“Sorry,” Shay mumbled.
“Not your fault,” I said. Wanting to get Thayer as far away from Kason’s negative energy as possible, I cut the conversation short. “Well, we’re going to check out our hotel room. See you later.”
Shay nodded while Thayer gave me an appreciative smile and followed me away.
Thayer
Giselle and I stepped into our hotel room, rolling our bags in with us.
“One bed?” she noted.
“It’s all they had,” I lied.
She laughed, plopping down onto the bed. “Of course it was.”
“Careful, G. You on a big bed like that is making me have very dirty thoughts.”
“Well, it’s a good thing we have all weekend.”
I smiled, elation swelling in my chest. Being in Steamboat. Having G there. Having a sponsorship team behind me. Getting ready to compete. I’d forgotten how at home I felt on a mountain. “Thank you.”
Her brows knit together. “For what?”
“I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for you.”
“Bullshit. You’re an amazing snowboarder.”
I laughed as I plopped down beside her. “That’s not what I meant.”
“Then what did you mean?”
“That morning after the X Games. I was only saying I’d go to Switzerland because you were pissing me off.”
“What?”
“Gino had shown up, and I hated seeing the two of you together so?—”
“So, you wanted to get as far away from me as possible?” she said, surprise brimming in her eyes.
“No. Yes. Maybe. I just wanted to prove I could do whatever I wanted to do, whenever I wanted to do it. And yes, I realize how childish that sounds right now.”
She laughed. “I kinda like that you were jealous.”
“Jealous? You don’t know the half of it.”
She climbed onto my lap, straddling me and twining her arms around my neck. “Well, I’m yours now, Thayer. So what are you going to do with me?”
I tucked a piece of her hair behind her ear because I just wanted to savor the moment and look at how beautiful she was. “That’s definitely a loaded question…first, I’m gonna get out there and practice so I don’t embarrass myself in qualifiers. Next, I’m gonna come back here and shower, preferably with you, and then I can’t wait to go show you off at the Kincaid meet and greet.”
“Show me off?”
I nodded slowly. “I want everyone to know you’re mine.”
“You’re going to be breaking some snow bunnies’ hearts.”
I smirked. “I’m off the market. They’ll have to find someone else.”
Giselle tried to stifle her smile, but she failed miserably. “That makes me very happy.”