Page 79 of Chase Our Forever

47

LIV

A loud gaspfalls from my lips as I take in the three pieces of art in front of me. I don’t know which one to look at—they’re all perfect.

“You like?” Axel, the artist Camden connected me with, asks.

“These are stunning,” I breathe, my hands coming up to my mouth as I smile at how great they turned out. “I can’t believe you were able to get them done so fast.”

He shifts next to me, crossing his arms over his chest as he stares at the pieces he painted last minute for me. “I work great under pressure. I love a time crunch.”

I look over at him and give him a smile. “Well, thank you for fitting me into your busy schedule. Camden told me you’ve been working hard getting stuff ready for a gallery exhibit next year, so I really appreciate you squeezing me in.”

He returns my smile, a piece of his long, shaggy hair falling in front of his eyes. He’s got paint above his eyebrow, and I wonder if I should tell him about it or not. I choose not to. It’s all over his overalls and up his arms, too, so I’m assuming he knows. “Like I said, I love a time crunch. These were fun to do. You have a beautiful family.”

I swallow, my lips faltering a little at his words. Clara and Dean do feel like my family. They’re the only family I’ve ever had. I just hope when Dean thinks of his family, I’m there, too. “They’re both incredible,” I tell him, not wanting to admit that things are a little unclear right now.

“Now that you’ve seen them and approve, is it okay for me to wrap them up and help you take them to your car? The snow seems to be coming down a little harder, and it’s a bit of a drive back to Sutten.”

My eyes get wide as I turn around to look out the window. There wasn’t any hint of snow on my way here, but Axel’s right. It has started to snow in the time I’ve been in here picking up the paintings.

“Yes, please,” I answer, getting a little nervous to drive in the snow. I took my car instead of taking the SUV, since it had Clara’s car seat. I didn’t think it’d be a problem to take mine because the snow wasn’t supposed to start until late tonight. Now I’m wondering if it was a bad idea to take my little sedan out. Hopefully, it does okay in the snow.

Luckily, Axel is quick at getting the paintings wrapped for me. I want them to be as protected as possible for the journey home. It’s a bonus that you can’t see the contents of them now because I want to try and keep them a surprise from Dean until his actual birthday.

It’s dusted snow a few times since I moved to Sutten, but I’ve never seen it come down the way it does currently. It sticks to Axel’s hair as he helps load the paintings into the small trunk of my car.

“Thank you again for this,” I say, giving him a smile. My teeth chatter with how cold it is, despite having a winter coat and boots on. “I really think he’ll love it,” I add.

Axel smiles. “Of course.” He doesn’t shiver at all, even though he has no coat on, and the shirt underneath his overalls onlygoes right past his elbows. Maybe eventually, I’ll get used to the cold in the mountains, but right now, I’m ready to get into the heat of my car and get home before the snow starts coming down any harder.

“If we’re all good, I hope you don’t think I’m rude by bolting out of here. I’m a Florida girl, so I’m a little nervous about driving in the snow.”

He nods. I want to know if anything fazes this man because he’s had the same even and happy demeanor from the moment I met him. Camden did warn me that Axel does his best work while high, so maybe he is right now. It would make sense why the smile hasn’t been wiped from his face once.

“Drive safe out there. Remember to take it slow and not slam on the brakes. You’ll be good if you do that.”

I give him one final smile before climbing into my car and getting on the road.

At first, it doesn’t seem so bad. The snowfall is pretty heavy, but my car seems to drive decently in it. But the moment I leave the town of Pinehurst and get on the back roads, I learn how much harder it is to drive on untreated roads.

My back is straight as a rod as I sit forward in my seat, trying to see through the dense layer of falling snow. Despite being in the thick of the trees, the wind is still heavy outside. It blows the fallen snow around, making it almost impossible to see anything.

I try to take calming breaths and just keep both hands on the wheel. Luckily, so far, I seem to be the only one with the bad idea of driving through the unexpected snowstorm. Only one vehicle has passed me in the twenty minutes I’ve been on this narrow back road, and that was a truck with a snowplow on the front that seemed far more equipped to travel in this weather than I am.

“You’re doing great,” I whisper to myself, trying to keep my heart calm. Every now and then, my car slides a little while taking a turn, and it feels like my soul leaves my body for a minute. I wish I could be enjoying the first major snowfall I’ve seen, but instead, I’m white-knuckling my steering wheel, hoping that the sign for Sutten Mountain will pop up soon.

I squint, trying to see through the snow. The sun’s started setting, and the way it disappears behind the tree line makes it even harder to navigate through the roads.

Feeling risky, I reach over to the passenger seat to see how far away I am from Dean’s house. I grab my phone and tap the screen, but a pit forms in my stomach when I realize it’s dead and my charger is in the SUV.

“Shit,” I mutter, feeling incredibly irresponsible right now. I can’t even call Dean and tell him that I’m on my way. Hopefully, he’s still at his parents’ house and has no idea I haven’t made it home yet. I want to beat him to the house so he doesn’t know I was out driving in this weather. Guilt crashes through me when I realize how panicked he might be if he gets home and I’m not there.

“You’ve got to be getting closer,” I mutter. I left Axel’s studio about forty minutes ago. And while the drive is a little over an hour with normal road conditions, I’m sure the slow, creeping pace I keep my car at now is adding even more time to the trip.

Hopefully, it isn’t too much more.

I’m leaning forward in the seat when a deer runs out in front of me. It stops in the middle of the road, its eyes shining bright in my headlights as I panic. My foot slams against the brake as I yank the steering wheel to the right.

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