Chapter 8 Daphne
Chapter eight
Daphne
My muscles are burning. Somehow strapping on two long slippery boards has me engaging parts of my core long unused.
I wince, only a little, as I bend to pull the garnet slipdress up over my hips.
Once each of the spaghetti straps is in its rightful place, I grab the lipstick, in the color black honey, and swipe it over my lips.
With a few quick swipes of my brush as an attempt to coerce down the flyaways from wearing my tuque, I appraise myself in the mirror.
Normally I’d fret over some lacking part of myself, but today I feel pretty.
I’d like to think that it's something as simple as the fact that my cheeks are still red from the cold, or that I think I actually made some progress at my lesson today.
But I know what it is. It's the compliments that were mercilessly laid on me all day while a kind and incredibly patient Andri took his time teaching me.
And, he called me beautiful.
I’ve been called cute before, but never that. And the way he said it—so earnest and without pretense. He said it like it’s something that I obviously should have known.
I catch myself in the mirror twiddling the giant piece of carbon on my ring finger as I get that warm and seriously fuzzy feeling I do when I think about him.
That’s when I hear a foot tapping behind me.
“Really, Daphne, if you don’t hurry up, we’re going to miss our reservation at the only worthwhile restaurant close to this godforsaken town.” Gerald’s voice snaps me back to my reality.
“You don’t find Hallow’s Cove even a little charming?” I pry, all while waiting for him to compliment my getup.
“No, I don’t. The lack of cell service, decent culture, and dated accommodations isn’t charming. Its main appeal is that it’s remote, and we can mold you into a decent skier before Vail.” He grumbles and taps his index finger to the face of his gold wristwatch. “Tempus fugit, ticktock.”
I grab my beaded evening bag, a gift from his grandmother at our engagement party, and present my arm, hoping he’ll lead the way like Andri did earlier.
Gerald looks at me, then my arm, and back at me.
He rolls his eyes, grabs me by the elbow, and drags me out of the bathroom and to the front door.
We both throw on our coats, and he flings open the door to our cabin.
Despite my tempered expectations of him, I can’t help but suck in a breath looking at the sunset in front of us.
Dramatic clouds frame the sky painted with swaths of red, pink, and even deep purple near the horizon.
Chunky snow falls, and given our viewing vantage is so high up, I can actually see the storm move across the valley.
Gerald barely notices and stomps ahead toward the gondola stand. My shoes and outfit aren’t the best for the current climate, but I’m hoping if I put in an effort for our date night that my fiance will be a little less stressed. He, not in heels of course, reaches the gondola stand first.
The fairy attendant sits next to a heater in the open shelter, chatting with Andri in his usual cutoffs.
They’re laughing at a joke we must have just missed, and she drapes her dainty hand over his muscled forearm.
I stand up a little straighter as a streak of jealousy flares inside me.
As we get closer, I catch bits and pieces of her conversation.
Something about the minotaur who owns the hardware shop shacking up with flowers? It doesn’t make sense, but it doesn't matter. I can’t be bothered to eavesdrop more because my chest is on fire with this strange flash of envy. I can’t help but hate her.
I have to course-correct my brain. That arm doesn’t belong to me, I shouldn’t be feeling this way. Even if I don’t snatch her white-blonde ponytail, I can’t help but plaster a frown over my face.
“Hey guys.” Andri waves once he catches his breath. “Going into town?”
“Thankfully we’re getting out of town! There’s an amazing new molecular gastronomy place that just opened up in Stonebridge.”
“Ugh, bad news.” Andri winces. “The road out of town got buried in a small avalanche—it took some trees out with it. So unless you’re wanting a hike”—he eyes my shoes—“you’re stuck with Ted’s.”
“Shit. Those reservations took months to get!” Gerald is flustered.
“At least you’ll be the nicest dressed there.” Andri smirks at me.
Only then does Gerald wrap an arm around the small of my back.
“Well, if we have no other option, I suppose that’ll do.” Gerald accepts his fate and steps inside the gondola.
“I’ll catch ya later, Briarlee!” Andri yells to the pretty blonde fairy.
“After you, Daphne,” he whispers, holding out his large hand for me to grab as I step up into the shiny red cab.
He follows us inside, his horns scraping against the door frame.
His size seems even more massive in this small space.
“It’s turkey night, so I’m headed there myself.”
He dwarfs us both as he sits opposite us. The gondola tilts to accommodate his mass.
“Good for you?” Gerald narrows his eyes.
Andri scoffs, taken aback once again by my partner’s rudeness. Thankfully he leaves it there, and the rest of the ride down the mountain is silent.
When we arrive at Ted’s, it really is bumping—turkey night must be quite the draw.
Luckily just as we walk through the door, a table of one is getting up to leave, check in hand.
It’s another human woman. She looks so familiar that I can’t help but stare at her, but after laying a few bills next to the cashier, she’s out the door in a rush.
I peel off my coat quickly, the heaters in the diner working overtime during the snowstorm to compensate for the wraparound windows that line the walls.
Andri, now seated at the bar, lets his eyes run up me from toe to tip.
He’s far enough away that Gerald doesn’t notice when he winks and hides behind his menu—thank god.
I quickly scoot into the booth, the shiny red leather squeaking against the bare skin of my back. If I wasn't hunched over a bit trying to hide from Andri, I certainly would have when Gerald snaps his fingers in the air to get the waitress’s attention.
“Please don’t do that,” I mutter as the same faun from our first day here clocks who’s snapping and sets her jaw as she strides over.
“Yes?” she groans.
“Can you bus this table?” His finger circles over the empty coffee cup and half-eaten cherry pie.
“Do I look like the busboy?” She crosses her arms over her chest and narrows her eyes.
“No, you don’t!” I interject into the building tension between them. “But seeing this pie really has me wanting a piece, would you mind bringing us a slice, please?” I give her my best puppy-dog eyes.
“For you, sure.” She gives me that same knowing smile as before.
“Pie? We’re here for dinner.”
“Let’s switch it up!” I smile, grabbing his hand and kissing his knuckles. He softens slightly and leans against the back of the booth.
“Fine, if that’s what you really want.” He grabs his phone from his jacket pocket, and it must be a reflex because he puts it back a few seconds later.
“Kind of crazy that they can’t figure out how to get any cell service here, right?”
“Annoying more than anything.”
“I don’t know, I kind of like having you all to myself. You’re always working on something on that phone of yours.”
“Well, one of us has to have a job,” he snaps.
“You’re right, I’m sorry.” I should be defeated.
I feel like I can’t get through to him anymore and don’t even know why I’m trying.
But I want to—no, I need to—connect with him.
If anything, to get a certain snowman off my mind.
I wish I could deny my attraction to Andri, but I can’t.
What I can control is what I do about those feelings.
I’m many things, but not a single one of them is a cheater.
“So, what party did you end up going to last night? I’ve never seen you like that, it must have been a rager.” I smile and lean forward. The cowl neckline of my dress slips a bit lower than before as I do.
He sighs and pinches the bridge of his nose with his finger and thumb, as if he’s fed up with the conversation.
“Just some other skiers,” he mutters before busying himself with one of the diner’s laminated menus.
“Did you meet them on that double black diamond trail you were talking about?”
He lowers the menu and looks at me with vacant eyes.
“Do you really want to know?” He smiles.
“Of course, babe, I want to know everything there is to know about you—don’t be silly, gimme all the details.” Yes, I’m finally breaking through to him!
“I booked a room in the main hotel.”
“What?” I’m confused.
“My mistress is staying there, and we had a blast drinking in the hot tub on her balcony.”
My vision tunnels, the edges turning into a dark void.
“Am I having a stroke? I thought you said your mistress… We’re not even married. Why would you have a mistress?” I’m whispering, embarrassed and hurt. My face and chest are hot, and I’m sure my pale skin is bright red.
“Listen, you’re going to be a great wife, I’m sure of it.
But that’s just how things are going to work.
I’m going to spend a lot of time with her, and it’s best that we’re in agreement about that now.
Really, I’m giving you a gift if you think about it.
A life of affluence without having to cater to my every whim. It’s a win-win for us both.”
My stomach drops as the realization hits me.
“Oh my god, it’s that woman who just left, isn’t it? I thought I recognized her—she was in the dorm next to me!” My voice gets louder. Even though he’s out of focus in my panicked vision, I can see Andri’s big blue and white form stand up at the bar.
“Yes, Veronica was at the university the same time you were.” He’s so calm.
“Were you fucking her the entire time we were together?” My voice is cracking, and I know I’m making a scene, but I don’t care.
“Well, obviously. So you see, it’s not going to be any different than it’s been for our entire relationship. But before we’re married, I just want to clear the air about it—to set your expectations.”
I taste blood in my mouth. Have I been biting the side of my cheek? I’m not sure.
“Why would you ask me to marry you? Why are we getting married if you still want to be with her?” This is all happening too fast. Am I an idiot for not seeing this, should I have known?
“Because you’re the one who got caught with me. It would be social, not to mention career, suicide to be caught with two students, now wouldn’t it?”
“But you love me, right? How could you do this to someone you love?” My fear of rejection, despite all his bullshit, rears its ugly head.
“I love the idea of us, isn’t that enough?
” He puts a hand over mine. “Calm down, this will all work itself out, you’ll see.
I’m glad you know, though, it really is a burden off my shoulders.
Keeping it a secret has been putting me on edge all week—” He keeps talking, but suddenly my ears don’t work. All I hear is a sharp static.
I don’t feel like I have control of my body when Lerana drops off the pie in front of us. Her face is concerned, and she’s talking, but I can’t hear. My body, of its own accord, grabs a handful of the cherry pie and smashes it into Gerald’s smug face.
All the sounds rush back at once, and besides a few gasps and Lerana’s laughter, the restaurant has gone silent.
“No.” My voice doesn't waver.
Gerald swipes thick chunks of cherry in a sugary syrup off his eyelids.
“What in the fuck is wrong with you?” he spits vehemently.
“I don’t deserve a life not being loved. That’s not fucking fair.”
“Oh grow up, nothing in life is fair!”
“Fuck you, and fuck Vail, and fuck this!” I grab the hefty stone off my finger and chuck it right at his open mouth.
I watch as it flies directly to the back of his throat almost in slow motion and gets lodged somewhere just beyond his uvula.
His hands spring to clutch his neck, and his eyes bulge out as he chokes on my engagement ring.
“Oh my god, someone help him!” I rush out of the booth and pull his seizing body from the booth. I try my best to get my arms around his torso and perform the Heimlich—but he’s so much bigger than I am, I’m having a hard time getting enough force to dislodge the diamond.
A pair of strong hands pulls me off Gerald’s back and sets me aside.
“Last chance to just let him die,” Andri announces with raised brows, his face almost hopeful.
“No!” I yelp.
“I’m just kidding,” he says somewhat unconvincingly.
He wraps his arms around Gerald easily, and with two exaggerated pumps of his clasped fists the diamond goes flying, hitting the tile floor with a sharp clink.