Chapter 8
Chapter Eight
When my eyes fluttered open, I didn’t recognize my surroundings. I wasn’t even on my usual side of the bed. I jerked awake, blinking rapidly to take in the room. Then it all came crashing back. Abandoning my real life. Missing my flight. Driving here in the storm. Danny.
But when I looked next to me, the bed was empty. He’d fallen asleep here, holding me. Before that, we’d kissed for what felt like hours but held back from taking it further.
My lips felt swollen when I brushed them with my fingertips.
Last night had been unexpected. I’d hoped he’d be happy to see me, but doubt had still invaded my mind like an infection.
Danny wasn’t the most predictable person; he’d proven that to me.
But last night he’d looked at me with all the desire that I’d craved.
I pulled the blankets off me and went to the bathroom. As soon as I caught sight of myself in the mirror, I realized how desperately I needed a shower.
When I was done cleaning up, I put Danny’s giant t-shirt back on. My leggings from the night before were dry thanks to the fan I’d set them near. I pulled them on and opened every drawer in search of a brush, finding only an ancient-looking black comb to detangle my hair.
Cautiously, I left the room, peeking around the hallway. A clattering sounded out in the kitchen a second before I walked into the great room.
Danny had his back turned to the door as he rummaged through a cabinet by the fridge.
“Morning,” I said.
He whipped around, knocking a metal pan out of the cabinet. It toppled out and banged onto the countertop.
“Morning. Shit.” He bent over to pick it up, and I stifled a laugh. Was he…nervous?
“Are you hungry? I could make eggs, or we have cereal.”
“Cereal is great.” My stomach gnawed on itself, reminding me that I hadn’t eaten for nearly a day.
I sat at the island, taking in the cabin now that the daylight was poking in. The views out the front window were breathtaking: mountains in the background and a frozen lake front and center. Nearly everything was covered by last night’s thick blanket of snow.
“This cabin is everything you said it was,” I whispered.
Danny set a bowl down in front of me before returning with two different boxes of cereal and a gallon of milk.
“I can’t believe you’re here,” he said, watching me as I poured a bowl.
I laughed. “I can’t believe I’m here, either.”
He lingered, not taking his eyes off me. “Care to tell me why you’re here?”
I gulped down the bite I’d just taken. I was nervous again. Even though he’d kissed me last night like he’d wanted me there, I was still always wary. He could turn on a dime.
“I wanted to see your cabin.”
“Did you now?” He dipped his head and raised an eyebrow. “Aren’t you supposed to be in some writing session back in Denver?”
“It ended.”
He folded his arms and leaned a hip against the counter. “And you just thought, let me drive four hours into the mountains and see what Danny is up to?”
He was being playful, not pushing me too hard. That made me smile. “Yep.”
He shook his head, the corner of his mouth turning up.
“Is it okay I came?” I asked, looking down at my bowl.
“Yes.” His answer was faster than I’d expected. He cleared his throat. “Um, how long are you staying?”
Danny had a weird energy surrounding him this morning, like he was fighting something internally. I wished more than anything that he could just let go with me.
“Well, I might have missed my flight back last night, so my plans are up in the air.”
His jaw tensed with that, worry now etched into his hard features. “You missed your flight? Trace, what’s going on?”
I hate the songs they want me to write.
My dreams don’t feel right anymore.
I’m trapped in a life I thought I wanted.
My mother is wearing me down little by little every day until I’m worried there will be nothing left.
I missed you.
I opened and closed my mouth, scared of which answer might escape me. But then I was saved. Two guys sauntered into the main living area, from the stairs off the hallway. Barrett, and a tall, dark-haired guy with long, muscular limbs.
“Morning. Nice to see you in the light of day,” Barrett said cheerfully, nodding in my direction.
The other guy stopped in his tracks, blinking a few times before looking between me and Danny. “Uh, did I miss something?”
“This is Trace,” Danny said. “Trace, Jaylon.”
His eyes widened at the introduction. “This is Trace?”
“That’s what I said.” The gruffness in Danny’s voice had returned.
Heat rose to my cheeks. Barrett had recognized me last night, and now Jaylon was definitely familiar with my name. Had they just seen the show, or did Danny talk about me? I hated how badly I wanted the latter to be true. I wanted him to be as over us as I was—which was not at all.
“Well, I’ll be damned.” Jaylon stepped toward the island and took a seat, his brown eyes widening. “It’s nice to finally meet you, Trace.”
I stuck out my hand and gave his a firm shake. “Nice to meet you, too.”
It was surreal meeting the friends Danny had mentioned so often.
He’d told me he wasn’t close with many people, but Barrett and Jaylon were like brothers to him.
They were childhood friends, always going on trips and doing crazy bucket-list type stuff.
He’d told me it had always been their dream to make a documentary together.
Barrett flopped onto the sofa instead of joining us in the kitchen. “I’m so glad it was you at the door last night and not some axe murderer. I thought we were done for.”
Jaylon turned in his seat. “You thought someone would target the house with three huge dudes staying in it?”
“Could have been some paranormal shit, I don’t know. But a knock on the door of a remote cabin late at night in a storm is, like, the perfect start to every horror movie.”
“Nobody would watch a movie without an attractive female lead. That’s the key to almost every movie like that. You need the final girl,” Jaylon said.
Barrett threw up his hands. “Well, the attractive female lead walked in the door last night, so we’d better be careful.”
“Watch it.” Danny glared at him.
Barrett rolled his eyes. “I can’t call Trace attractive? I have eyes.”
Danny just hardened his gaze further.
“Ugh, fine. I’m so sorry I crossed a line. Trace, I hope you’ll forgive me.”
His sarcasm had me laughing. “So, y’all have known Danny since you were kids, right?”
“Since he had braces and his weight hadn’t caught up to his height yet,” Barrett said.
“I’ve got pictures if you want?” Jaylon offered.
“Enough,” Danny warned.
I giggled. “I’d love that.”
“Show her and you’re dead.” Danny’s glare did little to threaten his friends.
Jaylon said, “I would never,” but then turned to me and winked.
“And you’re filming something, right?” I knew it was a ski documentary but hadn’t gotten all the details from Danny yet.
“Check this, Trace.” Barrett sprang to his feet and pointed outside into the vast mountains. “Just twenty miles away is a ski resort that was abandoned decades ago. We’re going to ski there, do every run that used to be famous, plus some on the backside that hardly anyone has attempted.”
I gulped. “Sounds….fun.” The word dangerous caught in my throat as Danny eyed me. It was one of the reasons he hadn’t wanted to be with me after the show wrapped. He couldn’t stand the idea of anyone worrying about his safety.
“Oh, it’s freaking epic. Danny’s dad used to ski here until, well, you know. That’s part of the story we’re going to explore. The human-interest piece, if you will.”
“Barrett,” Danny warned.
My smile remained frozen on my face. I didn’t want this moment to turn awkward. Danny’s dad was also a touchy subject. I knew he’d died in an accident when Danny was a kid, but that was about the only detail he’d shared with me. It hurt him to talk about, and it had hurt me to push.
Barrett waved Danny off. “Anyway, we’re going to start scouting this week, since we finally got blasted with snow.”
“How will you get to the top if it’s closed?” I asked, and Barrett and Jaylon both laughed.
“We’ll hike and skin up the old lift lines. We mapped it all out,” Barrett said.
I returned to my forgotten cereal. The next soggy bite I took nearly made me gag. It shouldn’t have surprised me that Danny had found another dangerous venture to throw himself into. That was him in a nutshell.
When I met his eyes, he was still standing there in the kitchen, arms folded, studying me. Looking for my every little reaction.
“You two have plans for the day?” Jaylon asked, pointing to me and Danny.
“We’re supposed to check out the trails today,” Danny said.
Barrett threw an arm around me. “Yeah, but your girl is here now. We can push that back.”
I nearly choked on my next bite hearing him call me Danny’s girl. Danny didn’t correct him, though. At first, I expected him to say no. To tell them that I’d be fine here by myself and that he wanted to work on the documentary.
Instead, he nodded, looked right at me, and said, “I have a few ideas.”