Page 14 of Holiday on the Rocks
SIX
LEVI
NOT DEAD…YET
So I was taking her not killing me as a positive step forward. That was the key, I needed to stay positive and on task.
Be like a postage stamp; stick to one thing until you get there.
The difference between try and triumph is just a little umph (come on, you like that one.)
When life gives you lemons make lemonade and find someone with vodka?
Onward buttercup, there’s fuckery to spread.
Okay, I’m getting a little off track.
Anyway, I looked over and her eyes shot to me for a second before returning to the road. I examined her profile and there was the same pull. From the second I saw her, my body had overtaken my brain.
While she was the uber intelligent girl in high school who should’ve never looked my way, the second she did I pulled out all the stops. The effect she had on me was all consuming, and in seven years it hadn’t changed.
After the times I’d dream of being in the same space as her, it was happening. Did I put the puzzle of Rachel being Evan’s girlfriend together three weeks ago? Yes. A few months back it sounded fun to fly in and hang with Evan and his friends in Colorado. I’d been out of the country for a few years and hadn’t met Rachel, his girlfriend, but in a text, he referred to Allison Langley, and I couldn’t help but wonder if the universe or something bigger was at work.
Evan only knew her as the Allie from my past, and would’ve never imagined it was the same person. He and his family put me back together after her, when I went to live with them in Wisconsin when all hell broke loose. He would’ve never wanted me at this house if he was aware it was the same Allison. Yeah, if Lexi or Rachel knew I’d be here, they would’ve likely hired an assassin to take me out altogether. Since I’d flown under the radar and made it to the Christmasy Colorado mountains, I wondered what the odds were of me chipping away at the icy exterior beside me.
There was an unmistakable noise. “Langley, was that your tummy growling?”
“Don’t you be listening to my stomach.” She grumbled as she turned the radio on and Frosty the Snowman filled the front seat. “I haven’t eaten since this morning.”
We turned onto a road that screamed Christmas ski resort town. On both sides of the street were shops, boutiques, and restaurants. Above were holiday lights strung from one side of the street to the other casting a warm glow on the folks strolling down the congested sidewalk.
“Wow, this is cute.” She pointed. “The Summit Sip coffee shop. Adorbs. I’m making a mental note of that one.”
“Hey, there’s an Earth and Fire BBQ.”
“Yes, I remember you love bar-be-cue.” She glared at me. “I don’t want to eat there.”
“There’s just no winning with you.”
A sarcastic laugh bounced off my window. “Nice to see you realize that.”
At the end of the street was an enormous ski lodge. I pulled into the parking lot. “I’d like to check this out.”
“Do you realize how annoying your voice is?” She zipped up her coat.
“Isn’t hating me every second of today exhausting?”
Her head shook. “Nope. Actually, I hate you so much it almost feels good. Yeah, like I’ve climbed the Everest of hate. Accomplished what few others could.”
She bolted from the car like I was toe fungus and walked a step ahead of me through the parking lot while light snowflakes dropped from above. There were a few in her auburn hair that made her look angelic.
“Levi, we’re finding a restaurant in here and sitting at separate tables so I don’t have to look at your face.”
It felt good. “Quick question. Is this your mood just now or like always?”
She laughed. “Well, Levi, I’m in a I’d like to set someone’s face on fire and put it out with a fork kinda mood.”
I chuckled. “So that’s just tonight?”
