Ginger Snapped

By Shelley White

State Park Ranger Eli Vance is done dating crazy redheads. Yet, he still finds himself attracted to one particular camper who seems crazier than usual.
Former Scissortail Scout, Chelsea Davis just wants to make it through the alumni campout in Northern Arkansas with her friends without freezing her tail off. She's trying to make the best of it, but the handsome ranger keeps crossing her path at the worst possible moments. He probably thinks she nuts. After an accidental night together and an enlightening cookie exchange, they find themselves closer than they'd planned.
Does Eli need a little crazy in his life to be happy or are he and Chelsea still too distant to tempt a relationship?

• Language: Unknown
• Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
• Release date: Dec 1, 2021
• ISBN: 9781509239498

Shelley White

Biography Shelley is a twenty-five year resident of Oklahoma with roots in Maine. She and her husband have four awesome kids, but are thrilled two have successfully reached adulthood and moved out. She spends her time working with students, writing, reading, baking, sewing, and exercising just enough to counteract her other activities. Penny Gothic owes its beginnings to time spent trapped in a classroom monitoring state tests. No reading, no cell phones, no laptops. Penny was born the old-fashioned way, with paper and pen.

Book preview

He followed her. Be careful, there.

Did he just smile? The corner of his mouth flinched, and his dimple appeared for a split second. She couldn’t worry about that now or she’d fall on her— Before the thought fully formed, she stumbled back over a small branch and landed in the leaves. Her cheeks flamed. Could this get any more humiliating? Now she knew for sure he was trying not to laugh at her.

Do you need a hand up? He held a gloved hand out to her.

No! I’ve got it. Chelsea got to her feet, still keeping her backside hidden. You know, I think it’s gotten warmer out. My goodness, I don’t even need this. She unzipped her coat and pulled it off, then tied it around her waist, effectively covering the offending area. The cold penetrated her remaining layers immediately. P-perfect. I’m g-gonna g-go see if Amy needs help with b-breakfast. She clenched her teeth together in an effort to keep her jaw still.

All right, you take care and stay on the paths. It’s not really that warm out. If you’re not feeling the cold anymore, you might be experiencing hypothermia. I’ll follow you back to your campsite to make sure.

No! I’m good. I mean, I’m cold, f-freezing, actually. I’m sure I’ll see you later, R-ranger. Have a g-good morning! She spun around and quickly exited the forest. Once back on the road, she headed back to camp rather than finish her run. She needed dry clothes, hot coffee, and a warm fire, stat. That man probably thought her nuts.

Ginger Snapped

by

Shelley White

Christmas Cookies Series

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales, is entirely coincidental.

Ginger Snapped

COPYRIGHT © 2021 by Shelley White

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission of the author or The Wild Rose Press, Inc. except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.

Contact Information: [e-mail]

Cover Art by Diana Carlile

The Wild Rose Press, Inc.

PO Box 708

Adams Basin, NY 14410-0708

Visit us at www.thewildrosepress.com

Publishing History

First Edition, 2021

Digital ISBN 978-1-5092-3949-8

Christmas Cookies Series

Published in the United States of America

Dedication

To Alex, Morgan, Ben, and Erynn for their love of camping and all things outdoors.

Chapter 1

It was Thursday night and Chelsea Davis was over-packing for the worst vacation of her life. She usually looked forward to getting together with her friends for their Scissortail troop reunion every two years. Her friends had dispersed over the years, but they all enjoyed getting back to the wilderness roots that brought them together in the first place.

The first year, when they were all twenty, they spent a whole week in July exploring the Rockies near where Amy lived in Colorado.

Two years ago, Simone had chosen beach camping in Texas, a short walk from the bars. But this year Tanya chose, and Tanya loved cold weather camping. So, they were heading to northern Arkansas the first weekend in December, like some kind of crazy survivalists.

Even as a Scissortail, Chelsea loathed winter camping. They did it once or twice a year, and on occasion, the weather would be surprisingly reasonable. But the other times, Mother Nature could be a sadistic witch. According to the most recent forecast, this was going to be one of those weekends. But Chelsea missed her girls, so into her bags went hand warmers, mittens, thermals, extra socks, and layers, layers, layers. She bought a new sleeping bag rated for twenty degrees, and a small propane tent heater. Jennifer, the farthest member of their group, flying in from California, would be sharing her tent. She wasn’t a fan of the cold weather either.

Finally, satisfied with her two bags of gear, Chelsea moved to the kitchen. She was responsible for Saturday night’s dinner, so she made sure all the ingredients were in order and ready to pack into the cooler in the morning.

Tanya had included a cookie exchange as part of the weekend’s activities. It was the only thing Chelsea looked forward to, other than seeing her friends. Her last task for the evening was mixing up a batch of her favorite Christmas cookies, gingersnaps. She felt like such a traitor in that she loved this recipe even more than her mom’s chewy version. She found the recipe years ago in a mystery book series about a caterer who solved murders. They were made with honey and lemon zest, and when she used her mini scoop, baked into perfectly crisp rust-colored circles.

The flour, sugar, eggs, and honey came together easily with the spices and soon her cookie sheets were filled with what looked like tiny scoops of butter pecan ice cream. While they baked, she designed cute labels with the recipe printed on the back. Chelsea’s Gingersnaps, the name read. She added a comical emoji in her likeness, snapping her fingers and giving a wink. As a natural redhead, Chelsea considered these cookies her signature dessert.

She allowed the cookies to cool and