Epilogue

Michaela groaned with frustration when she turned in her bed and groped around on her nightstand to turn off the alarm on her cell and turn on the light. If this were about a patient she would already be half-dressed, but it wasn't. She had set her alarm for three in the morning because she needed to catch the first flight to Boston. If the shelter hadn't needed her last night, she would be sleeping soundly in her mother's house by now, but she'd had to change flights. Her mother hadn't been happy about that; her tone last night on the phone indicated that she'd put on her disapproving scowl.

Knowing there was no use in feeling sorry for herself, Michaela eventually put her feet on the wooden floor and threw back the quilt. Shivering in the cold room she donned her robe and hurried towards the bathroom. She couldn't afford to enjoy her shower because she had no idea how long it would take to get to the airport. To be on the safe side, she had added thirty minutes for the trip there. Although it had snowed only lightly when she left the shelter some hours ago, Charlotte had told her you could never be sure in Colorado Springs how even the finest layer of snow would affect the morning traffic.

As she rubbed herself dry and took care of her hair, Michaela couldn't help but wish again she could stay. Here they would have a White Christmas, but back in Boston it was gray and rainy. That wasn't all, of course. She would have loved to see Hannah's excitement when Santa made an appearance. Daniel had practiced the right sound for his "Ho, ho, ho!" so Sully's daughter wouldn't recognize him and would sing the song Michaela had taught her. It had been hard on both Michaela and the little girl to accept that they had to part for the holidays.

For Michaela it was Rebecca, her oldest and dearest sister, who had been able to reason with her. It would be their mother's first Christmas without their father, and Elizabeth needed the support of all her daughters. In a more subtle way, Michaela had explained to Hannah why she had to leave and as always the child had listened carefully. In the end it was Michaela's promise they would celebrate Christmas again when she returned that convinced the child, as well as Sully who told Hannah how sad he would be if he had to spend the holidays without his little girl.

However, bundled up and finally ready to leave Michaela looked around the living room for a last time to make sure everything was in its place. Satisfied with what she saw she gripped the handle of her suitcase with one hand and reached for the light switch with the other. Once she turned off the light it became pitch black in the room for all the shutters downstairs were closed. It took her a moment to open the front door, but when she took the first step an "Oh!" escaped her. Her foot was stuck in something cold and wet.

Quickly retreating inside she turned on the porch light, and her lower jaw dropped when she took in the sight of the yard. There must have been a blizzard while she was sleeping for now everything was hidden under at least forty inches of snow. Snowdrifts had made it worse in some spots, and she only recognized the soft mound as the roof of her car because she knew it was parked there.

This was hopeless; she would never be able to clear a way so she could make it to the main road. She couldn't even be sure the streets in town were passable.

She would miss her plane.

It was already Christmas Eve, and if she didn't fly today it didn't seem worthwhile to go to Boston at all since she'd intended to stay only till the day after Christmas. She knew from experience that more patients than usual sought the help of their doctor after the holidays, and that was why she wanted to be back by then.

Slowly, she closed the front door, pushing with her shoe the snow away that had crept inside. She had no choice but to stay where she was for now.

Still, she had to make an effort if only to soothe her conscience. Maybe all the flights were delayed anyway and she could still catch one later in the morning. Pulling out a chair she dropped the keys on the table and fished for her cell phone in the pocket of her coat. After she dialed the number of the airport she propped up her arm on the table and rested her brow against her palm. It took not even a minute for a recorded voice to inform her the Colorado Springs Airport was closed for the day.

So that was it. She wouldn't have to fly but could stay in town. With this thought other questions arose however. She wasn't exactly in town, now was she? But how could she get there? She would need help, but it was far too early to call anyone. She would lie down for two more hours and then call Sully.

xxx

Hannah pushed the pieces of her pancake around on her plate, swinging her legs beneath the table. She was allowed to sit with the grown-ups and should have been beside herself with delight. Except that she wasn't.

Sully had watched her for a few minutes and finally couldn't restrain himself anymore.

"What's wrong, sweet girl?" he asked, looking puzzled. They had prepared everything to make his daughter happy, wanting to distract her from the fact that Michaela wasn't here.

Hanna looked up at him as she responded, "I feel funny."

While Loren instantly dismissed the remark, mumbling that he'd be glad when the holidays were finally over, Olive only smiled to herself, remembering her own excitement at Christmas time when she was still a child. Charlotte, however, sitting next to the little girl, felt her brow and worried she might detect a fever. That was the last that they needed with Dr. Mike out of town.

Sully, on the other hand, was still holding Hannah's gaze. "Funny how?" he wondered, hoping his daughter could elaborate.

To be honest, he'd found himself restless this morning as well which wasn't typical for him at all.

"Dr. Mike," was all the little girl replied and went back to staring at her plate.

Leaning back in his chair, Sully ran his hand through his hair. Since Michaela had forgiven him for his thoughtless behavior around Catherine, they had grown closer together. Not physically, but emotionally. Hannah was an important part of their relationship, and their special bond had grown even stronger.

"She didn't call last night," he suddenly burst out, an unsettling feeling of danger making his voice hoarse.

"The telephones don't work," Olive informed him. "They said it on the radio earlier. I think one of the transmitting towers broke down under the snow."

Cursing under his breath Sully got up and paced the kitchen. It had taken him almost half an hour to clear the thirty yards from Loren's backdoor to the barn where Wolf had been whining. It was a delusion to think he could just go out to the homestead and make sure Michaela wasn't there but safe in Boston. He wasn't even able to call Daniel who had connections that might provide them with a snowplow.

"Sit down and eat," Olive advised dryly, "there's nothing you can do right now."

Knowing she was right he returned to his chair. As he resumed his seat he caught the look that Hannah cast him, hidden from the others by her bangs. "I'll think of something," he promised, "but first we gotta empty our plates or Santa might have second thoughts about stopping by tonight."

His daughter eyed him carefully, checking if he were serious. When she saw he was - and she definitely wanted to talk to Santa - she put the first bite of pancake into her mouth.

xxx

Michaela had panicked for a few moments when she realized no signal was available and she wasn't able to call anyone. Sitting idly and waiting for things to happen wasn't her cup of tea though, and thus she first made sure she wouldn't freeze if the power vanished as well and the heat stopped working. It was only a few days ago that Sully had shown her how to start a fire. The wood he had stacked next to the fireplace was dry, and she hoped she was able to recall all of his advices because she had been distracted by his closeness when they kneeled next to each other on the floor before the hearth.

It took her three attempts until a fire was roaring, and next she searched the kitchen for something to eat. She had emptied the fridge in preparation for her trip, but she still had enough coffee and a package of cookies. Since she had no idea how long she would be stuck in the house she was aware that this wasn't much. She was used to eating little, but if she wanted to start clearing a path she would need nutrition to maintain her strength.

After checking her cellphone once more, which still showed she had no connection, Michaela carefully opened the front door. It had started to snow again and her spirits sank at the prospect of freeing herself. All her friends assumed she was with her family in Boston which meant no one had any reason to come and look for her.

Finally the sight of the barn gave her an idea. Sully had stored all kinds of things in there. If she was lucky she would find a pair of skis and could get to town with their help. Not that she knew how to use them, but she would face that problem when it arose.

Although she was no stranger to hard work, it was something completely different to stand at an operation table for hours on end compared to digging her way through the high snow. To make matters worse she only had a dustpan instead of a shovel, and after an hour she needed a break. Not only her muscles protested but her stomach demanded food, and so she gave in.

xxx

Sully and Daniel were childhood friends and they'd had their ups and downs over the years. Today, however, Sully was as grateful for this friendship as he'd never been before. It was mid-morning when Daniel appeared on a snowmobile, wanting to check whether the family was alright or needed anything.

It wasn't even ten minutes later that Sully was on his way to the homestead. Steering the snowmobile wasn't as easy as he'd thought it would be because the snow still lay undisturbed and he stirred up big clouds of it that obstructed his sight. However, the need to make sure Michaela wasn't caught in the house grew stronger by the minute, and he adjusted to the conditions without thinking.

The moment he turned around the last bend that allowed him to look towards the gate and the building behind it, his heart started to pound even faster than it had till now: smoke was rising from the chimney up to the sky. She was here.

Now he had only to figure out how to get to the house so he could take her with him to town. Opening the gate was out of the question; there were piles of snow before and behind it. Fortunately he hadn't built a fence around all his property because he'd thought the trees good enough a protection where they stood close to each other.

However, these trees would either be his solution now or prove their worth as a fence replacement.

xxx

The gurgling of her coffee maker drowned out any other noise, but since Michaela didn't expect to hear anything she didn't mind. She already sat at the kitchen table, warming her hands on her mug when she realized a strange sound came from outside. It swelled and abated – and it came closer.

"Sully," she breathed and then jumped up from her chair, putting down the cup so quickly the coffee spilled over.

"Sully?" She was still inside the house when she called his name, louder this time.

As she threw open the front door and stepped out onto the porch she saw a cloud of snow approaching from the left and heard the noise of an engine. Only when it stopped right next to the steps she had already cleared did she recognize Sully's frame, and her heart leapt with joy.

A few moments later Sully couldn't remember how he'd managed to get up the stairs and was only able to breathe again once he held Michaela in his arms.

"I'm here," he soothed, his voice breaking when he realized her shoulders shook because she was crying. "I'm here."

She sniffled and looked up at him, trying to smile through her tears of relief. "Thank you," she said with such earnestness that he got a faint idea of how scared she had been.

He cupped her face with one hand and wiped at the tears with the thumb of the other. He smiled his irresistible smile when he bent down and kissed her sweetly. "Wouldn't want you to miss the Christmas party," he said in a husky tone, gazing at her lovingly with eyes that held the blue of a cloudless summer sky, and as if mocking all the snow around them Michaela melted.

She threw her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly as if she feared he might vanish as suddenly and unexpectedly as he had appeared. "I love you so much," she whispered and Sully pulled her even closer in response.

"I'm not gonna let you out of my sight again, you know that, don't you?" he assured her, burying his nose in her hair.

Despite herself, Michaela chuckled and bent back so she could look at his face, and time stood still for a moment as they saw their future in each other's eyes: There would be a big family and laughter and work and misunderstandings and pain, but always love.

As their lips found each other of their own accord they sealed this promise with tenderness first and then with growing passion, until Michaela put her hands against Sully's chest. With her cheeks still hot she looked at him, sheepishly smiling, "We better get to town now or we'll never see the lights on Loren's Christmas tree."

With a soft growl of frustration and a chuckle Sully released her, only to put his arm around her waist when he led her inside the house that would become theirs. Soon. He was sure of that.