“My mom’s gonna expect you to come to dinner,” I said, trying to think of anything to distract me from kissing Adele.
“Well, that’s the thing. I said I’d move in today, and Jasmine invited me to card night,” she said quickly.
I filled in the blanks. “Oh, you should do that.”
“You know about that?” Her eyes widened.
“Of course I do. Elsa, Chloe, and Kendall often go. Mom will want you to go. Come with me to the main house. At least say hi to her.”
“Are you sure? I mean… I…”
I was relieved to have something to talk about to keep me from wanting to kiss her and being stupid enough to act on the urge. I forced myself to take my hands off her shoulders and turned toward the door. “Come on. We’ll find out if Elsa’s going. Chloe’s probably going too. I’m sure one of them can give you a ride.”
As I started walking outside a moment later, with just her presence beside me, it felt like there was some kind of line connecting us, a flickering sizzle of electricity.
Her stride was long and confident, and she looked around as we walked. “It’s so pretty here.”
“You’ve been all over Alaska,” I pointed out. “Everywhere is pretty.”
She cast me a lopsided smile. “It is.”
“Do you have a favorite part of Alaska?”
She tipped her head to the side, idly kicking a stone as we walked.
“I don’t know. I actually like this part of Alaska a lot. Southeast is stunning, but it’s a little too rainy for me. I love where I grew up outside of Fairbanks.”
“But winters are long,” I added.
“They sure are,” she agreed.
“Are your parents still up there?”
“They are. They love it.”
“You mentioned you have a sister.”
She looked surprised I remembered when she glanced over. “I do. She’s in Anchorage.”
“Well, that’s close.”
Her smile turned a little bashful. “Yeah. I’m hoping she’ll come visit.” The flare of hope in her eyes made my heart twist a little.
While I didn’t know all the details of Adele’s life, I sensed there was some complexity, maybe sadness, tangled up around her family. Specifically, her sister. If there was one thing I understood, it was the complexities of family and all the emotions that came with it.
I loved my family. All my brothers, the sister we lost, and the father we lost. But love didn’t mean things were easy or smooth or picture-postcard ready.
“I’m sure she will,” I said softly. “Anchorage isn’t far.”
Adele nodded before she took a quick breath. She gestured her thumb over her shoulder as she stopped walking. “Thank you for helping me carry everything upstairs.”
“Of course.”
As she looked up at me, for a moment, it felt like I had fallen into a forest. Her eyes were so stunning. Looking into them was like looking through a canopy of green leaves shot through with sunlight falling in misty shafts and casting everything in a soft glow.
I didn’t realize I’d gone quiet until Adele prompted, “Cole?”
I gave my head a shake and cleared my throat before asking, “Do you need a ride anywhere?”
