Page 56 of Christmas Crisis
“You’re here for the entire month?” Marley, upset mere moments ago, now slapped her hands together in giddiness. I smiled inwardly. She was seriously made of tinsel, holly, and Hallmark movies. I loved it, feeling the gentle echo of our mom.
“Until after New Year’s,” I clarified.
“Me too,” Leo added.
“That’s amazing! You haven’t been in town for that long during the season since you left for school.” Marley squished my cheeks between her hands. “We can do all the things! Decorating, the Hoopla, the talent show, baking. Oh my gosh! I just realized the city tree lighting is tonight. Yay!”
James smiled indulgently at his wife. “We’re not going anywhere until we get everything back in the garage. Plus, I need a proper shower.” He glared at Will.
“What?” Will protested. “It’s a million-dollar cabin. How was I supposed to know the highest level of water pressure wassad, slow drip?”
The news of my extended visit to town seemed to have softened Marley. Maureen—not so much.
“To be sure—” Maureen said to me and Leo, “when Marley says we can ‘do all the things,’ that includes figuring out whatever it is you’re still hiding from us.”
“I’m not hiding anything,” I insisted, staring her down. “Like we said, it just made more sense to keep things quiet.”
Maureen hmphed. “Obviously, you have the right to your secrets. We only care that you’re okay.” She squeezed my biceps.
I leaned back against Leo. “I’m good.”
9 MONTHS AGO - MARCH
Our little cabin by the beachhad everything. Cozy, lived-in furniture and a kitchen with a fancy espresso maker. An outdoor shower with foliage blooming above. Water views clear enough to see turtles swimming. But the only thing that seemed to interest Stone was the excellent Wi-Fi.
I knew he’d sensed my reservations about his public relationship with Naomi even though I hadn’t brought them up. He’d convinced me to spend my spring break in Maui with him—his way of atoning—promising a romantic getaway.
Shoshanna had made the arrangements, choosing someplace far enough off the beaten path that we could be together, free from scrutinizing eyes or paparazzi lenses. Still, there was a fair amount of subterfuge involved in getting there. We took different flights and cars. I posted on Instagram about taking a solo trip to Hawaii. Shoshanna staged a photograph of Naomihugging Stone goodbye at the airport. Finally, we both made our way to the little bungalow on the sand, blissfully alone together in paradise. But Stone didn’t try to romance me.
Nope. He immediately opened his laptop.
I’d spent most of the past week by myself, taking short hikes through the nearby nature preserve and even shorter runs on the beach. I’d body surfed and napped in the sun. @theadventurousmiranda would certainly have some great new content once I had the chance to edit the photos.
Stone came out to join me intermittently, full of promises that he had just “one more phone call” to make, or “one last time-sensitive email” to respond to. We managed a few quick dinners together, some ocean swims in the morning, and one longer stroll along the shore, but mostly, he’d dipped in and out of our vacation like a boat dropping anchor for brief land excursions.
Gazing out at the orangey-red horizon, I thought back to my conversation with Leo three months ago. His disappointment. Why hadn’t I gotten out of this when Stone first proposed his plan for fake dating Naomi? Why had I agreed?
A big part of the reason was that I liked Stone. He was attractive and funny, and once I dug past the shallow online persona he’d cultivated, I enjoyed spending time with him. And while I didn’t think I was a person who needed a ton of sex, it was nice to be with someone in the bedroom again.
It also might have been simpler to walk away from Stone if I were someone who fell into relationships easily. But I wasn’t. I hadn’t been drawn to anyone other than Stone in years.
Other than Leo.
I shook my head. Nope. I needed to train my brain to stop going there. He was my best friend and soulmate. My Bear. But he would never be my lover.
I wasn’t stupid. I knew my attachment to Leo was a big part of why I wasn’t as invested in my relationship with Stone as I mighthave been and why I gave him so much grace with this Naomi nonsense. But I still didn’t see enough of a potential future with Stone to risk diminishing my connection to Leo. When we’d had that stalemate before Christmas over his objections to Stone and Naomi, I got a taste of what it felt like not having him in my life.
It was unbearable.
Even though I could see the argument that my bond with Leo might prevent me from forming a stronger attachment to Stone, I certainly wasn’t going to pull back from my best friend while my boyfriend pretended to date another woman.
Leo and I had settled into a comfortable new normal where we didn’t discuss Stone. I could live with that. What I couldn’t live with was the silence that had stretched between us for those days after I’d foolishly hung up on him.
I leaned back on my elbows, feeling the sun on my neck. This beach was supposedly private, but in the distance, I saw folks running away from the evening tide. I’d also noticed a few other couples during our stay, but so far, no one had ventured close enough to chat. I chuckled.Hope they don’t have a long-range camera lens and are big Stone and Naomi fans.
Peering at our cabin, I watched Stone pace back and forth in the front room window, phone glued to his ear.
I pushed down my annoyance and attempted to give him the benefit of the doubt. At least he tried. He was here, with me, and he’d turned Shoshanna down when she’d suggested flying Naomi out for a few hours to get a shot with Stone on the beach.
