Chapter 25
CHAPTER 25
MARIAM
G atlinburg with the girls was always a treat. We spent our few days there living our best life, catching up, shopping, and just having a cozy weekend together.
Despite all my worries about leaving Everwood just a week before the opening, I was glad I’d come. As the sun set outside, snow fell gently to the ground and I watched it come down with a smile on my lips.
“I think we should move here,” I declared lazily, sipping on hot cocoa and enjoying the heat from the fire in the hearth. “At least for the winter.”
“You live in Sun Valley for now,” Laurel pointed out. Giggling, she arched an eyebrow at me. “From the pictures I’ve seen, it’s just as pretty there. If not even prettier.”
“Yeah, I know. It’s gorgeous. It looks like something from a story book, but there’s just something special about this place too, you know?”
She nodded, her own gaze moving to the windows to drink in the view. “There’s something special about every place, though. Have you given any more thought to where you’re going next?”
“Nope.” I sat up a little and adjusted my grip on my mug. “Right now, I’m trying really hard not to even think about leaving Sun Valley.”
“Because it means leaving Arland?” Gemma guessed out loud.
I nodded, then rolled my lips into my mouth and slowly released them as I thought it over. “Is it weird that I’m already so attached to him? Obviously, I’m not saying that I’m going to abandon my plans to travel, but it seems unimaginable to me to just leave Idaho without him.”
“So don’t,” Laurel suggested. “You can always take him with you.”
My heart skipped at the thought, but my head was shaking before she’d even finished vocalizing it. “That would be ideal, obviously, but he’s got Everwood and a bunch of other businesses. I could never ask him to leave all that for me.”
“He might, though,” Gemma said, the look in her eyes faraway. “I really don’t think there’s a limit to what we’ll do for the people we love.”
“Yeah, but is it fair to even ask?” I countered, curling my legs underneath me on the couch as I looked at my friends. We were going into town for dinner in a little while, but for now, we were all in sweats and slippers, relaxing after a day of shopping and a bit of list-induced madness. “Would you ask Noah to move to Austin for you? Also, we haven’t even said the L-word yet. I’ve been thinking it, because it really feels like that, but let’s leave that out of the conversation for now.”
“Okay, if you say so, but love changes things. Just remember that.” Gemma sighed, shrugging as she shook her head. “It’s a moot point about Noah. He can’t live in Austin. Brandon has a house there and it sounds like that’s where they go when they’ve got some time off, but realistically, they travel a lot. They need to be wherever their shows are, which means that even if I ask him and even if he says yes, he’d still be gone more often than he’d be there.”
I winced. “That’s a tough one.”
She pulled in a deep breath through her nostrils and nodded as she released it. “It’s new to both of us. Right now, I’m not even sure what we are to each other. I know we’ve got a connection, but I have no idea what’s going to happen.”
Laurel suddenly started laughing, but the sound wasn’t amused as much as it was disbelieving. “How did all of us get ourselves into such complicated relationships? Leif lives in Denver, for heaven’s sake. He has a firm there and I have the bookstore in Franklin. We’re all screwed.”
Gemma burst out laughing too and finally I joined in as well. It really wasn’t funny but it was also hilarious how every single one of us had gotten ourselves into such a predicament. Laurel had been sad all weekend, missing the heck out of Leif, Gemma had told us that she’d even told Noah he could come too, but his schedule hadn’t allowed it, and I kept texting with Arland, wishing that he’d fly out to surprise me again.
“This is such a mess,” I finally managed between laughs. “That’s it. I think it’s time to pull out the list again.”
Laurel wiped tears from her eyes. “You’ve already looked at all your items, right? Do you want to do one together this weekend?”
We’d already done one of Gemma’s, and I suddenly nodded, knowing exactly which one to choose. “Oh, my gosh. I hate this. I’ve been so worried about it, but I think it’s better to just get it over with and I’d love to do it with you. I think I’d be too embarrassed to do it otherwise.”
“What is it?” Gemma asked, and I could practically see her trying to push Noah out of her mind.
“Throw a fit in a restaurant for no good reason.” My face went red just thinking about it. This was so far out of my comfort zone. “It’s awful. I never want to make a scene, but especially not for no good reason.”
Laurel laughed some more, and even though it wasn’t her task, I saw the apprehension in her eyes as she considered it. “Let’s go get it out of the way, then. We were going out for a quick dinner anyway, right? We might as well make it count.”
Gemma rallied, recovering first and getting up with a wide grin pasted across her lips. “Come on, it won’t be so bad. I think it might even be exactly what we need. Enough with the sitting around and moping. Let’s go have some fun.”
She marched to the bedroom to change and Laurel and I followed, though my heart was pounding wildly with trepidation and anxiety over what I would have to do once we got into town. While Laurel and Gemma got dressed, I grabbed a quick shower, my head still clearing after the crazy afternoon we’d had.
Since it probably wasn’t safe for us to drive again just yet, we took a cab to the center of town, and despite my nerves, I found myself once again in awe of where we were. Gatlinburg was a real winter wonderland this time of year, with millions of lights, gorgeous, snowy mountains, and a festive, resort-like atmosphere in the air.
The first time we’d come here had been about five years ago, shortly after Laurel had gotten settled in Franklin. It didn’t matter how many times we’d been, though. I always felt such a sense of wonder when we came.
In fact, what I felt here had motivated me to make my travel dreams a reality. I’d just always felt like there could be so many more places out there that would make me feel the same way, even if for different reasons. It had made me desperate to see more. To experience more.
A feeling that was reinforced when we stepped out of the cab and joined the throngs of other tourists of the street. The world was a big, big place and I hadn’t seen nearly enough of it—but I didn’t know if I was going to be able to enjoy it if I had to leave Arland behind.
The thought of it just didn’t sit right with me, irrespective of how new our relationship was. For the moment, I was intent on taking things one day at a time, but in the back of my mind, I was already starting to lay out the options as I saw them.
My type-A personality simply refused to let me just forget that I would be leaving Sun Valley—and Arland with it—so soon. Trying not to let that thought completely take over, I focused on the literal task at hand, glancing up and down the street for a restaurant.
“There,” Gemma said from beside me, pointing at a fancy-looking place down the block.
The windows facing the street were massive, allowing me to see white-starched tablecloths and flickering candles at the center of every table. Most of the dining room seemed to be occupied by couples or small groups. I swallowed hard but nodded.
“I suppose it’s as good as any. I was kind of hoping for a diner, though.”
She chuckled and wrapped an arm around one of mine. “You’re bang out of luck on that one. We’re making it count, remember?”
“Unfortunately,” I muttered.
Laurel wrapped her hand around my free arm, and together, we took off toward the restaurant, all three of us a little anxious as Gemma pushed open the door. I could feel my friends’ nerves coming off them in waves. It made my stomach feel like it was filled with red ants, but I lifted my chin and squared my shoulders.
I was going to do this. I would simply do it in my own way.
“Table for three?” the hostess asked, already picking up menus before waving us toward the dining room.
We nodded, following her to a table near the open-concept kitchen. Inside, chefs and cooks were moving at lightning speed, and as I glanced at them, I felt the ants solidifying into rocks in my stomach. Those people were hard at work and I could see their practiced efficiency, the kitchen seemingly running like a well-oiled machine.
Oh, God. I can’t do it. I can’t ? —
Gemma nudged me when we reached our table. “It’s going to be alright. You still don’t have to do this, you know? I mean, you do have to, but only if you want to finish your list.”
“I thought we weren’t allowing each other to skip tasks,” I said, thinking back to the conversation we’d had about the rules. “We agreed that each of us would do everything we drew, regardless of how uncomfortable it makes us.”
Gemma shrugged, green eyes filled with both laughter and understanding as they held my own. “Sure, but if you’re too stressed about this…”
As she trailed off, I shook my head. My gaze zeroed in on a young guy wearing a suit and an apron with the restaurant’s logo emblazoned across the chest. I glanced at Gemma. “Just give me a minute?”
She nodded and sat down with Laurel, who also watched me with concern in her eyes. I knew they would let me off the hook if I told them I wasn’t going to do it, but so far, we’d enjoyed every task, and moreover, we’d learned something about ourselves from each one.
Even if it was just that we had the courage to follow through.
When the guy—who I assumed was our waiter—arrived at our table, I shot him what I hoped was a polite smile. “Do you have time for a quick talk?”
He frowned but nodded. “Do you want to order drinks or do you want to talk first?”
“Uh, no. We can order our drinks. I’m so sorry,” I said. “I realize how strange this is, but I’m hoping you’ll understand in a moment.”
Looking confused as hell, not that I blamed him, he turned to Gemma and Laurel. Then he glanced at me once they’d placed their order. I swallowed past the dry patches in my throat. “I’ll just have a Coke, thanks. Can I walk with you?”
“Sure.” He gave my friends a strange look, as if he wasn’t sure if they really were my friends or if they’d kidnapped me or something. Then he turned and strode to the bar.
After he’d put in our orders, he motioned to a quiet corner between the bar and the restrooms, a furrow in his brow and suspicion in his eyes. “Are you okay, ma’am?”
“I, uh, yes. I’m fine. Again, I’m so, so sorry about this, but I wanted to give you a heads-up.” I proceeded to explain the whole thing to him, letting him in on the list and the fact that I was required to throw a fit.
To my relief, as soon as I started explaining and he realized I wasn’t in any trouble, he began smiling. By the end, he looked flat-out excited. When I was done, he nodded at me. “This is going to be awesome. Don’t worry about me. I’ll play along.”
“Thank you,” I said, genuine relief washing over me. “We’ll tip generously. I promise.”
He laughed. “This is probably the most eventful shift I’m going to have here, so don’t worry about it.”
Taking off back to the bar, he left me to return to my friends. Laurel gave me a knowing look as soon as I sat down. “You warned him, didn’t you?”
“Sure did. Surprisingly, he’s fine with it. Excited even.”
Gemma laughed and rubbed her palms together, mischief shimmering in her eyes. “Oh, this is going to be fun. I can’t wait to see it.”
“I’m not sure about it being fun, exactly, but at least that poor guy will know what’s going on. I promised we’d tip him well.”
“Of course.” Laurel grinned as he brought our drinks.
With the groundwork now done, we placed our orders for food, and once we’d had our appetizers, I found the chance to throw my fit. Ronnie, the waiter, had come to collect our plates and I narrowed my eyes at him, holding up my half-drunk Coke.
“Excuse me,” I said loudly, clearing my throat and shooting him an accusatory glare. “This ice is too cold.”
His eyebrows flew up and I saw the laughter in his gaze, but he managed to hold it back. “The ice is too cold, ma’am?”
“Yes, it was too cold, and now, it’s not cold enough. I’d like a new drink. This one is warm and watered down.”
He took the Coke from me and pretended to inspect the glass. “Well, I suspect it’s not cold enough anymore because the ice is melted. I’ll bring you some new ice, ma’am.”
“That’s not good enough. I liked the old ice. You need to replace the drink.”
Gemma and Laurel were desperately trying to hold back their laughter as well, and I could see Ronnie about to lose the battle. Deciding that I might as well let them get a great laugh out of it instead of just a laugh, I reached for one of the empty plates that had held an appetizer.
“I’d also like to talk to your chef,” I insisted. “This fish was much too fishy. We’re not going to pay for it.”
“You’re not going to pay for your fish because it was too fishy?” Ronnie clarified.
I nodded. “Absolutely not, and the breadsticks? They were much too crunchy. I almost broke a tooth.”
Laurel was shaking with silent laughter beside me and other people in the restaurant were now staring. Gemma’s entire face had turned beet red as she struggled to contain herself, but thankfully, before she broke, Ronnie took the Coke and the empty plate from me.
“Right away, ma’am. I’ll bring you a new drink and see what we can do about the breadsticks. I’ll also convey your thoughts about the fishy fish to the chef.”
I kept glaring at him. He spun on his heels, dashing toward the kitchen as if he was desperate for someplace private to finally unleash his laughter. My friends dissolved into giggles once he was gone and I hid my face in my napkin, so embarrassed and yet so proud of myself for doing it.
“This list is ridiculous,” I forced out between laughs of my own. “It’s like a bunch of teenage girls wrote it. Oh wait.”
Gemma cracked up all over again, and despite the fact that people were still staring, I was suddenly overcome with a wave of gratitude for our fourteen-year-old selves. As much as that had been way outside of my comfort zone, we’d all gotten a fantastic laugh out of it and so had Ronnie.
I was also willing to bet that every patron in here tonight was going to have a laugh about it as well when they told the story. What I’d done tonight was undoubtedly going to be remembered by more people than just my friends and me, and even though I would be a laughingstock to all of them, I’d never done much worth being remembered for.
Once again, our ridiculous list had achieved what it had set out to. I had taken a walk on the wild side and it had been a lot more fun than I’d been expecting.