Total pages in book: 153
Estimated words: 152064 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 760(@200wpm)___ 608(@250wpm)___ 507(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 152064 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 760(@200wpm)___ 608(@250wpm)___ 507(@300wpm)
Cammie
How’s the lodge?
Fee
We miss you!
I smile as a picture of Fee and Cammie appears, heads together, fake tears splashing out of their eyes.
Tally
Aw. I miss you too! The lodge is so cool.
We built a snow peen!
I send photos of me posing on the balls and hugging the shaft. I leave the weird vibe alone. I can fill them in when we see each other.
Cammie
Fee
That is epic.
Tally
Right?! How is the tournament?
Cammie
They won their first two games and lost the third.
Fee
We’re heading out for dinner now!
Tally
We’re about to make dinner, too. Big hugs! Have the best time tonight!
Cammie
You too!
Fee
I feel bad that I didn’t go with them, but it wouldn’t have been as fun for me, and I wanted to spend it with the Terror and Flip, even if he can never be mine. Who knows where I’ll be next year. This could be my first and last New Year’s with them.
I slide a scrunchie onto my wrist and head downstairs. The whole team is in the kitchen, and I love the way we fall into an easy routine, thanks to our regular fajita and taco nights at Tristan and Rix’s.
“You having fun?” Dred asks as we cut carrots into coins.
“So much. Thanks for inviting me to tag along. It’s a nice getaway before I start my final semester.”
“Are you excited, or is it bittersweet that it’s almost over?” Rix asks.
“A bit of both. I love Tilton, but it’s very hockey focused and that makes it tricky with my friend group.”
“It must have been hard staying in Toronto,” Everly muses. “I applied to Tilton, but a bunch of other places, too.”
“It’s good to keep your options open,” I agree.
“There are benefits to commuting,” Connor interjects.
Dred hugs his arms and kisses his cheek, whispering something to him.
I love that they’ve made a family for themselves. Dred grew up in foster care, and so did the twins. Connor’s family is filthy rich, but his parents are kind of jerks. Well, his dad is. His mother seems like she’s caught in the middle of it with his sisters. A sudden jolt of fear makes my spine hot. What if Dred and the twins finally have the family they’ve always longed for, and it all falls apart like my parents did?
“You okay, Talls?” Flip’s fingers drift down my arm, startling me out of my morbid thoughts.
I shake it off and tuck my worries away. I force a smile, stomach fluttering at his attention. “I’m good.”
I end up between Flip and Hammer at dinner. I’m hyperaware of his proximity, of every brush of elbows, of the smell of his cologne, the warmth of his laughter. And now I can’t stop thinking about what Hammer said about the vibe. Flip seems to be orienting himself so he’s close to me and Quinn is not.
Afterward, we congregate in the common room with mugs of spiked hot chocolate, and once again, Flip sits next to me. He and Tristan have been exchanging meaningful looks that would be easy to miss if I wasn’t so tuned in to Flip.
“We could play a game,” Dred suggests.
“We’re not playing board games. You kick everyone’s ass every time,” Flip says.
“What about hide-and-seek?” Everly suggests, then ducks her head. “Or maybe that’s too kiddish.”
“I’m in,” Dallas says.
“Same!” Flip agrees.
“This place is perfect for hiding and seeking,” I add.
Everyone else seems excited too, and Everly’s answering grin warms my heart. We pick numbers to determine the first seeker. Connor is closest, so the role falls to him.
“You have to stay inside the house, and no hiding in other people’s bedrooms.” Connor dims the lights on the main floor. “Any other rules we should lay down?”
“You can’t steal someone else’s spot once they’re in it,” Rix says.
“Sounds good.” Connor turns to face the wall. “I’ll count to one hundred. Get to hiding!”
Everyone scatters, the guys yelling after each other. Everly’s gleeful giggles bounce off the walls.
“Find your own spot, Dallas!” Hemi calls.
I rush upstairs, along with a handful of other people. I wait until most of our friends have found their spot before I start searching for my own. Sometimes it’s best to hide in plain sight.
I peek my head into a small sitting room. A huge barrel chair is set in front of an enormous window. To the left is a small alcove with a door that’s been covered in the same wallpaper as the rest of the space, so it’s nearly seamless, apart from the ornate knob.
I open it as Connor calls out seventy-nine. Spare bathrobes hang in a neat row. Connor calls out eighty-two. I’m running out of time, so I duck into the closet, pull the door closed behind me, and tuck my body behind the robes.
Connor’s voice is muffled, but I finally hear, “Ready or not, here I come!”
A moment later, the closet door opens and another person pushes into the small space. “Fuck, shit.” Flip pulls the door closed with a quiet snick. The metal hangers clink against each other.