New Year's Eve

The old guilt manipulation. I scowled at him. “Fine. I’ll be there.”

“It’s your friend’s cabin, so I’m sorry if Ryan being there is uncomfortable for you,” Dex added regretfully. “But she’s got nowhere else to go.”

An ache sharp and tender flared across my chest. The thought of Ryan not having somewhere to go disturbed and upset me more than I liked. Ryan had walls up a mile high. She didn’t want to rely on anyone. She wanted to take care of Shaw and not the other way around. It was like she was afraid to let anyone take care of her. For some fucked up reason, it just made me want to be there for her more. “She should be with her family. Shaw is her family. I wouldn’t want anything else for her.”

Dex narrowed his eyes with uncharacteristic suspicion, looking so much like me.

“What?” I shifted uncomfortably.

“Nothing.” Dex shrugged. “So we’re confirmed? You’re coming?”

“Tell Shaw I got out of the meeting,” I replied.

My son snorted. “Right. Shaw, Ryan, and I are driving up together. We’d offer to drive you, but I don’t think we’ll all fit into one truck with all of our shit…”

Like I wanted to be trapped in a confined space with Ryan for two hours. “I’m taking my truck. In fact,” I thought about how I hadn’t had a moment’s peace in months. “I might head up there a day early.”

“You should. You work too much.” Dex clapped me on the shoulder and grinned. “See you there.”

“Yeah, see you in—there.” I’d almost said, ‘see you in hell,’.

Because that’s what it would be.

Trapped in a cabin at Lake Tahoe with a woman I wanted but couldn’t have.

Yeah, New Year’s Eve in hell.

Chapter 3

RYAN

Driving in snow was not one of my favorite things. Thankfully, I’d been lucky to get a rental last minute. The SUV handled the snow-dusted roads, leading me to the lake much better than my small Honda could. Still, I was tense as I sat forward in my seat, eyes glued to the dark road, peering through the falling snow, as I drove up through the hills on the winding road of the Eldorado Freeway. The snow was thicker here than it had been on the highway, and I slowed to begin my descent as I hit Emerald Bay Road.

Sweat had gathered under my arms with the tension.

But I was almost there. According to my GPS, this road would lead me down to Lake Tahoe where Joe’s friend had a large cabin right on the lake.

When I’d agreed to spend New Year’s Eve as a third wheel with my sister and her husband, I thought we’d all be driving up together. But Shaw had called yesterday morning to tell me she and Dex wanted to have a night alone, so they were driving up early. I’d told her I would be happy to leave them to their romantic cabin and spend New Year’s at home, but Shaw got really upset at the idea, so I gave in.

And now I was driving at a crawl as I made my way through the snow. Exhaustion pulled at me. I was actually grateful for the tension that kept me awake.

The things we do for family.

To my great relief, I finally reached the lake. I only knew this because of GPS. I couldn’t see anything in the dark beyond my headlights. The light caught on the signs outside each entrance on my right that told me which cabin I could find at the end of the woodland-surrounded roads.

My headlights hit a snow dusted sign that declared it was no. 6, and I slowed, turning down the road. As I approached, the driveway opened up to reveal a medium-sized cabin with a truck sitting outside it. I narrowed my eyes as my headlights lit up the vehicle.

That was Joe’s truck.

My heart rate kicked up for a few seconds as I pulled up beside it.

Then I remembered that Dex had the same truck as his father.

Calming down, I turned the rearview mirror toward me and double checked my cheek and eye. Thankfully, the swelling had gone down completely, but there was still bruising. Hopefully, my make-up covered it because no amount of make-up seemed to cover up the dark circles under my eyes.

I hadn’t slept since Christmas Eve.

I didn’t even know how I was functioning.

Just like that, now that I’d reached my destination, an overwhelming wave of weariness crashed over me.

As much as I’d come here for Shaw, I’d also come hoping being away from my apartment and being with people would allow my body to relax.

That’d I’d sleep.

A sudden knock on the driver’s side window scared the crap out of me.

“Shit!” I yelled, turning to glare at the knocker as my heart pounded.

Light spilled down from the cabin, casting shadows over the face peering in at me.