Page 21 of Stuck With Mr. Frosty (Delectable Protectors #5)
AIDEN
I sigh and shed my gloves and coat, hanging them by the door. It’s been a long day of convincing several different resort guests why they can’t ski a black diamond trail when they’ve barely been skiing for a month. All I want to do is crawl into bed with Mia and maybe watch a movie or two.
Or maybe I could take her out. I don’t know what we’d do if we went out, though. The wind is howling today, and the snow is falling in thick sheets. When we wake up tomorrow morning, it’s probably going to look even more like a winter wonderland than it has the rest of the season.
And then there’s the thought that maybe I should take her out to dinner. I know the restaurant in the resort is putting on a fancy steak dinner with lobster bisque as an appetizer. She’s mentioned before how much she loves steak and lobster.
Maybe I could take her out to dinner, and it would be time to tell her how I feel about her, even though I don’t really know what that is. I do know that I don’t want to leave this season without her, though.
If that means that I have to move to her hometown, find a little place for Honey and me, and figure out where to go from there, then that’s what I’m going to do.
Ryder stands in the middle of the kitchen, stuffing a handful of cheese puffs in his face. “Looks like it’s getting bad out there.”
“Yeah,” I say as I open the fridge and grab a bottle of water, cracking it open and taking a long sip. “They closed the slopes early. Everybody’s been sent back to their rooms, or if they’re staying out, it has to be on the resort grounds near the building.”
He makes a noise in the back of his throat. “Guess that means it’s going to be an earlier morning for me, with more people at the restaurant for breakfast.”
“Probably.” I glance around looking for any sign of Mia. She should be back by now. “Where are Mia and Rosie?”
“They ran into town. Said that if the storm is going to get worse, then they want to have some snacks and drinks to be able to enjoy their night since they both have tomorrow off.”
Maybe that’s better than trying to trudge to the restaurant with her through the snow. I won’t have time to overthink about what to say to her or how I feel.
I won’t have to walk beside her, not knowing if she feels the same way. If she’s thinking about what comes next for us after the season. She could be thinking about it. She might be thinking about it as much as I am. I don’t know.
Ryder puts the bag of cheese puffs to the side. “Are you feeling all right?” he asks. “You’re looking a little green.”
“Yeah, fine.” I open the cupboard and grab Honey’s bag of food, leaving my water bottle on the counter while I get her dinner ready.
“Things okay with Mia?”
“Yeah, they’re great. Better than I thought they’d be, honestly.”
Ryder crosses his arms. “Look, I know we’re not friends. I know that you don’t really like having friends, but for what it’s worth, if you want to talk about it, I’ve been told that I’m a good listener.”
“Nothing much to talk about,” I say. I put Honey’s bowl on the floor. “I’m gonna go get changed. Don’t let them pick out a movie we’ve seen a million times. You know that if they have their choice, we’ll be watching something starring some guy with dark hair and a sad face again.”
Ryder laughs and nods, saluting me before going to drop down in front of the television to sort through the movies. “I’ll leave the action movies out and hide everything else.”
“Sounds good to me.”
I leave him in the living room and head into the bedroom, shutting the door behind me and taking a deep breath.
If this is going to be the night that I tell Mia how I feel, then I need to figure out what to say to her.
I don’t know what to say to anybody in this situation, though.
I’ve never been on the end where I have to figure out what comes next and if the person I’m with likes me as much as I like them.
I’ve never had to think about what happens if I tell somebody how much I care for them, how I’m falling for them, and they don’t feel the same way.
It’s always been easier to be the one who runs when things get too serious.
With Mia, I don’t feel like running, and it makes my stomach toss and turn in a way I’m not used to.
Sighing, I walk across the room, my hip slamming into the corner of her dresser. A paper on top flutters to the floor, and I pick it up, freezing when I see the words “Southwood Elementary School” written on it.
And even though I know I shouldn’t, I read the letter. With each line I read, the sinking feeling in my stomach only gets worse. I don’t know what to do. I was going to tell her how much I care about her — how I’m starting to fall in love with her.
I was thinking about moving with her, but she didn’t even tell me about this letter.
She didn’t tell me that she had made her decision about what happens when the season ends.
Every single time I’ve asked about teaching and her job after this, she’s told me that she doesn’t know what she’s going to do.
She has never mentioned the fact that she’s already applied for a teaching position at a school, let alone the fact that she has been accepted.
With shaking hands, I set the letter back on the dresser. I’m going to have to talk to her about this, but I have no clue what to say. She’s been thinking about leaving me the entire time we’ve been together. She knew that she’d be going.
Although, I can’t blame her for having a job lined up — because that’s what any responsible adult should have. Hell, I have one lined up at the end of the season. But I think that maybe it would have been better if she had just told me.
Maybe she’s thinking about telling me at the end of the season. Breaking up with me and then parting ways. Though, can it be really breaking up if we’ve never talked about what we are to each other?
I sigh and grab my towel and toiletry bag, heading for the shower. I can figure this out later. One thing is for certain, though. When I talk to her tonight, I’m not going to talk about how I feel or where we’re going. I need time to process.
It’s clear that she’s made her decision. I don’t want to be the man to hold her back from her new life, and maybe it’s too early to be considering moving to a different part of the country for a woman I only met two months ago.
The old Aiden never would have once considered leaving behind the life he loves for somebody he barely knows.
Even that feels like a discredit to what we are. I know her. She knows me. But maybe I care about this more than she ever has.
After my shower I head into the mess hall, braving the snow outside just to get away from the cabin.
I don’t think I can be in there right now with Mia while she’s smiling, laughing, bouncing around the room like nothing’s wrong.
I’m not gonna push her to talk to me about it before she wants to, and right now I’m not in the headspace to bring it up with her either.
Carter looks up from the bowl of soup in front of him. “I didn’t think I was going to see you in here. I thought the plan was to stay in the cabin tonight.”
I sit down across the table from him. “Yeah, well, circumstances have changed.”
He tips back his bowl, slurping at the last of his soup before setting it down. “Oh yeah? How so?”
“Things have just changed. I have a job lined up at the end of the season, and I’ve been allowing distractions to pull me from that. There are commitments I need to attend to.”
Understanding dawns on his face. “Oh, so this is about Mia.”
“How are Cassie and the girls?” I drum my fingers on the table, glancing around the mess hall looking for them. They’re here for a couple more days, aren’t they?”
“Yeah, they are, but don’t think I don’t know what you’re trying to do by changing the subject.”
“Look. I don’t think it’s worth talking about right now.
Mia and I have been fun. It’s been a good time, and I really do care about her.
” I pause, my mouth going dry after saying those words for the first time.
“But when the season comes to an end, we both have other plans. I’m not gonna be sticking around for anyone or anything.
Not when there is my life waiting for me. ”
It’s a lie. It tastes bitter on the tip of my tongue. I know what I want, and I know that it’s her, but it doesn’t seem like she’s factored me into her plans.
I’m spiraling. I still have to talk to her first. See what she’s actually planning on doing.
However, in the moment, it’s hard to see past the abandonment issues I’ve never quite been able to shake.
“I think the two of you could figure out a way to make it work.” Carter glances around, stretching up in his seat a little bit. “I don’t know where Cassie and the girls went. I think Cassie said she was going to take them out to make snow angels.”
“Well, you should be spending time with them outside instead of sitting here talking to me.”
“Not like you gave me much choice about talking to you.” His tone is teasing as he reaches for the roll on the side of his plate.
“I was just sitting here, enjoying my lunch, when you came over and decided that we needed to have a talk about your love life. Which I think tells you that I’m the wrong person to be talking about your love life with at this point.
You should be talking to Mia about whatever it is that’s bothering you. ”
“There’s nothing bothering me.”
“Yeah, sure.” He scoffs as he breaks off a piece of his roll and pops it into his mouth, chewing and staring at me. “Who are you trying to convince, me or yourself?”
“Look, I just want one night where I don’t have to think about what comes next for the future. Because that seems to be all I’ve been doing for the last couple weeks.”
“Like I told you, things are going to change. She came into your life, and she’s changed everything you thought you knew — that you thought was going to happen.
It’s understandable that you’re having cold feet right now.
Chances are that she’s feeling the same way too, especially with the season end drawing closer. ”
“I’m going to talk to her. We’re not kids in high school who can’t talk to each other about this kind of thing. I just need a couple more days.”
Carter makes a noise in the back of his throat like he doesn’t quite believe me. Not that I care. It’s the truth. I need a couple days to figure this out, and then everything will be fine. Mia and I can enjoy the rest of the time we have together, and at the end, we can go our separate ways.
Just like we were supposed to this entire time.
It was my fault that I thought this could be anything else. I know that hookups like ours rarely make it past the season. And even when they do, it’s only for a couple weeks, and then the people discover that it’s never going to work.
Maybe I should be thankful that Mia is forcing distance between us.
At least it will save us both heartbreak down the road.