Page 1 of Whiteout

Chapter 1

This is no fairy tale with a happy ending; our story was always destined to end in tragedy.

Chapter 2

Ivy

I cradle the phone against my ear, curled up on my couch as I listen to Sam ask me for the sixth time this week to spend Christmas with her family in Chicago.

"Come on, Ivy! You know my family would love to have you for Christmas. Mom's already asking if you're coming this year.

I met Sam my freshman year of college. We shared a dorm room and have been inseparable ever since.

"That's sweet of your mom, but I couldn't impose like that. Your family should be able to spend a holiday together without me intruding."

"Impose? Are you kidding me? You are family at this point."

I sigh, twirling a loose thread from my blanket around myfinger. "I appreciate it, Sam. I really do. But I don't want to force myself into your family's holiday. It's your time, you know?"

"Ivy... You wouldn't be forcing anything. We want you there."

"I know, and it means the world to me. But I'll be okay. Promise."

There's a pause on the other end of the line. I can almost see Sam's face, the way she bites her lip when she's worried.

"Are you sure? I hate thinking of you alone for Christmas."

"I'm sure, besides, who says I'll be alone? Maybe I'll meet a handsome mountain man, have a whirlwind holiday romance, and we'll live happily ever after."

Sam snorts- actually snorts! "In that tiny town you're going to? Girl, keep dreaming. If you did by chance meet a handsome mountain man, even mountain men want their women to shave their legs."

"Hey bitch! Stranger things have happened. Seriously, Sam. I'll be fine. Go enjoy your family. We'll catch up after the holidays, okay?"

"Okay, fine. Bethat way." Sam teases, and I can picture her rolling her eyes. "But you promise to text me when you get there?"

"Promise. I have to get off the phone, I need to finish packing. I'm hitting the road first thing in the morning. My tiny mountain cabin awaits."

"Are you sure you're okay? Like, really okay?"

I hesitate, the thread from my blanket now a tangled mess around my finger. I'm not okay, I'm lonely. But I'm not about to confess that to her and make her worry more about me than she already does.

"I'm fine, Sam. I promise. It's been a year; I'm okay. Dirk was a user. I'm over it and ready to move on." Sam doesn't respond, and I know she's not convinced. "Give your family my love. Love you!"

"Love you too. Let me know when you get there. And try not to get murdered by some weird mountain man."

"Will do."

I hang up and set my phone down on the coffee table in front of me. My life has changed so much, last Christmas feels likea lifetime ago. Twelve months ago, I thought my life was perfect. I had a beautiful home, a happy marriage, the murder mystery podcast I had worked hard on was finally taking off and bringing in real money. Just a few weeks later, my husband blindsided me with divorce papers. He was leaving me for his 23-year-old secretary. I felt like my life turned into a bad movie cliché.

Now, here I am, a year later. I'm packing up for a two week stay in a tiny cabin in the middle of nowhere, Pennsylvania. All because I couldn't stand the thought of spending my first Christmas alone in the house I shared with my ex-husband.

Shaking my head, I push myself off the couch, refusing to dwell on the past or feel sorry for myself any longer. That life is behind me now and tomorrow I'm determined to start a new and better life. This trip will be the beginning of my fresh start.

Walking into my bedroom, I survey my half-packed suitcase. A stack of books lies on the bed, waiting to be packed away.Just because I don't have a real boyfriend, doesn't mean I can't have multiple book boyfriends. And none of them care if I shave my legs or not.

Maybe I will meet someone— a handsome brooding mountain man that will change my entire life.Yeah right.

I grip the steering wheel as I carefully navigate the winding mountain roads. The radio crackles with static, cutting in and out as I climb higher into the mountains. My GPS estimates another hour until I reach Hemlock Hollow. I've never been one to hit the road early, but the weatherman predicted a storm rolling into the area.

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