by Claire Adams
I didn't give him a chance to respond before I turned on my heel and half-stomped to my bedroom, slamming that door for good measure. I hated him, and even worse, I hated the way I acted because of him.
Finn and I could figure out everything on our own, and if we didn't work out, I'd do what I'd been doing for the last eight years. I'd do it my damn self.
Chapter 24
Finn
Her father was right. I honestly had nothing to offer Chloe, except my body. I would be her whore as long as she would allow me to, but that was it. I didn't have money or a future that I could show her to prove why our relationship was safe to take to the next level.
She was going to consider staying in Aspen with me and give up on her dreams. I needed to figure out a way to tell her that she needed to go live her life, and when she was done, come back to me. My dreams and ambitions were smoke I'd blown up my own ass for years. Nothing was going to become of it, and I knew it.
My phone buzzed as I headed to the newest run for an afternoon of losing myself in the beauty of the mountains.
"What's up, Dad?"
"Where are you?" His voice was pinched, and I figured I had an ass chewing on the way. No doubt Chloe's father had called and given my old man a piece of his mind, much like he'd done me.
"I'm around. What do you want?" I couldn't force fake happiness.
"Finn. Come over to the house and let's talk."
"I don't want to talk, Dad. I worked my ass off for you today. I'm going to take my board up in the mountains and try to pretend like everything is okay." I sighed and ran my fingers through my hair.
"Everything is okay," my father growled, and I could tell he was holding back his angst. "Look. I want to tell you about what happened with Jonathan Burke. It's a story you need to know, and after I'm done, if you want me to fix it for you and Chloe...I will."
"I appreciate that, Dad, but honestly, I'm good. Chloe's a great girl, but she's far too much woman for a simple man like me. I'm not sure what I was thinking. Like you said, I should have listened to you and kept my dick in my pants."
"Finn, stop it. Get your ass over here." He was losing his grip, and I was done upsetting him.
"I'll stop by later. Love you, Pops." I dropped the call and parked the old truck by the road, not wanting to get a ticket, seeing that the slopes were closed. They never would let patrons on the mountain after a hard snow without packing it. But I'd been skiing my whole life. It was no big deal. I'd just have to be ready to shift at a moment’s notice if the ground felt too unstable beneath me.
My phone buzzed, and I turned it to silent and dropped it in my back pocket. After working to get myself layered up with clothes, I started the long trek up the side of the mountain. It took me a damn hour just to get to the top. I'd never appreciated a ski lift so much in all my life.
I checked my phone to see messages from my father, Brian, Parker, and my girl. I chuckled and dropped it back in my pocket, not willing to feed their emotions. They were overreacting. I was spending a couple of hours by myself, remembering why I wasn't all the things Chloe's dad said I was. Somewhere along the afternoon, I'd started to convince myself that he was right.
Chloe was far too good for me, and I would tell her that, but letting her go just didn't honestly seem like something I could do. If she shoved me away, I'd leave without a fight, but I wasn't going to shove her off. I couldn't. I let everything go and focused on the mountain ahead of me. I prayed like hell it would be a long ride down. I didn't know if I had the stamina to walk back up the hill after the long morning I'd had.
My phone buzzed again and I pulled it out, growling loudly.
"What?" I growled into the phone, knowing it was Brian and he would forgive me later.
"Dude. Your dad's pretty upset. He just called and said that he's coming to find you."
"I'm fucking snowboarding. I'm a grown-ass man, Brian. What's the big deal?"
"Um, there was a blizzard last night, and you of all people know that makes the mountains dangerous. Go home and stop being a dick. He's worried."
"You and I have been on these mountains our whole lives." I ground my teeth together. "When's the best time to ski?"
"Now, but that's beside the point."
"No, it isn't. Tell me why now is the best time to ski?"
"Because the mountains are empty. Finn. I'm not playing your games right now. If your dad is worried, then respect him, like I know you do, and get your ugly ass home."
"My ass is not ugly. Ask any girl within a five mile radius." I had to lighten the conversation. I couldn't handle much more strife.
"Finn. Go home, dude. We'll go out tomorrow and take a mountain down together."
I sighed and resigned myself to giving into them. Everyone had their panties in a wad, and once again, it was my turn to bend and comfort them. "Fine. I'm already up here and there's one fucking way down."
"Good. Enjoy it and get home. Text me if you're free later, and we'll grab a beer."
"Yeah, fuck you," I mumbled, and pulled my glasses down.
"I'm not your type, remember."
"Right. You're entirely too hairy." I smiled, not wanting to cause any stress on anyone, just wanting a moment to myself.
"Hey."
"What?" I bit my tongue.
"Whatever that mean old fucker said to you today...let it go."
"Does everyone know about this?"
"Small town, Finn," he laughed. "I'm hanging up. Be careful and call me later."
"Later." I pulled the phone from my face and honestly considered lobbing it halfway across the mountain just to get a moment of peace. My dad's problems were his problems, and I didn't need him fixing mine.
I let my thoughts go and bent my knees, turning sharply and shoving off. The wind hit me in the face, and I took shallow breaths, turning and twisting my body as I'd been doing all my life.
Jonathan Burke’s voice lifted inside my head, and I couldn't seem to shake his words.
"You stay the fuck away from my little girl. She deserves better than you could ever give her. Do you hear me? You're a piece of shit who will rot in this town, boning any available woman, and dreaming about a life that will never ever be yours. Do yourself a favor and don't bring down Chloe to your level. You'll hate yourself for it later. Ask your father about that."
Was my mother like Chloe once? Was she wealthy and filled with plans? Had my father fallen in love with her and changed everything? Did it matter? She had been happy.
I could remember so many happy moments with my folks. Wealth didn't matter and building legacies didn't mean shit if there wasn't someone there to enjoy them with, someone to pass them on to.
My dad was right about one thing” I did need to know the story. It wasn't just about him and Jonathan; I was pretty sure it involved my mom, too.
Had she been with Jonathan, and then Dad stole her?
I lost my footing for a minute, but righted myself.
"Keep your head in the game," I grumbled and over-corrected my next turn. There was no time to fix the error, and I covered my face and tried to relax as I flew forward, knowing it was about to get bad.
The world flew by, colors mixing and fading as I tumbled over myself over and over again. I hit something hard on the way down and lost my vision for a minute.
I lay there for what felt like forever, trying to remember where I was and what I needed to do to get up. It was so damn cold, and the sky was darkening. I fumbled with my phone in my pocket as dizziness rolled over me.
Pressing my dad's number, I put the phone on my chest and closed my eyes, waiting to hear his voice.
"Finn? What's up, son? You on your way over?"
I could hear him, but I couldn't seem to respond. Fear rushed through me, and I groaned, wanting so damn bad to tell him where I was and what I was up to, but words wouldn't form.
"Finn? Stop dicking around, boy. You're scaring me." His tone sharpened and his anger seemed to burn through the phone.
"Goddammit, son!" I could hear him yelling at Milly to get the truck and call 9-1-1. I let myself fade out as he continued to yell at me to stay awake and think good thoughts.
I let Chloe take up my mind, the warmth of her smile and softness of her lips keeping me busy. I didn’t know how much time had passed before the sound of voices around me ushered in relief. Someone was there to help. Now if I could just flag them down – but I still had no ability to form words.
"Here. Here he is. Bring the stretcher." Someone knelt next to me and picked up the phone. "Hi, this is Leah Smith. We've found him. We're going to assess him and get him to St. Marks. Meet us there."
"Hey, buddy." A male voice spoke near my ear, and as badly as I wanted to respond, I couldn't. Fuck me if I wasn't paralyzed. If I thought I wasn't good enough for Chloe before, this was a moment of clarity. "Just stay still, Finn. We're going to make sure your neck and back aren't broken, and then we'll get you to the hospital. Your dad's gonna meet us there. Just open your eyes if you can hear me."
I tried, but nothing happened. It was like being trapped in my body with no way of communicating out.
"He's breathing, Leah, but non-responsive. Brain injury, I would assume."
They poked and prodded at me as I lay there with my eyes closed, trying to focus on breathing.
"He's got tears coming from his eyes," the female spoke. "He can hear us."
"We're going to pick you up now. If something hurts, just cry out if you can, and we'll stop." The guy patted my chest. "It's going to be fine. We've got the best doctors in the world right down the road."
I didn't remember much more other than bright lights flying by above my head as I opened my eyes for a moment and groaned. My father was running beside the bed with tears streaking down his face, and I knew the shit was bad. He glanced down and pursed his lips.
"I'll see you soon. Hang in there, okay. Don't leave me. You're all I've got and I'm a selfish bastard."
He patted my chest, and I tried to mumble, “of course not,” but nothing came out. I closed my eyes and let the darkness take me. It was far less frightening than knowing what the hell I'd done to myself.
If I survived, I was done taking shit for granted and defining myself based on other people’s opinions. I knew who I was and who I wanted to be. Outside of all of that, I knew who I wanted, and if I could have another shot at showing her, Chloe would be mine forever.
Chapter 25
Chloe
I spent the rest of the night in my room, even refusing Parker as he tried to come in with some food. By Sunday morning, I was feeling a little less manic. The fact that Finn didn’t call was upsetting, but I would give him a day or so to cool off. My father had most likely torn him down to nothing, which still grated my nerves completely. I was somewhat pissed at Finn for letting my father affect him so much, too, which is why I hadn’t texted. My dad's opinion wasn't my own, and Finn should know that.
A knock at my door pulled me from my thoughts.
I tugged the covers up around me and called out. "Come in."
Parker stuck his head in the room with a cute frown on his boyishly handsome face. "Can I come snuggle?"
"Yeah. Get in here." I moved over, making room for my little brother beside me.
He pounced on the bed and turned on his side, curling up and smiling. "I'm sorry about what happened between Dad and Finn."
"Me, too." I reached out and brushed his hair back. "It's okay, though. I need Dad to step back, and this was just one way to make it happen. I think he thinks he can use his money to hold power over me, but he can't. It's his attention and love that I want. That would have me visiting every holiday, no matter what."
"Yeah. I think he knows that. He's just scared to care about someone and then lose them like we did Momma."
"How are you holding up? I know it's been a long time, but Dad gets so depressed this time of year." I brushed my fingers through his hair again, realizing that I'd not even thought to check on him.
"I'm okay. I just try not to think about it."
I nodded. "Me, too."
"I tried to text Finn, but he didn't respond. That was yesterday." Parker pushed my hand away. "You're going to cause my dandruff to come out, and then I'll have to shake my head and make it snow in here."
"Ew, sick." I pushed at his chest as he laughed.
"I'm worried about Finn, Sis."
"Let's go ride over to his house and see if he's there. We can get a coffee on the way."
"Peppermint hot chocolate?" Parker sat up and lifted his eyebrow in question.
"Yeah. One of those, too." I sat up and pulled with me, tucking them under my arms. "Where's Dad?"
"No clue. He left a note that said he would be back soon."
"Alright. Let's make a run for it, then. I don't really want to see him yet." I waited for my brother to leave the room before getting up and dressing in some sweats and a long-sleeve shirt.
The sound of my father taking to Parker as I walked down the hall caused my heart to contract. I adverted my gaze and walked past them, grabbing my jacket and my keys.
"Where are you going, Chloe?"
"To check on my boyfriend who's been ignoring me since yesterday. Can I use your SUV or did you want me to walk? I know nothing belongs to me, so if you want these clothes back, just let me know that, too."
"Just be careful," he mumbled and turned back to Parker, continuing their conversation.
I was surprised by his unwillingness to fight with me. I shouldn't have been egging him on, anyway. I'd promised myself that I would work on things with him, but it was so damn hard when he kept throwing daggers at the people that I cared about.
The car was nice and toasty by the time Parker got into the passenger's side and buckled up.
"What was that all about?" I glanced over at him and put the jeep in reverse.
"Dad has something special he wants to get you for Christmas, but he needs help with it." He shrugged.
"What is it?" I turned on the lights and windshield wipers, not feeling so good about driving across town all of a sudden.
"I'm not telling you," he chuckled.
I hit the brakes as the jeep rolled over something. "What was that?"
"The chains. Dad put the chains on the tires last night. I helped him."
"Where was...oh. In my room."
"Yeah, but it's cool. Gave us a chance to do something together. He stays so busy with his clients and stuff, that it was a good reason to call in. Family meltdown is what he told them."
I laughed, unable to help myself. "It was that."
"I'm glad you told him that he hadn't been a dad since Mom died. He has been to me, but I think you remind him so much of Mom that he struggles with just being around you." My brother shrugged. "It's stupid, I know, but I think that's part of it."
"You would think that would make him love me more, not less." I turned on the radio, not wanting to dive into the reasons why my father was such a jerk to me most days. "New subject."
"Right. What are you getting Finn for Christmas?"
"I got him some cologne, but I can't figure out what else he might like." I looked over at my brother. "What would want if you were him?"
He looked at me and rolled his eyes. "You. Duh."
"He's got me."
"Does he?"
"Stop analyzing things. You're sixteen. Fart in the car and blame it on me, but don't grow up. I need some immaturity in my life. That has to be you."
"It will always be me." He reached over and tugged at my hair. "Be careful on the side roads if we have to get on any. I was watching the weather this morning and it's nasty."
"We do, so just help me watch out for things?"
"Of course."
We rode in silence the rest of the way out to Finn's,
which was a gift in itself. Finn's truck wasn't out in the yard, which was surprising. I knew he worked on Sunday afternoons, but I would have thought Clark would have let the guys off to rest or go to church.
"Where's his truck?" Parker sat up and looked around.
"No clue. Wait here and let me make sure he's not inside."
"Yeah. Sure. You got a key?" He lifted his eyebrow at me.
"Yeah. We're dating...I think."
"I'd say so."
I got out of the jeep without responding. Of all of the people in the world, my little brother was not going to become my make-shift girlfriend. With Jessie out of my life, I'd have to make some new friends, but they'd be girls and they would not be related to me.
After finally getting the key in the lock, I walked into the house to find it just as I'd left it. Not a dish out or a pillow moved. I check Finn's bedroom and stopped in my tracks. The bed wasn't even touched.
"Did you not come home at all?" I flipped on the lights and looked around as though there were something that might give me a clue to where the hell he was.
Maybe he stayed at his dad's.
Surely, he wouldn't have stayed with some random girl in town just because my dad kicked him in the proverbial nuts. No. I wouldn't even let those thoughts occupy my time. He was mine, and I was his. This wasn't about infidelity, but about him needing to work through all the shit Dad slung at him. I only wished he would have let me help him. For each negative Dad was sure to have hit him with, I could have pulled out ten positives.
After locking up, I jogged back to the jeep and got in.
"No luck?"
"No. He wasn't there last night for sure." I sunk back against the seat and growled. "Now what?"
"Have you tried texting him?"
"Yes, pointer of the obvious. Of course, I have."
"Okay, shit. Put your teeth back in your head."
I turned to him and bit at the air for good measure as he laughed.
"Do you think it would be too much if we went by the shop where he works? His dad owns it, so he would know where Finn was, I'm sure."