Chapter Ten
Will
I’d tried to come up with an activity that would be not too little and not too big, in other words, fun.
Finally, I settled on something I’d never done before but had always wanted to.
A ski resort about an hour away had a gondola that ran all year, even after the snow melted.
And at the top was a restaurant with casual but very delicious food, according to several people in my office. And an arcade.
I really wanted to surprise him, but since it was our first date, I figured I’d better save the surprises for the future, but when I asked him if he’d like to go to Ski Summers, as they called it, he squealed so loud, I was very proud of my choice.
“That’s so perfect! It’s supposed to be the most fun ever. ”
Fun…was what I was going for!
I picked him up about an hour and a half before sunset, and off we went. The ride there was already so special, just having a solid hour to talk about life in general. We were both wondering what it would be like up on the mountain, too.
“You’ve never been in winter?” he asked.
“No, I don’t ski much. Last time, I was about fifteen, and I broke my leg. On the bunny slope.”
“Really? Wow. I always wanted to ski but my mom said I’d break my neck.”
“So you don’t think we should try skiing this winter?” I said it before I realized I was suggesting we’d be dating in several months.
“I don’t know,” he said. “We might need to wear bubble wrap.”
We pulled up at the resort parking lot and walked up to the gondola ticket booth just as the sun was starting to tip behind the mountain, and I was afraid we’d missed it.
But as the car climbed, we kept up with the sunset, so it didn’t quite disappear until we disembarked at the top.
The sky burst into reds and oranges and yellows, stretching into the distance before slowly darkening.
“Whoa.” Sammy stood, transfixed. “Did you plan that?”
“I hoped we’d see the sunset.” I wanted to take credit, but that was about all I deserved. “But the rest was Mother Nature.”
“Well, we sure did. What are we going to do first? Play or eat?” He bounced on his toes, an easy smile reaching his eyes. “This is already the best date I’ve ever been on.”
“Me too.” I took his hand and started toward the lodge. “We can do whichever order you like. Are you hungry?”
A rumble from his stomach answered the question before he could, so I led the way into the restaurant side of the building where we were lucky enough to find a table near the windows.
The valley fell away below us, dark and serene with a few moving lights in the parking lot and the gondolas moving up and down.
A server came over with menus and took our drink order.
“I’ll have a lemonade,” Sammy said. “I don’t want to dull my senses for the games.”
“Very smart,” agreed the young server. “There’s so much to do out there, you’re going to have a great time. If you know what you want to eat, I’ll get the order in so you don’t miss any time in the gaming area.”
“What do you recommend?” I handed him back the menu. “We are excited to visit the arcade afterward.”
“Just the arcade?” he asked. “You don’t like rides?”
Sammy’s eyes widened. “There are rides?”
We ordered burgers and fries, at the recommendation of our helpful server and they were great.
But we might have gobbled them down because every time he came by, he told us what a great time we were going to have after we finished.
If I didn’t know better, I’d have thought he wanted to get us out of there so he could go on the rides.
But we were not his only customers, so our leaving didn’t free him up.
When I paid the bill, he did mention that he used his employee pass to go on at least three rides a day.
The gaming area was on the opposite side of the building and had not been visible from the restaurant or gondolas, and even our enthusiastic server had not prepared us for what awaited.
There were games, video and fun-zone style, and a whole lot more people than I’d had any idea were up here on the mountaintop.
Someone had designed a number of rides that took advantage of the mountain’s folds and slopes.
And Sammy was enchanted. He took my hand and dragged me to the cars on tracks that disappeared over the edge.
To a roller coaster and a parachute drop.
I did dig in my heels on the bungee jump, suggesting we’d just had a heavy meal and also, it looked terrifying.
A zip line was our compromise and we did it twice.
Not much of a thrill seeker, I was just hoping not to make a fool of myself, but with Sammy the Brave, it was no problem at all.
If he decided to stick around with me, I could see a lot of thrill rides in my future.
“I thought it was just a regular arcade. Nobody at work who recommended coming here said a word about all of this,” I told him in the gondola on the way back to the car. “Did you know?”
“I didn’t, but I want to do it again. Do you think they have all that in winter when the slopes are open on the other side of the mountain?”
“Not sure. Would it be something you’d want to do?” I tried to picture it in my mind. We’d really have to bundle up.
“It’s better than breaking my neck and your leg skiing.”
I supposed it would be, at that.
The drive home was quieter than the one out, but it was a nice quiet with just a few words spoken until I looked over and saw Sammy’s head tilted to the side, his eyes closed and mouth hanging open. So adorable. He was all worn out.
When I pulled up in front of his place, I patted his arm. “Sammy, you’re home.”
“Hmmm?” He rolled his head toward me and opened his eyes. “I fell asleep?”
“You did.”
“Please tell me I didn’t snore.”
“Not at all,” I lied. “Thank you for coming out with me.”
“Thank you. It was the most fun I’ve ever had.”
I walked him to his door. “Okay if I hug you?”
“Yes, please.” He snuggled into my chest and sighed. “Next time, maybe we can play?”
He didn’t need to explain that he didn’t mean like we’d played tonight.
“I’d like that.”