Chapter 55
HANNAH
Henry, thankfully, is an honest man, and Maya didn’t handcuff the culprit who is spreading the rumors. However, she duct taped her mouth and somehow got a hold of some rope to tie her hands to the chair.
“I leave you alone for five minutes, and you already have her bound?!” Henry is removing the restraints, muttering words under his breath.
Cassy sits in a storage room full of sacks of potatoes and jars of different labeled jelly spreads. Garlic hangs from a couple of hooks, along with other various kitchen items.
“She didn’t believe my threats, so I proved her wrong.” Maya crosses her arms, glowering at a mute Cassy, who in return squints her eyes, mumbling through the tape, most likely cursing at Maya.
Ella and Elise stand guard outside, both are also responsible for holding Cassy hostage.
Henry takes a piece of the duct tape and says, “This is going to hurt.” He removes it in one go and Cassy shouts, about to dive after Maya when I block her path, forcing her back in her seat.
Red splotches form around her mouth. “Why the hell am I here?" she yells.
“Deflecting your own stupidity isn’t cute,” retorts Maya, taking a step forward to show dominance.
Henry inches with her, like he wants to protect her. “You’re only making it worse.”
“I don’t care! She’s ruining the resort!”
“Oh, I’m sorry, am I supposed to care what happens here? It’s just another washed-up place that’ll go under like the rest.” She flips her perfectly curled hair aside, raising a sculpted eyebrow. She’s taunting Maya, hoping she takes the bait.
What I don’t expect is Henry pulling Maya back, already clocking when she’s about to rage and tackle Cassy.
She flinches, eyes darting around the room, trying to find an escape route.
I take over, mustering whatever confidence I have left, and calmly approach her. “Did you spread the rumor about Noah?”
“Not a rumor if it’s true.” Her snake-like attitude rubs me the wrong way. Even up close, she’s blemish-free, not a wrinkle in sight. “But why would I tell you? You’re only temporary to him. He’ll come right back to me.”
Maya and Henry are too busy arguing about safety and not to overstep to care that she outed my and Noah’s intimate encounters.
But I will be damned if she tries to ruin us and Snowy Peak.
“So, you spread private information about Noah’s condition to the press because he dumped you?” She can’t be serious.
Her silence is all the answer I need to confirm the truth.
I snap my fingers to get Henry and Maya’s attention. “It’s her. Report her to Coach Jones and Anthony. I need to find Noah.”
She tries to grab my arm, but I’m too fast, creating space between us. “I don’t understand why you’re so goddamn special. Did you win the prize for the biggest pig? Is that why?” she sneers.
Maya is being held back by Henry, arms swinging, ready to fight for my honor.
I stare at her sour expression, the hatred in her words, the pure, hostile look in her eyes.
Cassy is probably someone who’s been burned more than once, her bitterness masking any common sense.
She will stop at nothing to seek revenge on anyone who’s wronged her in the past, including ones who never inflicted it in the first place.
I happened to catch her at a bad time. “It’s okay, Maya. I’m fine.”
Henry calms down her swings, and she slumps against his body. “Just one hit, please.”
I give Cassy another look over, feeling sorry for her. “No, she’s not worth it. Let her go.”
Maya shrugs out of Henry’s hold and knocks twice on the door. Ella and Elise poke their heads in, getting the okay from Maya, and escort Cassy out of the room.
A light touch of someone’s hand pulls me back into focus. “Hannah, are you okay?” Maya will go up to bat for me every time, and I can’t get mad at her for going to my defense.
But am I okay? Will I ever be? Yeah, maybe, when the dust settles after Snowy Peak is in good standing again.
But I know what she’s really asking, and I don’t have an answer for her. Not anymore.
I pat her hand in reassurance and look over to Henry. “Is Noah in his cabin?”
He nods, eyes flicking back and forth between Maya and I. “Triple knock, he’ll know it’s someone important.”
We briefly exchange goodbyes, and Maya mumbles about alerting her parents of what transpired, while Henry scolds her for almost causing a fight. Those two bicker so much they remind me of an old married couple.
Noah’s cabin is in the third cluster, number twenty-four. Snow crunches underneath my boots, shoe marks imprinting most of the path. The stairs are slippery, so I take my time, using the railing for support. All is quiet upon my arrival, even the curtains are drawn shut.
I’m happy we figured out who started such rumors, even though it’s true, but I’m worried about how he’ll take it. If he cares at all, because it’s Cassy.
Hugging myself close, I triple knock, counting down the minutes in my head, when the door cracks a few inches open, and Noah hangs an arm along the threshold, shirtless, a body sculpted to perfection.
The very same body I’ve been exploring for days.
Gray sweats hug his hips, that faint hair line down his stomach teasing me to touch.
Hair wet, dripping down his shoulders, he allows me inside. His face is bruised, a deep, purplish hue across his cheek, a small cut on his lower lip.
“Did you get an ice pack?” I ask.
He swings the door wide open and points at the first aid kit on his bed. “I wanted to shower first.”
“Right.” The air is charged with something I can’t identify, simmering under the surface, waiting to shake our foundation.
I start to rummage through its contents, while Noah takes a seat at the end of the bed. An ice pack is hidden at the bottom, one of those gel ones you get from the hospital. I crack it, placing it against his cheek. He sighs, eyes closed, breathing at a steady pace.
He looks so young and tired. Dark circles are faint, but I see them, sitting underneath his eyes.
“Are you in pain?” I ask.
His eyes fly open. “No.”
“Good.” I’m trying to make light conversation before I drop the bomb.
“Are you?” he asks in return, keeping his eyes on me, a slight brush of his knuckles along my arm makes me shiver.
I shrug, moving the ice pack a little closer to his mouth. “I guess.”
His hand covers mine, his brown eyes soften. “Red, I didn’t mean—”
“Cassy was the one who spread the information to the press,” I interrupt.
He freezes just for a second, eyes blinking, but he seems to recover quickly and says, "Not surprised. How did you find out?”
I move the ice pack up, closer to his eye. He hisses from the pressure. “Maya, she made Ella and Elise stand guard.”
Up close, I notice flecks of gold in his brown eyes, a small scar above his left eyebrow. Lips pink, his bottom one is a little swollen. “You need to be more careful, Noah.”
He clenches his fist, hearing some of his bones crack. “He insulted you. I couldn’t let him get away with that.”
Somehow, I manage to stand in between his legs, ice pack numbing my hand. “Liam isn’t worth it. Hurting him isn’t worth it.”
“It was worth it. I’d do it again. I’ll shed more blood if that means he can’t come close to you ever again.”
I sigh. “I can take care of myself.”
“I’m fully aware you can kick someone's ass if you want to.”
“Then why bother?” Why defend me like…like we’re something more? We can never be something more.
“I don’t tolerate fucks like him, running his mouth to belittle women. He’s an insecure piece of shit.”
“And my ex.” Might as well remind him of those open cans of worms.
Noah touches my hand that holds the ice pack and removes it from his face. “How long were you with him?”
“Does it matter? It’s over.”
“How long?” He looks…hurt. No, no, I’m imagining it.
“A year. ” Where is this conversation going? What is he gaining from this information?
He gets up, forcing me into an embrace, the ice pack dropping out of my hand.
It’s unexpected, something we’ve never done—a simple hug, where he rests his chin on my head, rubbing my back.
I feel so small in his arms, fragile, like glass, suspended in mid-air, only to be shattered into tiny pieces, almost impossible to put back together again.
I’ll never return to whole, there will always be pieces of me, too jagged and small to refit together again.
Yet Noah’s hug comes a close second to mending some of the broken pieces I’ve left sitting for too long. His skin is warm, soft, and comforting, a blanket of my favorite kind.
I breathe in his familiar scent, basking in whatever time I have left with him.
“As friends, I refuse to let him harass you.”
I look up, catching him staring down at me. “Friends?”
“Are we not?”
Friends. It sounds nice. Sounds less complicated. Sounds… definite.
Is that what I want? Just friends?
Things are complex as it is.
I step out of his embrace, keeping a safe distance, away from any temptations. “I think tonight, we should keep our distance until things wind down.”
He rubs the back of his neck. “If that’s what you need.”
But is it what I want? Is it what he wants?
He’s so willing to follow my lead, never batting an eye or thinking twice.
“Is that what you want, too?” I’m way too clammy, my hands slick with sweat, anxious to hear his answer. It shouldn’t matter, because there’s nothing more that can come of this.
Noah grabs my face, his palms rough from old callouses, and strokes my cheeks.
He leans forward, his lips graze my nose, trailing up to my forward where he kisses the center, breathing deeply.
A single kiss to the forehead is enough to solidify what my heart has been trying to tell me this whole time.
He pulls back. “Red, go rest, okay?” It’s an order, one I’ve taken too many times before. Noah’s hands slowly leave my face, brown eyes melancholy mirror my own emotions.
He’s kicking me out, and it strikes a chord. Embarrassed, I start to back away, tripping on my own two feet, hitting the door with my back. “Shit, sorry.”
“Are you okay?” Noah takes a step forward, ready to steady my body.
I wave him off. “Yes, fine.” Why am I running out the door? Why can’t I stop running until I’m safely in my cabin?
I sink to the floor, trying to stop my heart from bursting through my chest. Closing my eyes, I rock back and forth, keeping a rhythm to slow down my racing thoughts.
But it’s no use, I’m spiraling, faster and faster to rock bottom, crashing on jagged rocks, tearing my skin, breaking my bones.
All old wounds reopen, spewing dark times and harsh conversations—belittlement of something I can’t control.
Cornered like prey, whipped with words so degrading I’m left with internal scars, never fully healed, never seen but always under the surface.
Taunting me, biding its time until I slip up, let someone in again, only for the cycle to potentially repeat.
Head barely above water, I crawl to my bed, hiding under the covers, hoping the extra barrier will protect me, even though the battle is all in my head.