw the glint in his eye but he didn't comment further.

"You have a dirty mind, Seth Hazlitt!"

"What? I didn't say anything!" He was smiling broadly now.

"You were thinking about me giving him a sponge bath! He took care of showering on his own." She moved again. "Check."

That made Seth refocus on the game. He made a defensive move and she had to rethink her strategy. "I'm just happy the two of you worked things out."

She looked up at him, frowning. "Seth, I'm worried I don't trust him like before."

"Worried he'll trample over your heart? You can't love without risks and he strikes me as someone that doesn't make the same mistake twice." Seth stopped looking at the game and looked up at her. "You know, we're all widows and widowers. We've lost someone we loved more than anything. You never know what fears someone is harboring. He might fear losing you but at least he's willing to climb out on that limb. Some never recover from their loss."

Jessica looked at him knowingly. "Thanks Seth."

Morning found Jessica pounding away at her keyboard. She was so close to finishing and she realized that there were still a few gifts she needed to buy for Christmas. Thankfully they were for local friends so she wouldn't have to mail them. Feeling accomplished she took a break from writing and walked to the grocery store. She would have to call a cab to return home as she would be loaded with food for the holidays.

Two hours later, she shivered as she put away her groceries. A storm was brewing, she could feel it. She made sure to bring in enough wood to last a few days and set about vacuuming and dusting. Her intuition was telling her there might be a power outage and she liked her house spotless when that happened. She settled back to working on her book while intermittently saving her progress just in case. She was going to have to invest in a laptop so she could work on battery power.

Seth was having a busy day. He wished his patients would take better care of themselves. He felt like half of his day was telling patients to keep warm and dry, take in plenty of fluids, come by at the first sign of illness and not to wait until he had to admit them at the hospital.

His phone rang just as he was writing his notes and his nurse, Beverly, had left for the day. He looked at the caller ID and nearly refused to answer since it was an unlisted number but decided it might be good news. Maybe. It was George.

He called Jessica and canceled dinner but he could tell she was working on her book and didn't care. She did tell him about coming over tomorrow instead. She believed she would be finished with her book and wanted to celebrate.

She worked well into the night. She would still have to reread her work, taking notes if she found a plot hole or needed to make sure a fact was correct but that's why editors were assigned and she wasn't too fussy about changes.

She also perused her calendar for the new year. She was trying to see if she could eke out a week or so to visit George but it wasn't likely in the first three months. She had a book tour in February and needed a week to speak at a college in Vermont in early March. She finally decided to call it a night and went to bed.

R-r-r-r-ring. Jessica fumbled for the phone. Glancing at the clock, she saw it was nearly nine in the morning. "Good morning," she answered while yawning.

"Good morning, love," George's voice sounded in her ear. "I'm calling because I know better than to just walk into a lady's house without giving her time to decide whether or not to open the door."

"You're here? Here?" exclaimed Jessica. She jumped out of bed and pulled on her robe.

"Do you need me to come back later?" he asked with a smile in his voice. "Seth said we should just come inside and wait."

"Seth's with you? Tell him to take you to the diner and come back in an hour!"

"A whole hour? Lass, we shared a tent. I know what your hair looks like when you wake up!" There was a decided note of joviality in his voice.

"Two hours!" she shouted and slammed the phone down. She peeked out the curtain and saw Seth and George walking back to the car, laughing. Is this why Seth canceled on her for dinner last night?

She hurried into the bathroom to shower and clean up. She took the time to wash and wrestle her hair into shape. She carefully chose her outfit for the day and changed her bedsheets. It was exactly two hours later that they returned and Jessica was in the kitchen sipping a cup of tea.

The door was unlocked so Seth and George entered. Jessica stood up and gave George a hug, welcoming him yet feeling a little uncomfortable with Seth standing and watching.

"So this is why you stood me up last night?" she asked Seth.

"Ayuh, his flight landed at 6:45 this morning and he wanted to surprise you."

"I am surprised. I stayed up late working on my book. I just have to proofread it, send it off, and then I'm free." She looked at George. "How long are you staying?"

"I am free until the third of January then I am spending six weeks in Boston before going home."

"How wonderful," remarked Jessica.

"My supervisor knew this when he came over to the flat but wanted to surprise me once they were certain I was chosen for the job." He smiled at her brightly. "I'm hoping you don't mind my staying although Seth offered up his place as well."

"I think I can accommodate you with something better than a sleeping bag on my living room floor," she laughed at him. "I have two empty guest rooms and you can have your pick."

George lifted his luggage and headed for the stairs. Jessica turned to look at Seth and give him the evil eye. "Seriously? You couldn't warn me?"

"I didn't want to take sides, Jess. He wanted it to be a surprise." He said holding up both hands.

"And here I thought you were always on my side," she commented, kissing his cheek.

"Always Jess." He looked at the clock on her stove. "I need to run home. I don't have patients for two days and no one is currently in the hospital so Isabel is over giving the downstairs a thorough clean, and upstairs if there's time. I also need to find time for laundry and buying groceries."

"Seth, drop your laundry here and I'll do it. I'm not going out at all." She ushered him to the door. "The weatherman is reporting freezing temperatures and the possibility of 12 -18 inches of snow in the next few days."

"Ayuh, I've got plenty of wood. I'll run home and get my laundry before getting groceries. Thanks Jess." He dashed out the door.

By mutual unspoken agreement, George and Jessica didn't begin a discussion regarding their relationship. Jessica started on Seth's laundry with George expertly ironing the pants (with creases) and the shirts (lightly starched).

Jessica had both of her crockpots going, one with clam chowder and the other with minestrone, wrapping gifts and making sure her outfit for Eve's party was ready.

She also backed up her final proof of her book and emailed it to her publisher. They will begin editing in the New Year. It was a huge relief to have it completed early. She turned on holiday music and sang carols as she folded Seth's clothes. She sighed looking at the piles. He obviously only did laundry when he was down to his last pair of clean clothes. She even washed his towels and sheets. She figuratively patted herself on the back. She was a good friend. She found two more laundry baskets and began putting the folded clothes inside so they would be easier to carry and less likely to get wrinkled.

"Darling?" called George.

Jessica smiled. It was so nice to hear him call her darling. "What is it?" she asked.

"This news bulletin says extreme weather conditions."

Jessica went to the window and looked outside. Her eyes widened in shock. In such a short amount of time, snow started falling heavily. There were already drifts.

"Let me make sure Seth made it home from the grocery store." She dashed for her phone and called his office.

"Can't talk, Jess. I have burst pipes, I just turned off the water but it will be a long job and my car is full of groceries."

"No, Seth. The water is off so get in the car and drive over here. Bring your food and we'll store it here and I have two weeks worth of your clothes here clean and ready. You can stay in my other guest room," commanded Jessica.

"I'm leaving now. It's getting really bad outside."

Half an hour later Seth finally arrived. He came in through the kitchen door carrying two bags of groceries before heading back to his car to get more. George followed him so they were able to bring everything in with just one more trip.

"Jess, it's going to be really bad tonight. The winds are picking up and the forecast has changed to twenty four inches of snow and probably more."

"Well, you're safe now and we have plenty of food and drink."

The evening was spent sharing stories, drinking wine, and laughing. Occasionally one of them got up to check the weather outside since the wind was howling and Seth told Jessica he was happy she got the house battened down for winter early. Since it was so costly heating the house, she closed off some of the rooms so the furnace didn't have to work harder than normal. Her fireplace kept the family room warm and toasty.

"I hope we don't lose power," commented Seth. It will take a week or more just to clear the roads."

"I'm just grateful we have plenty of food, a chef to cook for me, and my house is clean." She smiled appreciatively. "Why don't you two get a chess match going while I make some tea. I'll play the winner."

Later they went to bed separately and fell asleep. Jessica was awakened by the cold in the early morning hours. She pulled on her robe and slippers and crept downstairs in the dark. Seth had put out the fire before bed but that didn't explain why it was so cold. It wasn't until she tried to turn on the kitchen light that she saw the electricity had gone out. She lit a few candles then took care to start another fire going.

Creeping downstairs to her basement, she went to the corner where her old camp stove was sitting on a table. It hadn't been used in over five years but she had sterno and it was clean. Within half an hour she had water boiling for tea and a coffee pot sitting on the burner.

She took a lukewarm shower and dressed in several layers of clothing. She heard movement so at least one other person was awake. She went downstairs and opened the refrigerator. Breakfast would be poached eggs, oatmeal, fruit, and muffins. Seth came downstairs and greeted her.

"Morning Jess," He grabbed a mug and poured a cup of coffee. "I see we have no power. Do you have more candles?"

"Yes, I'll grab the lanterns but I don't want to open the curtains and let the cold from the windows keep us shivering. I think we should close off the upstairs and just use the kitchen and family room." She went below the sink and took out two lanterns. She set one on the counter which gave the room a warm glow and the other she put in the family room. "We can use the downstairs bathroom."

She greeted George as he entered.

"Good morning lass, Seth," he said as a shiver ran down his spine. "It's warming up in here. Reminds me of the castle."

"Look at all the trees!" exclaimed Jessica, looking out her kitchen glass door. The trees were full of icicles and bent in half with the weight of the frozen water. The wind had lessened but gusts would occur that caused the branches to break and fall down.

"Jess, we might be here for a few days," commented Seth worriedly. "Let me call my service and Mort over at the Sheriff's office so they know where I am."

Jessica looked concerned as well. While she didn't mind houseguests and couldn't think of two other guests she would enjoy more, she didn't necessarily want to have them both at the same time. It was awkward even giving George a hug with Seth's observant eyes. It went without saying that there wouldn't be any intimate moments between her and George.

She turned on the radio hoping to find a news station with a weather update. The news wasn't encouraging. The wind wasn't dying down and they were in full blizzard mode. They were warned about not going outside, to keep pipes dripping so they don't burst, to bring plants and pets inside. There were freeze warnings and instructions for driving in icy conditions if it was absolutely necessary.

As the morning wore on, she brought out every lantern and candle to see how much she had in batteries and lighters. She was only lighting two rooms and they would have to carry a flashlight into the bathroom. She felt she had more than enough to last a week if they were careful.

George helped her carry bedding downstairs and they both laughed that he brought the air mattress back to Cabot Cove. With the sofas and the mattress, they could sleep in front of the fireplace.

"If that isn't too awkward for you or Seth," suggested Jessica.

"I'll be fine on one of the sofas," remarked George.

"Me too," joined Seth. "I guess you get the air mattress, Jess."

They began moving furniture around. Jessica and Seth carried several items to the living room to make room then she brought down more blankets and pillows.

"What do you want for lunch? It's after one." Seth began peeking into cabinets.

"We should eat things we don't have to cook, I guess." Jessica frowned.

"Tuna sandwiches work for me," said Seth. He went about preparing the food.

George was perusing the bar Jessica had in the family room. "You have a fine selection, Jessie, but I think we're going to make a huge dent in it to keep warm."

Jessica laughed. "Sure, any excuse you need, George. But we are not getting drunk, I don't care how cold it is. You will be cleaning up your own mess."

George scrunched up his face. "I won't be drinking too much. Just a wee toddy to help sleep at night and stay warm."

Jessica checked the thermostat. "It's sixty-nine degrees so the fireplace is helping."

"We should use a couple of those blankets and cover those french doors," suggested George. "It will help insulate and keep the warmth inside."

They set about rigging the blankets over the doors and then closing the curtains. It darkened the room but it wasn't as though they were planning to do a lot of reading.

The sofas formed an L in the family room and her mattress will go right in front of them. She wished she owned sleeping bags but the pioneers survived so hopefully she would be warm. She was wearing one of her thick sweat suits with long johns underneath. All three of them had brought down extra clothing so they wouldn't have to go upstairs in the cold rooms.

Seth closed all the vents in the house so cold air wouldn't circulate into the family room. Since the downstairs bathroom only contained a shower, she assured them they could wash at the sink and just add heated water. She wasn't going to brave a cold shower and was happy to have gotten a lukewarm shower that morning.

A loud crash was heard outside and Seth bundled up to see what happened as it was toward the front of the house. A neighbor's pine tree across the street had come crashing down. Thankfully the streets were empty of cars and there wasn't any damage except for the tree. Seth eyed the trees around Jessica's house. They were all pine as well. The largest one was bearing the weight of the ice at the moment but if it fell, would it fall on the house or in the yard?