Page 19 of Touchdown Under the Mistletoe
“Grandma! You can’t just sit there like a porch gargoyle waiting to scare people,” I say.
“Gargoyles protect people, Travis. Do you need protection? From making bad decisions, perhaps?”
“No.”
“Uh-huh. And I was born yesterday.”
I hold my hands up. “I swear, I’m going for a walk before dinner. That’s it.”
“Hmm. Walking to the visitor center, are you?”
I frown. “Why would you ask me that?”
“Please. Small towns have better intel than the FBI,” she says, sipping what I’m ninety percent sure is spiked cocoa. “Go on then. Just don’t make the poor girl cry again.”
“Cry?”
Grandma nods and arches an eyebrow. “What did you think, Travis? She read the article. You basically ditched her at the skating rink. And all those vile comments about her… Anyway, I hope you’ve prepared a solid explanation for her.”
My heart sinks into my stomach. Riley was crying?
“Don’t look so surprised,” Grandma says. “You must know that girl adores you.”
“She does?”
Grandma shakes her head. “Did you get a football to the head too many times? Or are you going blind?”
“That’s harsh. You’re terrifying, Grandma.”
She grins. “Good. It keeps you honest. Now go. Don’t let Riley think you don’t care about her, Travis. Life’s too short for that nonsense.”
“I’ll be back before dinner,” I say and head toward the Visitor Center.
Beau told me Riley texted him earlier, saying not to worry about her and that she was on her way there. I feel bad about this entire thing. When Maxwell sent me those messages and voicemails, my brain short-circuited. I shouldn’t have left Riley without an explanation. And now she’s out there after dark, probably freezing.
I up my pace as images of a frozen Riley pop into my mind. She’s been out for a while already. What if she’s hypothermic?
When I arrive at the visitor center, I immediately try the door, but it’s locked. I walk around the building. No trace of Riley, though.
I’m about to give up and look for her elsewhere when I spot a light in the small maintenance cabin near one of the trailheads. A ranger must’ve left it unlocked. That, or Riley isn’t in there.
I make a beeline for the cabin and swing the door open. Riley shrieks and throws an empty water bottle at my face, but I don’t care. At least I have the reassurance that she’s safe and sound. And not frozen to death or eaten by a bear.
I grin and put the bottle on the shelf by the door. “You’ve got to work on your aim.”
“Travis? You scared me half to death! What are you even doing here?”
“What am I doing here? What about you? It’s freezing, it’s dark, and you’re hiding in a maintenance cabin like some shady figure.”
She shrugs. “I needed space to think. Away from everyone.”
“Away from me?”
She bites her lip, and I shouldn’t focus on how sexy it looks, but I can’t help it.
“If we’re being honest, then yes, I needed to get away from you. You abandoned Beau and me at the ice rink. And then you locked yourself in your room, all because you were afraid of Sienna’s reaction to those photos of us.”
Her words feel like a punch in the gut. “That’s what you think? That this is about Sienna?”
