“But, Harris—”
I quickly cut her off. “But, nothing. I don’t want to hear excuses or whatever the fuck else you have to say right now. We don’t need or want your help, Natalie. Lucy and I will take care of the wedding ourselves, and that includes paying for it.”
Lucy came out of our room with both of our carry-ons rolling behind her. “Everything set?”
I covered the phone with my hand. “Yeah, sweetness. Our flight takes off in three hours. Let’s go. You got everything we need?”
“I hope so,” she said with an excited laugh. “I like this spontaneity. It’s kind of fun.”
Some of the old glow was back in her eyes, and I dropped a soft kiss on her lips. “Me too, Lu.”
“Hello? Harris, are you still there?” Nat was yelling. “Harris, don’t hang up. Please, let’s talk about this.”
Lucy’s eyes fell to the phone, and that little bit of glow evaporated. “She sounds upset.”
“Who cares? She can deal with it while we’re gone.” I lifted the phone back to my ear. “Don’t call me for the next week. Lucy and I are going on vacation, and we don’t want anyone’s drama interrupting our time.”
“Harris, I’m so sorry,” Nat whispered brokenly. “Just give me a chance to fix this.”
“You’ve had months to fix it. Now it’s my turn. Just do as I said, Nat. We’ll see you next week.”
“O-okay.” Her voice cracked. “I love you both. Please be careful and have a good time.”
I muttered a curse under my breath. She wasn’t even a decade older than me, but she was the only mom I’d ever known. She had taken care of me, loved me like her own child long before she married my dad. To
hear her crying felt like being boiled alive in hot oil. “We love you too, Nat. Look, just give me a few days to calm down, and we can talk when I get home, okay? Don’t cry.”
“O-okay,” she sobbed. “I really am so sorry.”
“I know you are. But saying you’re sorry isn’t always enough. Something you should understand since you haven’t forgiven Jenna yet.”
Her gasp sounded pained, but she didn’t say anything. I was tired of the drama for the day, so I hung up. I switched our phones to silent and then took Lucy’s hand. “Let’s get out of here, sweetness.”
As we stepped into the elevator, she was practically dancing with excitement. “Where are we going?”
“How do you feel about breathtaking mountainous views, decadent cups of hot chocolate, and making love in bed while it snows outside?” Her eyes widened, but I could see the appeal those suggestions had for her. “Have you ever been to Colorado?”
“Once? I can’t really remember it, though. Dad had a concert, but we didn’t do a lot of exploring.”
“I got us a suite at Mountain Thunder Lodge. We can do a little skiing or just stay in bed and watch the world go by from under the covers. Whatever you want to do, we will. If we need anything, we can buy it there.”
“That sounds perfect,” she murmured with a contented little sigh. “I can’t wait.”
The elevator opened up into the garage. I put our cases in the back of her Range Rover and opened her door. As she climbed in, I leaned in and kissed her. “Promise me something.”
“Anything.”
“Don’t keep anything from me again. No matter how big or small, no matter if you think it will upset me or not, I want to take care of it with you.”
“I promise,” she breathed, pulling my head down for another kiss. “But only if you promise to do the same.”
“Promise.”
She grinned. “Good. Now that we have that sorted out, let’s get out of here. The sooner we get to Colorado, the sooner we can make out in the snow.”
“Hell yeah, sweetness. Let’s go.”
Chapter 10