Chapter 6

Bea

My fingers were moving twice as fast as they normally did on the keyboard. I had started the new project, a romance sequel, and with my current mood on relationships, when they asked me for a “sarcastic but in the end, a Prince Charming” type of love story, I knew I would be perfect for it. The ideas were flowing so fast that I wrote the plot outline in about three minutes before jumping right into the whole story. It wasn’t often anymore that my creativity was sparked, especially since I never had time to write anything for myself, but today, I was feeling the vibe with this book.

Hailey had called that morning, and I told her I had some news, so she said she would drop by when she was done with work, leaving me a perfect stopping point for the day. Otherwise, I would keep going, not sleeping at all. Until then, I just put my nose down and worked hard, glad that my thoughts were not swimming around Grant and the fact that I was going to be the old, lonely spinster for Christmas. I just wanted to have a normal life, with a normal relationship, and a Christmas surrounded by snow, Christmas lights, and people that I loved. I sighed to myself, realizing that wasn’t going to happen this year and that I better just start hoping for a good change over the next year, so the next Christmas can be better.

My thoughts shifted when a knock came to the door, and I glanced down at the time. I had been writing all day, not even realizing how late it was getting. I got up from my desk and walked out to the living room and across to the front door. Hailey smiled and held up a bottle of wine as she walked inside.

“What’s that for?” I asked.

“I don’t know.” She laughed. “But it’s not often you have something to tell me, and wine goes well with bad news and good news.”

“Too true,” I replied. “This is why you are my best friend.”

I walked in and grabbed some glasses, tossing Hailey the corkscrew and waiting for her to fill our glasses. We wandered into the living room and sat on the couch, the fireplace roaring. Hailey looked around the room and smiled, glancing over at the view from the windows.

“Seriously, you have like the best place ever.” She smiled. “You are like, my life goal.”

“Oh, God.” I laughed. “If your goal is to be a lonely, hermit, single woman, then we have to talk.”

“Wait, what?”

“Yeah.” I sighed. “Grant came over last night. We were supposed to have me and him time, but to him, that meant he wanted to go out to some fancy club. To me, that meant curled up in front of the fireplace watching movies. Well, one thing led to another, and we were arguing as he berated me for being a writer, a woman, a person even. Then, when I said I wasn’t going to the club, between the ringing of his phone, he broke up with me and walked out the door, taking all my ideas of the future out with him.”

“I’m sorry, Bea,” Hailey said sympathetically.

“The thing I realized was, I wasn’t even sad about it,” I replied. “I didn’t shed one tear, until I realized what I just got myself out of. Damnit if I didn’t see how badly he treated me until he was gone. Then came the depression, thinking about the Christmas I had to spend alone, and the fact that I will always be the single old lady that never finds a husband. That was what hit me the most, the desperation of it all.”

“Well,” Bea said, taking a deep breath. “I think you are better off spinstering it with me, than spending another day letting ‘Old English’ berate and beat you down until you turned into the woman he wanted. Come on. Finish that wine and get dressed. We’re going shopping.”

“Now that is the kind of demand I can fold to.” I laughed. “Thanks for coming over, Hailey. And thank you for not telling me ‘you told me so.’”

“Well, that will come later,” she replied. “I’m gonna hit you with some love and empathy before I remind you how smart I am, and how you should always listen to me.”

“Is that how it works?”

“Yep.” She laughed.

I finished my glass of wine and went into the other room where I changed my clothes and pulled my hair back in a ponytail. The weather was cold, but the snow wasn’t falling for the time being, so I wrapped a scarf and heavy wool coat around me, and Hailey and I made for the car. She was driving her four-wheel drive that day, and I hadn’t dug my car out from the garage in a month, so she drove us out into town. First, we stopped for dinner, eating at one of my favorite places, Angelo’s. I used to eat there all the time, not really enjoying cooking for one, and using it as an excuse to get out of the house. Since Grant only ate at upscale restaurants, I hadn’t been there in years. Just the familiarity of it all felt good in my chest, and I started to remember how behind the girl looking for love, there was someone completely content with doing her own thing.

“So, I was at work today,” Hailey said, munching on a breadstick. “And I told my coworker, Brian—you remember Brian from the office party last year?”

“Was he the one with the thinning red hair and complete inability to hold his tongue when it came to socially appropriate comments?”

“You mean, was he the one that told you he wanted to grab onto your ass? Yeah, that’s him.” She laughed. “Anyway, I told him I thought you were going to say Grant and you were done, and then, oh my God, let the vultures descend. He immediately begged me to set you two up. I told him no. He was still on the hook for the Christmas Party. He moped all day, trying to make me feel guilty, but instead, I felt creeped out.”

“Gross.” I chuckled. “Thank you for the backup.”

“No problem. It’s my job.” She laughed.

“Ugh, Christmas music,” I said, listening to the loud speaker over the restaurant.

“What, you love Christmas,” Hailey said with shock. “You are like the female Santa Claus. I’m pretty sure you would just keep a tree decorated in your house all year if it wouldn’t make you look like the creepy woman in the dead of summer.”

“I know,” I replied. “I just am not looking forward to spending it all alone. That’s all.”

“Hey, you don’t have to be alone,” Hailey replied. “I already canceled going to my parents’ house.”

“Really?”

“Uh, yeah,” she scoffed. “I’d choose you any day over their questions on my single status and my mother’s weepy toast about the future. You know, the one she gives at every holiday?”

“That thing needs a serious revamp.” I chuckled. “She’s the only one that gets choked up over it anymore.”

“Yeah,” Hailey said, laughing. “My father just sits there, falling asleep with his champagne in the air.”

“Well, that’s awesome,” I said, smiling. “I’ll cook dinner, get some alcohol, and we will make the best of it!”

“I was actually thinking something else,” she said. “I was thinking that I take you somewhere for Christmas. Make a new tradition, get out of that house that makes you think of Grant, and let loose.”

“Okay,” I replied. “I’m intrigued. Go on.”

“Let’s go to Aspen,” she replied. “I have a friend that has a reservation at the St. Regis that can’t go, and I told him to hold off on canceling. I may just take his reservation. We can ski, drink alcohol, and open presents in the suite he reserved. It comes fully stocked with a Christmas tree in every room.”

“I love it,” I replied. “I need change, and that is definitely a change.”

I felt lucky to have a friend like Hailey. We had been friends pretty much our entire lives, and though we were two completely different people, we really did work perfectly together. One was always strong when the other was weak, and we never let each other get weepy and depressed. She was a light in the dark for me most of the time, and always told it to me just how it needed to be said. Most people would shy away from that, especially when they just wanted to be self-loathing, but in the end, it really was the best thing for me. As much as I loved my career and my little house, those walls could start closing in on me fast. She always pulled me out before they collapsed. This time, it was most appreciated, and I was getting excited about the thought of vacationing in a winter wonderland like Aspen. I had always wanted to go, but never actually had anyone to go with.

“There will be a lot of single, rich men there, too,” Hailey said through a full mouth of salad. “I’m totally ready to hook me an old rich man.”

“You, my friend, are disgusting.” I laughed.

“What? Am I not a catch?” She smiled big, ranch dressing on her lips and spinach in her teeth.

“I mean, I think it’s sexy.” I giggled. “The last thing I need is some man that thinks he can turn me into his arm candy.”

“No, no, you are looking at it all wrong,” she said. “You turn one of those men into your arm candy. You are successful and gorgeous, even in your striped pajamas and wool socks. Any man would be more than lucky to have you as you are.”

“Well, the last thing I want to think about on my Christmas vacation, after breaking up with my boyfriend, is other men,” I scoffed.

“First of all, he broke up with you, let’s keep the facts straight,” she pointed out. “And there is one stipulation for us going on this trip.”

“Okay, now that you have pointed out the painful and obvious,” I replied. “What is this stipulation?”

“You get over Grant by sleeping with another man,” she said. “Something unexpected and wild. That is exactly what you need.”

“If it gets me a vacation in Aspen, they better line up.” I laughed.

In reality, I had zero interest in making any love matches, even if it were just for the night. I knew, however, that Hailey was not going to let it go unless I agreed, so I appeased her. I was also not looking to get in an argument over sleeping with a random stranger in the middle of the restaurant, so I knew just saying yes would handle all those issues. I would just simply go to Aspen and not sleep with anyone. I mean, what was she going to do? In the meantime, I was pretty excited, and my mind was already off Grant and my lonely spinster Christmas. This was the perfect opportunity for me to break out of my shell, do something crazy, and just have a good time. I mean, I would never see any of these people ever again, except Hailey, so what did I really have to lose?

My hopes were that I would go, get refreshed, get inspired, and come home with a whole new view on life, something that resembled being a happy, successful woman for once. I sat there thinking about the whole trip, smiling, knowing that I was about to get a break from the norm. I was about to turn this situation into a gold mine for my life.