Page 160 of Choosing You

Garret shakes his head, laughing at me as he takes a donut. “Never mind. We’ll eat at 2, Charles.”

After breakfast, Garret insists we watch the parade. We go to the game room with the massive TV on the wall and lie on the couch. I’m cold so he grabs some blankets and puts them over us. We lie there together, being completely lazy.

When the parade ends we check on Charles in the kitchen and offer to help, but he kicks us out. I’m sure we’d only get in his way. We go back to the game room and play some arcade games.

I feel like I’m living in a movie. Staying in this fancy estate. Having a cook make all my food. Dating this super hot guy. None of this even seems real.

At 2, we sit down for dinner. Charles brings out a turkey that looks like something you’d see in a magazine. It’s golden brown on top and has garnishes all around it on the tray. The side dishes are already out; the traditional classics that Garret insisted I have at my first “real” Thanksgiving.

“Would you like to carve the turkey, Garret?” Charles asks him.

“Sure.” Garret goes over to it and Charles shows him how to carve it. As they’re carving the turkey, I take in the scene, again feeling like it’s not real. But itisreal. I’m sitting at a table eating Thanksgiving dinner. At a house. Not a restaurant. With the person I love.

CHAPTERFORTY-THREE

All three ofus completely stuff ourselves. Garret and I offer to help clean up, but Charles won’t let us. But we at least carry all the dishes back to the kitchen.

“Can we go for a walk or something?” I ask Garret. “I’ll fall asleep if I sit down.”

He agrees and we grab our coats and go out back by the pool. “There’s not much to see in the winter.” He points to an area behind the pool. “But in the summer there’s a flower garden back there.”

“Where does this lead to?” I point to a crushed stone path near where I’m standing.

“It just goes to the edge of the woods and hooks up with the start of the trail.”

“Let’s go on the trail.”

“It’s pretty cold. Are you sure you can handle it?”

I punch him. “Yeah, I can handle it.”

He leads the way into the woods. His parents must own acres of land behind their house. The trail seems to go on forever.

Garret stops before we reach the end of it. “We should turn back. It’s getting dark.”

“Are you afraid to be alone with me in the woods?” I put my arms around him and look up at him, smiling.

“Yeah. You might attack me again like last night.” He kisses me. “And this morning.” He kisses me again.

“Sorry about that. I’ll never do it again.” I try not to laugh.

“I was kidding. You don’t really think—”

I kiss him, not letting him finish. I love feeling his warm lips on mine as the cold air circles around us.

Garret pulls away slightly and points at the sky. “Jade, look.”

Tiny snowflakes are falling, melting as soon as they hit the ground. I look up through the trees and watch as more flakes gently fall. The snow is even whiter against the dark woods. It’s beautiful. I notice how quiet it is. And how amazingly happy I feel standing here in Garret’s arms. Everything is perfect. Beyond perfect.

Good things never last, Jade. Good things never last.I whip my head around as if my mother is really there beside me. Her words haven’t haunted me for weeks and now here she is again, taking this magical moment away from me.

“Something bad is going to happen.” I whisper it to myself, but Garret hears me.

“Jade, why would you say something like that? Nothing bad is going to happen.”

Good things never last.I hear her again. It’s almost like she wants the good things to go away. Like she never wants me to be happy.

“What’s wrong?” He lifts my chin up to face him. “You love the snow.”

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