Page 102 of Hold Me Today

34

Mina

We spend most of Saturday outdoors.

While the group heads to the ski slopes, Dom, Nick, and I rent fat-tire bikes that are created specifically to ride through the forest’s snow-dusted floor. With only the sound of our tiresswooshingthrough the snow and the sounds of the whispering trees above us, the quiet hums in my veins.

Bethel feels like a thousand light-years away from Boston andAgapeandPut A Ring On Itand my parents. For the first time in years, it feels like I can breathe. In our little trio, Dom leads the pack while Nick pulls up the rear.

Last night at the Bethel Manor was pure insanity. Attached at the Hip was followed by a round of Sporkle, where we all had to pair up. When one person named a category, every person in the group had to name something that fit—likeFamily Feudbut with drinking involved. Anytime I thoughtthis can’t get any worse, it did, but I guess Sophia knows the human psyche well enough because by the end of the night, couples began to pair off.

Dom, clinging to my excuse from our arrival, bowed out when Sophia invited him to her guestroom for a nightcap. It was only after Nick and I climbed into bed, exhausted from the day’s activities, that his phone vibrated with a text from Dominic that read,If you hear a scream in the middle of the night, that’s me calling for help because Sophia kicked down my door.

We listened for approximately ten minutes and thirty seconds before rolling over and passing out cold.

“Taking a right up ahead!” Dom shouts back at us.

He swerves his bike, cutting around a sharp bend, and I follow next. Immediately I listen for the sound of Nick’s tires making the same turn. My shoulders only loosen and relax when I hear him whoop out his excitement.

The trees grow sparser as we ride and soon we’re treated to quick glimpses of the mountains through low limbs and thick trunks. My legs burn from the exercise, but I keep pedaling, enjoying the rush of the wind whipping my hair under my helmet. Every inhale is accompanied by the crisp scent of pine.

When we finally stop, it’s at a clearing along the side of a bluff. Maybe fifty feet below is the iced-over Sunday River, one of Bethel’s main attractions during the summertime months. One glance up at the horizon and the river is all but forgotten.

Rolling mountains span the width of my vision, and it’s so beautiful, so awe-inspiring, that I can’t help but clamber off my bike and let it fall into the snow. Two steps closer to the bluff’s edge and I plop down in the snow, beyond grateful that Nick convinced me to purchase snow pants when we were at the outdoors store yesterday. He sits down next to me now, not touching me but still close enough that I can feel his body heat.

“This is beautiful,” I exhale on a hushed breath, as though fearful that if I raise my voice anymore, I’ll disturb the tranquility.

Dom prowls close to the edge, peering over the side. “This view makes up for all the shit last night.”

“You mean you didn’t enjoy snacking on Sophia’s leg?” I tease, to which he only smirks in my direction before sitting down on the other side of me.

“Unfortunately, she’s neither my or Don’s type.” He packs the snow into an icy ball before tossing it from one hand to the other. “Not that she cares.”

Although I’m not sure it’s my story to tell, I snag the snowball during one of his throws and say, “She’s going through a nasty divorce. Not that she should pressure you, by any means, but I know this weekend is her way of trying to have fun and forget all the nonsense.”

He roughly releases a breath. “That makes us two peas in a pod, then.”

Bending his knees, Nick drops his elbows on them. “It’s only gonna get worse from here, DaSilva. They haven’t even started airing the show yet.” He digs his heels into the snow, pushing it into mini hills beneath the soles of his snow boots. “How long do you have before you have to go back to work?”

“Another week.” Dom forms another snowball and, without even asking if I want it, he passes it over to me. I was right—beneath all those black clothes and bad-boy attitude is a man who is keenly aware of those around him. I take the snowball, hurl my arm back, and let it sail over the side of the bluff. “There’s some shit going down with the Blades right now,” he continues, already packing me another snowball. “It’s a mess and Sports 24/7 is on it with this reality show the network is filming,Getting Pucked.”

I think back to the Blades players who attended Effie’s tour at the beginning of the month. “How big of a mess?”

“The captain’s retiring—or, rather, he’s flip-flopping on the decision. I don’t get involved in any of that, but if hedoesretire, the network wants to run a special on him exclusively. I’ll be roped into it somehow.”

Nick’s rough timbre cuts through the silence of the mountains. “DaSilva, man. Can I be honest?”

Another snowball comes my way, and I can’t help but wonder if it’s a distraction for him: think about packing snow instead of whatever thoughts are running through his head.

Finally, he says, “Fuck it, go ahead.”

“I think you need a permanent change of scenery,” Nick says, right before he nails Dom in the shoulder with a snowball.

Caught in the crossfire, I dart out of the way and drop to my shins, quickly packing snowballs to launch one after the other. One smacks Dom in the middle of his back. Another I manage to aim at Nick’s hip, but he’s too limber on his feet and he dances out of the way—only to tackle me into the snow.

His sudden weight pumps the air right out of my lungs, and I come spluttering up. I hear Nick’s deep laughter just as I feel his damn nose collide with mine, his cold lips kissing me on the mouth. Familiar heat spirals through me, shaking off the chill of the mountains and the snow. I wrap an arm around the back of his neck, keeping him close, and it’s only when I pull back for air that I catch Dom off to the side.

He watches us with a somber expression, the rough edges that usually grace his aura now softened and sad. I recognize it all in a heartbeat—everything that he is wasmebefore a crazy deal happened with the man sprawled on top of me.

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