Greyson is on the other side as I shut the door, and Drew hovers behind him.
The only two who could winnow out my shift in emotions by merely looking at me.
“Everything okay?” my brother asks.
I’m practically growling. “Yeah. Peachy.”
Drew leans around Greyson’s back to look up at me with oversized curious eyes. “You busy?”
That makes me pause on my way back to my office and look between the two of them again. “That depends on what you want.”
She grins, and her happiness bleeds into me, taking off the edge from that ill-advised showdown with our boss.
The overwhelming swirl of everything I’ve suppressed since Drew returned ratches up in my chest.
“We’re setting up some obstacles for the kids sledding competition. Some of it’s pretty heavy.”
I sigh. Going outside would help me cool off, and moving heavy stuff will work off some of the lingering aggression.
Being around Drew might also ease the burn I can’t seem to tamp down.
“Fine.” I wave my hand for them to lead the way. “Let’s go.”
Grabbing coats, I follow them out, through the day-old snow to the far shed and carry the heavy ramps and obstacles Greyson built along the sledding hill behind the Lodge.
The cold on my skin creates a wave of calm, and the burn in my muscles gives me a sense of peace.
Standing with my hands on my hips as we line up the track, I shake my head. “If it’s a racetrack, it should be straight.”
“Giving it some turns will make it more fun. Plus, they don’t have to hit the ramps, that can be for extra points,” Greyson fires back.
I scoff. “Extra points? Whoever wins, wins. There are no points.”
“Well, given there are no points and the point is to have fun, it supports my argument that the turns will be more fun.” My brother plants his hands on his hips and surveys the hills and the ramps half in place.
“I don’t think the littler kids will be able to enjoy them as much.”
“They shouldn’t go on the ramps to begin with. That’s why we’re leaving that path along the shallower incline for them.”
I wipe a hand down my face. “I still think straight is better for speed.”
“Oh my god, you two. Figure it out. It’s cold out here, and I want to try the path before it gets dark.” Drew zips her coat up as high as it can go and covers her ears with her mitten-covered hands.
Her nose is getting red, and it reminds me of when she was little and we’d play in the snow to get her mind off her parents fighting.
“Fine. Let’s make it straight.” Greyson blows out a sharp breath and throws his hands up in defeat.
He used to do that when we were young, and he would bicker with me over something trivial before simply giving in whenever we were called out on it.
A good big brother. I’m glad to have him.
I slap him on the back, and we put everything in place.
I’m at the bottom, eyeballing the line up as Greyson climbs back to Drew. He says something to her that I can’t hear, but I catch her laughter as her head falls back.
On my way back up, she shuffles and slips, but Greyson catches her.
He doesn’t seem to have any qualms with holding onto her either, even after she’s got her feet back under her.
