“Yep.”
Four days of nothing to do but whatever we wanted.
“Yes!God yes. That’s afantasticidea.”
I could just make out the gleam of his smile.
My excitement faded as reality set in. “But…?”
“We grab some clothes, sleeping bags, throw the presents in the car, load up Scout and Top Cat, and start driving. We’d be there sometime after midnight. That would give us three whole days up there to do whatever we wanted. Four days if we drive back late on Monday.”
I was smiling because I loved the idea so much even if it wasn’t practical.
“That would be great.”
“But?” The glow from the dashboard was fading. I could only see the sheen of his eyes in the dim light.
“There’s your family get-together. There’s my family get-together. Are we just going to bail on everyone?”
Not that I was looking forward to another outdoor extravaganza with all of us dressed for Arctic exploration in coats and masks, shouting conversation across the crevasses of recommended social distance safety zones of six-feet—with, as the weakest of the herd, extra-special cautionary reminders periodically hurled my way.
“If we’re here, it’s tough to say no to family. But if we’re out of town…”
I said wistfully, “God. We haven’t been back in so long.” In fact, we’d never been back. We kept talking about it, but somehow it just never happened. It never seemed to be the right time. Sometimes I forgot we even had the option of an actual full on getaway escape.
Meow?Tompkins inquired. LikeHello? Remember me?Scout was now hurling himself at the door, like a fireman determined to make a difficult rescue.
“How would we explain being out of town?” Of course I meant,how do we explain to my mother? Jake’s family had probably stopped trying to keep tabs on him when he hit adolescence. They certainly weren’t tracking his movements these days.
Jake tilted his head back, said ruminatively, “A funny thing happened on the way to…”
I snorted.
But he was not deceived. “You like the idea?”
I sighed. “I do. Yeah.”
“So do I. We spent last year jumping through other people’s hoops. This year, let’s give ourselves the present of a weekend away.”
Hope rose again. “You’re serious about this?”
“I am, yeah. Let’s run away together, Adrien-with-an-e.” The gleam of his smile widened.
That smile. It undid me every time. I grinned back. “You talked me into it. Let’s hitch the reindeer and load up the sleigh.”
You don’t need a lot of clothes for a weekend in the mountains, and it didn’t take long to pack. I grabbed my meds, dog food, cat food, spray disinfectant, a set of flannel sheets—the High Sierras are cold in December—and a bottle of Laphroaig.
Jake opted for extra masks, flashlights, first-aid kit, and a gigantic jar of popcorn.
“Are you bringing your laptop?” he called from the bedroom.
“Nope. You’ll have my undivided attention.”
At which he laughed.
The last time I’d made this trip I’d brought my laptop. I’d told myself I was getting away so I could work, but really, I was trying to outrun the realization that my so-called relationship with Jake was never going to go anywhere.
Well, I never claimed to be a fortune teller. Though frankly, I don’t think anyone who knew either of us could have predicted this outcome.
