“What does snow taste like?” Derek asked.
“Like soft ice,” I said.
“Not like a snow cone?” he asked sadly.
I chuckled. “No, unfortunately.”
Deacon was on his phone, probably taking care of work emails.
I watched him, seeing the way his strong wrists poked out of his long-sleeved shirt. He was clearly tired because we’d gone to sleep so late, but I doubted he regretted it. It felt the way it used to, when neither one of us cared about the obnoxious sound of the alarm clock the next morning.
It wasn’t exactly the way it used to be, but it was getting there. I never wanted to be the cause of problems with Deacon, Valerie, and Derek, but Deacon wouldn’t allow Valerie to manipulate him, to get rid of me. He stood by me, stood his ground, said I was family.
It meant the world to me.
I knew Valerie was a bitch, but a part of me just felt bad for her. She didn’t get what she wanted, and it hurt so much that she behaved irrationally. She had her sights set on the man she wanted and would do anything to keep him.
But he was mine.
I made him happy…and he made me happy.
“Can we fish in the cold?” Derek asked.
My eyes were on Deacon.
“No,” Deacon answered without looking away from his phone.
“Then what are we going to do?” Derek asked his father.
“It was your idea to come up here, son.”
I could tell he was busy, so I stepped in. “Playing in the snow will be a lot of fun. We can do snow angels, snowball fights, build a snowman, have hot cocoa in front of the fire, play board games…lots of stuff.”
“Ooh, that does sound fun,” Derek said. “Maybe we can color too?”
“Definitely.” I smiled at him, seeing the man I loved so clearly in that adorable face. With the same hair color, same eye color, and general face structure, it was like having a little, innocent Deacon running around.
When we drove farther into the wilderness, the snow started to look like powder on the sides, perfect mounds that made it seem as if we were driving into a winter wonderland.
Derek kept his eyes out the windows. “Maybe we can go sledding too.”
“We’ll see what your father says,” I said.
Deacon slipped his phone back into his pocket.
“Everything alright?” I asked.
“Yeah,” he answered. “One of my colleagues wanted me to check something on their research.”
I didn’t ask any more questions because I wouldn’t understand the half of it anyway.
We arrived at the gated community then entered the code to get onto the property.
“We’re here!” Derek threw up his arms in excitement. “Look at all that snow!”
There was tons of it all over the property, plenty to keep him busy for hours.
After we parked and got the bags and food, Deacon tipped the driver and carried everything into the house.
Derek was already playing in the snow, making snowballs with his bare hands.
“Honey, put on your gloves.” I walked to him and kneeled so I could secure them over his wrists and Velcro them tightly.
He wiggled his fingers. “But I can’t feel anything.”
“The snow is so cold, you won’t be able to feel anything anyway,” I teased. “You’ll get used to it.” I got to my feet and zipped up the front of my coat. Deacon was in the house, so I stayed outside to keep an eye on Derek and waved to the driver as he left the property. I wondered if Deacon put my bags in his master bedroom where I stayed last time, or if he would put me somewhere else. The cabin was our place to get physical and intimate, but this was a family trip. Maybe we could sneak off during Derek’s naps and when he went to bed early, but it wouldn’t be a sex-a-thon like the other times.
But that was okay. Derek gave us a different kind of happiness.
Deacon came out of the house, wearing a coat and beanie, looking just like his son.
“Dad?”
Deacon came down the steps and walked onto the path. “Yeah?”
Derek straightened, a snowball in his hand, and threw it right at his father’s face.
I covered my mouth and muffled my laughter.
Derek giggled.
Deacon had pieces of snow stuck to his face and eyebrows, and at first, he looked pissed, but after he wiped his face with his hands, a slight smile came through. “You’re gonna pay for that, little man.”
Derek chuckled and ran off, getting cover behind a tree.
Deacon kneeled and rolled the snow between his hands to make a ball before he ran after his son. “Don’t you run from me.”
I pulled out my phone and started to record the whole thing, knowing it was the perfect memory to capture.
“Ahh!” Derek kept running away, knowing his father was going to hit him with that enormous snowball.
I chuckled as I recorded it.