3

Justin sat on the sofa in the same place as the previous evening. When was the last time he’d talked to someone so long he’d lost track of time? Lauren was right. This cabin was special. He was almost at peace here. Almost. This place was empty without her. How did she carve a spot into his heart so quickly?

Facing the next two or three hours alone with no form of entertainment was not his idea of an ideal weekend. Now if Lauren were still here, it would be a different story. His gaze traveled around the cabin at all the cheery Christmas décor, but no matter where they wandered, they always landed on the table next to him. The table with Lauren’s grandfather’s Bible staring him in the face.

What was there to be afraid of? It was only a book. He’d read lots of books. It made no sense. How could his dad and Lauren view it so differently? One of them was wrong. If Lauren was right, and God was a God of love, where did that leave him?

After several minutes of arguing with himself, Justin grabbed the Bible. Lauren was so full of life, he wanted to learn more about what made her tick. How did someone go through a breakup, a layoff, and Christmas alone, and still be at peace?

He opened the Bible to a random page.

1 John 4: 7-12

Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.

Lauren was right. It was all about love. Was his father wrong all this time? If he had to choose, he’d much rather believe in Lauren’s God than his father’s. Justin sat, soaking in his newfound revelation for a time. He flipped pages. Last night, Lauren read the first two chapters of Luke. He’d heard the Christmas story and the Easter story before, but knew very little about what happened in between. He settled on the sofa and started to read.

After several chapters, Justin stretched, and his mind drifted back to Lauren. She took him in, tended to his wounds, fed him, and listened to him. No one had ever treated him so well before. He laid the Bible back on the end table. Needing a break from his thoughts, the desire to do something kind for Lauren struck him. What did she say she wanted to do for Christmas? Decorating the tree, eggnog, cookies… He couldn’t help with cutting down the tree, but if there were recipes in the kitchen, he could help with the cookies.

Justin shuffled with the walker into the kitchen. Sure enough, there was a recipe box. He flipped to the cookies section and thumbed through the cards. He maneuvered his way around the kitchen, collecting flour, sugar, eggs, and butter. He pulled out the mixer and a spatula and creamed the butter and sugar. Never in a million years would he have pictured this weekend turning out this way. While the ingredients mixed, he shuffled back over and turned on the CD player. No reason not to play a little music for company. So what if the only CDs were Christmas ones?

Soon, with flour on his pants (and a little in his hair), Justin sat at the kitchen table, rolling out dough and cutting shapes. It was kind of fun. He sprinkled colored sugar on the cookies, put the trays in the oven, and set the timer.

Glancing around the kitchen, Justin’s good mood faltered. He couldn’t leave the place like this. Lauren wouldn’t be back for quite a while, but still. He’d better clean up. He loaded the mixing bowls and spoons into the dishwasher while the aroma of baking cookies filled the cabin.

By the time the first batch of cookies was baked, the kitchen was almost back to the way he’d found it. He put the cookies on a rack to cool, slid the final two trays in the oven, and made his way back to the couch.

He picked up the Bible to read some more.

A strange rumbling sounded from outside.

Justin’s leg was throbbing, so he decided not to investigate.

A moment later, the door burst open, and Lauren and Eric appeared, staring at him.

He closed the Bible and placed it on the end table, but not before they noticed. Wisely choosing not to acknowledge his choice of reading material, Eric made his way over to the sofa.

“How are you doing, buddy?”

“I’m good. My leg’s a little sore, but I found this fantastic nurse.” His gaze sought Lauren’s, but she was staring into the kitchen.

“You made cookies?”

Justin shrugged. “You said you wanted Christmas cookies. You’ve done so much for me, I thought it would be nice to do something for you.”

Lauren’s eyes shone. “Thank you, Justin. How thoughtful. You must’ve been up on your leg quite a bit.”

“That’s why I’m sitting now. How did you get back so soon?”

“Eric brought me back on his snowmobile,” Lauren said. With her cheeks flushed from the cold, her face was radiant. The mental picture of Lauren riding on the back of Eric’s snowmobile with her arms wrapped around him lit something in Justin he did not want to face.

The oven dinged.

Justin moved to get up.

“Stay there. I’ll get the cookies out. You’ve been on your leg enough for one day.” Lauren disappeared into the kitchen and came out a moment later carrying a plate of Justin’s cookies and a tray of glasses. She placed the plate and the glasses on the table and returned with a container of milk.

“It hasn’t been too long since breakfast, but these smell so good I don’t want to wait.” Lauren set the milk down.

Justin grinned. Hopefully the cookies tasted as good as they smelled.

Eric took a bite and his eyes widened. “These are good. You’re full of surprises. Since when did you bake cookies?”

A sense of pride caused Justin to sit up a little straighter. “All I needed was a good recipe and a good reason, I guess.” He turned to Lauren, hoping for confirmation she liked them as well.

“Just like Grandma’s,” Lauren said, as she sank into the chair. “Thank you, Justin. This was a sweet surprise.” After finishing her cookies and returning the milk to the fridge, Lauren turned toward the guys. “Will you be OK here if I head into town?”

“Do you want to check if the streets are plowed?” Eric asked.

“Well, honestly, I wanted to get closer to civilization. I’d like to make a phone call. Since you were kind enough to give me a ride back, I still have energy to ski into town. It’s closer than your place.”

“Ever driven a snowmobile?” Eric asked. “You’re welcome to it. If you’re willing to trust us in your place, I can trust you with my snowmobile.”

“It’s a bigger risk for you than for me. There’s nothing here worth walking off with, unless you count my grandmother’s antique nativity set. And anyone who would steal a nativity set is the lowest of the low.”

“I promise, I’ll make sure Eric keeps his grubby hands off it,” Justin said, quirking a smile.

“Yeah, as if she’s known you so much longer,” Eric retorted.

“If he tried to rob me, I could chase him down. He wouldn’t get too far with the walker.”

Lauren winked at Justin, and his stomach flip-flopped.

“If you’re serious, Eric, I’d love to borrow the snowmobile. It will cut a lot of time off the trip.”

“Take your time. My only chance to visit with my invalid friend here will be at your place, since the roads aren’t likely to get plowed for a while.” Eric held out the key.

“Yeah, and my knee wouldn’t feel very good bouncing around on a snowmobile,” Justin said.

“Nurse’s orders say no snowmobiling for at least a week.” Lauren zipped her parka and tucked her phone into a pocket.

Her phone. Wait. “Lauren?”

Lauren turned back, hand on the doorknob. She focused her deep brown eyes on him and for a moment he could scarcely breathe. Blinking, Justin formulated his question. “Would you check my messages?”

Lauren’s eyebrows raised. “You want me to take your phone?”

“If it wouldn’t be too much trouble. I’ve been unreachable since yesterday afternoon.”

“Do you want me to respond to anyone?”

“Play it by ear. I trust you. It’s in my coat pocket.”

Lauren pulled his coat from the coat rack, rummaged in his pockets, and located his phone. “Password?”

Justin bit his lip, realizing what he was doing. Giving Lauren his password unlocked all his personal communication to her. He met her gaze, looked into those golden-brown angel eyes, and rattled off the 6-digit number.

Lauren repeated it back to him and slipped out the door.