I throw a duffel on the bed. Even though we are staying for a month, there is supposed to be a big laundry room, so we don’t have to pack for much more than a week. We’re going to be out in the sticks, so I’m just taking a bunch of bikinis, jean shorts, tank tops, sandals, and workout clothes. I carefully fold up a few cute outfits, a couple dresses, toss in a pair of wedges, and call it good.
I peek out the window and see that Chase is doing the same thing as me. And I’m pretty sure he has some sixth sense that tells him when I’m standing at the window because he turns around, winks at me, and then motions for me to come over.
It’s not the first time I’ve wished for a little bridge that connected our rooms together.
I zip up my duffel and carry it downstairs. The front door is open, and I can see my dad hoisting a bag up into a rooftop carrier.
When I get outside, I find three generations of Mackenzie and Diamond families—all wearing stupid matching baseball shirts, like the one I have on. I mean, really, who wants to wear the same shirt as their grandma?—sprawled across our neighboring front yards in an attempt to pack up all our shit.
The grandpas are bitching that their fishing poles are going to get crushed under all the baby gear. The grandmas are chatting away about food they are going to make, obviously disregarding the chaos around them. The dogs, Angel and Winger, are chasing each other, dodging bags. Ryder and Madden are rolling across the lawn, either play-wrestling or fighting for real, and the littlest Mackenzie, baby Emersyn, is holding Haley’s hand and screaming bloody murder as Haley furiously taps something into her phone.
My dad and Phillip along with the grandpas are staring at a growing pile of cargo to determine how it and all of us are going to fit.
I toss my bag on the pile and make my way up to Chase’s room.
“I’m surprised you aren’t out there, helping,” I tell him, coming through his door.
He’s standing by his bed. A duffel is sitting on it, and he’s folding a pile of laundry. I plop down on his bed and watch, amazed at how perfectly he folds his clothes.
“I had to unpack, do laundry, and repack. I’m feeling a little behind schedule.”
That makes me laugh. Chase is always precise in everything he does.
“It sort of amazes me that you and Damon are such good friends. You couldn’t be more different. He’s still in bed, and he probably hasn’t even packed.”
“Actually, he packed last night so that he could roll straight out of bed and into the car.”
I shake my head and laugh. “You need help with anything?”
“Nah. I’m good.” He smiles at me. “I like the shirt.”
“I’m wearing it under protest.”
He moves closer to me. “Diamond-Mackenzie Summer Camp. Ozarks,” he reads aloud. “The peach color of the sleeves looks really pretty with your hair.”
“Yeah, well, on its own, it’s not that bad, but when you match your grandparents and even the dogs, it sort of loses any cool factor. Oh, wait! I know!” I rush over to his desk, open a drawer, grab a pair of scissors, and pull off the shirt.
“What are you doing?” Chase asks, his eyes wide.
I look down at the bra I’m wearing. “Grow up,” I tell him. “It’s just like a bikini top.”
He moves toward me and then runs a finger across the top of it. Which basically means his fingers are grazing the tops of my boobs. It stops me in my tracks, and I find myself wondering why him doing something so innocent doesn’t feel that way at all.
“No, it’s not,” he says. “Your bikinis don’t have this sexy lace.”
“Whatever,” I say, rolling my eyes at him.
I’m kind of dating Hunter. Chase can’t just touch me like that. I consider swatting his hand away, but I can’t bring myself to do it.
Because when Chase touches me anywhere, it always feels good.
I stare at him for a moment, noticing how much differently his shirt fits than mine. How tight it is on his arms. Almost like his mom ordered it a size too small, forgetting how much he’s grown.
I tilt my head at him and say, “Take your shirt off.”
He gives me an adorable grin. “Your wish is my command,” he says, stripping the shirt off.
My breath catches. It’s not like I haven’t seen him shirtless many times before. Maybe it’s because it’s been three long weeks, or maybe it’s that he’s grown, or maybe it’s just that he looks damn good with no shirt on. I’m not sure.
“What?” he says, causing my eyes to move away from his sculpted chest and to his beautiful face.
“Uh, I’m going to fix your shirt,” I tell him, gaining my composure.
I grab it from his hands, lay it flat on his desk, cut the sleeves off, and give it back to him.
When he puts it back on, I’m impressed with myself.
“Much better,” I tell him, noting his buff arms are now fully in view.
“Hopefully, Mom won’t be pissed,” he says.
“Whatever,” I reply, laying out my shirt and cutting a slit down the middle of the neck so that it will highlight my cleavage. Then, I cut off the hem, shortening the length, making it more of a midriff. I mean, I work hard for these abs, so I might as well show them off.
I lay the scissors down and put the shirt back on. “What do you think?”
“Hot,” he says. “Pretty freaking hot.”
He lets out a whistle, and I can’t help but blush. I shouldn’t. I mean, it’s just Chase. But still.
“I like what you did to mine, too. The sleeves were a little too tight. This feels so much better.”
“Do you really think your mom will get mad?”
“She should just be glad we are wearing them. Have you looked up the place we’re going?” he says, interrupting my drooling. “It looks really cool. I’m excited to just relax. I mean, I still have to work out, but other than that, it will be nice. It’s been a crazy busy few weeks, and as soon as we get back, two-a-days will start and then school.”
“This summer has flown by.”
“Well, we have three whole weeks together to slow it down,” he says in a sultry voice, drawing the words out and making them sound almost sexy.
“What I want to know is, why the Ozarks? I could tell our parents were excited about it, and I know they went there as kids—”
“But why not somewhere more exotic, right?” he says. “I was envisioning, like, some private yacht, cruising the Caribbean or something.”
“Ohmigosh! Me, too!”
Chase adds a neatly folded stack of T-shirts to his bag, zips it up, scoots me over, and then pulls me down on the bed next to him. He raises an eyebrow and says, “It’s not all vacation for Mom.”
“What do you mean?”
“Even though she sold her company, she hasn’t completely retired. She’s still going to work with Tripp, renovating hotels, but now, she’s only consulting on the designs. The house we are staying at is new, and Mom says it’s completely over the top. She should know. She designed it so that Tripp would have a private place for his big family reunions. It butts up to the resort property, so we can hang out there too.”
“But if it needs to be renovated, it’s probably not going to be that great.”
“The golf course was just redone by a renowned golfer, and there’s a new lazy river and water park. Mom says the resort’s grounds are amazing; it’s more the lodging itself that needs help. She’s not supposed to work either. Says she’s supposed to soak up the atmosphere, so she can come up with a plan. But since we’re not staying there, we get the best of both worlds, I guess. Didn’t you look it up online?”
“No. I was too busy sulking.”
Chase takes my hand in his and squeezes it, knowing the reason why. “How’d you leave things with Hunter?”
I sigh. “He told me I’d better not get so wrapped up with family fun that I forget to call him every day.”
“Are you dating? Like, is it exclusive?”
“Supposedly, I’m the only girl he’s talking to right now.”
“That’s cool,” Chase says, his finger gliding over the ring he gave me. “It’ll be interesting to see how that all plays out.”
“What do you mean by that?” I ask, bristling.
“Uh, I don’t mean anything by it. I just mean, it will be interesting. Like, he dated Taylor forever. It will be weird, them not being together, you know?”
“Can you imagine dating someone from, like, seventh grade on? The same person your whole life? Wouldn’t that be so incredibly dull and boring?”
Chase lets out a little snort. “Not if you’re in love.”
“So, you believe in high school sweethearts? You think they can work in the real world?”
“Sure. Why wouldn’t they?”
“Well, my dad, for one. He didn’t seem to believe in that. And my brother seems to want the opposite. Date everyone he doesn’t love.”
“And what about you?”
“You know I loved Matt.”
“I know.” His finger stops moving, staying on top of the ring.
Matt is a sore subject with us.
I sigh again, not sure how to word this.
“What?” Chase says, his gaze meeting mine.
There’s something about Chase’s eyes that seem to drill right through me. Maybe it’s because he knows me so well. Maybe it’s because I can tell him anything without judgment.
“Tell me.”
“Even though I loved him and things, you know, got serious …”
Chase swallows when I say that, and I know why—because he thinks I had sex with Matt. Mostly because I haven’t told him differently.
“I didn’t picture us long-term. I couldn’t imagine being married to him. And I knew even if we made it until I graduated high school, we wouldn’t survive being apart during college.”
Chase must agree with my assessment. He might even like it because his finger starts moving again, tracing each letter on my ring. “You never told me that.”
“You didn’t exactly like him. And you don’t care for Hunter. You’re honestly worse than my dad. I don’t think you will ever like one of my boyfriends.”
“That’s not true, and you know it,” he says, getting up.
Probably because I already do know. He will like any guy who treats me with respect.
“I suppose we’d better get down there, huh?” I suggest.
When we get outside, the front yard is still complete chaos, but it appears most of the bags are stowed. Chase manages to shove his duffel in a too-small space in the back of one of the three matching Escalades that were rented for the occasion, and then he bends down to pet both puppies.
“I like what you did to your shirt,” Jennifer whispers to me, as Jadyn yells out, “All right, so that there’s no arguing, we are going to draw straws to see who gets to ride in which car. Phillip, you’re driving the first car—car one. Danny, you’re driving car two, and I’ll be in car three. Your sticks have a number on them. After you draw, get into the proper car and get yourself buckled up.”
Jennifer hands me baby Weston while she stands in the driveway and holds out the sticks. Chase’s grandmother, Grandma Mac, and my grandmother, Mimi, are first in line and are super excited that they both get car three. Grandma Mac takes Emersyn from Haley while their dad sets up her car seat. Grandpa Mac ends up with Phillip while Papa’s stick puts him with my dad, which, honestly, makes me wonder if the seats were rigged somehow. Especially when Chase, Damon, and the dogs end up together in the car my dad is driving. Car three fills up next with Ryder and Madden joining that group.
I close my eyes when I choose my stick, praying that it will have a number two, but instead, I get car one and end up with Phillip, Grandpa Mac, Jennifer, Weston, and Haley.
Haley takes her stick, sweetly looks at her dad, and says, “Can Dani and I sit in the very back?”
“Of course,” he says. “In fact, I’ll even let you choose the music for the first half hour of the trip.”
Haley is thrilled as she jumps in the front seat and connects her phone to the Bluetooth before taking her seat, but I know it’s not going to work. Weston will be screeching. She hates electronic music, which is Haley’s absolute favorite.
Chase comes to stand in front of me. “Bummer we’re not together.”
Weston coos and holds out her hands toward him. He takes her from me and kisses her on the nose. “How’s my sweet girl?” he says, and I swear, the kid swoons.
“Chase,” Jennifer says, “I’m so glad you are home. Westie has missed you.”
“You mean, you’ve missed him,” I tease. “And we can’t nickname my baby sister after a dog.”
“Well, yes, sometimes, it seems Chase is the only one who can calm her down. He and Jadyn have some kind of magic baby-whisperer touch, and you’ll have to take the nickname up with him.”
“I’ll put her in the car seat,” Chase tells Jennifer. “You get in and get comfortable.”
“You’re going to make a good father someday,” Chase’s dad says, cuffing his son on the shoulder. “Just not too soon.”
I roll my eyes. Even though everyone thinks Chase can do no wrong and that he offered to put Weston in her car seat so that he could avoid talking about the nickname he’s been calling her, I happen to know he’s not quite as innocent as they think.
He and my brother are crazy about two things, I think as I watch Chase bite into an apple. Uh, make that three. Sports, girls, and food. Although not necessarily in that order.
So, even though Chase doesn’t want to date anyone seriously, that doesn’t mean he isn’t hooking up.
I get in the car and take a seat in the back with Haley. Pretty quickly, the caravan is rolling down the highway while I’m blasting white noise through my headphones, trying to drown out the sounds of Weston wailing over Haley’s playlist.
Fifteen minutes later, Phillip and Grandpa Mac are both rubbing their hands across their temples, and Jennifer is a ball of stress and about to lose her mind.
Haley, meanwhile, pretends to be oblivious to the noise.
I have to take action, so I grab her phone and turn the music off.
“Hey,” she yells. “It hasn’t been a half hour yet.”
“Are you really going to sit there and let the baby scream?”
“She screams no matter what.”
“Not true,” I tell her as I hook my phone to the Bluetooth and hit play on a playlist titled Smooth Baby Jazz.
“Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me.” Haley pouts.
“Thank goodness.” Jennifer sighs with relief as the screaming stops.
Weston smiles at her and kicks her feet to the beat.
I shake my head, knowing I’m totally contributing toward her becoming a spoiled brat, but I don’t care. No one cares. Not when the screaming stops.
Twenty minutes later, Weston is blissfully happy and appears to be on the verge of sleep, her little eyes struggling to stay open as she sucks on the side of her hand.
That is, until Grandpa Mac’s phone rings, causing her to screech.
“Bathroom break. Next gas station,” he states.
“It hasn’t even been an hour yet,” Phillip counters.
Grandpa Mac shrugs and holds out his hands. “Kids.”
Only it’s not the kids we have to stop for; it’s Mimi. She runs in and is quickly back in the car, apparently the only one who had to pee.
Another fifteen minutes later, and we’re stopping again.
It’s determined at this point that we should all go now, so we don’t have to stop again, but no one really does, opting instead to load up on convenience store snacks.
I decide to text Hunter when we get back on the road, knowing that, in a few short hours, I’ll be forced to surrender my phone.
We chat back and forth, which helps to pass the time.
It also makes me sad.
This trip couldn’t have come at a worse time in my life.
But I try to look at the bright side. We’ll have three weeks of talking, flirting, and getting to know each other better without all the physical stuff getting in the way. We can get close without worrying about sex. And by the time I get back, he’s going to want me so badly, he’ll barely be able to control himself.
I’ll tell him that I’m not doing it with him until we are officially a couple.
Which means he will ask me to be his girlfriend.
And it will be the best school year ever.
Twenty minutes later, and Madden has to pee. The good news is that it means Phillip and Grandpa Mac will have to stop with the road games and sing-along songs that they decided to play over the baby mix.
Seriously, whose idea was this trip? I much prefer a nice private plane.
I get a drink, some nuts, put my headphones in, and go to sleep.
Some indeterminable amount of hell-time later, we stop again—this time for lunch.
“I can’t wait for you all to have a loose-meat sandwich,” my dad raves. “One of the best memories of my childhood was stopping here.”
Here is an old drive-in restaurant—the kind you park outside of and wait for them to bring your food to your car, or you can sit at one of the big picnic tables and eat there.
Chase slides into the seat next to me.
“I’ve had about enough of the road-trip fun,” I say grumpily.
“Really? We’ve been having a ball.”
“Singing together?”
“Yes, but not like camp songs. We’ve been jamming out.”
“To what?” I ask.
“I made a playlist,” Damon says, joining us. “It’s awesome. Got some ’80s rock for the old folks, mixed with some fun, newer party kind of stuff. It’s been the perfect road trip. Even Papa hasn’t complained about the noise, and that man knows how to headbang, just saying.” He lowers his voice and leans closer to us. “And I’m not sure, but I think he smoked some weed in his day.”
“Oh! Food’s here,” Chase says, quickly drawing my brother’s attention not to the food, but to the cute roller-skating waitress who is delivering it.
“You can set all that right here by me.” Damon flirts with the poor girl, giving her what he thinks is his devilishly handsome grin.
When the girl blushes, I can’t help but roll my eyes.
Chase, however, only has eyes for what’s in her hands. More calories.
I eat a few fries and try the amazing sandwich, shocked to discover it’s literally cooked hamburger meat that has been fried up into little pieces and thrown on a cheap white bun. Not only does it not taste that good, but it is also impossible to eat, as the meat flies out in all directions since, well, it’s not at all formed into a patty.
“I see now why they invented the hamburger,” I groan as most of my sandwich ends up falling onto the wrapper instead of going into my mouth.
Chase, in contrast, devours his sandwich in about four bites and manages not to drop a speck.
Damon continues to flirt, buzzing the girl constantly, asking for more ketchup or another order of fries, and somehow, he manages to leave with her number.
“I vote for a change of cars for the last half of the trip,” Haley suggests.
“No way,” Damon disagrees. “We love our car.”
“Fine, we’ll switch the other one up.”
“We can do that,” Grandma Mac says while Mimi says to Jennifer, “Why don’t you drive the car we were in, and Jadyn can come with us? Haley, you will be in charge of Emersyn.”
“Okay,” Haley quickly agrees and then says, “Dani will have to come with us, too, so that works!”
Jennifer is grinning when she gets behind the wheel. “All EDM, all the time,” she shouts, feeling free. “Actually, we can listen to anything you want. Dani, you ride shotgun and be in charge of the road-trip tunes.”
“Awesome,” I say, feeling excited.
While we’re loading up, Chase picks up Madden and says, “Crusher, the puppies miss you. Wanna ride with them the rest of the way?”
Madden pumps his fist in the air and rushes to the other car while Chase helps Haley get in the back with Emersyn, and then he makes sure Ryder gets buckled in before getting in himself.
My dad stops by our car and says to Jennifer, “You’re going to wish you had one of your fancy sports cars for this part of the trip.”
“How come?” she asks.
“Why don’t you lead the caravan, so you can see for yourself?” he says, giving her a steamy kiss before getting in his own car.
“Party car!” Jennifer says as we all happily pull away.
I turn around and smile at Chase. “Any music requests?”
“A little country maybe?” he says more to Jennifer than me.
“That sounds perfect,” she says. “Also, Ryder, buddy, how about you share those snacks you got at the last stop with all of us?”
Ryder smiles and digs through a grocery-sack-sized bag, tossing out all sorts of goodies—beef jerky, Corn Nuts, Flamin’ Hot Cheetos, Skittles, sunflower seeds, chocolate, little frosted cakes, bubble gum, suckers, and slightly warm cans of pops.
The first thirty minutes of the drive is filled with fun. Loud music, lots of snacks, and singing.
I look back at Chase, who winks at me.
And I can’t help but smile. I’m glad he’s in the car with me.
I was texting Hunter most of the trip, but before lunch, he said he had to go, something about mowing the yard before his mom got home.
I hear Chase’s phone vibrate and watch as he looks at it and quickly replies.
“Who are you texting?” I ask, knowing it’s probably my brother.
“Uh, some girl,” he says, the tops of his cheeks turning slightly pink as he grabs a handful of sour-cream-and-onion potato chips and shoves them into his mouth.
“What girl?” I ask, needing more info. Because what girl?
“Just this senior girl. I guess she kinda likes me,” he says with a shrug.
“Well, she must be desperate if she can’t get someone her own age,” I scoff.
“That’s pretty mean,” Haley says from the back.
I notice Jennifer nodding her head in agreement.
“What? It’s true,” I say to them all.
I know how high school works. I mean, if it wasn’t for societal rules, even I’d consider dating Chase.
“Think what you want, Dani,” Chase says. “But some girls don’t care about what other people think.”
“And it’s not like she’s some nobody,” Haley says with a laugh, clearly sticking up for her brother. “She’s a track star and co-captain of the dance team.”
My eyes go wide. “Wait. Are you talking about Kelsey Jennings?”
He nods. “She’s almost as pretty as you.”
“Why would she want to date you?” I ask.
“Because she says I’m the sweetest boy she’s ever met,” he replies, his face turning red—a full-on blush.
And I’m instantly pissed.
Because Chase is the sweetest boy I’ve ever met, and I’ve been telling him that since I could speak.
“Whatever,” I say, feeling upset. “She’s going to get made fun of. You don’t date down; you date up. A senior girl does not date a sophomore boy. Her social credibility will be destroyed.”
“You should choose who to date based on their worth as a person, not their age,” Jennifer says. “Plus, Chase is a cutie. A model. A football stud. And a good guy. Who wouldn’t want to date him?”
“Dani is right though. I could never date a seventh grader. Can you imagine? And I’m totally over all the guys in my class. The guy I’m talking to,” Haley says, holding up her phone, “is going to be a freshman.”
Chase turns around and grabs the phone out of her hand. “Who is Hottie God?”
“Oh, I know!” Jennifer says. “That’s what Keatyn called Aiden in The Keatyn Chronicles movies.”
“He was so dreamy,” I agree.
“So’s the boy I’m talking to,” Haley says with a happy sigh. “He’s perfection. Thus the name.”
“I’m going to find out who it is,” Chase says to her. “You know that, right?”
“If it gets to a relationship status, which I fully expect it will,” Haley counters, “you’ll be the second to know. I mean, after I scream it across all my social media.”
“Regardless, this is completely sexist,” Chase says, turning his attention back to me. “As you well know, guys date younger girls all the time. Older guys date you. And, apparently, my sister,” he mutters. “Why is that okay, but Kelsey being interested in me isn’t?”
“You make a good point,” Jennifer says.
But I shake my head. “I agree with you in theory,” I say sympathetically, “but it’s what society—or at least, high school—dictates.”
“Oh, wow. We’re entering the forest, I think,” Jennifer says, changing the subject. “All the trees are gorgeous.” We all turn to look at the scenery when she adds, “Eek! Now, I see what Danny was talking about. This is going to be so much fun to drive on!”
All of a sudden, the big SUV shifts, rolling around a sharp corner before the corner curves back onto itself.
“Look at the street signs,” Chase says with a laugh after a few twisty turns, pointing out how each one seems to be different, like someone hand-painted it to match the actual road.
The car lurches forward, speeding up on a straightaway, only to brake hard into a corner and then turn again in the complete opposite direction.
“This is crazy,” Chase says.
“Um,” Haley says from the back, “could you turn up the air? It’s getting a little hot in here.”
“Sure,” Jennifer says happily. My dad was right. She’s loving this.
But I’ll be honest, the snacks and loose-meat ordeal aren’t sitting in my stomach all that well right now.
Another ten minutes of twists and turns, I’m feeling a little green, and even Jennifer doesn’t seem to be having as much fun.
“What’s that smell?” Chase says.
“It’s Emers,” Haley groans.
“I’m gonna be sick,” Ryder shouts. “Stop the car!”
“There’s nowhere to go,” Jennifer yells back, her eyes frantically searching for anywhere safe to pull off.
And that’s when I hear, Urrrp.
Then, I smell it.
“Ryder just puked all over the car,” I say, as if everyone didn’t already know it.
Jennifer rolls down the windows and takes another corner way too hard.
A half-mile later, she puts her flashers on, slows down a bit, and throws her head out the window, puking as she’s driving.
“Oh my gosh! Stop puking! It’s coming back in my window,” Chase yells out, trying to roll up his window, only to be denied due to the childproof locks that are turned on.
The smell of a loose-meat burger mixed with Flamin’ Hot Cheetos puke is bad enough, but throw in a poopy diaper, and I’m feeling pretty nauseous myself.
Finally, I can’t hold it in any longer. I have no idea why I don’t turn and throw up out the passenger window or why I launch my body over Chase’s and stick my head mostly out the window next to him to puke, but that’s what I do, just as Jennifer finds a little gravel road for us to pull over on.
I look down, noticing something else that smells bad, and realize I didn’t quite reach the window. Puke is sliding down the door next to Chase.
I see Jadyn pull in behind us, hop out of the SUV, and rush up to the window, wet wipes in hand. Grandma Mac is right there next to her with a trash bag and a handful of ziplocks.
“I should have given you barf bags when we left the restaurant, but I forgot,” Grandma Mac says.
We all pile out of the car, breathing in the fresh air, but Jennifer walks over to the other side of the road and starts heaving again.
Haley unbuckles Emersyn from her seat, hands her to her mother, and then proceeds to puke on the other side of the road. Gotta give the girl credit for holding it in for so long.
Chase pulls me into a hug and gently rubs my back. “You okay?” he asks.
And I instantly feel bad for telling him the truth about dating down. I should have just let him find out on his own. I did sound mean. And possibly slightly jealous.
I know I date other guys, but Chase has always been mine.
He’s my best friend.
He’s my everything, no matter what guy is in the picture. And the guys I’ve dated don’t see him as a threat.
At least, not yet.
I get tears in my eyes and shake my head against his soft tee.
Because he is the sweetest boy ever.
“How’s the barf crew doing?” Damon’s voice booms.
“Fine,” Chase says. “Hopefully, we’re almost there.”
“Just thirty-four more miles of roads like this,” Damon says, grinning.
He doesn’t look the least bit green, and I can tell he finds this whole thing amusing.
Mimi joins us and starts rubbing oil on everyone’s wrists. “Ginger is good for nausea,” she explains. “We’ll switch up the cars again, take the turns smoother, and if you do start to feel your stomach roll, just hold your wrist up to your nose and take in a breath. Those of you feeling sick will want to sit in the front of the car and stare out the front window. You’ll feel better soon. I promise.”
When we finally arrive at our destination, I glance at the clock. Our fun little three-hour road trip actually took over six hours with all our stops.
I’ve never been so happy to get out of a car in my life.
Thank goodness we’re going to be here for a while before we have to make the trek back home. It will probably take me that long to recover from what will forever be known as the trip from hell.
“Let’s deal with the luggage later. How about a house tour and I’ll show everyone to their rooms?” Jadyn says, making me even more excited as everyone piles out of the cars.
The first thing I see when I step through the front door of the house is a three-story great room with a floor-to-ceiling marble fireplace on one wall, surrounded by comfortable couches, forming a large seating area. Beyond the great room is a dining room table that looks to seat twenty in front of a wall of modern black-framed windows. We all walk straight to the windows and take in the view of the sparkling lake.
“Look at this deck!” Mimi gushes. “It’s huge! What a wonderful place to have breakfast every morning.”
Jadyn hits a button by the door, causing hidden wall-sized screens to roll down, closing off the area. “And no mosquitoes.”
Jadyn continues to point out features. “From here, you can obviously see the lake, the dock, boathouse, pool, hot tub, firepit, and lots of outdoor living space. And if you look over to your left, see those cabins? Those are full guest cottages. The grandparents each get one of their own. Why don’t you go check them out and get settled? The lock code for anything on this property is 5-2-5-2.”
The grandparents head outside, looking happy to have their own space.
Jadyn then shows my dad and Jennifer their first-floor suite, which even features an adjoining nursery for Weston and a spectacular bath.
Jadyn tells us she and Phillip will be in a similar suite on the same floor and then points to a grand staircase. “Let’s go upstairs, kids. You can choose any room you want, but I’ll show you the rooms I think you will like best.”
We go up not one, but two flights of stairs and then down a hall.
“This is the kid zone,” she says. “Ryder and Madden, I thought you might like to sleep here. Go on through that door.”
The boys barrel through it, along with both dogs, who I didn’t realize had followed us up the stairs.
“We want this room!” they both scream upon seeing the bunk room designed to look like a tree house.
While they scramble up the beds, Angel jumps on a lower bunk, curls into a ball, and goes to sleep.
I think the car ride wore her out, too.
Winger, however, is now making her way unsteadily across a rope bridge to the bunk where Madden is lying down. The original Angel, who passed away, was Chase’s best friend. Winger loves Madden the best and rarely leaves his side.
“I kinda wanna stay here, too,” Chase says. “It’s so cool.”
“Me, too,” Damon agrees.
“I have something better for all of you,” Jadyn says, leading us back down the stairs to the second floor. She goes to the first door on the right and points. “Haley, why don’t you see if this will work for you?”
We step into a gorgeous pale pink–walled room. Sweeping views of the lake are framed by pink floral curtains.
“I have my own balcony?” Haley says, rushing to the French doors. “This place is so Instagram-worthy.”
“Wait until you see your private bathroom,” her mother says, causing Haley to rush back through another door.
I don’t go in there, but I can tell by her happy screeches that she might not come out for a while.
“Dani,” Jadyn says, leading me and the boys out of the room and to the first door on the left, “I thought you’d like this one. I will admit, I actually designed it with you in mind. Tripp has nieces about your age.”
One step inside, and I know she’s telling the truth. This is even prettier than my room at home. Totally luxurious bathroom, grand canopy bed, and a balcony with an incredible view.
“Thank you,” I say. “It’s perfect.”
“What about Chase and me?” Damon asks. “Are we up here, too?”
“I have something else in mind for you boys.” She turns to me. “Dani, I considered putting you with Chase and your brother, but I thought you might prefer something more luxe. But you can stay in whichever room you want.” She steps out onto the balcony with the three of us following her. “See the boathouse, down there by the water?”
“Yeah,” Damon says.
“It’s a playhouse of sorts, too. Just for people too old for the tree house. Why don’t you go see if you’d like to stay there? If not, you can pick any other room. There are plenty to choose from.”
Damon grabs Chase’s wrist, and Chase grabs mine, saying, “Come on. Let’s go!”
We rush downstairs, outside, across the pool deck and grassy area, and to the boathouse.
“This is sick!” Damon says, his eyes going wide.
The boathouse has a deep-covered porch with hanging swings and red Adirondack chairs. The walls of the first floor are glass garage doors that I’m assuming open the whole thing up, and inside, I spot a pool table, foosball, ping-pong, shuffleboard, bar, and big screen TV.
Jadyn enters the code on the door and then steps inside, turning on the lights and opening the doors with one switch. “Tripp wanted an area for relaxing after a hard day of fishing, skiing, and swimming,” she tells us. “I imagine that the whole family will spend a lot of time here before dinner, having appetizers and drinks. There’s cornhole, horseshoes, and washers just outside. Upstairs are three bedroom suites and another bunk room. Take your pick.”
“So, this is what it’s like to be a billionaire?” I ask in awe. “I haven’t even seen the whole place yet,” I say to Jadyn, “but I bet Tripp is thrilled with your design.”
“He is. His family reunion was held here in May, and he said it was their best one ever. Mostly because there are so many large gathering spaces, yet there are rooms that fit everyone’s needs. What did you decide? You like the boathouse?”
“It’s super cool, but I think I’ll go with the room you showed me upstairs.”
“Awesome. I’m going to head back up to the house. Chase, Damon, why don’t you come with me and help get the luggage to all the rooms? Then, you are free to do whatever you want. The kitchens in both the house and the boathouse are already stocked if you need a snack, and we’ll plan on meeting in the backyard at five to kick off the official start of our vacation.”
I go to my room, take a shower to wash away the car ride, put on the fluffy robe that was hanging on a hook, wrap my head in a towel, and go sit out on the balcony for a moment.
I’m surprised to see all sorts of activity on the back lawn. A crew appears to be setting up dining tables and a buffet. I glance at my watch, seeing it’s already four forty, and realize I’d better get ready and get down there.
A few minutes before five, Haley knocks on my door, letting herself in and calling out, “Looks like a party tonight. What are you wearing?”
“High-waisted chambray flutter miniskirt and a pastel-striped tube top. What about you?” I yell from the bathroom, where I’m currently putting the outfit on.
“A pink floral minidress, is what I planned, but then I saw the red-and-white checkerboard tablecloths and am thinking of switching to a navy top and nautical-style shorts with brass buttons.”
“That sounds cute,” I say, zipping up the skirt and fluffing my hair one last time before joining her in my bedroom.
“You look gorgeous. We’ll have to take some cute photos together and post them.” She looks down at the phone in her hand. “No one has taken it away yet. What about you?”
I shake my head. My phone is lying on the bathroom counter, and I’ve been texting Hunter, who keeps asking for a photo of me in the shower.
Like I’d ever be stupid enough to do that. It would end up plastered across the boys’ locker room, and my father would kill me, if the embarrassment hadn’t already done so first.
“Hmm,” she says. “I can’t decide if I should take it with me. Do you think they forgot? Or weren’t serious?”
“I’m not sure. Your mom doesn’t usually say stuff she doesn’t mean.”
Haley sighs as she heads out my door. “I’ll go change. Meet you out there.”
I make my way down the stairs and explore the walkout basement, discovering it includes another game and family room, more bedrooms, a temperature-controlled wine cellar with space to hold intimate dinners or larger tastings, a bowling alley, an indoor basketball court, a sauna, home spa, a gym, and a movie theater, complete with a concession stand.
I’m now kind of hoping for a few rainy days here.
Outside, I find the family gathered on the lawn. A cute college-aged server is quickly at my side, offering me a flute of champagne.
It appears I arrived just in time.
“All right, everyone,” my dad says, “as we discussed earlier, this is going to be the best vacation of your life. There is a box sitting on the kitchen island. All your electronic devices are to be placed in it before you go to bed, and they will be returned to you for the trip back.”
He turns to Phillip, who is standing next to him.
Phillip says, “We thought we’d start off our time here with a celebration. The way we always have done—with fried chicken and champagne. So, everyone, raise your glasses in the air.”
“Here’s to the good life!” my dad toasts.
“And all the fixings,” Phillip adds.
I take a drink, expecting to find sparkling cider but am surprised to discover a really good champagne on my tongue.
Chase and Damon must have been served the same as me because they raise their eyebrows, my brother grinning and saying, “This trip is going to be badass.”
