Christmas Sweater Weather

Chapter One Charlotte

CHAPTER ONE

CHARLOTTE

M idwestern weather was like a toddler who refused to nap or eat—out of control and untamable. Sixty degrees one day, twenty the next—it was like it was trying to win a competition of how many seasons can we fit within seventy hours. Well, you won, Illinois. Congrats. Hats off to you, you temperamental toddler.

My fingers ached from gripping the steering wheel so damn hard. My knuckles were white and my palms sweaty as I held on for dear life. Snow covered the road, secret patches of ice underneath it threatening to off me. My heart leaped into my throat as I skidded to the left, then right, and then straightened. Breathe. Focus. Remain calm.

Needing someone to blame for this, I gritted my teeth and cursed my brother. I would be at home, in sweats and preparing for my head coaching interview. This was my dream job, and even though the athletic director insisted I was too young , I was hell-bent on proving him wrong. But instead of preparing my pitch on how I would run the Prairie State High School girls’ softball team, I was driving to a ski resort for my brother and his stupid pre-wedding trip.

He refused to call it a bachelorette or bachelor party, but that’s what it was. We all knew it. Yes, I loved him and his fiancée. They were my best friends. Yes, this was a fun idea in theory. Yes, I’d probably have a good time once I got up there—if I made it alive. Everyone else had headed up yesterday while I finished up the workweek because my students had a huge project due this morning, so carpooling hadn’t been an option. Hence me driving alone in terrible weather, risking my life to go skiing. I also did it to appease the nagging feeling that my brother and his fiancée needed this trip.

Wedding planning was getting to them, and I worried that it was becoming too much. It wasn’t my place to speak up, but driving in this blizzard of death to support them was my way of helping. If they wanted this weekend of fun, then they’d have it.

Gah! A drift at least five feet tall crept closer and closer, and I yanked the wheel to the left hoping to avoid it, but there was a semitruck coming in hot behind me. I didn’t want to die. Not like this, on I-55 in the middle of nowhere. I had things I wanted to do! People to meet! Food to try! Wine to drink and ultimately regret! “Please, please stop,” I cried, panic flaring in my chest to the point it ached.

No one answered, not even the voice in the back of my head. I swore my soul left my body as the semi got closer in my rearview mirror. The drift grew closer ahead of me. The car couldn’t slow down. There wasn’t a way out. It was a snowdrift-semi sandwich with my car in the middle. I closed my eyes, praying it’d be quick, and oof .

My head jerked forward, smacking the wheel with the force of a tornado. Pain exploded throughout my forehead and neck. Something sputtered. A loud thud. Please let me pass out. The screeching of tires blurred while my own heart rate pounded in my ears. This was it. My parents would find me in a stained crewneck sweater and mismatched socks. They’d be so proud of me.

Wincing, I waited for darkness to take over, but after thirty seconds, nothing happened. Did I survive the sandwich? I blinked one eye open, and then the other. My face got to know my steering wheel very well, and I rubbed a finger over my nose. Sonofa. That hurt. Pain was good. That meant I was still among the living.

At least, for now. My car had wedged itself into the snowdrift so far that light only streamed from the back window. Did I live here now? In my Mazda Igloo?

Incoming call.

I jumped in my seat at the loud intrusion of my car stereo. The number danced across the dash, and my shoulders sagged in relief. My brother. My fingers trembled as I hit the answer button. “Christian, hi.”

“Where the hell are you? I want to ski but Penny insists on waiting for you.” Loud music blared in the background, and I squinted at the stereo. Eleven a.m. Only my party animal brother would be this energetic and probably intoxicated this early.

“Uh, no, go ahead without me.” I cleared my throat, my eyes welling up as the adrenaline gripped me from head to toe. I almost died. I didn’t. But almost. One didn’t just get over that in two minutes. I used my left hand to rub the back of my neck and willed myself to take a deep breath. Christian didn’t need to worry about me. He deserved fun. “Go skiing.”

“What’s wrong?” Just like that, his tone changed. “Turn that music off. Char, what’s going on?”

No more loud music, only my brother’s angry breathing.

“N-nothing, why?”

“You’re a shit liar, and your voice is off. Are you okay?”

I pinched the bridge of my nose. “I got into a little accident.”

“Are you hurt? Where are you?”

“What happened? Oh my, is Char okay?” Penny’s voice carried over the phone, and I could picture her little pixie face and bright red hair. I loved my brother’s fiancée, almost more than him. She was about the only human on the planet capable of being with my brother forever, and God bless her for that.

Hearing her concern caused my tears to spill over. There was no way to avoid the truth now. I sniffled. “I’m fine. Just skidded into a drift.”

“You’re crying. You never cry.” Christian’s voice softened. “What mile marker are you at? We can come help you.”

Great question. I should’ve looked at my surroundings before becoming a permanent part of an igloo. Snow covered each door, and even though I knew what would happen, I tried opening my side. Nothing. Cool. I was stuck. “I don’t know.”

“Are you able to walk and look?”

I swallowed. “I can’t… get out of the car.”

He sucked in a breath, and I could almost hear his mind whirling. Christian might be a party boy, goofball, and general menace to society, but he was the most loyal and caring person I knew. We rarely fought and had remained close as we grew up, and now he was in full-blown fix-it mode. “Okay, you’re snowed in your car, somewhere on the highway, without a way out or to tell me your location. Shit, Charmander, this is bad.”

“I’m sorry.” My voice broke again. The use of my nickname made the tears come harder.

“What? No, I’m not mad at you. I just want you to be okay.”

Penny mumbled something in the background that I didn’t quite catch. “Hey, great idea, babe,” my brother said. “Send your location to Hayden.”

“Hayden?” I repeated, my face growing red despite no one being able to actually see me. “Hayden Porter?”

“You hit your head that hard? Yes, Hayden Porter . He couldn’t make it here last night because of Gwen, so he’s on his way up now. I’ll call him, give him a heads-up.”

“Wait, no!” I shouted, unable to produce a single, rational reason why this was a terrible idea. My brother’s best friend was my personal fantasy and single biggest regret combined into one broad-shouldered, giant, walking Greek God. Okay, maybe I did bump my head. I now pictured him as a Greek statue with his perfectly unperfect nose and dark gray eyes that paired with his suntanned skin from always being outdoors. He’d feed me grapes and flash that dangerous smile my way.

“Charlotte, send him a pin of your location now.”

My brother ended the call, bringing me back to reality. Breath in, out. Unless I wanted to be the mayor and only resident of this car igloo, I should text him my location. Even if it meant having Hayden find me this way. Would he drive me the rest of the way too? In his car? Us alone?

My heart raced for an entirely different reason. I’d done my best to never be alone with him after that night three years ago. His beautiful baby girl Gwen was always there, or my brother, or their friends they had somehow kept since high school. Honestly, how? Making friends as an adult is hard. Unless you work with them, you had to actually leave your house to see other people, and frankly, I didn’t want to do that most days.

Ever, okay? I never wanted to leave my house. Especially not in winter when the cold tried to eat my face. My phone pinged.

Christian: YOUR LOCATION. NOW.

Focus. Right. I sent my brother and Hayden a location pin and leaned back in my seat. I knew I’d have to see Hayden at the ski resort, but I had practiced my fake smile and pleasant talking points that would be needed around the group. Where five of us all sat around drinking and eating and skiing. Not… the two of us in a car alone. Not with him rescuing me from my igloo. Maybe I could live here forever? I had snacks and four pairs of socks. It’d be a short lifespan but filled with joy.

I rubbed my temples and wished I had brought pain meds. The throbbing at my skull had nothing to do with Hayden and our past, well, lack of a past, and more to do with the fact that my face became a steering wheel pancake five minutes ago.

Silver linings. I was that kinda person, always focusing on the bright side.

I was alive. That was great. I could still eat and drink to my heart’s delight.

My car still had power, which meant I had heat.

I could move my limbs. Again, another huge win.

Incoming call.

“I sent the dang location, Christian,” I answered, so annoyed that my irritation snuck out.

“Hello to you too.”

“Hayden.” I sucked in a breath and felt the color draining from my face. I must match the snow now. We were twinning in paleness. “Hello. Hi.”

Could I be more of a dork? Shame danced along my neck and down my spine. I shouldn’t care what he thought of me, not after that night, yet I still wanted him to view me as someone other than his best friend’s kid sister.

“Are you alright?” His voice was deep and low with concern. “Christian said you were in an accident and I needed to rescue you?”

“Of course he did.” I sighed.

“Were you not?”

“No, I’m stuck in a snowdrift, have no idea where I am, and can’t get out of my car.” Saying the situation aloud made me laugh. “This is a scene from a terrible movie. How is this my life? Why did I wear my knee-high orange and yellow socks today of all days?”

Hayden didn’t answer but I swore I could feel him annoyed. He had a habit of breathing heavier whenever I was around. Great for the ego, knowing he could keep his calm demeanor around everyone except me.

“How do you not know where you’re at?” he asked, his voice not kind.

“Because I didn’t pay attention to the street signs when all I saw was the snowdrift and semi wanting to make a sandwich out of me,” I snapped. A shiver cascaded down my body at the reminder. “It was terrifying. I thought…

I thought I was gonna die so I’m sorry for not—”

“Hey, whoa,” he said, his rough voice gentler than before. “Char, it’s okay. I’ll find you. I’ll get you out.”

I closed my eyes and rested my forehead against the steering wheel. Despite our history that I refused to think about, I felt safe with Hayden. Ever resourceful, reliable, and protective, he would do whatever it took to help me. He was an absolute teddy bear on the inside, total mush when it came to people he cared about. I’d seen how he treated my brother, his parents, his daughter, even me. Shame hit me hard, almost harder than the steering wheel to the face. Of course Hayden would make sure I was safe. He’d never let me remain hurt because he viewed me like a little sister, and if there was one thing Hayden cared most about? It was family.

“Okay. Okay,” I repeated, my too-tight muscles relaxing at the thought of him saving me.

“What time did you leave this morning?”

“An hour ago.”

“Perfect. I left forty-five minutes ago, so I shouldn’t be too far behind. Now, do you remember passing the tractor store?”

I blinked. “Yes, because it reminded me of the time I tried to steal a tractor as a prank but didn’t realize I couldn’t drive one. Too many clutches.”

“Ah, yes.” Hayden laughed. The bastard had a rich, joyful laugh that made angel wings double in size and rainbows shoot out of flowers. “That was a fun summer.”

It was also the summer I went from crushing on Hayden to falling head over heels, madly in love with him. I cleared my throat. That summer didn’t contain the best memories for me. “Right, uh, the tractor store.”

“I’m passing it now.”

Neither of us said anything, but his breathing carried through the phone. It was enough for me. The dark confines of the car had started to make me nervous, claustrophobia creeping into my mind. What if I never got out? I could joke about being mayor, but my sense of humor had limits. Especially when it came to potential death. I must’ve whimpered or something, because he sucked in a breath. “Charlotte, are you hurt?”

“Not really. Bruised my face, but that’s it. I’m… not loving the car right now. I don’t want to be mayor anymore.”

“Mayor?”

“Of the Mazda Igloo. I’m the only resident, so I’d be the de facto mayor,” I said. “Obviously.”

“Only you, Charlotte.”

He said my name all grumbly and soft, and once upon a time, I fantasized about him saying my name as he declared his love for me. Yes, Charlotte, I love you too and want a life with you and to be your best friend and have inside jokes and coach a team with you. But I learned all too well that would never happen. I tried. He rejected me. Not even a little no thank you rejection. It was a don’t touch me ever again rejection and a you’re like a sister to me rejection, which, on a list of the worst ways to have your heart broken, was in the top five.

That was three years ago, and it still stung.

Had we ever talked about it? No.

Would we? I’d rather die mayor of the Mazda Igloo.

But neither of those facts kept my imagination in line when he said my name that way. It brought back all the memories—and unrequited feelings—that dominated my early twenties. Where I swore his gaze lingered on me a few seconds too long or he’d always put his hand on my lower back. I misread every interaction we had, and that was on me. It just sucked my heart never got the memo that we were not in love with Hayden Porter, single dad to the cutest baby girl ever.

“Wait, I think I see something up ahead. Shit.”

“What?”

“There’s a semi off to the right side of the road and skid marks into… oh, honey.”

“Don’t oh, honey me. What do you see?” My heart raced at all the scenarios in my head. Did he somehow read my mind thinking about our kiss that night? Did he know I still thought about him even though he made his feelings very clear?

“I think… I think your clothes fell out of your trunk, and well, you have a red bra and panties hanging on your exhaust pipe.”