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“Oh, but you are.” I put my hand on her lower back, grabbed both of our coats, and gently pushed her through the door, through the snow, up the patio steps, and into our cabin.
It was dark, but warm, and once I flicked on the kitchen light and the living room glowed, I got the urge to light a fire. But Jamie stumbling into the living room, tossing the game on the rug, reminded me that I had a fake girlfriend to put to sleep.
“Okay you—” I started.
“One more game,” she interrupted.
“Jamie, no, it’s past midnight.”
“It will be fast. Besides, I’m not drunk.”
“Says the drunk person,” I mumbled under my breath, grabbing a glass, and filling it with water. “This entire glass needs to be gone before you go to bed.”
“How come you’re not drunk?” she asked as she positioned herself on the rug in front of the board game. She sat on her knees and wobbled back and forth, trying to get comfortable in the most uncomfortable position ever. She laid the game board out and started matching the color pawns to their square. “You drank way more than I did.”
“I can hold my liquor. You, apparently, cannot.”
Holding the cards in her hand to give them a good shuffle, she straightened her back and glared at me. “I can.”
“Okay, whatever you say.”
“Sit, let’s play.”
Giving into her wishes, I sat with my legs crossed in front of her, watching as she carefully shuffled the cards. Once she started dealing them out, she looked to the empty place to her right, squinting her eyes, and slowly handing out more cards. Once she gave me my final card, her back jerked up and she let out a loud gasp.
“You have an iPhone!” She pointed at me, her jaw dropped and eyes wide.
I nodded. “I do.”
“So do I!” she exclaimed, pointing to herself now.
“Amazing.”
“So does Madeline, and so does Milo! SO!” She instantly dropped her cards and went to the kitchen island where her bag was. I heard keys hit the marble countertop and rustling of the contents on her bag. “Where’s your phone?”
“In my pocket,” I answered.
“Get it and FaceTime Milo. I’ll FaceTime Maddie, and they can play with us!”
I furrowed my brow, twisting my torso to look at Jamie. She was already hunched over, the familiar ring of FaceTime echoing in the dining room. I quickly stood and walked over to her.
“That won’t work Jamie . . .”
“Jamie?” I heard Madeline’s tired voice come through the other end of the phone. It was followed by a grumble and some muffling. It was past midnight here, meaning Madeline and Milo were already fast asleep in Portland.
“Maddie!” Jamie yelled, loud enough to wake the entirety of Park City.
I tried to shush her, trying to get close enough to take the phone away, but Jamie pulled it away from me.
“Jamie, is everything okay?” Madeline asked.
“Yes! I’m wonderful, you want to play Clue with me and Daxton? I mean Elliot. Your name is still Elliot with me, right? I’d rather call you Elliot because you’re an Elliot, you’re not a Daxton.” She turned her head and pinched her brow at me.
“Jamie . . .” Madeline yawned.
I grabbed the phone from her and looked at Madeline, laying down on her side, only her face illuminated by the phone's glow.
“Good night, Mads, I’ll explain in the morning.”
