Hurrying to the doorway where he still stood, Aiyanna kissed the tips of her fingers and then touched his lips. Before she could get past him, he pulled her to him and hugged her tightly. She smiled against his chest, hugging him back. “Don’t worry.” She smiled, looking up at him. “I won’t get ahead of myself.”
Scott kissed her forehead softly. “I can’t help but worry. I hate to see you sad.”
That warmed her, but she knew exactly what he meant because she hated seeing him so down when Josh hurt him so badly. “I’ll be fine. I promise.”
Chapter 13: Lovesick Sap
Nathan
Anna wasn’t kidding when she’d mentioned she and her friends had an addiction to photo-taking that was contagious. The day they left the cabin they must’ve taken at least fifty selfies and group photos in the snow, in front of and all around the cabin. They’d even taken a whole bunch of his buried-in-the-snow rental.
When they found it.
As they towed it.
As the tow guy brought it back to life by jumping the battery.
When they got to the airport, they’d been at it again. But it was true. Having all those photos of them together and Anna’s beautiful face to stare at once he was home without her was nice.
Hearing his own sisters cry and the emotion in both his brothers’ voices on the phone once he’d finally been able to get a hold of them made Nathan feel better about Scott’s reaction to finding Anna alive and well. If she was like a sister to him, especially the only person he was that close to after losing his dad and brother, then Nathan got it. Not just that, but after hanging with the guy even just the day of their rescue, it was obvious Scott was a good guy.
It’d been a whole week since Nathan had been back home and just as long since he’d last seen Anna at the airport. Between her work, school, and his four-dayer at the station, it hadn’t been until now that they’d be seeing each other.
Nathan had no idea it’d be so hard to be away from her that long. After being stuck with her day and night for days, being away from her for just a week had begun to feel torturous. And they’d been in touch every day, talking and texting and even FaceTiming daily. He hadn’t told his siblings much about the girl he’d been stranded with all those days. Though his brothers had ribbed him that he probably had more fun being stuck with “that chick” than he would’ve had he made it to Aspen. Of course, Nathan wasn’t about to admit how right they were. So he’d especially not be admitting to staking his claim on the chick before they even left the cabin. Even if he now knew Isaiah had fallen pretty instantly for his fiancée too, he still didn’t think they’d let him hear the end of it.
It was Friday night, and Nathan was finally going to see Anna again. He drove up to her place in his car, not his Harley. She’d mentioned having never been on a motorcycle and being nervous about riding on one. So he decided he should probably wait to introduce her to his loud-ass hog. As he stepped out into the street and locked his vehicle, he could feel his heartbeat accelerate and his insides going nuts at the thought that he’d soon see her again.
“Get a grip.” He chuckled under his breath, bringing a hand over his chest to feel his thundering heart.
Nathan had barely come around his car when he saw her at the door, smiling at him, and he was instantly smiling from ear to ear. The screen door swung open and she walked out. The bigger smile she wore now matched his; then she surprised him by rushing down the porch stairs and running into his arms. Anna giggled when he lifted her into his arms; then she kissed his face all over. She smelled as amazing and felt even better in his arms than he remembered.
She finally stopped to look into his eyes, still smiling hugely but looking a little embarrassed. “Too much?”
Nathan laughed, shaking his head, and kissed her softly, tightening his arms around her as he took in the familiar scent of her shampoo. “Never.”
Knowing he wasn’t the only one feeling this crazed excitement about seeing the other after only one week apart was beyond a relief. This time he kissed her face all over. “I’m just glad I’m not alone feeling what I’m feeling.”
After kissing her a little longer, he put her down, glancing around. “Your neighbors are gonna think I’m your long lost husband or something.”
Anna giggled again, tugging him along with her toward the front door of the small house she rented with her two best friends. “I’m just glad my sister’s not here. She’d really lay into me if she’d seen that. That was pretty ridiculous. I didn’t plan that by the way. I just couldn’t help myself.”
He tugged at her arm and she turned to face him. Just seeing those bright eyes gaze at him in that lovesick way he was certain his eyes were doing also, made him smile again, and he pulled her to him. “Not ridiculous. I liked that.”
She smiled even bigger then bit her bottom lip. “You did?”
“Yeah, I wouldn’t mind being greeted that way every time I see you.”
This time she laughed. “Well, I’d say that’s silly, but if seeing you each time feels anything like it did today, you probably will be.”
Nathan kissed her again, and any doubts about having jumped the gun asking her to be his girl were squashed. Just being here felt perfect. They walked into her place just as Sam walked from the small dining room through the front room. Nathan still couldn’t get over how much she looked like Anna. Though her light brown eyes weren’t nearly as bright as Anna’s.
“I saw that.” Sam shook her head with a disgusted expression. “For shame, Anna. Have you no dignity?”
Anna laughed. “Shut up.” She brought her hand to her face, and when she turned to glance at Nathan, he could see her face had gone bright red. Jesus, could she be more adorable? She tugged Nathan along, pointing out the various small rooms they walked through, giving him a mini tour.
“And this is the kitchen.”
Scott was at the stove, working on something in a big pan. He glanced back at them and lifted a hand at Nathan. “Hey, how’s it going?”
Nathan returned the greeting before Anna went on to explain. “Scott’s making dinner tonight. So I hope you’re hungry. He always cooks enough for an army.” She smiled at Scott, who rolled his eyes, then she turned back to Nathan. “You want something to drink?
“I’ll take water.”
After pulling a bottled water out of the fridge and handing it to Nathan, she said she was going to finish helping Sam get ready for her date but she’d be back in a few minutes. “She likes the way I do her eyeliner.”
She gave Nathan a quick peck before walking out of the kitchen. With her gone, it was just him and Scott. “So are you the cook around here?”
Scott smirked without looking up. “Why? Because I’m gay?”
Instantly, Nathan felt like he’d put his foot in his mouth. “No, that’s not what I—”
“Relax.” Scott laughed. “I just hope you don’t think I’m one of those types of gays, the kind that whip up soufflés and help those two with their beauty regimes. I only cook around here when it’s my night to cook, so you’ll likely be disappointed when you see what we’re having for dinner.”
Nathan glanced at the pan Scott was sprinkling cheese onto. It looked like some kind of potato hash. “Smells good. What is it?”
“I call it my poor man’s meal.” He glanced up at Nathan and smiled. “My dad used to make this for us when he was low on funds, but I make it now because I like it. The girls like it too. Plus, it’s easy to make, so it’s a win-win. It’s just potatoes, weenies, and cheese.”
Nodding, Nathan leaned in and got a better look. It sure was diced potatoes with sliced up weenies, and the cheese sort of held it together. “My mom used to make something similar. Only she used ground beef.”
“Yeah, yeah.” Scott nodded, smiling bigger. “That’s another one of my specialties, and the reason I make so much is it lasts for days. We can have burritos one day and tacos the next or just eat it straight out of a bowl with some chili sauce. That?
??s good stuff. This one here works best in burritos, but you can also add it to your plate the next morning with an egg for a hearty breakfast.”
“I hope everyone’s here!”
Nathan turned to the sound of the unfamiliar female voice in the front room then heard Anna’s.
“Yes, we are. Why?” There was a pause then, “Oh my God!”
Squealing then another, “Oh my God!” and more squealing from Sam had Nathan and Scott exchanging confused looks. Scott wiped his hands off on a dishtowel and started out into the front room. Nathan followed him.
Sam was hugging a girl while Anna hugged a guy tightly. Since Anna had told him who’d be there tonight, Nathan assumed this was Anna’s sister and her boyfriend, but he still couldn’t take his eyes off Anna and the guy. She pulled away from him then turned to Nathan and Scott, addressing Scott first. “They’re engaged!”
Anna then turned to Nathan and walked toward him, slipping her hand into his. “This is my sister, Heidi.” She turned back to her sister, who was eyeing Nathan curiously. “Heidi, this is Nathan, the guy I met in Colorado.”
Heidi’s eyes lowered to Nathan and Anna’s entwined hands. “Is he now?” She smirked, taking a few steps closer to shake Nathan’s hand.
Nathan let go of Anna’s hand and shook Heidi’s. “Nice to meet you, Heidi.”
As soon as he brought his hand back to his side, Anna slipped hers back into it. “That must of been one heck of a week you two had. You mentioned hitting it off.” Heidi’s eyes zeroed in on their hand holding again. “Are you two like a thing now?”
Anna shrugged, turning to Nathan with a sweet smile. “We’re giving it a whirl. We’ll see how things work out.”
“Oh please,” Sam said, rolling her eyes with a laugh. “You should’ve seen these two when he got here. They were all over each other. She even jumped into his arms like a military wife welcoming home her husband or something.”
This time Nathan felt his face and neck get warm. Anna giggled. “We weren’t that bad.”
“Yeah, we were,” Nathan said, shrugging with a smirk. “But I’ll admit it. This has probably been one of the longest weeks of my life. I could hardly wait to see her again. So I really am hoping it works out.”
Sam’s mouth fell open, and Heidi brought her hand to her mouth. “Oh my God, that’s so sweet,” Heidi said, turning to Anna and lifting a brow. “I guess you weren’t lying when you said he was perfect.”
Sam peered at him playfully. “Or too good to be true?”
The guy next to Heidi reached his hand out to Nathan. “I’m Gordon by the way.”
“Oh, I’m sorry, babe.” Heidi turned to Gordon as he and Nathan shook hands. “Yes this is my boy—” She caught herself, shaking her head. “Fiancé.” She brought her hand to her mouth. “That’s gonna take some getting used to, but I like it.”
“Congrats,” Nathan said as Anna took Heidi’s hand to examine the ring on her finger.
“Thank you,” Heidi and Gordon said at the same time.
“This is so pretty, Heidi.” Anna continued to scrutinize the ring. “Pear-shaped is my favorite. But this is my second.”
Nathan eyed the ring, making a mental note of that. Pear-shaped. He knew nothing about diamonds or engagement rings. All he knew from his brothers was that real nice ones cost a fortune. Already he knew it’d be totally worth it. Anna was totally worth it.
Okay, this had to stop. He almost chuckled. Fortunately, Anna was too caught up in her sister’s ring and talk of setting a date for the wedding to notice. Sam had already called them on their overly touching reunion.
Sam went back into the bedroom to finish getting ready while the rest of them moved into the kitchen. “Ooh, poor man’s meal,” Heidi said when she got close enough to see what Scott was making. “One of my favorites.”
“Potatoes should be ready soon,” Scott said, stirring them around a little.
Anna let go of Nathan’s hand to go look for something in the cupboards. “I think this calls for a celebration.”
“Ghirardelli chocolate?” Scott regarded Anna with a smirk as she pulled out the box. “And would you look at that. What is that? The industrial size box? What happened to cutting down on your vice for the new year?”
Anna laughed, opening the box. “But chocolate is for celebrating, and it’s cheaper to buy the bigger box.”
“Wait.” Scott eyed her playfully. “Not too long ago you said it was for when you were feeling down.”
“Oh that too.” She sniggered then turned to her sister, holding out the box.”
Nathan passed on the chocolate but couldn’t hold back reaching for her hand as soon as she set the box down on the counter.
Heidi told them about her insanely romantic fiancé’s proposal. “He made sure I got the day off yesterday and today and drew up this intricate treasure hunt for me yesterday that ended with me driving all over town for clues. I ended up finding him at one of the wineries up here. He had wine and this beautiful platter of cheeses and fruits waiting for me with a trio of musicians and then got down on his knee and proposed.”
Anna clutched her chest then hugged Gordon again. “Thank you for being such a sweetheart to my sissy. I’m so happy you two will be together forever now.”
After hugging her sister again and Scott teasing her about laying the emotion on thick just to be able to have more chocolate, they laughed and her sister changed the subject.
“Is this someone new Sam’s going out with tonight?” Heidi leaned against Gordon, who was leaning against the counter.
“Yeah,” Anna confirmed, taking another chocolate from the box. “She’s meeting him there too, just in case. She didn’t wanna be stuck with him in case the date bombs and she has to make a quick exit.”
Heidi and Scott both laughed. “She is so bad,” Heidi said, shaking her head. “What? Is she just gonna excuse herself in the middle of dinner and never come back?”
“Knowing Sam, she probably will,” Scott said, taking the pan off the burner. “And this is ready. So if anyone’s hungry, dig in.”
The poor man’s meal Scott made was actually pretty good. As the evening went on and both Scott and Gordon were equally interested in hearing about Nathan’s baseball player brother, it was hard to believe at times that Scott was even gay. Granted, Nathan had never really gotten to know any gay guys too closely. He probably just had the same stereotypical idea of what a gay guy was supposed to act like.
But after hanging with all of them the whole evening, it felt just as if he’d been hanging with his brothers and friends. All of them had been so welcoming and easy to get along with, including Sam, who did as they’d all predicted. She ditched her date early and showed up in the middle of their poker game.
“What happened?” Anna asked when Sam walked into the kitchen, looking deflated.
“I tried,” she said, and Scott shook his head, rolling his eyes. “I really did!” She walked over to the fridge and pulled out a beer bottle. “But he was so pretentious. We’d only been seated at the restaurant for like fifteen minutes, and he’d already corrected me on a few things. I barely made it through dinner. And I didn’t lie either. I told him flat out once we were outside that I didn’t think things would work between us. I thanked him for dinner and vamoosed it out of there.”
“What?” Scott asked as he turned to look at her holding out the beer bottle to him. “I already have one.”
“No. Can you open this for me?”
“What? Don’t put up the little dainty act for Nathan’s sake.” He took the bottle from her, despite her glaring at him, then turned to Nathan as he opened it for her. “The girl’s been known to open beer bottles with her eye socket.”
“I have not.” Sam laughed along with everyone else.
“Okay, maybe not your eye socket but with your teeth, you have,” Scott said, handing her back the opened bottle.
“One time,” she said, hitting his shoulder playfully, and took the beer bottle from h
im, “and lesson learned. I almost chipped my damn tooth. But I actually got my nails done this morning for this arrogant jerk. I don’t want to mess them up.”
Sam hopped onto the counter. Nathan still couldn’t get over the resemblance between her and Anna. Seeing Heidi in person, he now did see there was some resemblance between the two sisters. They had the same smile and even laugh. It was just their hair and eye color that differed, but Sam could pass for their third sister for sure.
Gordon offered to deal her in. “No, I’ll just watch you guys. I suck at poker.”
“So do I and I’m playing,” Anna said, leaning into Nathan.
“Yeah, but you don’t cheat,” Scott said, putting his chips in for the next game.
“I don’t know why that annoys you so much, Scott,” Sam said as they all laughed again. “You always beat me anyway. I swear to God”—she smirked at Nathan— “I’ve never met such a competitive person in my life.”
Scott’s jaw dropped. “I’m competitive because I don’t like cheaters?”
“No, you really are competitive, though,” Heidi said.
Gordon seconded Heidi’s comment, and Anna lifted a feeble hand with a rueful smile. Scott gave her a disappointed “You too?” look.
“Sorry, sweetie, but you are. One Thanksgiving,” Anna said, turning to Nathan with a big smile.
“Don’t,” Scott said, sitting back in his chair and taking a swig of his beer. “That was different.”
“Different how?” Anna laughed. “You spent weeks preparing for a dish you had to make and were determined it would be the kick-ass talk of the dinner.”
“Josh’s mom hates me.” Scott smirked. “His ex is pre-med, and I’m a high school football coach and Phys Ed teacher. I know she saw me as a downgrade for Josh. And she was always letting things slip about what a good cook his fucking ex Bryce was. I was just hoping to impress her a little with my cooking.”
“As you can see”—Anna pointed at what was left of her second helping of Scott’s poor man’s meal— “this is as sophisticated as Scott’s cooking skills get, so what did he end up doing?” Scott was already laughing as he got up to get himself another beer. “He bought a readymade spiraled honey glazed ham and passed it off as his own.” They all laughed, but she held her hand up because apparently it got worse. “This, after the woman had already told him she was making a ham.”