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“No, hence the reason I couldn’t fix it.”
She’s biting her tongue, I can tell. I wonder how long until she lets that attitude out again. We continue driving, and the snow is falling harder, which is making the visibility near impossible. Luckily, I could drive this road with my eyes closed.
“So how long have you lived in Snowmass? I don’t remember ever seeing you before.”
“I’ve been here for about three years.”
“Really?” she asks, surprised.
“Look, I’m not trying to be an asshole, but I don’t have any interest in getting to know each other. Let’s get me home so you can be on your way, okay? Plus, I need to focus here, I can hardly see.”
She gives me the dirtiest look before turning away from me, wrapping her arms around her once more and staring out the window.
Finally, silence.
The drive to my house is annoyingly slow. I can’t believe how quickly the storm progressed. They weren’t kidding about it moving fast. Eventually, I make it to my old rock road, and I'm happy to see my No Trespassing signs at the start of my property. They’re hard to make out through the snow, but they’re there. Within ten minutes, we finally pull into my driveway.
“Finally here!” I leave the truck on, so she doesn’t feel as though she's welcome to stay and chat. I walk around the truck and grab my belongings out of the back seat. When I shut the door, she gets out of the passenger side. “Look, I know I was an ass, but I appreciate the ride home.”
“Yeah, no problem.” She doesn’t even make eye contact with me as she shuts the door and makes her way to the driver’s side. It takes her a few minutes to adjust her seat, but when she's all settled, she gives me a quick wave and backs out of the driveway. Within minutes I can’t even see the tail lights anymore. I'm a little worried she won’t make it to the bottom of the mountain, but then push the thought away. I appreciate her, regardless if I have a shitty way of showing it.
I quickly make my way to the house to hunker down and wait out the storm, not wanting to give her another thought.
Chapter Three
Taylor
I can’t believe how rude Maddox is. I was trying to be as helpful as possible, and all I got in return was his grunting and his rudeness. Now, I have to drive home in this ridiculous weather, and I can barely see five feet in front of me. There’s a blanket of white, and I have no idea where I'm going. Even if I’m familiar with the area, the storm is making it impossible to navigate.
I'm praying I make it home safely and won’t lose control. After fifteen minutes of stress and only getting a very short distance, I have to stop. There’s no way I'm going to
make it to the bottom of the mountain without getting into an accident. I have to turn back and ask the angry giant to let me stay until the storm passes.
This is going to be interesting.
Surprisingly, I manage to turn around and make it to his house, safely. And I’m somewhat shocked. I take a deep breath and a glance in the mirror and try to find a little confidence. Staying positive, I grab my grocery bags out of the truck, along with my purse, and head to the door. With one deep breath, I knock on the wooden door. It's beautifully carved, and I become curious if Maddox made it himself. While I'm admiring the woodwork, the door swings open and with one look, he shakes his head and furrows his eyebrows.
“What do you want, princess? You’re supposed to be on your way home.”
I smile as sweetly as I can, ignoring the pet name, hoping it will soften him just a little. “I know, I’m sorry. The storm is getting, and I'm not familiar with the roads up here. There’s no way I can make it home safely, much less to the bottom of the mountain. I was hoping maybe I could stay here until it passes, just enough for me to head home.” Again, I shrug my shoulders in innocence. This is my only option.
He stands silent, for what seems like minutes, even though only a few seconds have passed. I'm beginning to think he will turn me away when finally, he lets out a long breath and moves to the side while gesturing for me to come in. I slide by him quickly and take a moment to look at my surroundings. His house is very rustic but cleaner than expected. He has decent taste and not too much clutter.
In the corner, I notice a bookshelf full with more books stacked on the floor beside it. I'm very curious and make a mental note to check that out later. The dining room is at the back of the house, and the kitchen appears to be to the right of that. As I study my surroundings, I notice two closed doors to the right and to the left is a staircase. I hear him shut the door and he looks me over and sees I have grocery bags.
“Do you have anything that needs to be in the fridge?”
“Um, if you don’t mind. It’s only a few items.”
“Kitchen’s that way,” is all he says while pointing, then he disappears through one of the doors to the left.
Quietly, I move to the kitchen to put my things in the fridge. Everything else, I leave in the bag on the counter. I place my purse on the floor next to the couch, hang my coat on the rack by the door, but can’t bring myself to sit down. Maddox’s hospitality is annoying, but fitting at the same time. I'm quite nervous just being left alone in a strangers house and am not someone who’d make myself at home. I eye the door he went through, and realize he isn’t coming out any time soon.
Trying to pass the time, I walk over to his bookshelf to see what he spends his time reading. Some are on a few trades while others are robust and complicated literature. The broad range and assortment of genres on the shelves fill me with more questions about my host, but I know the answers would not come quickly, if at all.
As I continue to look over the titles, I notice he has a copy of one of my favorite books, which also happens to be a classic, Moby Dick. As I pull it from the shelf, I eye the complete Harry Potter series on the shelf below. I let out a giggle and quickly look back to the door, hoping he didn’t hear me. Confirming I'm still alone, I make my way to the couch and settle in with the book.
Before I can read a few pages into the book, I realize I never called my parents to let them know I was here and okay. I grab my cell out of my purse, quietly praying there’s a signal to call home. I let out a long breath when I see I have full service. I get off the couch and walk toward the kitchen and try to be as quiet as possible. After the third ring, I'm greeted by my mother’s voice.
