Page 18 of Neighbors' Omega
She grinned. “Glad to hear it.”
Shane touched my forearm, then motioned with his other hand. “Shall we?”
I nodded. “Sure.”
We climbed to the platform where an attendant gave us instructions, then I was seated in the car.
“See you back here in a few minutes,” Shane said from the platform where he waited for his own car.
I nodded, then held on as the lift mechanism caught and started pulling me up the mountain.
The scenery was gorgeous, with aspen trees that slowly shifted to pine the higher in elevation I climbed. When the car turned just the right direction I could see Mountain Springs in the distance.
Relaxation settled over me as I breathed in the mountain air and listened to the birds. Between the rush to find a place, moving, and the start of another school year, I hadn’t really had a chance to decompress in months.
A spur-of-the-moment weekend vacation had seemed almost outlandish when Shane had invited me, but there, sitting in the coaster car, I realized how much I needed it.
I reached the top of the track, then held onto the handles as the lift mechanism released and gravity took over.
The coaster started slow, but quickly gained speed. Soon I was shouting with glee at every turn and twist. Shane echoed my excitement as he came down the mountain behind me.
It was over all-too-soon, and I found that I wanted to go again as soon as I got out of the car.
“That’s a gorgeous sight,” Shane said as he climbed out of his car.
“Hmm?” I asked.
He grinned. “That smile on your face. I haven’t seen a smile like that in months.”
My face heated with what had to be an epic blush.
Shane laughed. “Come on, let’s go again. Then I’ll take you to Mount Chocolate.”
“Mount Chocolate?”
He grinned. “Local chocolatier. Almost worth the trip on its own.”
My stomach immediately growled at the mention of chocolate, which made Shane laugh.
“I knew you’d like the sound of that,” he said. “Now, come on. Let’s go again.”
Chapter 6
~November~
Ipinched the bridge of my nose and sighed.
“‘Sup?” Dawn asked from where she sat, checking in books.
“Just trying to figure out the schedule for Thanksgiving week.”
“Oof. I don’t envy you there.”
“We’re going to be on a skeleton crew for the weekend for sure.”
“Everybody out of town?”
“Yep, like every year.”
