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I abruptly ended the call, feeling a giddiness spreading through me. It felt foreign.
My mother neatly folded her hands on her lap as I set her book back down onto the table and grabbed my mug of cold coffee.
“Leave it, I will get it,” she said simply with a smile as she tucked her feet up underneath her. “Go get your things ready.”
I stared at her for a moment. “I’m here to spend time with you guys for the holiday. You’re really okay with me being gone for practically two days.”
She nodded. “Life is too short, Raegan. Time is fleeting. Go have fun.”
“I’ll be home for Christmas,” I assured her before disappearing from the room to pack my bag for the night.
I shouldn’t be surprised with Miles throwing this on us out of nowhere. I couldn’t help but smile. This was the Miles I always remembered.
And the one I was always drawn to.
CHAPTERFOUR
The guys were true to their word and it was almost exactly two hours later that they were standing outside of my parents’ front door. My mother was in the kitchen and my father had since left for work when I walked to the door and pulled it open. Miles and Julian were both standing there with their hands tucked into the pockets of their winter coats.
Julian had a black beanie pulled down over his wavy onyx hair. Miles' cheeks were tinted red from the cold air, but he lacked a hat. I looked back and forth between them.
“Are you ready to go?” Miles asked.
“Where is your coat?” Julian spoke at the same time.
I tilted my head to the side as I looked at Julian for a moment. “It’s inside. I just need to grab it and then I’ll be ready to go.”
“Where are your things?” he questioned me as I turned around and stepped back into the house. Julian was the first to move, walking behind me with Miles trailing along after him.
My mother stepped into the foyer, just as I was digging my old thick puffy coat from the closet. “Hi, Julian and Miles. It’s so good to see the both of you.”
“Hi Mrs. Thompson,” they both said simultaneously.
I slid my arms into my coat and grabbed a pair of gloves and a hat before making my way to the base of the steps. Grabbing my bag, I lifted it into the air, but instead of slinging the strap over my shoulder, I pushed it against Julian’s chest.
He raised a dark eyebrow at me.
“You asked where my things are. Here they are.”
Miles snorted out a laugh, my mother half rolled her eyes and half laughed, and Julian just stared at me as he took the bag in his hands.
“We’ll have her back tomorrow evening,” Miles told my mother as I quickly stepped into the garage to grab my ski bag. It had my ski jacket, pants, goggles, helmet, gaiter, and gloves inside. I had a set of skis resting along the wall of the garage and Miles walked inside after me and grabbed them. Julian had disappeared out to his car and my mother was opening the garage door for us.
Miles carried the rest of my stuff out to the car and I turned to face my mother. “Are you sure this is okay?”
“Absolutely,” she said with a warm smile as she pulled me in for a hug. “Just have fun and be safe, okay? I love you.”
“I love you too,” I told her as she took a step back. I couldn’t help but feel a bit guilty for leaving her to go away for the night when I was supposed to be here spending time with my family, but at the same time, I didn’t miss the joy that was written across her face.
This was what my mother wanted for me. She wanted me to enjoy life and to actually live it.
I looked at Julian’s car as I was making my way down the driveway and toward the street. Julian was standing by his door, leaning against the hood while Miles was holding the back door open for me. They were watching me and I shivered under both of their gazes. There was a touch of a fire burning in Miles' eyes as I slid into the car and he shut the door.
The look in Julian’s was indistinguishable, but it still sent a spark of electricity down my spine. I pulled my seat belt on as they both got into their seats in the front. Julian was silent, only adjusting the rear view mirror until it was focused on me instead of the road. I studied his expression through the mirror, but he wasn’t looking at me. His eyes were on the road as he pulled the car away from the curb.
Miles found the resort in his GPS and showed his phone to Julian while telling him the first few sets of directions. Julian reached into the center console and pulled out one of those little phone holders that slide into car vents. After putting it in place, he grabbed his own phone and pulled the directions up before putting it into the phone holder.
“Was there something wrong with my phone?” Miles asked him with a bit of annoyance in his tone.
