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The three-day ski safari had been more fun than I had expected. The group of students had taken a few days off before their exams before Christmas and made the most of their time. They were all pretty confident skiers and had booked us teachers more as a precaution.

Nevertheless, I was pretty exhausted when I returned to the resort. Apart from one message in the past few days, I hadn’t heard from Ruben. Our schedule had been tight, and there was often no cell service in the remote ski resorts.

I would have loved to fall into bed after my shower, but my parents, Nash and Lorena, were waiting.

Despite my intention to tell them about Ruben, I hadn’t thought about how I was going to do it. I had never considered introducing anyone to my family before. Nevertheless, I had an urgent need in me to tell them that we belonged together.

I shouldn’t overthink it. As beautiful as it was, it was also simple.

For the first time since I had been here, I would be eating in the main house. Maybe I would get to see Ruben, who would be working late into the night today.

The thought of him spurred me on, and with a quick glance at my phone, I hurried to the main house.

My family was sitting at the bar in the entrance area in front of the restaurant. When my mother saw me, she jumped up and came toward me with open arms.

“Shane! How wonderful. Let me give you a hug.” When my mother was done with me, she handed me over to my father. Lorena hugged me too, and Nash finally pulled me into his arms.

“Come on! I haven’t moved to the other end of the world,” I said with a grin as Nash handed me a beer.

“Oh, after the summer, when I can see you every day, it’s a big adjustment every year. On the other hand, it’s nice to see the different places you hang out,” my mom interjected.

“Can we make requests about where to go next? I don’t know if I’ll be in the mood for snow again next year.” Lorena punched my brother in the upper arm.

“Of course we’ll visit you wherever you go,” my father said with a smile. “I personally enjoy snow.”

The bottom line was that we had the same conversations every year when we met at my winter station.

My father planned to explore the area, my mom wanted to know if the accommodation was nice, Nash tried to find out what there was to eat, and Lorena endured my family with angelic calm.

My brother turned around. “The hotel is even nicer than it appeared in the pictures on the internet. How did you find it?”

“Aiden told me about the place. And somehow I needed a change.”

“Hey, Shane!” Laurence behind the bar greeted me. “So, I’m blessed with your presence here today?”

In fact, I had never been to the hotel bar before. When we sat together, it was usually in the breakfast room. The hotel was for the guests. That had been made clear to us. My presence here must have been unusual.

“It had to happen sooner or later!” I replied, and he laughed. His gaze swept over my family.

I nodded and confirmed his assumption. “Today, for once, I’m a guest of my family.”

“Then enjoy yourselves,” he said, turning his attention to other guests.

When I turned back to my family, Nash stared at me with raised eyebrows. “And that was . . . ?”

Irritated, I shook my head. “Laurence. Why?”

“Oh, I see.” he said slowly. “I thought it might be Ruben.”

I hadn’t mentioned that yet. And how did he know Ruben’s name?

“How do you know Ruben?” I asked.

“You told me about him,” Nash replied immediately.

“Right.” Before I could explain further, we were called to our table.

There we ordered wine and drinks. I had almost assumed that the subject of Ruben had been forgotten when my mom brought it up again.