“I think you need a study break, and I know I need a break, too. Take a walk with me.”
Alyssa considered it for a moment, but she shook her head. “I really shouldn’t.” She couldn’t get attached to a man yet. She wasn’t ready. If she walked with him, what was to keep her from losing her heart completely?
“I know you run every morning, but you spend the rest of the day sitting. I know the paint fumes aren’t good for you. Walk with me. Get some fresh air.” Nick smiled, and a dimple stood out on his cheek. “Sitting is the new smoking, you know. At least that’s what I keep hearing.”
She bit her lip, worried about herself as she actually considered walking with him. “All right.”
His whole face lit up in a grin. “Hopefully this cold snap will end soon.” He frowned out the window where a light snow was falling. “It’s almost May.”
“I know. But at least the snow here is pretty and doesn’t look like someone dumped dirt all over it.” She went to the closet in the front entryway, grabbing her coat. She could do without mittens, but a coat was definitely called for at that moment.
He grabbed his own coat from the closet, where he’d been invited to hang it on his second day there. “Let’s go.”
He held the door open for her, and she stepped out in front of him, noting that his hand immediately went to her elbow. She remembered seeing a man help a woman that way on her last date with Tim, and she’d hoped Tim would someday learn to be just as gentlemanly. But here was a man who already knew how. He didn’t even need to be taught.
Together, they walked down toward the lake. This was a new snowfall, and there was no standing snow, so they didn’t have to worry about trudging through it on their way down to the lake. “I can’t believe you came here every summer and we never met. I’ve known Hannah since we were both in elementary school.”
Alyssa nodded. “It does seem odd, but I think you were a couple years ahead of us, from what Hannah said.” She and Hannah had spent some time together over the weekend, and she had asked a few questions about Nick. She shouldn’t have, because she needed a break from men, but she couldn’t resist. Nick filled her mind whether he was there or not.
“Yeah. I was a senior when she was a sophomore. You two were in the same grade?”
“Yeah. We met the summer before we both started kindergarten. I think we played together every single day that summer. Her mother would come over and watch the two of us play in the water. I think they liked having the private beach access.” Alyssa could still remember playing with Hannah that way. They’d built so many sandcastles.
Nick smiled. “Your mom didn’t watch you?”
“Never. Hannah was the youngest in her family, so it was easy for her mom to watch us. She just had those two brothers who were tons older than her. My mom had Taylor and Amanda at that point, and if I remember right, she was expecting Kayla.”
“I haven’t met Kayla yet. She’s a house flipper, right?”
“She is. She’ll be at least another three weeks, but I’m sure we’ll have the two of you work together when she gets here. There’s no way she can do so much on her own that quickly.” Alyssa stopped on the sand right in front of the edge of the water, feeling the snow landing on her face. “I love snow so much more here than I do in Salt Lake City.”
He laughed. “Everything is prettier here, but it’s not always a convenient place to live.”
She shrugged. “I’ll happily run to Logan for big grocery runs if it means I can live here the rest of the time.” She tilted her head back just a little so she could catch snowflakes on her tongue.
Nick chuckled. “You’re not seeing anyone in Salt Lake?”
Alyssa shook her head. She considered telling him she’d just broken up with someone, but she decided against it. It was good to be completely free of Tim and meet someone who knew nothing about him. “Not at the moment. No girl for you?”
He shook his head. “Foot loose and fancy free.” He reached for her hand, taking it with his and pulling her to his side.
She looked up at him warily, wondering exactly what he wanted from her. “That’s good,” she mumbled.
He turned to her, cupping her face in his hands. He slowly lowered his head, giving her every chance in the world to pull away from him.
Alyssa watched his head slowly descend to hers, and she thought about pulling away, but she felt as if he was a giant magnet and she was a small piece of iron. His kiss was something she’d wanted for what seemed like forever. It might be the biggest mistake of her life, but she would feel like she wasn’t really living if she didn’t go through with it.
Wrapping her arms around his shoulders, she clung to him for dear life. Her lips parted slightly as he deepened the kiss, and when he pulled away, she felt bereft, missing his touch.
“I . . . I’m not sure I meant for that to happen,” she said softly.
“I’m sure I did. It’s all I’ve thought about since the moment I laid eyes on you.” Nick smiled, his eyes looking deeply into hers. “And I plan on doing it again the first chance I get.”
She bit her lower lip for a moment, wondering if she should let herself get carried away by him. “I don’t know if I’m ready to get involved . . .”
“I have news for you, Alyssa. I already feel involved. It’s too late to go back to the way things were.”
She sighed. “I was afraid of that.”
He grinned, and it was a little lopsided, which she hadn’t noticed before. Who could keep their heart locked up when it came to Nick and his lopsided grins?
“Go out with me tomorrow night,” he said. It wasn’t a request either. It was a command.
Alyssa took a deep breath and jumped off the deep end. Why not? She felt so much for him that she couldn’t keep hiding away behind her laptop. “All right.”
He smiled. “I’m going to leave at six-thirty, shower, and come back for you at seven. Does that work?”
“Am I going to go out with a man with paint in his hair?” she asked, trying to make a joke of it. Tim had always wanted her to be so perfect, but she didn’t want that from Nick at all, and he didn’t seem to want it from her. She never took special care with her appearance around the house, and he apparently didn’t mind. She loved the way he had paint specks in his hair, and he worked so hard. He was someone she could see herself falling completely for. God help her.
“Probably. I mean, I can use turpentine and try to get it out, but I don’t know how wise that would be. It would also take a long time . . .”
“I like the paint flecks,” she said softly, wondering what she was doing.
“Good. Because I like you, and they seem to be a part of me, whether I want them or not.” He took her hand and pulled her back toward the house. “I’d better get back to work, or the boss may fire me.”
Alyssa looked up and saw the faces of all three of her sisters pressing against one of the windows upstairs. She did her best to ignore them, knowing what they all must be thinking. She was falling for another man who would control her every move.
But he wouldn’t. She wasn’t going to let that happen again. Losing herself in a man again was out of the question.
Eighteen
When Alyssa got back into the house, she went upstairs to confront her sisters about their spying. “Did you guys see enough?” she asked, frowning.
Lauren laughed. “We saw that kiss.” She waved her hand in front of her face as if she was fanning it. “Looked like a pretty hot one to me. I didn’t know we were supposed to be watching you two on all those coffee breaks.”
“When did this happen between you two?” Taylor asked. “Why aren’t you telling us everything? We want to live vicariously through you!”
Alyssa shook her head, looking at Amanda. “Nothing to add?”
“Well, you have a mint green handprint on your butt, but nothing else.” Amanda smirked at her.
Alyssa’s face went red. “I do not!”
Amanda pointed to a m
irror, and it was then that Alyssa realized her sisters were all in her room spying on her. Why that hadn’t connected before, she wasn’t sure. She walked over to the mirror and turned so she could see her bottom, and her blush got worse. “It’s not on my butt. Just my hip.”
“Someone’s picking nits,” Lauren said, shaking her head. “And here we thought you were the serious one, always with your head buried in your studies. It’s hard to believe you’re the one with a handprint on your bottom.”
“Oh, hush up.” Alyssa walked to her closet and found a clean pair of jeans, stripping off the paint-covered ones right there as she pulled on the new ones. “Better?”
Taylor smiled. “I’ll say. You’re putting weight back on, but you’ve got so much muscle tone, you look amazing.”
Alyssa sat down on the edge of her bed and glared at her sisters. “You complain I have paint on my butt, and then you critique my body when I change? There’s no doubt you’re my sisters.”
Amanda walked over and put her arm around Alyssa. “None at all. And there’s no doubt we love you beyond measure.”
Alyssa rested her head on Amanda’s shoulder for a minute. “We’re going out tomorrow night. It’s my first date with someone other than Tim in like eight years. I don’t even remember how to act.”
“Not like you acted around Tim. He found it too easy to control you. You have to remember to show some spine.” Taylor folded her arms as she looked at her sister. “And you should wear something fun. None of those boring business suits you always wore with Tim.”
Alyssa sighed. “All right. I can deal with that.”
Amanda got up and went to Alyssa’s closet, pulling out different things for Alyssa to potentially wear. “This. I think this is just perfect.” She pulled out a skirt that stopped right above the knee and a long-sleeved blouse. “You should wear this with some boots.” Amanda kept digging and closed the closet door, frowning. “You don’t have any knee-length black boots. What is wrong with you?” She shook her head. “I’ll loan you mine.” She disappeared from the room, and Alyssa sighed dramatically.
“I feel like you guys are making me your project,” Alyssa said. “Am I so desperate I need to be a project?”
Lauren pursed her lips for a moment. “Do you want me to answer that honestly or just smile like I didn’t hear the question?”
“Why have enemies when I have sisters?” Alyssa asked just as Amanda came back into the room with a pair of boots in her hand.
Amanda put the footwear at her sister’s feet. “Well?”
Alyssa shook her head. “Well, what?”
“Go try the outfit on so we can see how it looks all together.”
Alyssa groaned dramatically. “I feel like a Barbie doll you guys are dressing up and trying to change.”
“We don’t want to change you,” Taylor said seriously. “We want to help you make the most of who you already are. No one is ever going to try to change you again on our watch.”
Alyssa stood up and walked to Taylor, hugging her tightly. “I do love my sisters.”
“And we love you right back. Now try on the clothes!” Lauren said with mock exasperation.
Alyssa quickly stripped and put on the change of clothes Amanda had picked out for her. When she was finished, she did a slow spin for her sisters to see all the angles.
“That’s perfect,” Taylor said with a smile.
“I get to do your hair!” Amanda said, rubbing her hands together. “You could use a haircut, but I think I can make it work.”
Alyssa groaned. “But who’s going to do my makeup if you do my hair?” she asked sarcastically.
“Oh, that’s totally my job,” Lauren said. “I can’t wait to get my hands on you.” She walked into Alyssa’s bathroom and started digging through the drawers there. “Is this all the makeup you have?” She held up a small makeup bag.
“I don’t wear much.”
“Well, I’m at least using my lipstick on you. It’s kiss-proof, and from what I can tell, your lips will be naked halfway through the night if you don’t have kiss-proof lipstick on.” Lauren shook her head at the meager makeup she found. “Don’t tell me . . . Tim didn’t think you should wear makeup?”
Alyssa frowned at her sister. “He controlled every little aspect of my life. I lost myself trying to be who he wanted. Please don’t ever let me be that stupid again.”
“I don’t think we’ll have to stop you,” Taylor said softly. “I think you’re too strong to go back to being anyone’s puppet.”
“Puppet?” Alyssa thought about the word for a moment before she realized just how well it suited what she’d been to Tim. “I guess I was. I’m so glad I dumped him and moved on. And I’m glad you slammed his foot in the door, Taylor. That made for some special memories.”
“I just wish I’d done it a little more violently,” Taylor said, grinning. “No more talk about Tim. Tell us about that kiss we watched. Did it feel as good as it looked?”
Alyssa smiled, and when she caught a look at her face in the mirror across the room, she realized what a dreamy, happy smile it was. Maybe she was doing the right thing by going out with Nick. He was already making her happier than Tim ever had. “I’m not going to kiss and tell.”
“No, but that smile tells us everything,” Amanda said with a grin. “Tell him that we all need men just like him.”
“I think we all need to focus on the B&B for a while. I shouldn’t even be dating the man, but I can’t seem to help myself.”
Taylor shook her head. “With what you went through with that idiot, you have every right to be happy, and if Nick makes you happy, then I for one am all for it.”
“I do think he’s going to make me happy,” Alyssa said. “And he doesn’t seem to want me to become something else. He’s happy with me just how I am.”
“That’s pretty special.” Lauren grinned. “I want a man just like him when I grow up.”
“Well, if I ever thought that would happen . . .” Alyssa winked at Lauren.
Lauren stuck her tongue out at Alyssa, making her point for her. “Call with Kayla is tonight, right? I hate that we couldn’t do it before, but I love that we get to do it now. Do you have your list ready?” Lauren asked Taylor.
“I do. And I have several potential names for the B&B, too. I think once we get these things settled, Amanda can work her magic, and then Kayla and Nick can work their magic, and we’ll have a magical B&B.” Taylor rubbed her hands together. “I’m so excited, I could just spit.”
“Why would excitement be wrapped up with spit?” Lauren asked, looking a bit confused.
“No idea. That was something Hannah and Alyssa used to say all the time. Being here must have brought it back.” Taylor shrugged. “Besides, I want to emulate my big sister whenever I can.”
“You’re all crazy,” Alyssa said. “Now, I’m going to change back into my clothes I was wearing before . . . well, the new clothes, and I’m going to soak the paint-on-the-butt jeans, and then I’m going to go back downstairs and do a little more studying. You have all interrupted my day enough.”
“We interrupted your day?” Taylor said, looking shocked. “I was working on ideas for the B&B when Lauren called us all in here to watch you and Nick on the beach. My day was interrupted very rudely.”
Alyssa stood up and changed, deciding to pretend her sisters weren’t there. They were all annoying anyway. “Back as you were. There will be no more beach kissing shows today. Well, none starring me anyway.” She left her sisters lounging in her room as she headed downstairs to her work. And to Nick, which was so much more important than any studying could ever be.
She sighed. Could Nick really be the man she’d dreamed of her entire life? It sure felt like it.
Nineteen
Alyssa and her sisters gathered together around seven to call Kayla. They did a Facetime call from Alyssa’s Mac so they could all be part of the call. They put the Mac on the coffee table, and the four of them sat close together on th
e couch so they were all in the “picture” Kayla would see.
Kayla answered immediately. “Hi! I miss you guys!”
“We miss you, too. It feels like it’s been forever since we last saw you.”
“Two weeks isn’t forever, but it’s starting to feel that way.” Kayla frowned. “I wish I could get this wrapped up faster, but I found some mold in the basement, and I’m having to pull out all the carpet and redo so much. The basement is finished—or it was before I started ripping it up. I’m going to have to refinish it, so it’s going to add weeks if not months to this project.”
Alyssa shook her head. “That’s awful.”
“You have no idea.” Kayla rubbed her hands over her eyes. “All right, let’s start this business meeting. We’re looking at names for the B&B?”
Taylor nodded, picking up her notes. “That’s one of the items on the agenda. Let me tell you the names I’ve come up with, and we’ll vote.”
“Perfect,” Kayla said. She leaned forward eagerly. “It’ll be nice to think about something other than my troubles for a minute or two. Our mutual futures sound like a good topic to me.”
“Well, I’m going to throw out the four ideas I’ve come up with, but we can entertain any ideas. We’re not limited to these.” Taylor glanced at her list. “Lake House B&B. Bear Lake B&B. Richland B&B. Sisters B&B.”
Alyssa wrinkled her nose. “The locals call it the Romriell house. Why don’t we just use that instead?”
A slow smile spread across Taylor’s face. “I love that. Why didn’t I think of it?”
Shrugging her shoulders, Alyssa said, “Because you haven’t yet learned to think like a local.”
Taylor rolled her eyes. “Any other suggestions?”
Amanda shook her head. “Nope. But I’m with Alyssa. I like The Romriell House.”
“Me too,” Kayla said.
“And me,” Lauren responded.
“Well that was easier than I expected it to be,” Taylor said. “We’ll officially be called The Romriell House. There’s a company in Montpelier that we can hire to make our sign.” She seemed truly excited to have finished their first task. “I’ve already set up the corporation. Lauren and I will be drawing a salary bi-monthly. Everyone else will receive quarterly payments. Kayla, if you do work for us, and I know you eventually will, you’ll be paid bi-monthly as well. Does that work for everyone?”
Changing Dreams (Bear Lake Dreamers Book 1) Page 11
