Chloe

When Chloe returned to the lodge, Ethan was nowhere in sight. At first it was a relief. Having his piercing gaze on her constantly made Chloe sweat and she didn’t want to have to introduce him to Brady who seemed determined to stick around. But after a while, Chloe was concerned about where Ethan had gone off to.

She found Margot working the snow-cone machine with Owen, who was having way too much fun pumping hot maple syrup onto the fluffy white snowballs.

“Did you see where Ethan went?”

“He said he needed to do some homework,” Owen replied.

“Oh.” Chloe frowned at the thought of Ethan being alone.

He already seemed like he didn’t belong. Maybe all the commotion at the lodge was too much for such a somber soul. She couldn’t really blame him. Every time a classic Christmas song came on her parents started dancing. And there were children running around the various trees in the lobby throwing tinsel at each other. It could be a little much for her sometimes, too.

So she let her worry for Ethan go and busied herself at the lodge for the rest of the afternoon. After the tree was decorated and the last minute arrangements for the wedding were complete, Chloe moved out to the barn to help wrap Christmas trees and load them onto people’s cars. Brady was by her side the entire time.

She had to admit it was nice having her friend back. She forgot how much he made her laugh. But by the time she returned to her house for dinner her cheeks hurt from laughing and she was pleasantly exhausted.

“Want to stay for dinner?” Chloe asked.

“I’d love to, but I told my mom I’d be home to watch my brothers tonight.”

“Okay. Well, give them my love.”

Brady grinned. “I will.”

Chloe turned to go inside, but Brady pulled her back. “Hey, can we hang out tomorrow?”

His question caught her off guard. But she didn’t know why. It wasn’t like he was asking her on a date. “Uh, sure. I guess.”

“I was thinking we could take the snowmobiles out in the morning.”

“Oh, that’s a great idea. It’ll be fun with all this fresh snow. Can I ask Margot to join?”

“Sure. The more the merrier.”

“Okay, see ya in the morning.”

“Night,” Brady called, waving as he jogged back down the driveway.

Ethan

Ethan looked up when the door opened. Chloe walked in covered from head to toe in a fine dusting of snow. She looked like a Christmas angel and he was surprised by the tightness he felt in his chest upon her return. Had he missed her?

He didn’t let himself miss people. Missing them meant he’d have to get attached to them and that was something he wasn’t in the habit of doing. All that led to was disappointment, which was the other subtle feeling that crept up on Ethan as he watched Brady disappearing down the drive in the distance.

“Sorry I'm late," Chloe called as she walked into the living room. “Is dinner ready? I'm starving."

“Five more minutes on the cornbread,” her mother called from the kitchen.

Ethan closed his book and stood up from his seat by the fire.

Chloe jumped. “Ethan!” Her hand flew to her chest. "I didn't see you there."

“It's where I've been all night," he said, holding up one of his English Literature books.

“Oh. Well, we missed you at the lodge.”

“Did you?” he asked accusingly. He was under the impression she was too occupied with Brady to be missing him. Am I wrong about you, Chloe?

He didn’t get a chance to find out because Margot barged into the living room announcing that dinner was ready.

Chloe

It was unnerving how quiet Ethan was during dinner. He’d barely said two words as the chili and cornbread were dished out. Now he sat silently stirring his spoon around the bowl, still not taking a bite of it. Owen had almost polished off his bowl already. Chloe glanced at Ethan from beneath her lashes as she took a bite of her own piping hot vegetarian chili. She’d never seen someone look so completely different based on his moods.

Earlier, when they’d been walking in the pine forest, Ethan had looked exuberant, the sparkle in his eyes almost cheerful. And when they’d kissed . . . it was like his face had come alive, the stormy green sea of his eyes transforming into inviting meadows. But now, as he glowered at his bowl of chili, Chloe could practically feel his sadness.

Guilt stabbed at her gut. Was his sullen mood her fault? She hoped not. Maybe he just didn’t like chili, though she’d never seen someone scowl at a bowl of chili quite like that before.

Taking a chance, Chloe nudged Ethan with her elbow, breaking him from the mesmerizing trance of stirring. “Do you not like chili?” she whispered.

He shrugged. “I’ve never had it.”

Chloe’s eyebrows raised. She looked around the table realizing no one else was paying attention to their conversation. Her parents were too busy sharing embarrassing stories about Margot with Owen—again.

“You’ve never had chili?” Chloe whispered.

“That’s what I said.”

“Is Manhattan too good for chili?” Chloe asked, jokingly. “If so I might seriously have to reconsider my plans to attend college there.”

Ethan didn’t crack a smile. He just continued staring at the bowl.

“I can’t believe your Mom never made you chili! It’s the perfect winter meal.”

“My mother didn’t cook.”

Chloe stopped eating. “What? Why not?”

“The kitchen staff prepared all our meals.”

She laughed, but when she realized he wasn’t joking she felt her throat go dry. Just who the hell were these boys? If they had ‘kitchen staff’ what the heck were they doing dining with her family around an old dinged up pine table her grandfather had built?

“Well, you’ve been missing out,” she said eating a spoonful of the heavenly chili.

He frowned and shook his head. “I don’t think it’s for me.”

Chloe crossed her arms. “How are you so certain you won’t like it if you won’t give it a try?” she asked.

Ethan

Ethan's heart skipped a beat as a wave of déjà vu hit him so hard he was speechless. Chloe's words . . . His mother used to say the same thing. Not just a similar phrase, but the exact same wording. ‘How are you so certain you won’t like your new school if you won’t give it a try? How are you so certain you won’t like living with your grandmother? How are you so certain I won’t beat the cancer?’

The memories of his mother unexpectedly gripped Ethan, sending a wave of agony through him so swiftly that he thought he might be sick. Chloe put a hand on his arm and he stood abruptly, shoving his chair back with a screech.

Ethan was aware the dinner conversations came to a halt but he didn’t care. He muttered a hurried, “Excuse me,” and rushed from the table to the sanctuary of the bedroom upstairs.

Chloe

Chloe realized her mouth was hanging open and she snapped it shut. Embarrassment flooded her. Was it her fault Ethan had just run from the table?

She’d thought she was just making light conversation. She certainly didn’t mean to offend him.

“Do you need to go check on him?” Margot asked Owen.

He shook his head. “Nah, Ethan gets kind of moody around the holidays. I apologize. It’s nothing you did,” he said, directing his last comment at Chloe.

She swallowed hard and nodded, but wasn’t so sure she believed Owen. No one got that offended about chili for no reason—holidays or not.

“So,” Margot said changing the subject. “Can we expect to see Brady more over winter break?”

Chloe snapped to attention, hating that her forward sister was bringing Brady up in front of everyone. She needed to take hold of the conversation before Margot started fishing for details of what she and Brady had talked about at the lodge. “Yes. Actually, he’s coming by tomorrow morning. He wanted me to ask if anyone wanted to go snowmobiling?”

Owen’s face lit up. “No way?! Can we? I’ve always wanted to try that.”

Margot grinned. “Of course. That’s a great idea, Chloe. We can all go.”

Chloe turned to her father. “As long as you don’t need us at the lodge in the morning.”

“I think I can spare you for a few hours,” her father replied, giving her a wink.

Margot clapped her hands. “Yay!”

The rest of the dinner was filled with stories about snowmobiling and other outdoor winter activities Owen wanted to try, but Chloe had a hard time focusing. She couldn’t stop thinking about Ethan and what could’ve possibly made him leave the table so abruptly. Normally, her curiosity would make her determined to find out, but there was something about the sadness in Ethan’s eyes that made Chloe afraid to dig deeper.