Page 148 of The Holiday Fakers
Then I throw myself off the sled, keeping her on top of me, and slide the rest of the way down, finally coming to a stop with a thud against the trunk of a tree, whose branches promptly dislodge all the snow they were carrying onto us.
Piper’s making an awful sound, like she’s having an asthma attack.
I push up out of the snow, brushing it from her face in panic. “You okay? You hurt?”
People rush to our side, adults concerned, kids whooping with excitement.
My heart restarts as I realize Piper’s laughing.
“You sure you’re alright?”
She nods. “That was a once-in-a-lifetime experience.”
I grin. “Meaning you never want to do it again?”
“Yup!” She glances at the crowd around us. “Please tell me someone got that on film?”
A kid comes forward, and we all squeeze around the phone screen to watch, laughing at the sight that was so terrifying just moments ago.
Piper gets the kid to send the video to her, then we turn for home.
“One and done?” she asks as we step onto Bay View Road.
I wince. “Now that the adrenaline’s wearing off, I’m starting to ache in all the wrong places.”
“Epsom salt bath?”
“Only if you join me.”
“Deal.”
The bumps and bruises no longer bother me. I’ve got my girl by my side, and she’s going to move in with me after Christmas. Nothing can burst my bubble.
CHAPTER 27
PIPER
Colin: Please can we talk for five minutes? I’d rather do this on a voice call
My backside hits the bed as I stare at my phone screen.
What does he want? Surely he isn’t going to tell me I don’t have a job come January? Right before Christmas?
The scent of morning coffee filters along the landing from the kitchen downstairs. Brody went down ahead of me this morning to make cookies with Mom while I had a leisurely shower.
Get it over with.
I call Colin before I can talk myself out of it and he answers immediately.
“Piper! Hey, thanks for calling me back. How are you?”
Amazing, thank you for asking. I’m moving in with my hot new boyfriend, and I have thousands of new followers on my socials. You know, for the pictures I draw that you look down on? Oh, and I’ve built a website over the last few days and already have two commissions. So, I’m doing great!
Of course, I can’t say any of that as he’s the son of my new boss, so I settle for, “Fine. How are you?”
“Er … not so good. I miss you.”
How does he expect me to reply to that?
