one snowy night

Sarah pulled the brisket and roasted potatoes from her wood burning oven. Her small cabin was filled with the delicious aroma of a home cooked meal. She poured herself a glass of red wine and sat by the fire. Her dog Cash crept from his bed and lay at her feet with a heavy sigh.

She gazed around and felt almost happy. The cabin was decorated in Sarah's salvaging. The golden oak floor shined like honey in the gaslight. The pine ceiling was framed with endwalls of reddish barnboard from a hundred year old barn. On the log walls hung antique fair posters that gave the cabin a whimsical air. The large window facing the mountain, framed snowflakes swirling in the winter wind.

Suddenly, her reverie was broken by a soft knock at the door. This was unusual, especially in winter. Her cabin was nestled in a pine forest down a forested country road, away from the noise and commotion of the city.

Cash was already waiting by the door after giving a sharp bark. Now he waited intently, just as anxious to see who it was.

Sarah opened the door and a gust of wind wrapped around her legs. There was a man holding a small dog in his arms. The snowed fur parka around his face did nothing to hide his blue eyes.

For a moment they just stared at each other.

"Sorry to bother you but my truck is in the ditch. I saw your mailbox and hoped that there would be someone at the end of this road and here you are.''

He chuckled and raised his eyebrows at her.

''Come in, come in. You must be cold. I was just about to eat dinner, are you hungry?''

"Starving.'' He lowered his dog to the floor. Happily Cash began to sniff excitedly. The two dogs playfully chased each other around the cabin.

''We can start with a glass of wine, if you would like.''

''Famously.'' He laughed as he shook off his snowy parka.

Sarah turned her back to fetch the wine. Her cheeks were flushed and her heart seemed to beat twice as fast. She took a deep breath and leaned against the counter.

Since her husband had died five years ago Sarah had hidden herself and her broken heart from the world. She was ready to fall in love again, but the time never seemed right.

Tonight she felt butterflies within. A giddy sense of long forgotten joy.

She returned to the living room and smiled to see that Thomas had already lit the candles and put a birch log onto the fire.

It was like he had always been here. Sarah felt a connection to this man. A peaceful comforting feeling.

Over dinner, they talked about everything. Thomas was an editor in the neighboring town. Sarah laughed and told him it was their lucky day.

She had just finished her book and he was about to add the next best seller author to his roster.

Then Thomas said something that shocked Sarah. His wife had died on the same doomed flight as her husband. Quietly he told her that after his wife had died he found love notes from her lover. They were to meet up in New York that fateful week end.

Sarah held her breath and asked him in a whisper if he knew the lover's name. She had to know, but could not bear to hear if it was her husband's name.

His name was Dave and the affair had been going on for a few years.

Sarah heard his voice as if it was coming from the end of a tunnel. Her mind was reeling.

Yes, a couple years before the plane accident her and David had been having problems. She had never suspected an affair, but now it all made sense.

She wept into her hands as Thomas rubbed her shoulder gently.

He took her face into his hands and whispered,

''So we were the ones left behind to mourn. imagine us meeting like this years later. I have a secret to tell you. We have met before, at the meeting with the airline.''

He took her hands into his and gazed into her eyes.''

''We spoke for a moment and you mentioned this cabin, but not where it was. I have looked at every log cabin within fifty miles and this was the last one I checked. Then I veered off the road.

Sarah now remembered him. His hair was a bit longer then, but those blue eyes remained. He had approached her to offer his sympathy but at the time she was blind with grief.

After too much wine and a midnight snowball fight under the full moon, they fell asleep in Sarah's four poster bed.

Both exhausted mentally, physically and emotionally.

Cash and his new best friend, also lay side by side warmed by the crackling fire.

The next morning Sarah made coffee and pancakes in her kitchen tinted rose with the morning sun. She finally felt happy again.

She took the framed photo of her unfaithful husband and tucked it into the drawer.