Page 42 of Ski You Later (Alpine Glow #1)

“Jasmine has always been a real piece of work. My mom and aunt had us within the same year, so we’ve been together our whole lives.

That also meant I’ve had to deal with her personality my whole life.

Even though I couldn’t care less about fighting her, she always ensured that I would lose, no matter what.

“She had to have everything I did, whether it was a new doll or a new outfit, it would be the end of the world if she didn’t get it.

Later in life, I learned the hard way that this also included men.

” My voice is resigned at this point, but Roman’s gentle squeeze of my hand makes me keep going.

“After I caught the two of them together, I just fled. I blocked his number, social medias, and all of his friends. It wasn’t until a couple of months later when Jasmine announced that she had a new boyfriend, and by that point, I was so over it.

The only thing that really got to me was this whole wedding situation, the idea that he’s going to be reintroduced to my entire family as her boyfriend, and I just couldn’t do it. ”

I hang my head in shame and say the rest in a small voice. “It was pathetic and petty of me to make this deal with you, but I’ve just had enough, and I wanted to push back.”

Within a minute, the sound of a chair scraping fills my ears and Roman’s on a knee in front of me. His finger guides my head up, and I look into his understanding eyes.

“You’re so strong, Langley. Hold this head up high,” he whispers to me.

“It was petty and wrong of me, though,” I counter, feeling embarrassed as my voice cracks slightly.

Looking me over, his hand slides to hold the nape of my neck. “Frankly, I don’t know how you do it,” he states plainly.

Roman’s question pulls me from my thoughts, and I look at him curiously. “Do what?”

“Stop yourself from absolutely clocking that bitch.”

I can’t stop as the most embarrassing cackle that barks out of my mouth. The noise of the restaurant quiets suddenly, and I slap my hands over my face. That was by far the funniest thing he could have ever said to me, and I keep my head down to avoid attention.

The steady flow of conversation resumes, and I look up to see Roman’s mouth pursed together. His laughter is barely being contained. “Alright, new rule. You can only have your head down if you laugh too hard,” he says with a shaky voice.

As I wipe a tear from my eye, the dam he’s been building finally breaks and he roars a laugh louder than mine. We both ignore the rest of the place as we fully laugh together, and he goes to sit back in his seat.

The problem is, it gets funnier the harder we try and hold it back. He’s barely composed as he looks across at me, but laughter slips whenever we make eye contact.

After much too much time, we start to calm down, letting ourselves bask in the smiles of the other. “Rhodes, this was the best first date I have ever been on.”

That relaxed smile stays glued onto his face, and I can’t help but send a big one back to him. “This was the best date I have ever been on, period,” I respond.

“Agreed.” Roman extends his hand out, and I give him the crisp high five he was holding out for me.

It’s obvious the people around are very sick of us. The night they’ve been planning for ages being quickly ruined by a couple of twenty-something year old’s. We both silently agree it’s time to go, and Roman walks around to help me out of my seat .

Looking over, I see the booth across the room is empty, and my mind wonders what those guys could possibly be up to.

Roman walks us past the hostess stand, we both collect our coats and head outside. “I can get the taxi for us; you’ve done more than enough tonight.” I say as I pull up the app and try to orient myself.

Plucking my phone out of my hand, he orders the car on his phone and then proceeds to pull me in close. The slight sway to his stance tells me he’s probably as drunk as I am, but I don’t mind as he holds me on the sidewalk.

The car arrives a couple of minutes later, and we are promptly brought to the front of my house. Roman and I lean on each other as we stumble up the steps, the icy sidewalk not helping the situation at all.

“Where’s your ice melt?” He grumbles under his breath after we get on the porch.

“It’s right under the million dollars I leave lying around. Not all of us have restaurants, hun.” I send a wicked smirk over my shoulder and proceed to put the key in the lock.

A pair of strong hands pulls me back into a firm chest and I immediately hold my breath. “Oh, so we’re being sassy now, are we love? ”

I can’t control the quickening of my pulse as I lean back into him, ensuring our bodies are as close as possible. “Oh, I just thought you could handle me, Huxley.”

Without turning around to see his face, I get my door open and step inside. Turning on my heel, I see Roman’s feet planted on the step, as obvious war rages in his eyes.

“I probably shouldn’t,” he says with uncertainty in his tone.

“It would be the end of the world if you came in.” I deadpan back to him, starting to unzip my jacket.

“This is a first date, Langley, and I want to be a gentleman.”

“That’s what a lady loves to hear,” I drawl back. I can help but smirk at the glare he sends my way as I plop my coat onto the rack.

He still hasn’t moved from the step, but I can see the tremble in his hands as he watches me. I open the front door wider, turning on my heel and strutting into the house. I can’t help but add an extra swish to my step, allowing my skirt to move behind me.

My gait falters as I hear sounds coming from inside, but the slam of the front door steals my full attention. A pit opens up in my stomach, and I don’t even want to turn around. Did he really just leave? Without saying goodbye?

I slowly turn around to look at the front entrance way, but I’m blocked by the massive team captain who’s suddenly before me. His hand snakes under my hair to cup the back of my head. His other hand wastes no times before grabbing my hip roughly, pulling me flush and crashing his mouth into mine.