Page 6 of Winter Love

“I’m Celestino Bastianini.”

“I’m Levi Anderson. We’re here cause I’m on leave from the Marines. I have two weeks off and these crazies kidnapped me and said we’re taking a road trip.” He laughs.

I chuckle. “That sounds like a lot of fun. Where are you all from?”

“We’re from Lake Renegade, Illinois. You haven’t told us your name,” Celestino says.

I chuckle. “I’m Emmanuelle Rousseau. I’ve never heard of Lake Renegade.”

“It’s about two hours west of Chicago.” Salvatore smiles. “Where do you live?”

“Do you all live there? I’m from Storyville, Colorado.”

“We do. Our grandfathers are the founders of Lake Renegade,” Lorenzo says.

“Wow! That’s impressive.”

“If you love small towns, you’ll love Lake Renegade,” Salvatore says. “You should come and visit our town.”

“I love small towns, I grew up in one. So I definitely want to come and see your town.”

It was nice to have the guys to eat dinner with. They were all really polite and they even walked me to my room. And not one of them even hinted that they wanted to come in. We did exchange numbers since we’re all going to be here the whole weekend. I talked a little about the Vandenberg’s and we’re hoping we can all get together and go snowboarding. It was a nice start to my stay here, and it kept me from worrying about seeing Lukas tomorrow.

Before I go to bed, I look out at the mountain. It’s always reminded me of our mountain in Storyville. The concierge said they just had the first big snowfall of the season. And the slopes are all clean and ready for the skiers and snowboarders. When I first came to Wintervale, I stayed here at the resort. But when I decided to stay to be with Lukas, I moved into his house.

Felicity didn’t say if Lukas was bringing someone to the memorial. I think she would if he was, or at least I hope so. I’m scared and excited to see him tomorrow.

Lukas

I’m kicking myself for not calling Emma about this weekend. No matter how I feel, I should’ve given her the option to come for the memorial. She was a big part of us finding our parents and the others. Plus, I miss her and I just want to hold her again.

“Are we all taking one car?” Paxton asks as we eat breakfast.

“Probably be easier,” Rhett says.

“You’re quiet this morning,” I say to Lissy.

“Just tired,” she says. Which I know is a lie. She’s a morning person and she’s never quiet. But I let it go, considering what today is.

An hour later and we’re headed out the door. Karen and her husband James meet us in the lobby.

“I think we’re going to have a decent turnout for the memorial,” Karen says as she hugs each of us.

“Thank you again for helping us do this,” I say to her as I shake James’ hand.

“Your parents meant a lot to this town, we’re glad to help you celebrate their life. And they were our friends too,” James says.

We all head into the room where everyone has started to gather.

“Okay big brother, you’re up.” Felicity smiles as she hugs me.

I take a deep breath and head up to the front. Everyone quiets down as they face me.

“Hi everyone, if you don’t know, I’m Lukas Vandenberg. These are my siblings—Paxton, Rhett and Felicity. We want to thank you all for joining us today. Five years ago, I was on a ski run with our parents and their ski club. A storm rolled in and we weren’t able to get off the mountain before it hit. What happened after was the worst thing I’ve ever been through. The storm triggered an avalanche that took the lives of our parents and three others. Today we’re here to celebrate them. Our parents were born and raised here in Wintervale. We miss them everyday and I hope that when they’re looking down on us, we’re making them proud.”

I look out at the faces in the room, some I know and some I don’t. My eyes land on the one face that I’ve been dreaming about every day. Emmanuelle Rousseau. I want to go over to her but I need to finish this speech first. I keep my eyes on her as I take a deep breath and start speaking again.

“Since we lost our parents, Paxton has become one of the best carpenters here in Wintervale. Rhett has finished pharmacy school and takes care of everyone in town. And Felicity? Well, she’s a genius at running our store. Lissy reminds me of our mom. She always had really good ideas about how to arrange the store and setting up sales. Before we lost our mom, she was teaching Lissy to crochet and knit. Now she’s selling dolls and blankets. And she can help you find any book you’re looking for. I know our parents are proud of them. Our tribute to our parents today will include skiing and snowboarding. Something our parents loved to do. So whether you’re on the bunny slope, the intermediate or the advanced, please join us. Thank you so much.”

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