into the air. He quickly removed a few of the bottom branches to give himself a bigger area to hold on to and then turned toward her. The snow was falling so thickly at this point that they had only about six feet of visibility in front of them.
“I think that storm has hit,” he said as he grabbed the tree with one hand and took her gloved fingers with the other.
“Yes, it’s really coming down. I hope you know your way back to the truck.”
There was a rustling in the bushes to Sage’s left, and she stopped. “What was that?” she whispered, knowing they should probably move, but her legs were frozen solid.
“It’s just a deer.”
“Are you sure?” Her knees finally unlocked, and she started walking beside him again.
“Positive. We need to hurry, though. I want to get down the hill before this turns into a full-blown blizzard.”
His pace was making her breathe heavily. She was used to being on her feet all night long, but she wasn’t used to hiking through snowy woods. When his truck came into view, she breathed a sigh of relief, then attempted to help when he lugged the tree onto the bed of his truck. When he opened the passenger door for her, she heard rustling again and whirled around toward it.
“Oh, Spence!”
He turned in the direction she was looking, and before them, practically close enough to touch, were several huge stags, their antlers reaching toward the sky.
“They’re gorgeous, and must be having a hard time finding food if they’re getting this close,” he said, wrapping an arm around her.
“Do you think they’d let me pet them?” She was surprised by how much she wanted to. She’d normally be thinking of the diseases they could be carrying, or the bugs in their fur.
“Not a great idea. They might get a bit upset when they find out you don’t have anything to offer them.”
Sage reached out to the deer anyway, but the one in the lead got spooked and ran off. The others followed.
“We need to go,” Spence told her. He lifted her inside the truck, then quickly moved around to the driver’s side.
Once he started the engine and the heater kicked in, Sage began shivering. She hadn’t realized how cold she’d become. Though she’d layered up, brutal temperatures like these really seeped in.
“Now we need to get into town and pick up ornaments,” he announced.
“You don’t have any? Everyone has ornaments.”
“No. This will be my first tree at my own place. We’ve always had one at Dad’s, after all. There wasn’t room for one while I was in school, and I just didn’t bother when I was in Seattle. What was the point? I was there on my own,” he said with a shrug.
“That’s . . . sad,” she said. “Even when I was in my small dorm room, I’d get one of those little trees they have in pots. It wasn’t much, but I put tiny lights and decorations on it. It made me smile. When I left for home for the break, I would take the tree to a shelter nearby and they loved it. It’s not Christmas without a tree.”
“Agreed. But I always came home for Christmas—when I didn’t have to work, at least. I just never felt the need to decorate. You’ll have to come to the ranch, though. Dad goes all out.”
“So does my grandma. I’ve been so busy with work, and then it seems I’m with you during all my free time. I really should get over there. She’s probably been sad that I’m so close to town now, but not bothering to visit.”
“Ha. You don’t know your grandmother that well, then,” Spence said. “She and Eileen and Maggie seem to have events planned for every night of the week. They play poker, have a dance class, and run the local toy drive. This is a busy time of year for them.”
“They play poker? How would you even know that?” Sage couldn’t picture her grandmother, Maggie Winchester, and the very petite Eileen Gagnon playing poker. In her imagination, only burly old guys smoking cigars and guzzling whiskey did such a thing.
Spence chuckled. “I know a few people who have complained about the girls being sharks and wiping them out.”
“I just can’t believe it. I wonder what else I’ve missed out on while I was in med school.”
“Don’t worry. If there’s anything you’ve missed out on, you will hear about it. There are no secrets in Sterling, I’m