Chapter 20: : Chapter 20

Aaron jumps out of the Jeep, burying his face in his jacket to ward off the whipping wind as he heads straight for us like a bullet fired from a gun.

Shit, meet the fan.

I back away from the door like it’s a wall of fire. “Oh, god. Miles…”

He draws in a sharp breath. “It’s okay.”

But I can’t even…Aaron is here.

He came all this way.

So the wedding can’t be as done as I thought.

And I’m trying to decide which one of our necks he’s going to try to wring first.

I look over at Miles, who’s gazing out the window, his eyes narrowed. He jerks back and his eyes find mine, already punishing me for what he knows I’m about to do.

The door flies open, and Aaron appears. His eyes fall on Miles first. “What the actual fuck, Foster? Did you fuck her?”

Miles holds his hands up.

“Answer me! Did you fuck my fiancée on our wedding day?”

He rockets across the room and shoves Miles hard, in the chest. Miles takes a step back and raises his hands in defense. He’s his normal calm self, so admirably together, while I’m shaking like a leaf. “Man. Chill out.”

“I’m not going to chill out until we’ve thrown down, brother,” he growls, raising his fists. His voice is low and lethal, unlike I’ve ever heard. “And I’ve ripped your fucking head off. She’s about to be my wife! What the fuck lies have you been feeding her, you motherfucker?”

“Aaron!” I shout. “Don’t!”

Both men glance at me. Miles’ posture stiffens, but his eyes soften. “Lia—”

I try to step between them but Aaron grabs me first, pulling me behind him so hard that I stumble back. “Lia. Back off. Let me finish him.”

“No!” I try to move but he grabs ahold of my shoulder and keeps me immobile.

“Lia. Stay out of this.”

Miles’ hands are still up in a defensive posture. His eyes are cold on his best friend. Aaron’s probably banking on Miles not coming at him, because I’ve seen the two of them fight. Miles is bigger and more built. He has always looked like he could topple Aaron with one hand behind his back, like he was letting Aaron win, because Aaron cared about winning more. “We should talk when you’ve calmed down and have your shit together.”

“My shit together?” He scoffs and rubs both of his eyes. “You’re fucking my fiancée and you want me to get my shit together?”

Aaron charges, but I grab the back of his shirt before he can and shout, “Don’t you harm a hair on each other’s heads or I swear to god, I’ll finish both of you!”

Miles backs away. He shoots me a dark look and shakes his head almost imperceptibly as Aaron rushes him.

I manage to throw myself between them again, stopping both of them in their tracks. Aaron wraps an arm around my waist and pins me to his side.

“You know what, man. You’re not worth it.” He sweeps an eye over me as if to check for damage. “Lia, you’re coming with me. You and I can discuss this on the ride.”

“But I—”

Miles moves forward to stop him from taking me away, but Aaron reaches out a hand, shoving him back.

“Don’t. You’re not welcome anywhere near the lodge, Foster. Go home.”

“Aaron!” I wrench my arm away from him. “Would you just—”

He wags a warning finger in my face. “Not until we’re on our way. We’ll be late other—”

“But I don’t want to marry you!”

He glances at Miles with disgust and puts his hands on both of my shoulders. “I know. I get that. But you’re not thinking straight. Listen, Lia. He’s been telling you lies, and you owe me the chance to let me explain myself. I promise, Lia. If you just come with me, you’ll see.”

He smooths my hair, and his brown eyes plead with me.

I have to give him a chance…don’t I? I can’t let five years go, just like that.

I am so fucking confused right now, I don’t know what to do.

All I know is that I’ve never trusted Aaron, but I’ve always trusted Miles.

I take a step toward him. “I’m…”

But when I glance at Miles, he’s shaking his head. As if disappointed because he knows I mean to go.

And then he speaks. Says, “Go. Lia. Just…go.”

He’s letting me go. Just like that.

Aaron’s pulling me to the door. He yanks it open and guides me outside. I try to glimpse Miles again, but Aaron’s in my way.

Outside, the sun is rising and the snow is glistening everywhere. I never thought I’d say it, but it’s truly beautiful.

“Where are your shoes?”

I blink in the blinding sunshine and realize he’s talking to me. “I, um…wore flip-flops. And I lost one of them in the snow.”

He doesn’t offer to pick me up, and I don’t want him to. I’m confused enough as it is and if he touches me, it’ll only make things worse. So I brave the walk to the lot. My feet sink into the snow, but this time, they don’t even burn. I’m numb.

Aaron packs me into the Jeep and throws the car into drive. He starts to pull away.

I glance back at the rest stop building, hoping to see Miles. But I don’t. Aaron really is going to leave Miles here. “Aaron, you can’t…”

“Yeah, I can. I’m too pissed right now. I can’t look at him.”

“But how’s he—”

“Jesus, Lia! He’s a grown man. He’ll figure it out!” he snaps, jamming his hands on the steering wheel. “Is he really that good?”

I stare at him. “What?”

“You heard me. You think I didn’t know? The way you looked at him? The way he looked at you? It went on for five fucking years. I always felt like the odd man out. Always staring at each other like you couldn’t wait to jump each other’s bones, the second you two were alone.”

“I don’t…” I stop as it dawns on me. “You thought I was cheating on you with Miles?”

He pounds the steering wheel. “I don’t know! I don’t fucking know. But you two are the people I’m closest to…so I didn’t know. I can maybe stand losing one of you. Not both.”

“Wait. You planned that whole thing? Sending us together like that? As some sort of test?”

“Of course not. But somehow I always knew this would happen.”

He drives on a little while, silent. The roads are snow-covered and slick, but passable. Whatever accident was backing up cars on the bottom of the mountain is gone now. We pass a few cars going the other way.

The four-wheel-drive on his Jeep traverses the snow easily, so it’s nowhere near as treacherous as last night. But Aaron’s always been a little more reckless of a driver, and he’s going fast, so I’m gripping the door handle.

“I fucked everything up, Lia. I know that. I treated you like shit. You are such an amazing woman and I know I haven’t always been the man you deserve.” He reaches his hand over and touches my cheek. “But I love you. More than anything. I swear, before I was just going through the motions. But when I thought I could lose you this morning, it woke me up. And I want to marry you, in five hours. I want you to be Mrs. Dahlia Eberhart.”

“I…I…” I’ve never felt so confused.

“We have something good, Lia. We’ve had it for five years. No, it wasn’t perfect, but it was good. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have said yes when I proposed. And do you really want to disappoint your mom and dad? Your family? My family? I know I don’t want to disappoint them, Lia. They love you. They want you to be an Eberhart, too. You belong with us.”

“I know…” The Eberharts took me in like family.

Bile rises in my throat.

My stomach clenches as I think of my father. My mother. I’m sure they’re going insane right now. And to call the wedding off? How can I do that? Not to mention the wedding party, who socked a lot of money into this weekend, and the guests, who bought me thousands of dollars worth of bridal shower gifts, all of which I’d have to return…

Miles was right, again. The ball’s already been set in motion.

Have I really the power to stop it?

Aaron pulls over to the shoulder of the road, reaches down and takes my hand, running his finger over my engagement ring. “Look at me, Lia,” he says when I won’t meet his eyes.

I do.

“I swear, Lia. I love you so much. It’s killing me to think of losing you. That’s why I came all this way. After I hung up on you, it hit me. I can’t be without you.”

I think of Miles, by now, probably wondering how he’s going to get back home. I think of how he made love to me on that bench, not an hour ago. How desperate he was, like he’d been waiting to taste me for a lifetime and almost knew that he’d have to die with this one last taste.

I close my eyes and force the memory away.

Aaron opens his arms to me, and I nestle between them. He kisses my cheek.

The embrace feels stiff, like the arms of a stranger.

A day ago, I was so sure I wanted to be his wife. And now…I just don’t know.

“Let’s make a deal. Whatever happened before doesn’t matter. We start here. Fresh. And we won’t hurt each other again. Do you like how that sounds?”

I hesitate.

“Lia?” He presses.

I suddenly feel like a dick. I mean, he’s trying. He’s trying hard, doesn’t he deserve a chance? I force myself to nod. “I do.”

But I’m not sure if I believe it.

I’m not sure if I can say those words, when the time comes.

We get back on the road. He’s driving with the stick shift in his left hand, managing the steering wheel with his knees, so that he can hold my hand in his right. He keeps stroking the back, keeps gazing at me like he loves me.

And I’m not sure.

He wants us to only think forward, but I can’t do that. Not with Miles back there.

I feel like I’m already breaking a promise to him.

“Aaron,” I say softly.

“Yeah?” he asks, smiling, giving my hand a squeeze.

“Miles has the rings.”

He drops my hand, rakes his fingers through his hair, and his posture tenses. “Fuck.”