“Truth or drink,” he repeated.
“Right. We take turns asking each other questions. You either have to answer truthfully or take a drink.”
“I don’t kno—”
“C’mon. It’ll be fun,” I insisted.
“Okay, fine. But me first.” He glanced at me and then crossed his arms. “Alright, be honest. How much shit did you and your boss talk about me after I stormed out of your office that first day I met you?”
I rolled my eyes. “I thought we were starting fresh?”
“Hey, you made the rules, not me. Tell me the truth or drink up, and I’d advise being strategic when you decide to drink. That cocoa could strip paint with how strong I made it.”
“Fine, if you must know, we were pretty tactful, all things considered.”
He ducked his chin and gave me another smirk. “Really?”
“I might have called you an ass.”
Chuckling, he gestured for me to ask the next question.
“When did you start snowboarding?” I figured that one was easy enough.
“Honestly, it’s hard for me to remember not snowboarding. My dad picked it up when he was older and was excited to teach his kid. He probably had me out there by the time I was two or three.”
“That’s a nice memory.”
His eyes darkened, and he cleared his throat. “Okay, Florida. Next question. What are you doing here? I didn’t exactly get the impression you’d be the one on the ground level doing the dirty work back at your office.”
“You got me there. We couldn’t find someone so last minute. We almost had to cancel the trial.”
“And you just thought you would come on down and give it a whirl?”
“You could say that.”
“Evasiveness won’t get you very far in this game.”
I smiled into my cup, letting the steam from the cocoa warm my face.
“My turn.” I hesitated before asking. “What was your dad like?”
He took a slow, deliberate sip.
Message received—no questions about his parents.
He continued as if nothing had happened. “Okay, I’ve got to know. Have youreallynever seen snow? Or were you just trying to mess with me and play up the damsel in distress card?”
I sighed exasperatedly. “I’ve really never seen snow. I don’t know why everyone here finds that so hard to believe. And I was never a damsel in distress,” I added.
He chuckled and then gestured for me to go.
“How many countries have you been to?”
“Forty-something.”
He said it so casually that my mouth hung open.
“Forty-something?That’s incredible.”
