Page 7 of Thaw My Heart
I grimace because I can’t help myself. But at least I didn’t make a snide comment.Progress. Slow, painful, progress.
As Maya unpacks her suitcase, her phone chimes. She glances at it and smiles. "Mom says hi," she tells me, tapping out a quick reply.
"You just talked to her at the airport," I laugh.
Maya shrugs. "You know Mom. She worries." She hesitates, then adds, "She asked if Cody's spending time with us."
I raise an eyebrow. "What did you tell her?"
"The truth. That he's around, but busy with work." Maya sighs. "I wish he'd call them himself sometimes, you know? They miss him."
I nod, not quite sure what to say. It's a familiar conversation, one we've had many times before.
"Maybe this trip will change things," I offer, hoping to lighten the mood.
Maya smiles, but it doesn't quite reach her eyes. "Maybe," she echoes, turning back to her unpacking.
We put on our coats and snow boots and head downstairs. After a quick round of asking at least three different people for directions, we manage to find the path that will take us to the lessons.
Or so we thought.
In a matter of five minutes, we realize we’re completely lost again.
“I think we should’ve taken a left back there,” I grumble, which only frustrates Maya more. She glares at me and increases her already inhumanly fast pace. Luckily for me, I have experience keeping up with her and her freakishly long legs.
We wander for a while more. I’m beginning to lose feeling in my extremities when Maya finally stops and throws her hands in the air.
“I give up! We’re lost!”
“Well, yeah,” I growl through chattering teeth. “Ididpoint out that we went the wrong way.”
“What do we do?” Maya wails. “We’re gonna freeze to death! They’re gonna find us, and we’re gonna be popsicles! Why did you have to have a honeymoon in the snowy mountains? Why not Hawaii?”
“Because your dumb brother couldn’t get me a discount in Hawaii. Would you please calm down? You aren’t going to freeze. I might strangle you with my bare hands, but you will not freeze.”
Maya pouts and crosses her arms tightly over her chest. “Sure. Go ahead and blame it all on the dumb blonde. Do you think you really would’ve been able to get us there if you had taken the lead, Miss Perfect and All-Knowing?”
I don’t bother to reply and instead look around for any signage to direct us back to the resort, but all I can see is snow. Snow, snow, snow. A giant blanket of pure white. Covering... everything. Great. So, even if there were any signs, I surely wouldn’t see them.
“Darcy.” Maya grabs my arm with the strength of ten men. “Darcy, Darcy, look.” She points to a human-shaped silhouette approaching in the distance. They’re too far to make out any distinct appearance, but they’re definitely coming toward us. “Oh, God,” Maya whimpers. “We’re about to be murdered in the middle of nowhere. They’ll never find our bodies! Oh, God, Darcy! They’re gonna make a documentary about us! I wonder who they’ll get to play me? I swear if it’s anyone but Margot...”
“Would you stop—” I swat Maya’s hand away and squint to try and get a better look at the incoming stranger. I can make out dark hair, broad shoulders, and a tan face. He’s definitely a man, but that’s the only thing that’s clear.
“Hey!” I call out to him, figuring he’ll either kill us like Maya thinks or actually be able to help us. “Over here!”
“Darcy!” Maya hisses.
I nudge her away. The man seemingly spots us and picks up his pace. As he approaches, I’m able to get a better look at him. He’s young, about our age, with light brown skin and curly black hair that’s buzzed on the sides. He’s got a sharp face with defined cheekbones and a soft jawline. He looks sweet, but I remain on my guard.
“Hey, you guys alright?” he asks when he’s within earshot. Oh,God, his accent. He’s Australian. A gorgeous Australian boy.I immediately put him out of the mental bucket of likely murderers and into the bucket labelled likely crushes for Maya.
I don’t need to look over at her. I can feel the heart-shaped lasers shooting from her eyes.
“We’re lost,” I tell him since Maya can’t find words. She’s staring. Unblinking. “Any way you could help us find Cody Banks?”
The guy looks at me for no more than half a second before Maya gets the entirety of his attention. “Must be my lucky day,” he says to her with a grin, “coming across such a beautiful girl lost out here in all of this snow.”
“Ohhhh-kay, then,” I mutter, sucking my teeth at his audacity.Don’t you mean coming acrosstwobeautiful girls? What am I, Quasimodo?
