Chapter 34 Astrid
ASTRID
“You need to put this on,” Callan says when we reach the edge of the Whispering Woods, removing a black eye mask from his pocket.
I send him a withering look. “It’s dark out, Callan. Why on earth would I need to wear a mask?”
“It’s a surprise.” His fingers tuck a few wispy strands of hair back into my hat. I must be insane to have let him talk me into coming out here tonight. If I had balls, I’d be freezing them off right now.
In the two weeks since the party at Thor’s, Callan has been working overtime to win me back, and a girl could get used to this.
Every day, he brings me cake and coffee, and he’s been leaving the most romantic notes in my locker.
He went to the specialist art shop in town and picked up some new pencils and sketch pads when I mentioned, in passing, how I needed new supplies.
While visiting the Bennington Turo campus, to meet with the coach and get a tour of the facilities, he picked me up a sweater and a scarf.
Every Friday, he continues to hand-deliver cupcakes to my sisters, inciting a riot as usual.
He keeps me company at work in the quiet period between Halloween and Thanksgiving, and he gave me some pointers in the gym now I’ve started exercising indoors for the winter.
Callan snaps his fingers in my face. “Earth to Astrid. You totally zoned out on me.”
I shake my thoughts away and refocus. “I really need to wear this for the surprise? What if I trip?”
“I won’t let you fall. I promise.” He cups my cheek with one gloved hand.
This past week, he’s been getting braver, touching me more often, and I don’t have it in me to push him away. The truth is I miss his touch, and I’m finding it harder to keep him at bay.
“I know you don’t trust me, for good reason, but I would never let anyone or anything hurt you. I hope you can trust in that at least.”
“I do.” It’s no lie. I might not fully trust him with my heart yet, but I know he won’t let any harm come to me.
“Then, please, trust me with this. I don’t want to ruin the surprise before we reach it.”
“I’m intrigued and okay. I’ll wear it.” Shuttering my eyes, I wait for him to put the mask on. His breath fans across my face when he leans in, and a shudder works its way through me. His jacketed chest brushes against mine, and I suck in a gasp when his fingers sweep across my cheek.
“You’re beautiful, Astrid,” he whispers, and my heart goes haywire in my chest. He’s been showering me with compliments, and I love it.
Callan makes me feel special in a way no one else ever has.
I know I’m not going to be able to hold out much longer, and I don’t want to.
Gwen would say I’m giving in too easily, but it’s been two weeks, and I’m torturing myself as much as him.
“Thank you,” I say, trying not to melt at his feet as he affixes the eye mask over my hat.
He takes my hand firmly in his. “Hold on to me and trust me to guide you through.” We go slowly, and with my eyesight blocked off, I’m more attuned to the sounds and smells around me.
My boots crunch over forest debris as owls hoot in the near distance.
I know we’ve left the minty fragrance of the woods behind a few seconds later when crisp air whooshes across my cheeks and my nose.
My feet sink into softness as Callan guides me forward across the small sandy strip, and I seriously hope he hasn’t planned any swimming because you could not pay me to get into the water tonight.
Although I’m bundled up in my wool coat, hat, and scarf, and I’m wearing a heavy sweater underneath with jeans, socks, and boots, it’s still cold, and this is totally cray-cray.
Warmth blooms before me, blasting heat at my face, and I frown.
“Okay. Ready?” Callan asks.
“Yep.”
He whips the eye mask off, and it takes a few seconds for my eyesight to adjust to the vision in front of me.
A gazebo is erected on the sand, fully covered on three sides, with heavy cream canvas curtains tied back at the front, framing the view of the lake with the forest in the background. Patio heaters stand like sentries at the opening, warming the air and heating my bones.
Inside, a thick blanket covers the ground, hiding the sand, and an abundance of bean bags and soft, large cushions invite me in.
Smaller blankets are stacked in one corner.
Callan flips a button on the remote control in his hand, and multiple candles light up the space, casting a magical glow against the canvas walls.
A round table in the middle of the space hosts a variety of foil-wrapped items and a few flasks.
“It’s a midnight picnic,” he blurts when I continue to stand there stupefied and mute. I cannot believe he did all this for me. “Well, a midnight picnic at nine o’clock. Your dad said you had to be home by eleven thirty, tops.”
“This is incredible.” I fling my arms around him. “You’re amazing.” I feel him visibly relax against me before I unwind my arms and dip my head to enter the winter wonderland.
“Do you really like it?” he quizzes, following me inside.
“No one has ever done anything like this for me. How did you even pull it off?” I ask, spinning around. I’m in awe, and my heart is rocketing into orbit, turning cartwheels, and screaming for joy.
“I couldn’t pick you up from work because I was setting all this up. Thor, Riley, and Travis helped.”
“I still can’t believe you’re best buds with Travis,” I say, sinking cross-legged onto a cushion around the table. “Plot twist I never saw coming.”
“Me either, but he’s sound.” Callan sits beside me, his knee brushing against mine in the process, sending a wave of shivers ricocheting through me.
“I’ve never had any beef with Travis,” I admit, watching as he starts removing foil from the various plates and dishes.
“He’s always been nice to me, and I couldn’t fathom how he ended up with Ana,” I add as I take a few pics of the room and the food.
There’s no way I’m not bragging about this date on my socials.
“He’s seen the light now.” Callan pours coffee and creamer into a mug and hands it to me.
I wrap my hands around it, inhaling the steam and letting the warmth sink into my bones. “Seeing Ana all flustered this week made my year, honestly.”
“I have hot chocolate to go with our cake, but I thought you might want coffee with the savory food,” he explains, handing me a plate. “Help yourself.”
“I sense Roni’s involvement,” I tease as I load my plate with homemade sausage rolls, coleslaw, thick crusty bread, and a chicken burrito. I’m glad I chose not to eat dinner at work tonight, and I’m starving, so none of this will go to waste.
“Ma helped, and I got the burritos in town and the maple cake from the resort because I know it’s your favorite.”
Without overthinking it, I lean in and brush my lips against his. “Thank you. You’re the best.”
He stares at me like I put the stars in the sky, and I swoon under the depth of his adoration. “You deserve the world, Astrid, and I want to be the one to give it to you.”
“Selfie,” I demand, pressing my face up against his and holding out my phone. I snap a few pics and then scroll through them.
“We look good together,” he says, sliding his arm around my back as we look at the photos. “Send those to me. I want to use one as my screensaver.”
Butterflies swoop into my chest and flutter excitedly. I am kidding myself if I think I’m not head over heels for this guy. “I didn’t stand a chance, did I?”
His eyes widen, and sheer joy ghosts over his face. “Does that mean—”
“Don’t count your chickens, soccer star.” I nudge him with my elbow. “Eat up, and we’ll talk after.”
We gorge ourselves on all the delicious food, repositioning our cushions so we’re facing the opening as we drink our hot chocolate and eat mini apple pies, cheesecake, and maple cake. Callan must have designated today as his cheat day because he devours everything in sight.
“I’m so stuffed,” I groan a while later as we sit close together with his arm around my shoulders and my head resting against his side. The view is breathtaking at night with a myriad of stars twinkling brightly against the blue-black backdrop.
“Same.” His arm tightens around me while he drops a tender kiss on my cheek.
“This is magical,” I admit, looking between him and the stars. “A special moment in time to commit to memory,” I softly add in a nod to words he previously said.
“For sure, beautiful.”
He kisses the tip of my cold nose before easing back a little to stare at me.
I watch his gaze move from my brow to my eyes before lowering to my cheeks and my nose and lingering on my lips.
There isn’t a single part of me that feels cold right now.
Callan has warmed every chilly part of me, and I’m done fighting this feeling.
He has proven enough, and it’s time to put both of us out of our misery.
So, when he says, “I really want to kiss you right now,” there is no hesitation in my response.
“I want that too.” Shifting onto my knees, I wrap my arms around him and bring our faces close together.
His large palm holds the back of my head in place as he joins our lips, and a soothing warmth settles inside me.
This. This is what I need. What I’ll always need.
We kiss like we were made to come together in a beautiful marriage of hearts and souls and minds.
We angle our heads to deepen the kiss, and I cling to him, holding him tight as he kisses me like his very existence depends upon it.
I don’t know which one of us lowers first, but then we’re on the ground, tangled in the cushions as we clutch one another, and our kissing grows frenzied.
He lifts one leg, curling it over my hip, and I slide my leg between his thighs, pressing my aching core against the bulge in his jeans.
We both moan, grabbing one another as our kissing grows even more heated.
It might be in the low thirties tonight, but I’m a furnace, burning even brighter and hotter with every passionate kiss. Distantly, I hear the ringing of a phone, but I ignore it, grinding against Callan as every nerve ending in my body purrs and hums.
I pout when Callan rips his lips from mine, and the world comes back into focus. “You better get that,” Callan says in a breathless voice. The insistent buzzing noise is coming from my pocket. “It’s been ringing nonstop.”
I silently curse Gwen when I spot her name flashing on the screen before chastising myself for my uncharitable thought. My bestie knows I’m with Callan tonight, and she wouldn’t interrupt unless it were urgent. “What’s wrong?” I ask when I sit up and answer the call.
“Azzie,” she sobs, crying through the phone. “It’s Gran. She fell down the stairs, and she won’t wake up.”