“I just don’t think any of the stuff on your list sounds very Christmasy. So I don’t want to do it.”
“Too bad. You said I could have whatever I want as payment for being your fake boyfriend, and this is what I want.”
“You want me to ice climb and backcountry ski…with you?”
“That’s right.” I twist my barstool so I’m facing her. My knees brush along the side of her leg, but I pretend not to notice. “And then we’ll see who came up with the better holiday plan. Me or you.”
She glances down the hall. “What about Justin?”
“He can come too.” We both know he won’t. “If you want me to do all of your activities, then you have to be willing to do all of mine. It’s only fair.”
“Okay, fine. But”—she holds her finger in front of me—“I’ll only do them if they don’t interfere with what I already have planned.”
“Great.” I lean over the calendar, rubbing my palms back and forth. “Looks like you have nothing planned for tomorrow. So let’s knock off ice climbing.”
“Tomorrow? We’re going to your parents’ house for a make-up Thanksgiving dinner since we missed the one on Thursday.”
“That’s in the evening. I’m talking about tomorrow afternoon. We’ll ice climb and then go straight to dinner at my parents’ house on the way back through.”
“Don’t you have to make a reservation first?”
“Don’t worry about the details. I’ll handle everything.”
“Alright.” Her eyes drift to Justin’s bedroom door. “I guess that would be okay.”
It’s totally okay.
First thing in the morning, I’ll even invite Justin to come along too.
nineteen
SUMMER
“When you saidyou’d handle everything, I didn’t think you meant you’d be our ice-climbing guide.” I look down, watching as Caleb tightens a harness around my body.
His fingers currently are, and have been for the last minute, brushing against my waist and thighs—innocently,of course. I glance across the snow to another woman getting innocently manhandled by her guide as he straps her into a harness. If a stranger can do that to her, surely my boyfriend’s brother can do it to me.
He peeks up at me with blue eyes and a smile. “Why wouldn’t I be our guide? I do this all the time.”
Oh, he does this all the time. Naturally.
At least I look cute in my new all-white snow clothes. Not that I’m trying to look cute for Caleb. Actually, I got the snow pants and jacket as a Christmas present from my parents last year. The functionality of the snow clothes is low. They are more about being fashionable than warm, but at the time, I just wanted to look good while outdoors. I remember being excited about wearing them in front of a date during an outdoor activity like this one. At the time, I thought I might wear them in front of Gil, but our short-lived holiday romance fizzled out soon after. So I shoved them in the back of my closet, thinking about next Christmas: Next Christmas, maybe I’ll have a serious boyfriend and can wear my new snow clothes during the holidays…with him.I do have a serious boyfriend. I’m just not ever with him.
Take today, for example. Justin said he was sick and didn’t want to go out into the cold. It’s a perfectly acceptable excuse for not coming ice climbing with us, and yet, it feels like anexcuse.
“All set on the harness.” Caleb straightens. “Why don’t you sit on that rock, and I’ll strap your crampons on?”
“My what?” I lean forward to hear better.
“Yourcrampons.” He holds up some shoe things. “They’re clawed foot pieces that strap to your boots so you can get leverage on the ice.”
“That’s a horrible name. Somebody didn’t think through that name enough when they decided to use it.” I sit on the rock, looking at Caleb expectantly.
His smile turns impish. “I need your leg.”
I half-heartedly lift it, causing him to reach down and grab my ankle. I don’t know if it’s his hand on my leg or his blue, blue eyes glimmering back at me, but the whole two seconds send an electric charge to my heart.
He props my foot against his chest, fastening the crampons to my shoe while I glance around the park.
