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“But…”
“But, I know these guys and I trust them. What’s going on with me has nothing to do with anyone here. It’s all stuff from my past and inconsequential at that.”
I can tell by the set of her shoulders she wants to know more, but she’ll let it go for now. “Finish that biscuit and tea, then you can tell me about them while you batch up some cookies. The rumor around town is that they’re all very attractive young men.”
I smirk as I take a sip of tea. That’s an understatement.
I spend the time before opening telling her bits and pieces about the guys. There’s a lot of our story edited out, I’m definitely not going to mention all the awful shit they did when we were younger. Not because I excuse it and want to make things easier for them, but so I don’t worry the people in my life who care about me now.
The guys end up being the first customers of the day, all getting coffee and breakfast sandwiches. They take the corner table with the best view of the water and the docks. The sky today is a dull gray, the clouds heavy with rain and gusty winds off the Pacific.
“A few more days and this will end up being snow instead of rain.” I pour a warmup for them from a carafe.
“Is it much different from Colorado?” West asks, his gaze following mine out to the ocean.
“Darker, obviously. Temperature wise, it’s closer than I thought it would be. The biggest difference is that the snow here is heavy and wet, I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve seen proper powder around here.”
“That’s to be expected, though, so close to the ocean,” Cody says.
“Yeah, it is.” My eyes meet West’s and I know he’s thinking about the same thing as me.
“Violet,” Mom yells up the stairs at me. “It’s snowing.”
I drop my book and race down the hall, leaping two steps at a time. As soon as I fling the door open and race out, I see West running for me. He’s all long limbed clumsiness as he runs headlong into me in the yard, taking us both down to the cold ground.
I can’t stop giggling as we wrestle beneath the first flakes of the year. He grabs a handful of the snow and shoves it in my face as we grapple. When we stop to catch our breath, he falls onto the ground beside me, sticking his tongue out to catch flakes.
“West?”
“Yeah, Vi?” He trains his dark green eyes on me.
“Promise me we’ll always celebrate the first snow of the year together.” I hold up my pinky.
“Of course.” He gives me a sideways grin as he takes my finger, an empty space where his baby incisor fell out a few days before. “I won’t do this with anyone else.”
Our moms started this tradition when we were babies. There are countless videos of us playing in the first snow of the season for the past eight years. From laying side by side in teddy bear snowsuits to toddling around on shaky legs to now. I don’t want to do this with anyone else, either.
“Good.”
Nostalgia and affection batter me from the inside while the heat of his gaze burns from the outside. Every day with them loosens the mortar holding me together. Darkness moves into the edges of my vision as I feel my heart beat quicker at that realization.
They all notice the change, the way I tremble as I set the carafe on the table. The bells chiming as a customer walks in is the perfect excuse to put some distance between us and I walk over to the counter, already starting the order. It’s Jim, the town mayor, who never strays from a simple black cup of coffee.
“Who are the new guys?” He points over his shoulder where the guys are sitting.
“Friends of mine from back home.” I hand him his to-go cup. “They actually just bought the campground from Lars.”
“No kidding? Sticking around then, huh?”
“Looks like it.”
After paying, he walks over to introduce himself, striking up a conversation, and I watch as they work their collective charm on him. Blake is dressed like he’s going to work, in flat front black slacks and a light gray button down shirt. Cody wears his worn-in jeans, work boots, and a hunter green Henley pushed up to the elbows. West wears his dark wash jeans and a white shirt under an open buffalo check flannel.
Unsurprisingly, West is the least talkative as Jim keeps the conversation going. Everyone is curious about the new guys hanging around.
Emerie slides a tray of cookies in the pastry case beside me. “They sure are charming the pants off Jim,” she says as Cody says something to make him tilt his head back and roar with laughter.
“They can have that effect on people.” The urge for distance is still eating at me. “Can I take a break?”
