Alder

T he days after Christmas are beginning to run together. I’ve been on shift most of them, with only one of those days at the resort. That’s why I’m working here today, trying to play catch-up. That and possibly because I haven’t seen a certain redhead around as of late. Having Ivy at my family’s home for Christmas was the highlight of my year. The way she looked like she had been spending holidays with us forever, not just this once. It made me start wishing for more with her. She’s still refusing to acknowledge that our feelings are shared. Today may be the day I finally do something about that.

I walk into the lodge and see there’s a circus happening inside. There are too many people in here, and they all seem to be going in different directions. I spot Ivy over by a man with a clipboard and glasses. She’s wearing jeans that look molded to her and a cream oversize button-down. Her hair is up on her head again, but this time there’s no purple pen. It’s being held back with a gold clip thingy like the ones that I’ve seen Florence and Winnie wear, with the spikes. There are a few pieces of hair in her face, and when she tucks some behind her ear, I track the movement, wanting to do it myself. She looks so beautiful.

She laughs at something he says and touches his elbow. Deep down, I know she has the right to touch anyone she wants, but I want that to be me. I make my way over to them, and when I reach her side, I pull her to me, kissing her cheek tenderly. She stiffens just a little before relaxing into me.

“Hey, you. What’s going on?” I ask her, and she gives me a smirk. I must be obvious when I’m jealous. I don’t think I've ever been jealous before, so this is uncharted territory. Be cool, .

“I’m just discussing the champagne fountain I want installed for the gala,” she informs me. I raise a brow at her.

“Champagne fountain, huh? Sounds fancy.” I don’t think we’ve ever had a fountain of anything here. I trust her though. She knows more about these kinds of events than I do.

“Yes, Ross was just telling me our options. Care to weigh in?” she taunts, her green eyes bright and daring.

“Oh no, princess. I’ll leave that in your very capable hands.” I wink and turn for my office, chuckling to myself when I reach the hall.

Once I’m seated at my desk, I check on all the things I haven’t been able to in the last few days. Ivy has so many things in place, and they all look like they’ll be beneficial for the resort. She’s really good at this. I know she plans on leaving when she gets her father’s approval. I just can’t help but hope she’ll want to stay. Not only because things are starting to really blow up around here but also because I wouldn’t mind spending more time with her. In fact, it’s all I've wanted to do lately .

I hear soft footfalls coming my way, and I glance up to see Noah walk past my door. Unsure if I should, I get up to follow him, and then I see Ivy fly by and stop. I don’t like the idea of him being alone with her, but I’m also very aware of how she can hold her own in a confrontation. I’m torn between letting her handle her own situation and being there to let her know that I’m supporting her. I go with support.

I’m at her office door when I catch the tail end of Noah’s sentence.

“You can’t be serious about this, Red. He’s just a snowboarding instructor, for God’s sake. Is this what you needed all those years ago? Something to play with on the side?” Well, that’s a fun way to be described .

“As much as it should, your observation doesn’t surprise me at all. You’ve always been so chronically skin-deep. To be clear, ’s not just anything, but it doesn’t matter what he does for work, Noah. He’s a kind person. A good person. He cares about people. He helps people. He listens to me and encourages my opinions, then respects them. We were never like that, Noah. You were never like that, and that’s why we aren’t together anymore,” she tells him, and I feel my chest swell with pride. I have no idea if she really means what she’s saying about me. I can only hope she does.

“Don’t pretend you were innocent in the demise of our relationship, Ivy. You went crazy. Literally. You barely spoke for months, and when you did, you wouldn’t stop crying. I had no idea what to do with you. I couldn’t take you anywhere in that state,” he says. I feel my hands tighten into fists. Piece of shit.

“You weren’t supposed to do anything with me!” she screeches, and I flinch. Not from the volume of her voice, but from the small crack I hear in it. My chest cracks wide open at the heartbreak there, and I can’t even see her face. “I just needed you to be there with me! I needed you to understand why I was so broken inside! I needed you to care that we lost Silas!” she continues to scream, and I can’t go any longer without holding her. I detach from the wall and round the corner, I don’t stop moving until she’s in my arms.

I turn her into me so her back is facing Noah, and I’m staring directly at him. Into his soulless, spineless eyes.

“Leave,” I demand. “Now.” He doesn’t argue with me; he just shakes his head with a clenched jaw before turning and leaving the room. Ivy’s shaking.

“Shhh…it’s okay now. I’m here,” I say, trying my best to comfort her. She grips the fabric of my jacket and pulls us closer. She lets go of the hold she has over her emotions. Her body racks with sobs, and I move us back to the wingback chair in the corner. I pull her onto my lap and cradle her as I sit down. Rubbing circles on her back, I let her get it all out. She needs this release. I smooth the loose hair from her face and massage the base of her neck while whispering reassurances to her.

Forty-five minutes later, when the shaking slows and her breathing begins to even, I stand with her in my arms and carry her into my office. I lay her down on the small couch I have in here. The same one I found her on a month ago before I knew much about her at all. Now, all I want to do is know her better. I want to care for her if she’ll let me. I take my jacket and sling it over her sleeping form. I let the back of my hand slide across her soft cheek and then lean down to press a kiss to her forehead. Ivy should have been cared for like this her whole life. Someone should have been there to take care of her when she was sick. When she was sad.

I want her to know what life should be like, and I want it to be me who shows her.

A couple of hours later, I’m deep in some paperwork I’ve been neglecting when I see Ivy start to stir. She takes in her surroundings and then my jacket over her. I can’t contain the grin that breaks loose when I see her bring the collar to her nose and take a deep inhale. I clear my throat so she’s aware of my presence, and I don’t startle her like I have a track record of doing.

“Hey, princess. How ya feeling?” I ask. She sits up and lets my jacket fall to her lap, where she twines her fingers together, looking embarrassed and confused.

“How did I get in here?” she croaks, asking me a question instead of answering mine.

“I carried you,” I tell her. “How are you feeling? Do you need something to eat or drink?” I’m worried that her blood sugar is low. She shakes her head then tilts it to the side.

“Maybe. I’m feeling fuzzy, but I’m not sure if it’s because I need to eat, I’m embarrassed to within an inch of my life, or if it’s from all the crying I didn’t even know I had in me.” She’s self-deprecating. “I’m sorry you had to deal with any of that. For me.”

“Ivy,” I say her name and then pause, collecting my thoughts so I don’t say the wrong thing. “Please don’t apologize for having a reaction to the way he chose to treat you,” I plead. She snorts but nods. “You have no reason to be embarrassed at all.”

“You know, when I was at your house for Christmas, I had this strange feeling that you really were a good guy. That you were raised right.” She chuckles, and I grin at her. “I thought I could have been imagining it, that I could pretend it wasn’t true, but it looks like I wasn’t. You really are a great guy, . Thank you.” Everything she just said is complementary. It might be the first time she’s said something to me that doesn’t end in a jab. I need to tell her the truth about my job here at the lodge. I just don’t know how to bring it up without it sounding like I’ve kept it from her intentionally.

“I’m not sure if everyone would agree, but I am glad you think so,” I reply, and she rolls her eyes.

“I doubt you’ve ever met anyone who didn’t fall head over heels for you, Lover Boy. That’s just your lot in life,” she mutters. I can think of a couple.

“I don’t think Noah is going to be sending me any secret admirer letters anytime soon,” I tease, and she snorts.

“I don’t think Noah has ever written a letter in his life. The best you could expect is maybe an email.”

“And they say romance is a forgotten language,” I mock, and she laughs.

“It’s nice to hear you laugh, Ivy.” She’s blushing.

“Yeah, I’m not really big on laughter,” she says.

“That’s something we’re gonna have to change, Stormcloud. I like the sound of it too much.” My compliment earns me another blush, and I mentally pat myself on the back.

She places my jacket on the couch beside her. “We’ll see,” she hums, then stands up. “I better get back to it. I’m sorry if I worried you. I’m usually better at keeping my shit together,” she tells me and crosses her arms over her chest. I walk around to the front of my desk and lean back onto my hands against it.

“I already told you once not to apologize, I hope I don’t have to again.” Her eyes spark at that. Ivy likes to put up a fight and, in most cases, I wouldn’t be surprised to find she doesn’t like authority, but I think Ivy Rutherford may like me telling her what to do. “Where are you off to?” I ask.

She clears her throat. “I need to get back out there and help get things settled for the gala. I’ve been missing for over two hours, and I’m sure there were a lot of questions that went unanswered.” She pats her pockets as she talks. “I don’t have my phone. Have you seen it?” she asks me. I shake my head.

“I haven’t seen it. It must still be in your office.”

“Right. Well, thank you again, . I appreciate you stepping in before.” She looks into my eyes, and I know she means it. What she doesn’t know is I wouldn’t have wanted to be anywhere else. There’s a draw to her, one I’m helpless to ignore. I don’t feel like fighting it anymore. She opens her mouth again, probably to say her final goodbye, but I stop her with my question.

“What are you doing for dinner?”

“What?” she asks, smiling but thrown by my question.

“Do you have any plans for dinner?” I ask again.

“I mean, I’ll probably eat one of my frozen dinners while I read my neglected book,” she says.

“I’m hearing you have some serious plans, but can I offer an alternative? Have dinner with me instead.”

“Why?” she asks, and I grin.

“Because you should eat a decent meal, and while I’m not the best cook in my family, I have a few good dishes on the menu, and because I want to spend time with you,” I answer honestly. She bites her lip and looks down at her old-timey-looking shoes. Shoes that I feel like a founding father would have worn. I like them on her.

“What are you going to make me?” I think about her penchant for citrus, and I find it extremely lucky I know how to make a dish with it.

“I was thinking orange chicken and rice.” I shrug, and she nods thoughtfully.

“That could work for me. I like orange chicken,” she admits. I thought she might.

“Is that a yes then?”

“It is, but it’s just a meal, action hero,” she informs me, and I nod.

“Of course…for now.” She rolls her eyes.

“Do you want to ride with me when you’re done here?”

“I may be a little late, and I want to change before,” she explains.

“Sounds good.” I smile, and she smiles back before walking out the door. I contain the urge to fist pump the air. She may not have said it was a date; she actually did say it was just a meal, but she also didn’t say it wasn’t a date. That’s good enough for now.