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“It doesn’t matter to me what’s happening with our parents. Their relationship is their business. I’ll love them and respect them whatever they decide. And my relationship is my business, and I expect you all to love me and respect me whatever I decide. You want to know why I let Catherine arrange the wedding? Because arranging the wedding is making her happy, and I like seeing her happy. Turns out that all the little details don’t matter to me. All that really matters to me is marrying Dan. I don’t care how or where. You’re worried that Dan and Catherine have been bulldozing me, but you’re the biggest bulldozer of them all. And before you say you’re mothering me, remember that there’s a single letter separating mother from smother. From now on if you want to interfere with a relationship, get one of your own.” She turned sharply and walked away, her legs shaking so badly from the encounter that it was challenging to put one foot in front of the other.
She was close to tears. She’d never confronted Katie before. This was her sister, her sister, whom she loved with her whole heart. And she’d hurt her, but she was hurting, too. Usually she avoided confrontation, but being with Dan had given her the confidence to believe in her opinions and stand up for herself. And although part of her wanted to run back to Katie and beg her forgiveness, she wasn’t going to do that. Katie had to respect her decisions, and right now her priority was Dan. Her relationship with Dan. She was willing to fight to protect that, even if doing so felt horrible.
She started to cry, but crying made it harder to walk fast and breathe, so she forced herself to calm down. There was no way she was going to have an asthma attack now, in this crucial moment of her life.
She had to talk to Dan, or even the fight with Katie would have been for nothing.
She arrived back at the lodge, only to find that he’d taken a snowmobile out on one of the trails.
She’d been hoping for a private conversation in a cozy, private place like the kitchen at Sn
owfall Lodge, but it seemed there was no chance of that.
Could he have made it more obvious that it was over between them?
Tears stung her eyes. How could he not want to talk to her?
They were supposed to be getting married in forty-eight hours. Surely he at least owed her a conversation?
She ignored the little voice in her head reminding her that her inability to talk to him was the reason they were in this mess.
She had to talk to him. She had to explain, and it couldn’t wait. She didn’t want him to think it through without at least hearing her side of the story. But if she wanted to talk to him, she was going to have to go to him.
She sweet-talked Rob, who looked after the snowmobiles for the lodge and sometimes took guests out.
“You want to take a snowmobile?” He scratched his head. “You shouldn’t ride alone.”
“I won’t be riding alone. I’ll be with Dan. We were supposed to go together, but I was held up.” She delivered her most charming smile, pulled on a snowmobile suit and climbed onto the snowmobile with as much confidence as she could muster.
She tried to remember what Dan had taught her. She was pointing in the right direction, the key was on and the emergency kill switch was up.
Trying to look confident, she jerked her way along the track that led away from the hotel.
Chances were that Dan would have taken the same route they’d taken the other day. She knew he loved the area around Maroon Bells. Her guess was confirmed when she saw what had to be his tracks.
She opened the throttle and went a little faster. The fresh snowfall created a powdery dust as she traveled, reducing visibility. Nerves flickered through her. She was going to put the damn thing in a ditch, or maybe she’d break through ice and drown. Did this trail cross water? She tried not to think about the fact that she’d failed her driving test five times.
There was no sign of Dan, but that didn’t surprise her. He always drove too fast. If she wanted to catch up with him, she was going to have to do the same. She had to do this. She had to talk to him.
She went faster, the snowmobile cutting through the snow. The sky was blue, the trail was empty. Had it been a different day she might have thought this was bliss.
Finally, she reached the frozen lake and there, standing on the shoreline, was Dan.
He must have heard her approach, but he didn’t turn until she’d walked up behind him.
“Dan?”
“I came here for some space. I needed to think.”
“I know, and I’m sorry. But—” She reached out and touched his arm, and felt something close to physical pain when he shrugged her off. “We have to talk. Please. You owe me that.” She felt cold. So, so cold and she knew it had nothing to do with the outdoor temperature.
“You’re urging me to talk? Do you see the irony of that?” He turned to look at her and there was a hardness in his face she’d never seen before.
“Of course I do.” Her chest felt tight. Was it misery and distress, or the beginnings of an asthma attack? One sometimes led to the other. She wished she’d remembered to put her inhaler in her pocket. She pulled her scarf over her mouth. “I understand why you’re angry, but I need you to know I love you. I really love you, Dan.”
His eyes didn’t soften. “You wouldn’t tell me if you didn’t.”
She thought of all the things she’d said to her sister. “I’d tell you.”
