The Winter Boyfriend: A Stand-Alone YA Contemporary Romance Novel (The Boyfriend Series)

by Christina Benjamin

  “I love you, Chloe.”

  “I love you, too.”

  They laughed when they noticed how puffy their eyes were from the all tears they shed while they hugged each other.

  “These boys are turning us into a bunch of saps,” Chloe joked.

  Margot’s eyes fell to her lap and she began to wring her hands again.

  “What’s wrong, Go-Go?”

  “There might be another reason I’m a little more emotional than usual.”

  Chloe’s eyes widened as she watched her sister’s hand move to her stomach.

  “I’m pregnant,” Margot whispered.

  “What?” Chloe screeched.

  “Shhh!”

  “Are you sure?” Chloe asked, still not sure she was able to wrap her brain around what Margot was saying.

  “Of course I’m sure. I took like a gazillion tests.”

  “Oh my God, Margot. This is . . . I don’t even know,” Chloe replied, shock making her thoughts scatter. “What are you going to do?”

  “I don’t know. I only found out a few days before we came home. I haven’t even told Owen yet.”

  “What? You have to tell him!”

  “I know, but I wanted to wait until the holidays were over. He has so much to deal with emotionally this time of year and I thought adding something like this on top of it wouldn’t be a good idea.”

  Margot’s hands were shaking. Chloe grabbed them. “Go-Go, I’m here for you. Whatever you need.”

  Tears began leaking out of Margot’s big hazel eyes. “I don’t know what I’m going to do.”

  “What do you want to do?” Chloe asked.

  Margot’s hands cradled her flat stomach. “I want to have this baby.” She sniffled. “Mom and Dad are going to kill me.”

  “No they won’t, Margot.”

  “Chloe, I’m only twenty-one. I still have more than a year of college to finish.”

  “So. A baby doesn’t mean you can’t finish school. And you’re a year older than Mom was when she had you.”

  Margot sighed. “I know. But things were different then. Mom didn’t go to college. Besides, I don’t even know if Owen wants kids. We’ve never talked about it and it’s not like he’s had a very good example of family in his life.”

  “Maybe he’ll be happy to have a chance to have his own family,” Chloe offered.

  “Maybe . . . but I’m guessing he probably didn’t plan on starting one at twenty-one.”

  Margot hung her head and Chloe pulled her sister into a hug. “You just need to talk to him, Go-Go.”

  “I’m so afraid I’ll lose him. I love him so much, Chloe. I’ve never felt this way about anyone before. He makes everyday of my life the greatest one yet. And all I wanted to do was love him back that same way. I wanted to make his life better, but now I’ve complicated everything. I don’t know what I’m going to do.”

  Chloe stroked her sister’s hair while she sobbed. Chloe's problems had never felt so small. All she had to complain about was work and being dumped by a boy she wasn't even sure she should’ve dated in the first place. That was nothing compared to what Ethan and Owen and Margot were dealing with. The boys were faced with a holiday that reminded them how little family they had left in the world, while Margot was faced with starting her own family way before she was ready.

  Before Christmas break, Chloe never could’ve imagined she was the one with nothing to complain about, but that certainly seemed to be the case. She didn’t mind, though. She actually liked feeling like the glue for a change. She was a keeper of secrets, a shoulder to cry on, an anchor in the storm. She felt a tremendous pressure in her chest to help everyone, but she also felt her heart gladly answer the calling. She wanted to help.

  Helping others was what she wanted to dedicate her life to and right now her sister needed her help. “Margot, it’s going to be okay.”

  “How?”

  “I don’t know, but I promise you it is. Trust me, okay?”

  Margot’s eyes watered as she caught the significance of Chloe’s words. It was a phrase they only used with utmost certainty. And although Chloe wasn’t sure exactly how the next few days would go, she knew that things would be okay. Because she would be there for her sister, no matter what.

  Chloe took Margot’s hand. “Come on. Let’s go get you some lunch.”

  Margot sniffled and wiped her eyes. “Then what?”

  “Then we’ll figure the rest out as we go.”

  28

  Ethan

  Ethan found himself bartending at the lodge after lunch. When they’d walked into the massive lobby he’d been greeted by a cacophony of Christmas cheer. There were Christmas carolers, wedding guests and people who’d just come to experience the magical holiday spirit that the Price family had somehow managed to capture.

  At first, Ethan thought it would all be too much, but with Chloe by his side, he felt surprisingly calm. Something had changed in her since their last kiss. There was a quiet confidence in her that reassured him in a way he couldn’t explain. And when her mother came running up begging for help with the wedding, he’d been eager to pitch in.

  Apparently, some of the employees couldn’t make it up the steep hill to the lodge for their shift thanks to the icy road conditions. That left them a bartender short at the wedding. They were also short a few servers. Chloe told her mother not to worry and handed out the ugly staff Christmas sweaters along with tasks that needed to be covered.

  Margot and Owen were assigned server duties, while Ethan and Chloe ended up tending bar. The only drink he really knew how to make was an Old Fashioned. His grandmother taught him how to make them when he was young. He could do it in his sleep.

  Luckily, most of the wedding guests just wanted beer or wine. And whenever anyone asked for a more complicated cocktail, Chloe had his back.

  “You should really try the guest bartender’s special,” she’d say with a wink in Ethan’s direction. “It’s a top secret recipe from Manhattan.”

  Ethan felt his guard slipping the more time he spent with Chloe and her family. They made it easy for him to feel included. And as he and Chloe fell into a comfortable routine behind the bar, Ethan couldn’t help getting caught up in the joy of the winter wedding. It filled him with an overwhelming feeling of something rare—hope.

  Chloe

  Margot came hustling over to the bar with Owen at her side. “Dad needs us to pick up the ice sculpture from town. The company was supposed to deliver it here for the Christmas Eve party tonight but they couldn’t make it up to the lodge in this weather. It’s at the postal center in town but the post master thinks it’ll melt if we don’t pick it up soon.” Anxiety edged Margot’s voice. “Can you cover the floor for us, while we take the plow truck into town?”

  Chloe frowned. “You can’t lift an ice sculpture, Go-Go.”

  Margot’s eyes widened with fear over her secret.

  “Hey, this here is the strongest woman I know,” Owen teased, pinching Margot’s thin arms. “But your sis is right, babe. Why don’t you let Ethan come with me instead?”

  The worry Chloe felt for her sister softened when she saw the sweet way Owen doted on her.

  “But you don’t know where you’re going,” Margot argued.

  “Just put the address in my phone.”

  Chloe turned to Ethan while Margot pulled up the GPS on Owen’s phone. “Do you mind going with Owen?” she asked, quietly.

  “Not at all.”

  Chloe squeezed his hand. “I’ll see ya at the party.”

  After the boys left, Chloe pulled her sister aside behind the bar. “So, did you tell Owen?”

  Margot shook her head. “Not yet.”

  “Margot!”

  “I’ll do it tonight. I want to do it somewhere quiet so we can talk.”

  “Okay. I can sleep on the couch tonight so you have the room to yourself.”

  “I’m not going to kick you out of your room, Chloe.”

  “You’re not kicking
me out. I’m offering. You need to talk to Owen. You’re a bundle of nerves and that isn’t good for you or the baby.”

  Margot tugged at a loose thread on her sweater sleeve. “You don’t think I should just wait until after Christmas?”

  “No! You need to tell him.”

  “But what if he freaks out and I ruin Christmas?”

  “What if he doesn’t freak out and you give him the best Christmas gift ever?”

  Margot let a small smile tug at her lips. “You think?”

  “You’ll never know if you don’t talk to him.”

  “Okay.” Margot squeezed Chloe’s hands. “You’re right. This could be good. I’ll talk to him tonight.” She pulled Chloe into a tight hug. “Thanks, Co-Co. You’re going to be the best aunt ever.”

  That simple sentence sent Chloe’s heart into overdrive. She was going to be an aunt! She hadn’t even thought of that. She hugged her sister back fiercely, praying her news would fill Owen with as much love as she felt for her sister in that moment.

  29

  Ethan

  “So,” Owen said as he concentrated on the road. “You doing okay?”

  Ethan looked at his brother, surprised he was asking. Owen liked to discuss his feelings even less than Ethan did. Their inability to deal with the fall out of their mother’s death and father’s abandonment had created a divide between them, making it hard for Ethan to know how to answer Owen’s question.

  If he said he was fine, that would be the end of the discussion. But Ethan didn’t want it to end. He craved a way to connect with his brother the way they used to. But he feared if he said too much it would push Owen away.

  Ethan decided to tread lightly. “I’ve actually felt a little better than I expected to feel today.”

  Owen gave him a tight smile. “Good. Me too.”

  “Good,” Ethan replied, kicking himself for being so bad at this.

  He found himself wishing Chloe were sitting next to him. It was surprisingly easy to open up when she was around. Ethan was about to say that he was glad Owen dragged him up here for the holidays when Owen spoke again.

  “I want to ask you something, E.”

  Ethan tried to read the tension in his brother’s expression. “Okay.”

  “I want to ask Margot to move in with me next semester.”

  Ethan blinked waiting for more. “That’s not a question.”

  Owen exhaled his frustration. “I guess I’m asking if you’d be okay with that?”

  “Are you asking if she can live with us or are you asking me to move out?”

  Owen took his eyes off the road. “I’d never ask you to move out, E. You’re my brother.”

  Those words slammed into Ethan’s heart, splintering the thick layer of scar tissue that sealed it off from the world.

  ‘You’re my brother.’

  ‘I’d never ask you to move out.’

  Owen’s words circled around Ethan’s heart until his chest felt so tight he couldn’t breathe.

  Sensing Ethan’s stress, Owen eased the massive plow truck into a snow-covered parking lot and put it in park. “Ethan,” he said. “Look at me.”

  He couldn’t. If he did he’d lose it. His conversations with Chloe the past few days had left his emotions too close to the surface and now his brother was pulling at the the last remaining thread holding him together.

  “Ethan, I know I’m no good at this,” Owen continued. “I know I’m no substitute for Mom or even Dad, but I really do try.” He rubbed his hand over his mouth as he blew out an exasperated breath. “I’m trying to tell you that I care, E. I’m here for you. I know I haven’t done the best job of it in the past. I guess I just wasn’t any good at dealing with my emotions myself, so I didn’t know how to help you with yours, but Margot has changed all of that. She just makes everything easier.” He sighed. “I don’t even know how, but she does. She makes me want to be a better person. And I need to start being a better brother.”

  Ethan met Owen’s eyes and for the first time, he felt he truly knew what his older brother meant. Because Ethan felt it, too—with Chloe. She was like a piece of him that he’d never known he was missing. And it was crazy that they’d only just met because he had such a strong attachment to her. He just wanted to hold her close and never let go. So of course Ethan understood Owen wanting to do the same with Margot.

  Owen sighed heavily. “Look, I know Margot isn’t your favorite person in the world, but I was hoping after this weekend you might see that living with her could be fun.”

  Ethan laughed. “That’s one word for it.” His affection for Chloe did make Margot more tolerable but Ethan didn’t think he’d ever say living with Margot would be his idea of fun.

  Owen’s mouth twisted into a smile. “I know she’s a little chipper for your taste.”

  “Chipper? She makes a chipmunk look like a lazy, lump of depression.”

  Owen laughed, shaking his head. “I swear, if we could find a way to bottle her energy we’d be millionaires.”

  “We are millionaires,” Ethan teased.

  Owen’s eyes turned serious again. “I thought you didn’t want to touch any of Mom’s money?”

  “I don’t.”

  Owen was quiet for a minute. “She left it to us, E. Adopted or not, we were her kids. That’s all that should matter.”

  Ethan nodded, his stomach knotting at the mention of their trust fund. Their grandmother had fought hard to make sure that their father didn’t get his hands on it, but even after winning that court battle, Ethan had wanted nothing to do with his mother’s fortune. He didn’t feel it was rightfully his. Maybe their father was right. Maybe they didn’t deserve it more than he did. They weren’t really her children by blood. A piece of paper from the state didn’t change that.

  The only reason Ethan hadn’t just given it all away to his mother’s charity was because the trust was in Owen’s name as well. And Owen stubbornly said he wouldn’t take the money if Ethan didn’t.

  Currently, they only lived off the interest, using it to pay tuition, room and board. Was this why Owen was bringing it up? Did he want to use the money to get them a bigger apartment so Margot could move in?

  “If you want to live with Margot, I want you to,” Ethan finally said.

  Owen studied him quietly. “You’re sure?”

  “Yes.”

  “And what about you?”

  “What about me?” Ethan asked.

  “I want you to live with us, if you’re okay with that. If not, I won’t ask Margot to move in.” Owen smirked a little. “I don’t even know if she’ll say yes. She seems pretty happy at the sorority house.”

  Ethan laughed. “She’ll say yes.”

  “You think?”

  “Of course. She’s disgustingly in love with you.”

  Owen got a dopey grin on his face. “God, I hope so.”

  “You love her, huh?”

  Owen nodded. “Like I never imagined. I’d propose tomorrow if we weren’t so young.”

  Ethan smiled. He liked seeing his brother this happy. Owen always looked happy, but usually Ethan was watching that happiness from the outside, looking in. Now, he felt like Owen was allowing him to be a part of his joy. Or maybe Ethan was the one finally allowing himself to be a part of it. “I’m glad she makes you happy. I think you should ask her to move in. But I think we’ll need a bigger place.”

  Owen nodded. “Done.” His grin was so wide it made Ethan smile.

  Owen squeezed his shoulder. “Thank you, brother.”

  “You’re welcome, brother.”

  “We’re gonna be okay, ya know?”

  Ethan nodded and for the first time, he started to believe it was true.

  30

  Ethan

  Ethan glanced at the clock. It took longer than he thought to load the massive ice sculpture and the little shopping detour Ethan suggested didn't help matters. Plus, they had to stop back at the house to change for the party.

  By the time, Ethan f
ollowed his brother into the barn, the party was in full swing. The word ‘barn’ also didn’t do the space justice. He liked how the Price family seemed hell bent on underwhelming people by calling their five star hotel a lodge and the gorgeous storefront a barn.

  The barn was beautifully decorated for Christmas. There were trees, wreaths and pine garland strung with lights everywhere he looked. He loved the simple red and black buffalo plaid that gave the cocktail tables a rustic feel. Even the pine dance floor looked inviting with the party-goers dancing to the live band.

  Ethan took in the gorgeous scene wondering if he could ever accurately describe the beauty of the barn party to someone who hadn’t experienced it. But his musings were cut short when he saw Chloe. The breathtaking Christmas scene didn’t hold a candle to the vision walking across the dance floor.

  Chloe was wearing a long evergreen dress with her long hair down around her shoulders. It looked like silk and Ethan could scarcely think of anything but running his fingers through it.

  She walked right up to him, not shy about her glowing smile. “Hey you.”

  “Hey yourself.” Ethan stared at her, searching for just the right words. “You look . . .” like the most beautiful thing in the room, Chloe. He shook his head, knowing better than to admit his true feelings. “Very nice.”

  She grinned. “Thanks. You look pretty nice, yourself. I was starting to worry about you.”

  “You were?”

  “Yeah, you guys were gone a long time. Did everything go okay with the ice sculpture?”

  Right on cue two guys dressed in lodge sweaters wheeled the massive reindeer into the barn. “Yeah.” He nodded to the ice sculpture. “Owen was just being cautious. The roads were pretty icy.”

  “Good. I’m glad you were being careful.”

  Ethan stared at Chloe’s shy smile. Are you worrying about me, Chloe?

  “Do you want to dance?” she asked.

  With you? More than anything. He gave a slight nod. “Okay.”