“Chloe!” Aunt Beth shouted up the stairs.
I groaned. “I gotta go. I’ll text you later.”
“Hey, Chloe?”
“Yeah?”
“I love you.”
My heart melted at the sincerity in his tone. “Love you, too.”
I ended the call, then rushed downstairs to see what Aunt Beth wanted. She was standing in the living room, surrounded by boxes and totes full of Christmas decorations.
I raised a brow. “Decorating already? Isn’t it kind of early?”
Mom and I never used to decorate until the second week in December.
“We always put up the tree on Thanksgiving. It’s tradition, but I can’t seem to find the ornaments.” She put her hands on her hips and looked around helplessly. “Would you mind helping me go through these?”
“Sure.” I kneeled on the floor in the middle of all the boxes. “So, I just talked to my dad. He wants me to come visit after Christmas. Stay until New Year’s. He’s going to pay for my trip.” I flipped open the lid on one of the totes—Christmas village figurines. I closed it and shoved it aside. “You don’t care if I go, do you?”
“I may not agree with what that man does, but he’s your dad, Chloe. Of course, you can visit him.” Aunt Beth opened a box, huffed, then reclosed it. “You’ll be flying to Malibu?”
“Yeah.”
I debated telling her Trent was going, too. She might not let me go if she knew that. Though, I was an adult, so she really couldn’t stop me, but I didn’t want to cause any trouble.
“Just let me know when you’re going, and I’ll make sure someone can drive you to the airport,” she said, digging through another box.
“Oh, um, I was hoping Trent could drive me,” I said, focusing too much attention on the task at hand. “Y’know, so I can say goodbye considering I won’t see him for a whole week.”
“I swear. You and Abby both. So obsessed with these boys.” Aunt Beth laughed and shook her head. “I don’t care just as long as you let me know as soon as you land.”
“Okay.” I smiled.
That was easier than I thought. I was going to have to make sure to tell Trent not to say anything in front of Aunt Beth. My phone rang, and I pulled it from my pocket. Larissa’s name was displayed across the screen. She never called me.
I swiped to accept. “Hello?”
“Chloe!” she said much too cheerfully. “Your dad just told me you’re coming to visit.”
“Yeah, after Christmas.”
“How wonderful. Listen, don’t bother packing a dress for the New Year’s Eve party. I want to take you shopping when you get here, okay?”
“Uh, yeah, okay,” I said.
I’d gone shopping with her right after I first moved there—she’d taken me to buy uniform clothes for school; not exactly exciting, but she’d somehow managed to make it suck a little less.
“Great. See you soon.” She ended the call.
That was unexpected. I slipped my phone back into my pocket and resumed searching through the decorations. Aunt Beth hummed “Frosty the Snowman,” and I was suddenly hit with the Christmas spirit. I had a feeling this was going to be one of the best Christmases I’d ever had, despite it being the first one without Mom.
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE:
Snow Day
MY PHONE BUZZED ON MY NIGHTSTAND. Jerking the blankets over my head, I rolled over, ignoring the obnoxious noise. I had no idea what time it was, but I knew it was well after midnight, and I hadn’t been asleep that long. The phone buzzed again. Then again. And again.
“Oh, my God,” I snapped, groaning, as I slapped around on the nightstand for my phone.
Finally finding it, I snatched it and swiped my finger across the screen. I blinked against the bright screen light and squinted at my notifications. Four messages from Trent. Seeing his name made my heart race, and I was instantly wide awake. Was something wrong?
Trent: ARE YOU AWAKE?
Trent: WAKE UP. IT’S IMPORTANT.
Trent: CHLOE? WAKE UP.
Trent: GO TO YOUR WINDOW.
What on earth…? Was he seriously outside my window at… 1:15 AM? I kicked off the blankets, rubbed whatever little sleep remained in my eyes, and shuffled toward my window. I slid it open and gasped.
Snow.
My gaze drifted toward the ground. Trent stood below my window, dressed in nothing more than a pair of jeans, a sweatshirt, and sneakers. My phone buzzed again, making my heart jump.
Trent: CAN I COME UP?
Me: NO. I’M COMING DOWN THERE. HOLD ON.
I tossed my phone onto my bed and scrambled around to find clothes and my shoes. Less than five minutes later, I was sneaking downstairs. I was getting good at the whole sneaking out thing.
Pausing to make sure no one had heard me, I opened the door and slipped out. A blast of frigid air hit me, and I shivered as I very carefully and quietly pulled the door closed. When I turned around, I slammed into something hard. Fear paralyzed me.
I’d been caught!
I opened my mouth to scream, but Trent’s lips came down on mine, silencing me. Sighing, I wrapped my arms around him, and the next thing I knew, we were off the porch and standing in the tree line on the side of the house.
“What’re you doing here?” I whispered.
He spun me around so my back was to his chest, his arms wrapped firmly around my stomach. “It’s snowing.”
“I can see that.” I glanced up, watching, letting the cold flakes hit my face.
“I wanted to see your face the first time you saw snow,” he whispered, his voice low and close to my ear. “Sorry I woke you up.”
“Don’t be,” I said. “This was totally worth waking up for.”
The moon was high in the sky, offering a clear view of everything around us. The tiny white flakes twisted and swirled toward the ground and glistened like diamonds on the tree branches. It was absolutely breathtaking.
I tilted my head and closed my eyes, letting the snow hit my face. As soon as they landed, they’d melt, leaving my hair and lashes damp. Soon, I was shivering. I was definitely going to need warmer clothes.
“So, what do you think?” Trent asked, his voice full of excitement. He loved the snow.
“It’s cold. And wet.”
He laughed. “Did you know that no two snowflakes are the same? Each one is unique.”
“Really?” I couldn’t tell if he was being serious or not.
“Mm-hmm.”
Shivering harder, I turned around to face him and tucked my hands between our bodies. He covered my hands with his, warming them as best he could. My teeth were now starting to chatter, too. I was going to freeze to death out here.
But everything was so pretty and untouched, like Mother Nature had wiped the slate clean, covering the earth in a fresh canvas that was waiting to be disrupted. And Trent was here—that alone was enough to make me want to stay put.
“Did you leave your window open?” he asked, and I nodded in response. “Good. Hold on.” He swept my legs out from beneath me.
I’d barely gotten my arms around his neck when we were suddenly back inside my room. Jumping through a second story window was a lot faster than using the front door and tiptoeing through the house. The movement didn’t make me nearly as dizzy, either, not like when he moved with his crazy fast vampire speed.
He set me on my feet, yanked the blanket from my bed, and wrapped it around me, rubbing his hands up and down my arms. “Better?” he asked.
I nodded. “It would be a lot better if I could snuggle up to you, though.”
He raised a brow. “Is that an invitation? Because you know I can’t say no to you.”
I chuckled. “You say no to me all the time.” Our voices were hushed whispers of intimacy.
“Name one time.” He continued to rub my arms, and slowly, the shivering stopped.
“When I suggested you could propose at the top of the mountain.”
“That wasn’t me telling
you no. That was me telling you I wasn’t going to do it,” he said with a cheeky grin.
I rolled my eyes. “Same thing.”
Smiling, he lowered his lips to mine. Opening my arms, I welcomed him into the warmth of my blanket cocoon, and he snaked his hands around to my back, drawing me closer. Bodies pressed together, he kissed me languidly, as if we didn’t have a single care in the world.
At the moment, I didn’t. I didn’t even care if Aunt Beth and Uncle Dean walked in right now and caught us. I was so swept up in him, in the feel of his arms around me, firm and safe, of the taste of his mouth, sweet yet hot.
Trent broke away with a groan. “If I don’t leave now, I never will.” He cradled my face in his hands—I loved when he did that—and brushed his lips across mine.
“Stay,” I whispered. “Please.”
He could easily be out of the house the second he heard anyone wake up.
“I can’t.” He rested his forehead to mine. “I don’t want to disrespect your aunt and uncle this way.”
I sighed. “Told ya you could say no to me.”
He graced me with that rare dimple-showing smile. “I’ll make it up to you tomorrow.” Giving me one final kiss, he released me. “Get some sleep, and I’ll be back in a few hours.” He disappeared out my window.
With a happy sigh, I closed my window, then flopped down onto my bed. How was it possible to love someone as much as I loved him?
“HERE, YOU CAN WEAR these.” Abby handed me a pair of faux fur lined winter boots.
She’d already given me snow pants, a hat, scarf, and gloves. If I wasn’t warm enough in all of that, I had no business being outside in the snow.
“Chloe! Trent’s here,” Aunt Beth shouted.
My heart skipped a few beats. He was exactly on time, as always. “Thanks, Abby.”
“No problem.” She grinned as if she knew something I didn’t.
I narrowed my eyes. “What’s going on?”
“Nothing.” She laughed. “Now, get out of my room.” Abby ushered me out, and I knew for sure she was hiding something.
“One second,” I shouted down the stairs, then dashed into my room to put on the boots and grab my cell phone.
Laughter filtered from the living room as I approached. I rounded the corner to find Trent talking to Aunt Beth and Uncle Dean, who was red-faced.
“What’s so funny?” I asked, glancing between the three of them.
“Nothing.” Aunt Beth shook her head, then grinned at Trent.
Was everyone in this house embroiled in some sort of grand conspiracy against me? First Abby and now Aunt Beth. What was going on? My gaze darted toward Trent, who smiled.
“Ready?” he asked.
“Yeah.” I glanced back at Aunt Beth and Uncle Dean.
“Have fun,” Uncle Dean said. “And be home for dinner.”
“Okay.” I followed Trent outside.
The light snowfall from earlier this morning had intensified, and there had to be at least a foot of snow on the ground now.
“What is going on?” I asked as I climbed into his truck.
“Well, my plans for today got ruined because of the snow.” He started the engine. “But that’s okay. I’ve made new plans.” He backed out of the driveway and drove to his house, which was, like everything else, covered in snow. Smoke billowed from the chimney.
“Where is everyone?” I asked, noticing the severe lack of cars in the driveway.
“Shopping. Whitney convinced Jax to cook for Thanksgiving, so they’re out buying food. Sean went with them so they wouldn’t end up killing each other.” Trent laughed. “They’ve been arguing all morning.” He got out and rounded the front of the truck, then opened my door.
I took his hand and stepped out. The wind from earlier died down, and the snow had stopped falling. Everything was so white and crisp. Even the air smelled cleaner.
“So, what are we doing today, then?” I asked.
“Playing in the snow.”
My heart took off like a racehorse. We were crossing another item off my list, which meant there were only four things left: kissing under the mistletoe, kissing on New Year’s Eve, Trent biting me for pleasure, and getting married.
All the kissing would be happening soon, but Trent hadn’t even proposed yet, and once he did, we’d have to plan the wedding… It could take months. Or an entire year. I didn’t want to wait that long to change.
“C’mon.” Trent veered away from the house and toward the backyard. “What do you want to do first?” His eyes sparkled with excitement.
I looked around at all the snow and shrugged. In the movies, everything always looked like so much fun, but now, standing in all this white stuff, it didn’t seem so great.
“Surprise me,” I said.
We started by building a snowman—a large one that loomed a good foot taller than me. I stood back and admired our creation. Trent had found some sticks for the arms, and because we couldn’t find any rocks, he’d snapped some smaller tree branches and made makeshift eyes, a nose, and mouth. I cupped my gloved hand over my mouth and laughed.
“What?” Trent asked, head tilted, his gaze focused on the snowman.
“That thing looks ridiculous.” I laughed harder.
“Hey, we worked hard on this.” A spark of mischief lit his eyes, and then he scooped a handful of snow and tossed it at me.
The snowball hit my head and slid down the side of my face. I gasped, eyes wide, as the icy cold, now melted snow, leaked beneath my scarf and into my coat.
Grabbing as much snow as I could, I packed it into something that resembled a ball and threw it at Trent. But, of course, he was a lot faster and moved out of the way.
“Not fair,” I said, but I couldn’t stop from laughing.
I made another snowball and missed him again. But in my defense, it wasn’t very easy to chase him around in snow that was nearly up to my knees.
I had no idea how long we stayed outside, but I was having fun, even if I couldn’t hit Trent with a snowball to save my life. My legs were tired from moving around, and my cheeks and nose were ice cold, but I didn’t care. This was everything I had always imagined it would be, only better because I was with Trent.
He playfully tackled me to the ground, and my back sank into the snow, Trent on top of me. “You have terrible aim,” he said.
I fought to catch my breath. “Yeah, well, it’s hardly fair when you’re using vampire speed to avoid me.” I wrapped my arms around him and brought his mouth to mine, savoring in the warmth of his kiss. “Trent?” I mumbled against his lips.
“Hmm?”
“I can’t feel my fingers.”
He laughed and stood, then pulled me to my feet. “That means it’s time to go in.”
We went inside, and I stood in the entryway, stripping off my winter gear and removing my boots, leaving me in my jeans and sweater. My fingers were red and colder than ice cubes. I didn’t waste any time planting myself in front of the fireplace and holding my hands up near the flames.
Trent draped a blanket around my shoulders. “Don’t move,” he said, then disappeared into the kitchen.
Moments later, he returned with a steaming mug of hot chocolate topped with whipped cream. I took it and wrapped my hands around the warm ceramic, amazed at how he’d remembered every little detail from my list. Trent lowered himself to sit beside me on the floor, and I rested my head on his shoulder.
“So, have you totally fallen in love with this weather? Are we going to have to eventually move somewhere cold and snowy?” he asked.
My heart fluttered at how he so easily talked about our future, as if he had no doubts about our life together.
“It’s fun, but I still prefer the sun and sand,” I said.
He draped his arm around my shoulders and kissed my forehead. “You’ll think differently once you change. Too much sun won’t be good.”
Right. I’d forgotten he couldn’t be in the sun for too long; if he was, his skin wo
uld start to blister like a really bad sunburn.
“Are you going to be okay in Malibu for a week?” I asked, straightening so I could see his face. “Actually… how did you survive there for so long when you were trying to get me to remember everything?”
“Stayed inside a lot. And when I did have to be out, I stayed in the shade as much as possible. Tinted windows in the car. Sunglasses and long sleeves.”
Now that he said that, I remembered how he’d invaded my private lunch spot at school—the only spot with any type of shade—and how the windows in the car he’d driven had been nearly black. Even when we’d been at Simon’s, Trent had been careful to stay in shady areas.
“If it’s too much, you don’t have to go to my dad’s with me,” I said, but even as the words left my mouth, I wished I hadn’t said them. I wanted Trent to be there with me.
“And have to wait an entire year to cross another item off your list?” He shook his head. “I don’t think so.”
I smiled. I should’ve known he wouldn’t want to stay here, and I was more than okay with that. Excitement erupted at the knowledge that I was going to get to attend a fancy New Year’s Eve party with Trent, that I’d get to kiss him at the stroke of midnight.
“Besides, I can barely stand going a full day without seeing you. I wouldn’t survive a whole week,” he said.
Setting my mug on the nearest end table, I straddled Trent’s lap and placed my hands on his shoulders. “Thank you for today.”
He nodded, his long lashes grazing his cheeks as his eyes closed for the briefest of seconds before he pinned me with a dark, lustful gaze. “Nothing is going to stop me from crossing off every last item on your list. Then I’m going to marry you. And after that, when you’re ready, I’ll change you.”
My breath hitched. By this time next year, I would be a vampire.
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO:
Christmas Gift Dilemma
IT SNOWED EVERY DAY FOR THE past ten days, and I was over it. The constant cold, gloomy weather was depressing, and even Abby wasn’t her normal happy self. Thankfully, Aunt Beth let me use her car to go buy Abby’s Christmas gift.
When I’d first moved here, Abby had bought a scarf from one of the local shops, and now they had a matching sweater, along with gloves and a hat. Hopefully, she’d like it.
Eternal Love: (The Cursed Series, Book 4) Page 24
