Mountains and Mistletoe: A Christmas Romance Novel by M.K. Dymock

Author:M.K. Dymock [Dymock, M.K.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Elite Edition
Published: 2021-12-02T05:00:00+00:00

Chapter 17

Nia stood at the kitchen sink, taking deep breaths like she was standing on top of a mogul run with the eyes of the entire sport of skiing on her. It’d worked a lot better back then to calm her nerves, but of course, she’d always been more at home on the slope than in her own home. Yet, she had to admit tonight had gone better than she’d anticipated. Having Darius with her had somehow changed the dynamic, like he was the only one completely on her side.

Evie slipped into the kitchen, startling Nia out of the expected and uncomfortable thought. “Let me help,” Evie said.

“I’ve got it.”

Ignoring that, she took a plate out of Nia’s hand. “Having Darius a second night at dinner? Are you sure you’re not dating him?”

“We’re friends, nothing more.” Even to her own ears, she sounded defensive. “Why do you ask?”

Evie didn’t make eye contact with her and turned to the next dish. “He seems nice, but he doesn’t seem very settled.”

Nia snorted. “Mama, I’m not very settled.”

“That’s why you should look for that in a man.”

“To settle me?”

“No, to give you roots. Then you can be the wings.”

She shuddered. “A man like that would be more like an anchor,” she muttered.

“You’re not getting any younger.”

Nia dropped a plate into the sink water. “Mama, I’m twenty-eight. I have time to find a man, should I want one.” Luckily, the plate held together and she grabbed it before Evie could.

“I’m not talking about a man; I’m talking about skiing. You can’t keep chasing that dream.”

If the sink hadn’t broken the plate, her iron grip threatened its stability. “You don’t get to take the one thing I have that’s mine.” Forget the cancer. Nia had a point at which she’d fight.

Evie reached out, but Nia jerked away. “At some point, it’s time to find a new path. Darius is a nice boy, but he’ll only postpone the inevitable. Your father realized that and retired.”

“Yep, and missed the sport every day after.” Without another word, she set the plate on the counter, leaving a line from its edge in her palm. Back in the dining room, she slipped back into her seat next to Darius, scooting her chair closer to him.

Nathaniel winked at her from across the table, and she shot him a dirty look. When he showed up with a girl, a nice girl from his class, her mother had positively buzzed with excitement. His late hour had been ignored in favor of an interrogation of how they met, how long they knew each other, and everything about her family.

The golden child had returned in a blaze of glory.

Evie returned to the table, all traces of their argument banished from her face and turned her attention to her favorite subject. “Nathaniel, did finals go well?”

“I survived.”

“Did you survive with As?” Evie’s tone held a rare stern tone not often used on her youngest.

His beautiful girlfriend—who would, of course, be just as brilliant—laughed and gazed at him with tenderness.

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