“Okay,” I squeak out. “I’m leaving in two days. I live about five hours from here. There’s a snowstorm blowing into the town where we’ll be staying, so pack warm clothes. We’ll take my car, and we need to leave early.” The words are tumbling out now, a plan forming. Am I really going to do this?
“How early is early?” he groans.
“Six.” I want to miss the morning traffic, and the start of the storm is supposed to hit around noon. If we leave at six, that will give us just enough time to get there with a single pit stop.
“Fine, I can do that. I’ll meet you at your dorm on Sunday at 5:45. Now, let’s get you back to your dorm, it’s getting late.” His arm falls heavy around my shoulders before he pulls me into his side. The overwhelming scent of his cologne invades my senses. I wrinkle my nose and pull away from his hold as we step up to my building.
“Uhh, thanks for walking me.”
“Not a problem, stacks. See you in a couple days.”
ChapterTwo
Imight have set the time, but the incessant banging on my dorm room door is too much for this hour. I yank the door free just as Preston is about to start pounding again. “You’re lucky most of the people on my floor are already gone. Are you trying to raise the dead?” I snap.
“Well, it looks like someone isn’t a morning person.” Lovely, he’s his regular chipper self even at six in the morning.
“I ran out of coffee this morning, okay? My stupid roommate must have used the last pod and didn’t have the human decency to restock them. So, I’ve been up for an hour and my eyes still feel tired and now I have to drive five hours with the human equivalent of the energizer bunny.”
“Whoa, whoa there. Take a breath. How about we get loaded up? I’ll take the first shift on driving, and we can hit the campus drive-thru coffee stand so you can get your fix. How does that sound?” I draw in a deep breath and manage a curt nod before flinging my keys in his direction, which he easily snatches in the air.
My triple espresso eggnog latte kicks in after an hour on the road. There’s little traffic, and the miles pass quickly. We don’t talk much, and I don’t mind. I rarely get to make this drive as the passenger, so I’m happy to take in the wintery scenes outside my window. I scan the radio back and forth but we’re starting to lose service heading into the mountains. I pull up Spotify on my phone and search for my favorite holiday playlist.
Sweet chimes of Christmas bells begin to play through the speakers. “Oh, so you’re that kind of Christmas person,” Preston teases.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” I wince internally at my tone. The caffeine had hit, but my nice meter was still working its way to full.
“Nothing, you just like Christmas, huh? I didn’t take you as the type.”
“The type? To like Christmas?” I shift in my seat, “everybody likes Christmas.” His eyes stay on the road, but by the way his mouth lifts slightly at the corners, I can tell he can feel my gaze.
“You’re just serious all the time. So, focused. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you at a pep rally or football game, I can’t imagine you head out to Greek Row on the weekend to drink with the rest of campus. Honestly, I’m not convinced you know how to have fun.”
“I think we just have two very different definitions of fun.” I deadpan.
“Well, you show me yours, and I’ll show you mine.” He turns and shoots me a mischievous wink.
“We’ll see about that,” I whisper under my breath. The playfulness and his boyish charm are disarming. Is this him flirting? No, that’d be crazy. I’m sure it’s his default with a face like that.
Trying to distract myself, I fish blindly around the back seat for my backpack. My fingers brush against the cool leather, snagging it forward into my lap. Pulling free the three ringed binder, I flip through the study guides I printed in preparation for tutoring this week. A swift hand flicks the binder closed, trapping my hands in between.
“What the hell?” My voice rings loud in the small space of the car.
“We’ve got plenty of time to go through your mind torture. I could use a couple minutes to stretch my legs. You okay with us stopping at the base of the mountain?”
“Fine, but we have to keep on schedule, or we’ll be driving into a storm, and I don’t have snow tires.” Preston veers the car off the highway, pulling up to the pump of the run-down gas station/mini-mart. I hop out and run around the car to top off the tank, but Preston beats me to it.
“I got this, you go ahead and take a walk or grab some breakfast. You can’t survive off coffee.”
“Psh, that’s what you think,” I call over my shoulder back at him. The small mart smells of dirty grease and something else I can’t put my finger on. I hurry down the snack aisle, a flashback to too many breakfasts of gas station junk food hits me out of nowhere.
“Grab me some jerky please,” Preston spouts as he passes by on his way to the back of the building.
Back at the car, the passenger door opens and Preston bends down but doesn’t climb in. “You sure you don’t want me to drive? I don’t mind.” I don’t need to be asked twice. I slide over the center console and buckle up, handing Preston his requested jerky. And I thought I had bad breakfast habits.
* * *
“Okay you’re going to take the next left, then it’s the third house on the right.” Natalie’s gone full out again this year. The gutters are lined perfectly with fresh garland and sparkling white lights. Tiny flakes begin to fall against the driveway as we pull up. Perfect timing.