Page 73 of Holiday Home 3
“You even have my shoe size?” Liam commented as he pored over his unexpected new outfit.
“Please, I knowallyour sizes,” the maverick woman grinned.
He rolled his eyes. “You’re something else.”
“Something spectacular.” She winked.
For Anna’s sake, he shooed her off so he could change clothes in the living room. That didn’t stop Avril from snorting with laughter at his sudden modesty, though she meandered down the hall to Anna’s bedroom as he changed. About ten minutes later, the women reappeared side-by-side.
After adding on the final outer layers of her outfit before her return, Avril was the rabbit who’d forgotten to change into her winter coat. Dressed in all black, a set of goggles was the only part of the snowboarding outfit covering her voluptuous body that she was missing. While checking on Anna, she’d grabbed what was apparently her favorite winter beanie, and its vivid orangeness would have made her easy prey to any hawks out andabout. Tossing him a nod, she began throwing on a pair of thick black gloves.
By comparison, her roommate was far less likely to cause her to be singled out in the snow by potential predators. She’d opted for a far lighter outfit, both in color and coverage. She wore a sleek gray jacket and sky-blue insulated pants. She’d gone for earmuffs over a beanie, too.
“You know we’re just going out back, not up the slope to a ski lodge, right?” he asked, bemused by how overdressed Avril was.
“Hyuk, hyuk, you’re so original,” the redhead stated flatly, which informed him that Anna must have made a similar comment already. “Grab your Rosebud, and let’s go.”
Liam grinned, thrust his beanie over his head, and collected one of the wooden sleds. Avril snatched its sibling, and Anna led them out their backdoor into the wintry afternoon.
Snow crunching beneath their boots, they assailed the hill that started its incline just twenty to thirty paces out their backdoor. He carried the sled under his arm while Avril dragged it behind her by its rope. Along the way, he felt a nudge against his shoulder. Anna remained a couple of steps ahead of them in this initial climb, so she was none the wiser as he met Avril’s stare.
“How was it?”she mouthed.
He answered with a thumbs-up and a nod, and Avril released the sliver of worry he’d seen her clutching.
“So,” she said loudly, throwing her voice after her roommate, “how did Mother dearest like your hot new boyfriend?”
Anna glared back at her best friend, burying much of her face in her shoulder to hide the color creeping into her face. “Don’t say it like that. I told you already, it went well.”
“All you’d say was that it went ‘fine,’” Avril complained, glancing at him again. “Was she into him, or was she just pretending? Come on, details, details.”
“I thought it went well,” Liam said, offering Anna a chance to decide how much she wanted to share. “I thought your mom was great.”
“When compared to her far, far, far worse half, certainly,” Avril agreed. “So, it was all kosher? Got the blessing for marriage and everything?”
“It was just a fine lunch,” Anna huffed, stopping in her tracks until he and Avril, deviating slightly, ended up walking on either side of her. “But sheknewabout Elliot. That’s not your fault, is it?”
“You think I spilled the beans on you?” Avril gasped, acting affronted. “I like your mom, but it’s not like we go out for coffee and gossip all that often. Besides, that was something from ages ago; it’s not exactly piping hot news nowadays.”
“She dated a guy from Perrymont, too,” Liam added. “So, apparently, we’ve got a strange parallel going on.”
“Oh, yeah? See, must be fate.”
Anna’s eyes dropped toward the sound of crunching snow. “Let’s just hope things don’t play out the same way with me as it did her.”
Though he hadn’t picked up on that part of the potential parallel earlier, he did now. In the worst fate possible for her, Trent would be to Anna what Arnold had been to Evelyn.
“No way it will,” Liam said, briefly meeting Avril’s gaze. “Avril will put on all black and find a garotte before she’d be your maid of honor atthatwedding.”
“Oh, it’d be murder, for sure,” Avril agreed.
“See? Nothing to worry about. Avril’s murderous intentions will keep you safe, one way or another.”
Avril snorted and bumped her shoulder against her best friend. “I hope your ‘boyfriend’ wasn’t as cavalier with your mom as he is with me.”
“No, he was very polite.” Anna’s expression shifted into a soft smile as she looked at him. “I was very glad how things went.”
Liam confirmed he felt the same way with a nod, and then the three of them finally crested the steep hill, where they found flat enough ground to breathe a little. Another twenty paces away, they saw cars zooming by on the road. Their only company was a snowman a stone’s throw away from where they’d come up. For now, the entire hill was theirs.