Page 100 of Level Up for Love

Chapter

Twenty-Eight

“Holy shit,” I say at the same time that Wesley says, “What the fuck?”

Arthur and Hana’s cabin sits at the very top of a winding driveway, and it’s maybe the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen. It’s a certified Bob Ross special: an honest-to-god log cabin with a red roof and a wraparound deck, a large lawn dotted with clusters of fallen leaves and happy little trees, and a mountainous landscape sprawling behind the house itself. The sky is so blue today it makes every other color bleed until the whole damn view looks like a painting.

Arthur and Colin are nursing beers on the deck while Mona and Shay unpack their stuff from Shay’s car.

“Took you long enough,” Mona calls, though they can’t have beaten us by more than ten minutes.

“We picked up cider and rum to make up for it,” I say with a laugh.

“Hm.” Mona considers. “Forgiven, then.”

We follow them into the lodge, and behind me, Wesley releases a low, impressed whistle through his teeth.

“Whatever he’s paying you at that hardware store,” I tease under my breath, “it’s not enough.”

According to Arthur, his entire extended family shares this cabin, which was a passion project between him and his two brothers. Throughout the year, they trade off who gets it when, except during Christmastime, when they all stay here together with their families. So it makes sense that the interior is a cozy mismatch of different style preferences, from the antlers mounted above the fireplace to the shield hung from the wall. There’s a warm ruggedness to the space, especially in its log beams and woodsy smell.

“Ladies on the second floor,” Shay instructs before bouncing her eyebrows at Wesley. “You’re downstairs next to Colin’s room.”

“You know how to make me feel right at home,” he says.

After I drop my stuff on the bed in my tiny room, I head out to the backyard. It’s only midafternoon, but the sun sets fast nowadays; better to get the fire going now.

Arthur involves everyone in dinner, assigning us each a different task: Colin stays close to Arthur’s side as he walks him through grilling the steaks, Wesley and I are tasked with cutting the vegetables, and Shay and Mona are left to prep the apple pies Hana baked before she left to spend the long weekend visiting New York City with her sister. It quickly becomes clear that Wesley’s much more skilled with a knife than I am—okay, hot—and given the chill of the crisp mountain air, I head back inside to start making hot cider. The kitchen and backyard are full of music and laughter, and we leave the windows open so we can still shout to one another while we work.

It’s bitingly cold once the sun sets, but in some unspoken agreement, we bundle up in hoodies, jackets, and beanies and crowd around the fire, food carefully balanced on our laps. When our plates are licked clean and it gets too cold to stay outside any longer, we relocate to the massive dining room table, and Arthur excuses himself to go to bed, muttering, “Can’t keep up with you kids.”

I make sure the cider stays flowing as we settle in, and Colin runs his palm along the smooth wooden table. “What do you think, Wesley? Is it as good of a setup as Game Knight?”

“Maybe not, but I’ll make do,” he teases.

He’ll more than make do. The hardest part of the ride up here had been trying to pack up his elaborate battle map without crushing it.

Colin nods. “I like this whole D&D getaway thing; we should plan more of them. I had a bud who rented out a whole castle somewhere in the UK.”

“If you want to LARP so bad, Colin, you know my dad will take you with him,” Shay says.

He shakes his head. “Hell no. I just want to sit in cabins all weekend and play.” Colin looks to Shay and grins. “Maybe they’ve got one out near the Three Sisters we could try?”

Shay’s eyes go wide, and Mona busies herself with heading into the kitchen to get us more cider. I hear a thump under the table, followed by Colin’s immediate “Ow!”

I blink uncertainly, confused. “What are the Three Sisters?”

Shay and Wesley exchange a quick glance before Wesley returns his attention curiously to Colin.

“Just some mountains I heard were cool,” Colin grumbles after a moment. “Always wanted to visit.”

Eventually, Shay leads a giggling and tipsy Mona up the stairs and into their shared room. Wesley and I watch them together, my hand curled against his thigh underneath the table. After a moment, I squeeze his knee regretfully, stand, and ascend the stairs in their wake.

Perhaps if I’d been more honest with the others—or more honest with myself first—about what’s unfolding between us, we might have shared a room, too, and my bed would feel a little less cold. Instead, I don’t see Wesley again for the rest of the night.

Not until I arrive ready for battle the next morning.

It’s easier to fight off Vadrien’s bite the second time.