In Case of Emergency Read online

  Cole was motionless, and Daniel said, “You can breathe. I won’t bite.”

  “No, I know.” He laughed, clearly uneasy. “Thanks for your help. I’m sorry for the grossness and having to stop.”

  “Don’t worry about it. We’re almost there anyway.”

  When he was back in the car, Daniel flipped the seat and steering wheel heaters back on and swiped again at the snowflakes melting on his sleeves.

  Cole said, “You’ve got some in your…” He lifted his left arm as if he was going to brush the snow away from Daniel’s hair himself, then sucked in a breath. “Fuck. That hurts. Right. Broken hand.”

  Daniel brushed a palm over his head. “I’d think it would be hard to forget.”

  Cole wiped the snow from his own hair. “You’d think.” He sighed. “Dude, I’m sorry you got stuck with me. You weren’t planning on having a third wheel on your romantic vacay.”

  He bit back a surge of irritation. Beating a dead horse wouldn’t change anything. “I wasn’t, but shit happens. It is what it is. I made up my mind, remember?”

  “I’m still grateful. This was a big ask considering we haven’t even seen each other in ten years.”

  It was, but Daniel couldn’t exactly leave Cole helpless. “For once and for all, don’t worry about it. Besides, you know my mom is thrilled that we’re ‘reconnecting’ as she’d say.”

  Cole smiled. “True. And…” He turned his head to look out the window. “I think it’s cool too. Reconnecting.”

  Daniel didn’t know what to say, so he went with, “Yeah,” and turned up Kelly Clarkson singing very enthusiastically about a Christmas tree.

  After another thirty kilometers, the warm glow of the village came into sight nestled at the bottom of the mountains soaring above. Cole sucked in a breath just as Trudy instructed Daniel to turn off the main road.

  Cole said, “Wow. It looks like a postcard.”

  It really did. There was a cluster of colorful, mostly three-story buildings sandwiched together like gingerbread with fresh snow covering the roofs, a clock tower jutting up at one end of the village, and golden Christmas lights everywhere. Daniel had never really been one for the holidays, but it was gorgeous and welcoming.

  Trudy directed them around the village and eventually onto a road that was surely dirt under the snow. It was a little icy, and he navigated the turns slowly.

  “You have arrived at your destination.”

  The lights of the chalet glowed around the bend of a short driveway, and Daniel followed Justin’s tire tracks, which were half-covered in the fresh snow. A minivan sat outside the chalet, and he pulled up beside it and turned off the car.

  “Whoa,” Cole breathed. “This place is gorgeous. All those windows!”

  The two-story chalet had massive windows on both floors, and the listing had promised no neighbors for two kilometers on either side. Away from the lights of the village, it was too dark and cloudy to make out the view of the lake and mountains, but Daniel buzzed with excitement at the thought of seeing them in the morning. It really had been too long since he’d taken a vacation.

  “It looks so peaceful,” Cole added.

  “It does.” The owner had strung multicolored Christmas lights around the rail of the wraparound porch, and the effect was magical. Daniel opened the car door and stopped with one foot hanging out, baffled.

  What was that thumping? A moment later he realized it was music. A tendril of unease unfurled. Huh. Well, perhaps Justin found techno relaxing? Daniel hoped it wasn’t carrying over the frozen lake and disturbing anyone.

  He grabbed his parka and put it on, leaving it unzipped as he walked around the car. Cole had managed to unbuckle himself and was standing there waiting with a frown, trying to shrug his good arm into his coat. Laughter and voices echoed. Voices.

  Plural.

  As Daniel’s heart pounded in time with the bass, Cole said, “Uh, I didn’t realize you were having a bunch of people up for a party?” His breath came out in frosty plumes in the frigid air.

  “I’m not,” Daniel managed to grit out, his jaw clenched. “Justin said he had a surprise, but…” But surely he knew better than this.

  After helping Cole with his coat, Daniel marched up the walkway, which had likely been cleared that morning and was now covered by an inch of fresh snow. The wraparound porch had been cleared earlier as well, and he walked around the corner of the chalet toward where the hot tub sat in a sort of sunroom with glass doors that could be folded back, leaving it open to the elements but for the wooden roof.

  Full beer bottles were wedged into the snow, empties discarded on their sides on the porch. Smoke drifted on the breeze—marijuana and cigarette. It was an eight-person hot tub—nice and roomy for two. Currently it held six goddamned people, including Justin, who realized with a joyful shriek that Daniel was standing there.

  “Dan! Finally! Get your clothes off and get in here!” He stood, displaying his red Speedos, which hugged his package and showed off his muscled body.

  The other occupants of the hot tub turned and waved, and Dan recognized them all from the office. A web writer named Melody—no, Melanie—squealed, “Hi, Dan!”

  Justin spread his toned arms. “Surprise!”

  As anger and awful, sticky humiliation spread through him, Daniel could agree it sure as hell was.

  Chapter Four

  Awwwkward.

  Tension radiated so powerfully off Daniel that Cole was amazed the heat of his fury didn’t melt the snow in a radius around him. Everyone in the hot tub looked to be in their twenties and in various states of wastedness.

  The porch rumbled with the bass of the music coming from inside, the massive windows actually rattling. Cole’s head pounded mercilessly. He just wanted to go to bed, but clearly that had to wait.

  A redheaded guy glared at the Speedo-wearer, who was presumably this Justin, Daniel’s maybe-boyfriend or whatever. In a Quebecois accent, the redhead demanded, “Justin, what do you mean, surprise?” To Daniel, he called, “You didn’t know we were coming for the weekend?”

  The Asian girl in pigtails who had greeted Daniel excitedly now exchanged worried looks with the blond guy she was cuddled up with. She shouted to Justin, “Did you seriously not tell Dan we were coming?”

  “It wouldn’t be a surprise if I did!” Justin splashed out of the hot tub, grabbing a terrycloth robe and shoving his feet in flip-flops, hopping around. “Brrr, it’s freezing!”

  No shit, Sherlock. Justin was blond and lean and had six-pack abs. He was objectively handsome, but ugh. He was clearly a douche and a half. Cole found it hard to believe Daniel was dating him.

  As Justin approached Daniel, he batted his eyes. “Come on, Mr. Grumpy. Warm me up. You’ll have fun, I promise.” He reached out.

  Thank the lord, Daniel held him back with a firm hand on Justin’s chest. “I don’t think so. Turn that music off. It’s way too loud.”

  Justin rolled his eyes. “Oh, come on. Take that stick out of your ass already. We’re on vacation! Let’s party!”

  Daniel’s nostrils flared, and Cole thought he might be about to witness a homicide. Completely justifiable homicide. Pushing past Justin to the sliding glass door, Daniel disappeared inside.

  Again, Justin rolled his eyes and asked Cole, “Has he always been so uptight?”

  Before Cole could tell him to go fuck himself, the music was silenced. In the sudden quiet, the hot tub bubbled, its motor a low hum. Fat snowflakes drifted down, the Christmas lights wrapped around the porch railing casting a warm, colorful glow. The forest and lake beyond seemed utterly still.

  A brunette with long, damp curls and a halter bikini top belched, then laughed uproariously, along with Justin and another hairy dude. When the laughter died down, she said, “Justin, get me another beer.”

  Cole left them to it, following into the house. Daniel had left his boots by the door, and Cole did too, closing the sliding door behind him. The chalet was gorgeous—a vaulted ceiling
, exposed beams, light pine wood everywhere. An interior stone accent wall contained a fireplace, where logs smoldered. Two of the exterior walls were largely glass. The kitchen was down a short corridor to the left, just after a staircase that presumably led up to bedrooms in the rear of the house.

  Red, green, and gold Christmas decorations sat on shelves, garlands and lights wrapping the railing on the staircase. Two gold stockings even hung from the mantle over the fireplace. There was a fresh pine tree filling the corner past the fireplace. The tree was bare, but boxes surrounded it. Decorations, presumably.

  Had Justin arranged all that? Cole glanced back through the glass at where Justin was taking a hit off a joint, apparently utterly unconcerned that Daniel was furious with him. Nope. Seemed highly unlikely Justin had done anything thoughtful.

  On socked feet, Cole approached Daniel, who stood at the foot of the stairs, still wearing his parka. From behind, Cole couldn’t see his expression, the hood of his coat blocking his profile as well. He was stock still, fists clenched.

  It seemed stupid to ask if he was okay. Instead, Cole said, “You used to hate being called Dan.” Also stupid, but he had to say something.

  The sliding door opened behind Cole, admitting the three people who hadn’t seemed happy with Justin’s surprise. As they approached, wrapped in towels, Daniel said, “I still do. I hate being called Dan.”

  The Asian girl stopped short. “Shit, seriously? But everyone at work calls you Dan.”

  Daniel turned and shrugged tightly. “Martin calls me that, so after a while I stopped trying to fight it.”

  “Oh.” She smiled nervously at Cole. “Hi. You’re Dan’s—Daniel’s brother? I’m Melanie.” She motioned to the blond guy, who had slipped an arm around her wet shoulders. “This is my boyfriend Paul, and that’s Jean-Luc.”

  The redhead nodded. “Bonjour.”

  “Hey. I’m not really Daniel’s brother.”

  Melanie blinked. “Sorry. I thought Justin said…”

  “We were stepbrothers ten years ago,” Daniel said. “Not for very long. Anyway, to answer your question out there, no. I had no idea anyone would be here but Justin.”

  Paul groaned. “I had a bad feeling about this. Didn’t I say that, Mel?”

  “You did, babe.” Through the glass, the other girl shrieked in the hot tub, and Melanie huffed. “Fucking Louise. She and Mike are idiots, but I figured they’d be fun to party with. Of course I also thought we were invited. Justin said you were totally cool with us coming up just for the weekend, and then you’d have your romantic vacation after.”

  Daniel practically vibrated. “Safe to say the romance is off.”

  “We will leave in the morning,” Jean-Luc said. “And take Justin with us, yes?”

  “Definitely.” Daniel shrugged out of his coat and marched to the closet tucked into an alcove before the passage to the kitchen.

  Cole winced as he struggled out of his. Melanie said, “Do you need help? God, the last thing you needed was more drama, huh? How are you feeling? What happened?” She peeled Cole’s coat off his shoulders.

  “I’m fine. Thanks. I tripped and fell. I’m a massive loser.”

  “You are not,” Daniel snapped. He exhaled and softened. “I’ll get you some more water.” He disappeared into the kitchen.

  Melanie whispered to Cole, “We’ll just leave you guys to it.”

  Paul asked, “Are the keys still in the car? I’ll get your bags.”

  “I think so? It’s a keyless car, but all Daniel’s stuff is in there, so it should be unlocked if the keys are in his bag.”

  Cole gave them an awkward little wave and followed into the kitchen, grateful that not everyone who’d crashed was an asshole. Daniel stood by the fridge, as if he was going to open it and forgot what he was doing. He muttered, “I’m such an idiot. CYC my ass.”

  “See…what?”

  Daniel rubbed his face. “It’s too moronic to even repeat.”

  Cole hated seeing Daniel beating himself up. “Maybe it’ll help to talk about it. It might stop you from drowning your boyfriend in a hot tub.”

  “Oh, he is so not my boyfriend and never will be. Which I knew, but I kept telling myself to get out of my comfort zone and try new things.”

  “I have to admit he doesn’t quite seem like your type. Unless your type has become dickbags.”

  Daniel laughed harshly. “One could argue it always was.”

  Man, what had gone so wrong with Trevor? Clearly now was not the time to ask, so Cole said, “It’s not your fault.”

  “Of course it is!” Daniel spun to face him, opening his mouth to say more and stopping short. “Are you okay?”

  Cole realized he was grimacing, the throb in his broken hand growing stronger, along with his headache. “Yeah. It just hurts.”

  “You need to rest. I know what to do, but I’ll find a concussion checklist just in case.” He pulled his phone from his pocket. “Crap, I need the wifi password. No service out here.”

  A young woman wearing a bikini with an open parka over it clomped into the kitchen. This was Louise, apparently. “The wifi works for shit. We’re basically incommunicado out here.”

  Daniel barked, “Boots off in the house!”

  Opening the fridge, she jumped, then looked down at her feet and back to Daniel. “It’s not like it’s your house. What do you care?”

  “First off, it’s rude to drip all over someone else’s hardwood. Second, I’m the one paying for any damage, aren’t I? Boots. Off. In. The. House.”

  “Okay, geez.” Louise took a case of beer off the bottom shelf, heaving it up with a grunt and disappearing back outside.

  “Fuck,” Daniel muttered. There was a thick binder on the island that said Welcome! He flipped it open, presumably scanning it for the password. He tapped the screen and waited. And waited. “Shit. I can’t check my work email if the wifi isn’t connecting.”

  Cole refrained from reminding him he was supposed to be on vacation now, since, to be fair, as vacations went this one sucked so far. Instead he asked, “Um, where should I sleep?”

  Daniel rubbed his face. “You can take the master bedroom. I’ll sleep on the couch or something.”

  Flip-flops slapping wetly, Justin appeared and gave Daniel a heavy-lidded look and sly smile. “Come on now, Grumpy. I thought we were taking the master.”

  “I thought we’d be here alone,” Daniel snapped. “I thought a lot of things. Just in case it’s not clear, whatever this was between us? Is done.”

  Eyes red from the pot, Justin rolled his tongue in his cheek and treated them to a textbook expression of bitchface. “Fine. I’ll bunk in with Louise. You and your little brother can take the master.” He turned on his heel and stalked off. Slap-slap-slap.

  Cole couldn’t believe the nerve of the asshole, but kept quiet. “If there’s a king bed, I’m sure it’ll be fine,” he said, and not just because sharing a bed with Daniel was a wet dream come true after a decade.

  “Right.” Daniel exhaled forcefully. “Let’s grab our stuff and check it out.”

  There was definitely a king bed—a mammoth that was almost as wide as Cole’s living room. The duvet was a tasteful navy blue with faint pinstripes, the room decorated in brown and green accents. The same light pine hardwood seemed to run through the entire chalet.

  Daniel took Cole’s duffel off his shoulder and placed it by the long dresser with his suitcase. Then he gathered up Justin’s things and threw them into the hallway.

  Cole slipped into the bathroom, which was so big he almost had to go around a corner to spot the toilet beyond a shower stall and soaker tub. The long double vanity closest to the door was made of smooth granite. The tiles on the floor and shower were white and gray with navy accents, and every surface gleamed.

  Bending over the near sink, Cole managed to splash water on his face with his right hand. When he stood straight, Daniel was there behind him, waiting with a towel. Heart thumping, Cole gave him a little smi
le. “Thanks.” He dried his face. “I just want to brush my teeth and go to sleep.”

  “I’ll get your stuff,” Daniel said, returning shortly with Cole’s battered and soap-stained toiletry bag. “Here, let me help you…”

  Turning and leaning his butt against the counter, Cole lifted his good arm, concentrating on breathing evenly as Daniel stood close and peeled off his hoodie and tee, then undid his jeans. They pooled at Cole’s feet, and he kicked them free before Daniel could kneel. Because if Daniel kneeled in front of him, Cole would spontaneously come in his underwear.

  While Daniel went to grab Cole’s PJs, Cole reached down with his right hand and stripped off his socks. Daniel returned with the plaid red and blue flannel and said, “Easier if you go shirtless, right?”

  “Uh-huh.” Cole’s nipples were tight peaks even though the bathroom was warm, the floors heated beneath his bare feet. He stepped into the plaid flannel pajama bottoms, holding his breath as Daniel tied the drawstrings into a loose bow. “Thanks.”

  Cole turned back to the sink, unsurprised to glimpse in the mirror that his blush crept all the way down to his sternum. He managed to unzip his bag, but after a few attempts at uncapping the toothpaste with the tube wedged against his hip for leverage, he gratefully handed it to Daniel, who’d been waiting and watching.

  Cole tried to laugh. “I really am helpless.”

  “Anyone would be. I’m sure you’ll get the hang of stuff in the next few days.” Daniel took out Cole’s toothbrush and turned on the cold water to wet it before neatly squeezing a line of paste onto the bristles.

  The next few days.

  Pulse skittering, Cole shoved the toothbrush in his mouth, trying to hide a burst of giddiness that temporarily eclipsed the pain. In the morning, Justin and the others would leave, and it would be Cole and Daniel alone for a whole week.

  A whole week when absolutely nothing romantic will happen, so slow your roll.

  Cole rinsed, spitting into the sink and talking himself out of getting carried away. Surely nothing would ever happen between them, but still. Just being friends would be amazing.