CHAPTER EIGHTEEN DIEGO #2
“Sounds like a good plan.” I don’t want to walk in the mountains of snow after last night’s storm. Planting a kiss on the back of her head, I slap her ass. “Thank you, pretty girl.”
I force myself to collect the clothes I left in the bathroom and exit to change upstairs before I can lose myself in her smile, her scent, her presence.
Shouting a see you before leaving her cabin, I make my way to her car, and start clearing the snow from it.
I also decide to shovel the driveway to save Joe the burden of doing it.
When I glance at her parents’ house, feeling eyes on me, I’m greeted by a giggling Donna, who’s sipping on her coffee. I give her an awkward wave, feeling my cheeks burn with embarrassment, though it seems like the smile that’s etched itself on my face since I woke up won’t go away.
So much for trying to be discreet.
Me: Your mom saw me do the walk of shame
Pretty girl: LOL she knows you spent the night, but don’t worry, she won’t say anything.
Me: How? And shit, should I be worried about your dad?
Pretty girl: She literally saw you walk up to my cabin. All she asked was if I needed more condoms.
Me: That’s insane.
Pretty girl: And as for my dad, no worries either. They’ll keep their mouths shut.
Me: I trust you all. I love the fact you’re so comfortable talking about sex with your mom. I could never with mine. Even less with Dad. First time I bought condoms was in a drug store three towns away because I was scared to be seen.
Pretty girl: Aw, I’m sorry to hear that. I know Gaby struggles with that too. She literally comes to Mom to ask for advice and girl stuff.
Me: What do you mean my little sister has sex??? That’s so disgusting!
I know I was the one to ask if we could keep this a secret, yet something is bothering me, and I don’t know what.
“Fucking help me up instead of laughing at me!”
Alara’s laugh is loud, hearty, and even if I’m trying to be pissed off at her, I can’t keep my smile from growing.
We’ve been filming some content for Rock Snow’s social media behind the store.
She always manages to find the funniest ways to promote the items we sell, and her hard work keeps paying off – online sales continue to skyrocket, and it’s busier generally at the shop too.
Four other videos went viral, garnering an interest no one saw coming.
As for me, I still avoid my own social media like the plague.
I’m liking this quiet life away from judgment, expectations, and pressure.
Alara keeps telling me that my follower numbers are increasing exponentially, but I’m indifferent to it.
And when she told me that plenty of women asked for my number, I responded by saying that I didn’t care because the only woman I need is standing right in front of me.
That earned me a beautiful smile that made my pulse race.
Yesterday, she clipped a little microphone to my fleece jumper and filmed me as I talked about everything snowboarding, all while showing to the camera my personal favorites – boards, goggles, and even bindings.
It made me genuinely happy to do this. Alara’s been making sure to incorporate my passion and my love for snowboarding in everything we do, and I don’t think she realizes how much it means to me.
I’m currently lying in a pile of powdery snow, wearing the newest bib pants in our stock. And she’s fucking laughing at me because of the way I tripped and fell.
As she pockets her phone, I extend my hand. She’s na?ve as fuck, because as soon as our palms connect I pull her into me and twist until she’s the one lying in the snow as I pin her down.
She shrieks as my freezing cold hands pull her jumper up just enough to touch her waist. “Diego!”
I grin, lowering my lips to her ear as she thrashes beneath me, her soft laughter feeding my soul. “I love it when you scream my name.”
“I hate you.” Yet she’s laughing heartily. She’s smiling up at me like nothing else matters.
“Yeah, yeah, that’s not what you were saying last night when I snuck in and—”
“Well, well, well. Don’t you two look cozy?”
We both freeze at the sound of Jordan’s voice. My eyes widen comically, and when I roll on my back and sink into the snow, I jerk my chin as a form of greeting. “Wanna join?”
Jordan lifts his hands, a Red Bull in his right one.
“I’m good here.” He looks back and forth between us, his eyebrows high with uncertainty.
Aside from that, I can’t really read his expression, and that frustrates the shit out of me.
Is he mad? Amused? Happy? The fucker is way harder to read than his sister.
“Jordy,” Alara grumbles, trying to distract her brother from the fact that I was practically lying on top of her in broad daylight. You can’t blame me for being a total idiot around her. I can’t think properly. “Why are you drinking a Red Bull? It’s, like, ten in the morning.”
“No sleep,” he replies, before shifting the can to his left hand to give his right one to Alara to hold on to. He pulls her up, then helps me up as well. “I’ve got an insane workload at the moment. My PA is sick.”
Alara is dusting off her ass as her brows pull together. “Oh, that sucks. You can give me access to your socials, if you want. I’m happy to help.”
The fact she didn’t even think twice before offering her help is so alluring. Her selflessness is most definitely my favorite thing about her.
“Are you sure? You’re already busy with everything else.”
“I don’t mind.” There it is, the dazzling smile that flips my world on its axis. “Really. I love the work I do for Rock Snow, so I’m happy to do it for you too.”
Jordan’s phone rings. He throws his head back, groans, takes a long sip of his energy drink, and says, “Fuckin’ won’t stop ringing. Alright, let’s meet up later and we can go over what you can do for me.” He’s already walking toward the store when he yells over his shoulder. “Thanks, Al!”
I’m mostly done with wiping the snow off my clothes, so I help Alara by brushing my hands over her hair after making sure Jordan is out of sight. “I hope you don’t get sick,” I mumble.
“I’ll be okay.”
If she keeps looking at me like this – tenderly, adoringly – I might say fuck it to all our rules and kiss her right here, right now. I’m aware no one really comes out here, but the office has a view over the backyard, and I’d bet everything that Joe is looking out at us.
Part of me wants to walk up to him and tell him I only have good intentions regarding his daughter, and the other part of me knows it’s something people only do when they’re in relationships. Besides, Joe knows that I’m a good, correct, and respectful man.
“So, I’ve been doing a bit of thinking,” I inform her, putting my fingers on either side of her neck. She squeals and pries my hands off.
“Sounds dangerous. Did your head hurt? Did you need a few hours of rest after making your brain work?”
“You have no idea. I was exhausted,” I deadpan. “No, but seriously. You’re really talented at what you’re doing with the content creation and social media management, so I think you should look into pursuing a master’s in social media marketing.”
“You really think it’s something for me?” She tilts her head.
Her unknown future is something that obviously dims her light, so I’ll do anything to help her.
I want to see her shine the way she brightly and openly does it when she’s happy.
“Positive. Look, what you’re doing for Rock Snow, and now Jordan’s line?
You love it so much. Why not just continue down this path? ”
Studying my face for a beat, she stays silent before nodding.
There’s a flicker of surprise in her eyes, as if she wasn’t expecting me to be so supportive.
In a way, I understand the pressure she’s putting on herself, so that probably explains my need to soothe her nerves. “I’ll have a look into the program.”
“Good, but don’t stress yourself out. I’ll help you figure this out.” My fingers twitch with the sudden urge to touch her again. “Now, let’s get back inside and resume our work. I kinda want to be done with rearranging my three thousand boxes of mid-layers in the aisle.”
She rolls her eyes in amusement as we walk back toward the shop. “You have two boxes.”
“Feels like three million,” I mumble.
She brushes past me when I open the door, chuckling. “Let’s meet up for lunch?”
I grin, watching her walk toward the little room she’s transformed into her office. It’s like I can’t stay away from her. Like she lights me up from the inside just by looking at me. “Yes, please.”
Alara doesn’t know this, but when I’m with her, everything stops hurting. Everything becomes brighter. She’s the clarity I didn’t seek out before coming here, but which has now stumbled upon me like a rainbow after a storm. She’s the calm I look forward to after a tempest.
Alara started out as my key to redemption – she’s the only one who can convince Coach that I’ve polished my image.
But, then, she became a great source of distraction and made me forget about my pain and the pressure that’s weighed me down.
Now, she’s becoming, slowly but surely, my everything.
And I don’t know what to do with myself.
I’m terrified to admit this, but she’s managed to unravel me.
Every rule I set, every promise I made to myself was being held together by a little knot, and Alara has effortlessly untied the bow.
Now, my walls have crumbled. And, now, I don’t know how to stop my romantic feelings from ruining my plan.