Trails Merge

by Rachel Spangler

  “I’m glad I found you two.” Mia grabbed a chair and situated herself between Campbell and Parker without being invited.

  “I wanted to apologize again for this morning. It’s a reminder of how far Parker and I have drifted apart, and I hope to change that this weekend.” Mia directed her comments to Parker, then glanced at Campbell. “When you introduced yourself as Campbell Carson, I didn’t know the Carsons owned the resort. I’m sure if Parker and I had talked more over the past few months she would have told me more about you.”

  “I don’t know about that,” Campbell said dryly. “She hasn’t told me anything about you.”

  Parker winced at the remark. She’d hoped to avoid this conversation with Campbell in a public place, but since Mia seemed determined to force the issue, Parker wanted to be the one to explain. “Mia and I were together for two years when I lived in Chicago.”

  Mia sat back and smiled. “I’m glad you remember. You’ve been so quiet since I got here. I worried that you had forgotten all about us. Honestly, sometimes you’re hard to read.”

  “I remember,” Parker assured her. She did recall a few good times before she realized that they had come to the same end by different means. What she remembered most vividly, though, was her devastation when she finally accepted how badly she had misjudged Mia’s character for so long. She could still feel the disappointment that overwhelmed her when she faced the fact that “loyalty” and “ethics” were words Mia knew only from stump speeches and not anything she practiced when it wasn’t convenient for her.

  “Good, because I’ve missed you. Mother and Daddy send their love, too. You know Daddy was always proud of you.”

  “Mia’s father is the chairman of the Chicago Democratic Party,” Parker clarified for Campbell. “And he wasn’t proud of me the day I submitted my resignation from his golden boy’s senatorial campaign.”

  “All that ugliness is over now. All’s forgiven, water under the bridge.” Mia gave a wave of her hand as if she could, with the flick of her wrist, brush away the most devastating event in Parker’s past.

  “How magnanimous,” Parker said through gritted teeth. She wanted to ask what exactly she’d been forgiven for since she was the one who’d been betrayed, but rehashing that argument would only drag her back into something she had worked hard to leave behind.

  Mia, who’d obviously misread Parker’s tone, continued talking. “We were all upset when you left, but I think this little hiatus was probably the best thing for everyone.”

  Parker felt Campbell tense at the word “hiatus,” the same way she’d reacted when Alexis used the word “sabbatical.” Parker had to stop that line of thought and make it clear to both Campbell and Mia that she wasn’t interested in reconnecting with her ex-girlfriend in any way. “Mia, I’m sorry if I led you to believe you should wait for me. I’ve moved on, both in my career and in my personal life.”

  Mia pursed her lips in what Parker recognized as an attempt to control her temper. It was only a momentary lapse in her otherwise perfect façade, and in a second her practiced smile was plastered back across her face. “Of course you have. I didn’t expect you to be a nun while you were away. Lord knows I haven’t been. I realize you have needs. I assumed we would both see other people while we were separated.”

  “Mia, I wouldn’t fill those needs with someone else if I thought you and I might reconcile. The fact that you would even suggest that possibility shows how little you know me.” Parker was shocked that she had to break off their tragic excuse of a relationship a second time. “I’m only interested in one woman at a time, and right now I’m with Campbell.”

  Mia’s mouth fell open and she gave her full attention to Campbell for the first time all day. “You two are dating? How embarrassing. Here I am talking to Parker like…I can’t believe I’ve managed to be offensive yet again.” Mia pushed her hands through her long black hair as if trying to collect herself. “Really, though, how could I have known? I mean, you’re hardly her type. She’s outgoing and driven. Who would’ve thought she could fall for the strong, silent type? Then again, who would’ve thought she’d last a month out here? She thrives on the high life.” Mia stopped rambling and stood. “I have sufficiently embarrassed myself for one day. Good night.”

  Parker breathed in relief a moment too soon, because as Mia was leaving the table she turned around one more time and said, “I do hope you’re happy. Just because I can’t figure out what you two could possibly have in common doesn’t mean you won’t be able to find a way to make it work out.”

  With that little backhanded bit of well-wishing, she left. Parker turned to Campbell and saw exactly what she feared she would. Her eyes, so bright minutes earlier, were now cold, and her expression was hard and distant. The walls that Parker had worked hard to get past were back up.

  “I didn’t mean for this to happen. I wanted to tell you in my own time. I should have explained about her sooner.”

  “Yes, you should have,” Campbell replied, her voice emotionless.

  “I knew she might be here this weekend, but I have no clue why she thought there was anything left between us.”

  “Two years of sharing your life with someone is a lot to walk away from,” Campbell said softly as she stared down at her hands.

  “It’s not like that. We were never partners, not in the true sense of the word. I misread her involvement in politics as interest, and I got carried away. By the time I realized we were part of the same circles for different reasons, I was in too deep. We were living together. Our lives were all mixed up.” Parker’s voice was low and her heart heavy. Reliving these mistakes wasn’t easy for her, but Campbell deserved to hear the truth.

  “You knew you didn’t want to spend the rest of your life with her, but you stayed in the relationship anyway?” Campbell refused to look at her, but Parker could sense the pain her words only hinted at.

  “I don’t know how to explain it,” Parker said slowly. She struggled to put into words things she was only beginning to come to terms with herself. “Maybe I couldn’t believe how wrong I had been about her. Maybe I hoped that the longer we were together, the closer our beliefs would become. Maybe I didn’t want to admit what a horrible judge of character I was.”

  Campbell stood and looked her in the eyes for the first time since Mia had arrived. She held her gaze steady for a long moment, and Parker could clearly see the old hurt she’d hoped had begun to heal. “Or maybe you were killing time until something better came along.”

  Parker shook her head. She understood Campbell’s pain, and she knew she’d made some mistakes in how she’d handled the situation, but she was tired of paying for Lynn’s sins, too. She was in pain and angry that Campbell couldn’t see past her own history long enough to realize she wasn’t the only one who’d been hurt. Between the problems of their past, her conflict with Greg, and her uncertain career future, Parker wondered if her relationship with Campbell was becoming more work than it warranted. Now Campbell was adding her own accusations to events Parker already felt guilty about, and it was too much for her to take at once.

  “Damn it, Campbell. Not everything’s about you,” she said, and walked away.

  Chapter Twenty

  Campbell didn’t get much sleep that night, and not for the pleasant reason she had become used to. She’d been restless all night in her cold, empty bed with only Badger to comfort her. She needed to talk to Parker about the conversation they’d had the night before, but she couldn’t do it yet. The hurt was too fresh, and she didn’t trust herself not to say something she’d regret. She’d projected her own history onto Parker and Mia’s failed relationship, but it was hard not to.

  She had finally begun to trust Parker, but she’d discovered Parker had kept a huge part of her past from her. Would Campbell have ever found out about Mia if she hadn’t come to Bear Run? Parker had stayed in a loveless relationship rather than go through the trouble of breaking it off. Did she let Mia think everything was okay? Di
d she try to tell her they wanted different things from life? Sure, Mia had her own problems, but Parker had spent two years with her. What did that say about Parker?

  Mia, though not the most objective source about Parker, had hit all of Campbell’s fears, and it was impossible to ignore her insinuations about their differing personalities and background. Parker’s past didn’t suggest she’d be happy with a small-town ski instructor. If Parker needed the “high life” or “outgoing and driven” women, Mia was right. Campbell wasn’t her type. People said opposites attract, but was attraction enough to build a relationship on?

  As Campbell plodded to the slopes, Mia’s words merged with Lynn’s recriminations about having to choose between Bear Run and a lesbian relationship.

  She didn’t want to deal with Alexis’s lesson, but she’d offered to help her, and she wouldn’t break her word because she was upset with Parker.

  “Good morning, Camy,” Alexis said as she approached. “Does anyone ever call you Camy?”

  “Not since I was three years old,” Campbell answered truthfully.

  “And why is that?”

  “Do I look like a Camy to you?” The answer was implied in the question.

  “No, I don’t suppose you do.” Alexis chuckled, then headed for the lift they’d taken the day before. “Let’s get this workout started, shall we?”

  Campbell sat beside Alexis and outlined their lesson on the way up the mountain. “You got off the hook yesterday because of Mia’s little stunt, but don’t think I didn’t notice you were being modest about your ski level.”

  “Don’t be silly. ‘Modest’ isn’t a term I’m familiar with,” Alexis said. “I simply had no interest in dragging Parker onto a black diamond slope. I chose to work on her level.”

  Alexis could pretend to be a hard-ass if she wanted, but it was clear she had a good heart behind her sharp wit. “Parker isn’t here today. Why don’t we take it up a notch and see if you can keep up with me.”

  “Trash talk is gauche, darling. If you want to challenge me, do it with your skis, and find something more useful to do with that pretty mouth.”

  Campbell laughed. Alexis was confident, but this was her mountain. No one could test her skills here. If nothing else, a good workout would help clear her head.

  As they neared the end of the lift Alexis simply stated, “I’ll be right behind you.”

  Campbell glanced back only once to see Alexis on her heels before she grinned and tilted her skis over the edge of the drop-off. It was the mountain’s most challenging trail, narrow and steep, with its slightly uneven terrain left ungroomed where it wound through several patches of firs and evergreens. The old ski bums called it a cartilage killer because of the way it could rattle skiers’ knees.

  When Alexis sliced in behind her, she took several quick, sharp cuts, and her skis threw up a rooster tail of fresh powder. She thought that might be enough to impress Alexis, but she heard her call, “On your right,” and fly past her. Alexis was in a full tuck to lower her wind resistance, which allowed her to go faster, but Campbell knew she’d have to ease up to take the turn they were bearing down on. She adjusted her line accordingly. When Alexis stood up, easing off slightly, Campbell was able to slingshot around her, laughing as she went.

  There was another big dip before the trail flooded wide open into the main basin, and Campbell was certain Alexis would take it in a full crunch in the hopes of catching her, but Campbell didn’t sacrifice style for speed. She took a slant only a native of the mountain would know. Instead of lining up on the inside track, she went wide toward the inclined bank of the final turn and used the height she got, along with her own momentum, to send her airborne. Her skis remained completely parallel and she crouched tightly as she exploded over the edge of the drop, a spray of snow in her wake.

  She landed and immediately threw her skis sideways, a wave of powder arching up in front of her as Alexis slid to an equally abrupt stop behind her. “Well?” Campbell asked.

  “Don’t gloat, darling. It doesn’t become that ‘aw gee shucks’ country-kid persona you do so convincingly.” Alexis feigned uninterest, but she had a grudging appreciation in her eyes.

  When they were once again headed up the mountain, Alexis said, “This time down I want you to show me how you took flight off that turn.”

  “Sure,” Campbell agreed. Her heart rate began to return to normal after the exhilaration of the last run. “Anything else you want to know?”

  “Well, I’d like to know why my best friend left the lodge visibly shaken last night.”

  Campbell was jolted by the sudden shift in subjects, and the harsh reminder of last night’s conversation with Parker hit her like a punch in the stomach. She exhaled sharply before saying, “If you saw our departure, then you also saw Mia’s. Doesn’t that give you an idea of what happened?”

  “Mia, I know all too well, but I also know she no longer has the power to upset Parker.” Alexis regarded her pointedly. “But you’re now the unknown entity.”

  “You’ll have to forgive me, but I prefer to stay that way. I don’t like to talk to near strangers about my personal life.”

  “Good, because I’m not interested in what you have to say about it. You and I are going to reach an understanding about your relationship with my best friend.” Campbell started to reiterate her unwillingness to share the details of her love life, but Alexis raised a hand. “Let me clarify. By we, I mean I’m going to talk, and you’re going to listen.

  “Mia is a flake,” Alexis said, and Campbell didn’t feel the need to disagree. “I suspect you’re twice as good for Parker as Mia ever was, but if you want to be around long enough to prove me right, you’d better pull your head out of that sweet ass of yours and pay some attention to who she really is.”

  “I suppose you’re telling me she’s a saint in all of this, or maybe she’s bigger than me and this mountain,” Campbell said. “Don’t bother. I’ve heard it all before.”

  “I seriously doubt you’ve heard it all or you wouldn’t be acting so daft,” Alexis stated bluntly. “Parker wants to change the world, and she might actually do it if she had the right support in her life. Do you want to be that, or do you want to be just another in a long line of people who want to use her for your own selfish reasons?”

  “Your suggestion that I’d ever intentionally hurt Parker shows how little you know me.”

  “And your implication that you haven’t already hurt her shows how little you know about her.” They were at the top of the lift, but instead of heading back toward the drop-off when they got off, Campbell skied to a stop in front of Alexis.

  “What are you talking about?” Campbell asked. The thought of Parker suffering was enough to damper her own pain for a moment.

  “Why don’t you go ask her yourself?”

  Campbell thought for a moment. She tried to picture Parker’s face just before they parted the night before. She’d been so blinded by her own hurt that she’d barely registered the sadness in Parker’s eyes. It didn’t add up. She’d broken up with Mia, not the other way around. What did she have to be upset about? Campbell was immediately worried. What had she missed?

  “Alexis, I hate to do this,” she said, “but I have to have to cut this lesson short once again.”

  “How cute. You thought you were the one giving me the lesson.” Alexis chuckled. “Go ahead.”

  This time when Campbell tore down the mountain, she didn’t stop until she stood at Parker’s office door.

  *

  Campbell barged through the door to Parker’s office and closed it behind her. “We need to talk.”

  Parker put down the papers she’d been staring at without comprehension. The dark circles under Campbell’s eyes told her Campbell’s night had likely been as long and restless as hers. She didn’t want to talk. She wanted to hold her and be held by her. The look in Campbell’s eyes had haunted her ever since she had stormed out of the lodge last night. She wanted to stay angry and felt
she was entitled to, but a long night apart had weakened her resolve. “I know I should have told you about Mia sooner…” She didn’t know how to continue.

  Campbell gave a little quirk of a smile. “When I said we need to talk, I meant I was going to talk and you were going to listen.”

  “Oh, geez.” Parker managed a weak smile also. She knew that line. “You’ve been talking to Alexis, haven’t you?”

  “Yes, I have, and you’re right. You should have told me about Mia sooner, but I should have listened better to what you weren’t saying instead of filling in the blanks with the worst possible scenario.”

  “Yeah, that would have helped.” Campbell’s sincerity was dispelling her remaining resentment.

  Campbell pulled a chair next to Parker’s desk and rested her elbows on her knees in her most attentive posture. “I’m listening.”

  “Do we have to go into this now?” Parker didn’t want to relive her failures, especially to Campbell. “Can’t we just kiss and be over it?”

  Campbell shook her head. “We’ve been putting off the tough conversations for too long. If we want any chance at a real relationship, we need to put in some real effort, and I’m willing to do that if you are.”

  “You’re right, but I’m afraid you’ll think less of me when I tell you what happened between Mia and me.”

  “Try me,” Campbell urged.

  Parker took a deep breath and stared down at her hands. She couldn’t bear to look Campbell in the eye. “You saw Mia at her worst yesterday, but you have to understand that in her element she can be quite convincing in the role of concerned young heiress to the Chicago Democratic network, and that’s how I first met her.”