Page 36 of Ice Cold Christmas
Nerves had her practically bouncing in the room. The guest room. She’d fled back up there as quickly as she could. To clear her head. To think. And now?—
A knock on the door. Her head whipped toward the door. Not the connecting door. The door that led to the hallway. She hurried toward it, yanked it open, and blurted, “Are we really—” Getting married?
But those words didn’t come out. Because Victor wasn’t standing on the threshold of her guest room. A woman was. The one who stuck so closely to Dario’s side. Long blond hair. Gleaming, pale green eyes.
“Hi, Melody,” she said. She quirked a brow. “What? Seriously? No warm greeting at all for your best friend in the entire world?”
Olivia Hatcher was supposed to be Melody’s best friend. She’d picked that up from searching through images on social media. And now she believed that Olivia was sleeping with Dario. Considering they were constantly touching one another when they were together, they certainly seemed to be heavily involved. How long had that relationship been going on?
“Uh, hello?” Olivia prompted when Melody just stared at her. “I get that it’s been a big twenty-four hours but, hey, how about a hug, at least? Didn’t get one last night, what with your dramatic return home and all of that.” Olivia pulled Melody into a big hug. Squeezed her tightly. “I swear, you ever pull this shit again, and I will kill you.”
Melody stiffened.
Olivia eased back. Grimaced. “Probably shouldn’t have said that, what with the shooting and all, right? Terrible taste. But, it is me.”
What was that supposed to mean?
“Are you gonna invite me in? Or do I just get to stand in the doorway forever?”
Melody backed up. “Come in.”
“Gee, thanks. Your enthusiasm is overwhelming.” Olivia crossed the threshold. She paused to shut the door, then asked, “Are you still pissed at me?”
Melody had no idea. She crossed her arms over her shoulders.
“Figured you were, and that was why you didn’t tell me that you were splitting town.” Olivia wore designer jeans. A soft, gray sweater. Probably cashmere. The other woman adored cashmere.
Wait, how do I know that?
Excitement hummed in Melody’s blood.
“Seriously, how long can one woman hold a grudge?” Olivia’s hand slid over the top of the dresser. Diamonds glittered from several fingers. “God, you hated this room. Can’t believe you’re willingly staying in here. I mean, when your parents were getting divorced, this is where your mother slept. She used to call it her prison cell. Or at least, that’s what you told me.” She shot a sympathetic look at Melody. “So tragic the way she died. Skiing accident. All that blunt force trauma when she collided with the tree.” A shudder slid over her body. “The closed casket at the funeral was terrible. I remember shaking with fear because she’d been so incredibly beautiful, but in death, we couldn’t even see her to say goodbye.”
Melody just stared at her.
“I’m not being tactful, am I? Bringing up your dead mother. You probably don’t want to talk about her now. But, then again, you never talk about her.”
She didn’t think that Olivia wanted to be tactful. In fact, Melody wasn’t sure what game the other woman was playing. But it definitely felt like a game. Like Olivia was saying things to deliberately provoke a reaction from Melody. Except Melody didn’t have a reaction to give her.
I knew that my mother was dead. I read the newspaper reports. Dead in a skiing accident. Her lover—the skiing instructor—was the one who found her body.
“Anyway…” A long exhale from Olivia. “I did get a bit nervous when you first vanished. What with that stalker situation you had going on…” Another shudder eased down her body.
Now Melody snapped to attention. “Stalker?”
“Yes, you know.” Olivia rolled one hand in a vague wave. “You told me that he was following you on your runs.”
No, she did not know.
“You said that you’d turn around, and you’d swear some guy in a hoodie was tailing you on the jogging trail. I mean, come on. A hoodie? How stereotypical is that? I told you it was probably just another jogger but you—you swore you felt eyes on you.” Olivia bit her lower lip. Her head dipped down. “I laughed it off. Told you it was your imagination. Then you vanished for a whole year. Some nights, I worried that maybe—maybe he really had been there. And thought I shouldn’t have laughed.” Her hands twisted in front of her before she slowly lifted her head. “I’m not laughing now.”
No. She wasn’t. “You’re my best friend.”
Olivia nodded. “I hope so. I didn’t realize quite how boring life was…” She walked toward Melody. Extended her hands.
Melody lifted her own hands. Olivia immediately clasped them in a tight grip.
“I didn’t realize how boring life was, until you weren’t there.” Olivia blinked away tears. “I had no one to hit the bars with. I had to dance on tables by myself.” A wan grin. “And that is just sad.”
