Page 13 of The Fall

Max gives Logan the directions while I look around the car. It’s clear Logan keeps it in good shape. Not only does it smell really nice in here, like a new car meets a spicy male scent, but there isn’t any trash. Like, none. No random papers, no protein bar wrappers, no empty sports drink bottles. It looks like he could’ve driven it off the lot this morning.

Oh, God. What if he stole it?

No, that’s ridiculous. Just because I don’t like someone doesn’t make them a thief. I hope.

The drive to the cafe doesn’t take long, and before I know it, we’re standing in line to order our food.

“Ah, Savannah. Max. Good to see you! Been a few weeks,” the sweet lady at the counter says when we get up to place our order.

“Yeah, we had a few weeks off at the end of last season, but now we’re back.”

She smiles and nods. “Did you bring a new skater with you?” Her eyes focus on Logan.

“Oh, uh, no. He’s our new coach,” I explain.

She leans in to me and whispers, “He’s very cute, yes?”

I feel my cheeks heat a little as I let out an awkward laugh. Yes, Logan is good-looking. Before ‘The Incident,’ I might’ve even said I had a crush on him, just like every other woman and some men in the skating community. Too bad those feelings were gone in an instant.

This woman is old enough to be my grandmother, and I know she means well, which is why I choose not to tell her what a terrible person Logan is. Instead, I simply nod and give her my order.

When Logan gets up to the counter, I hear her say, “You better lead them to victory.” I choke on a laugh because she makes it sound like we’re headed into battle.

Logan doesn’t miss a beat. “I plan on it.”

Max finds an open table. I make sure to sit on the opposite side of the table from Logan. Which is good and bad. I don’t have to sit next to him, but now I have to look at his stupid face.

“So, Logan, what made you decide on Colorado? You were based out of Chicago, right?” Max asks. Max has always been so good around people. When we’re together, he’s always in charge of small talk. I’m convinced he could talk to anyone about anything.

“Yeah.” He takes a drink of his water, and I try my hardest not to watch his throat work as he swallows, but for some unknown reason, I’m mesmerized. Once he swallows, he continues. “My aunt lives here and my mom wanted to be closer to her, so I came too.”

The correct follow-up question would be to ask if that’s why he retired, but dear sweet little Max doesn’t go that route. “Well, Colorado is great. I’ve lived here my whole life and highly recommend it. I love that we travel all over the world, but I’m always happy to come back home.”

“That’s great. I’m excited to explore the area. I’ve heard there’s a lot of good hiking.”

“Yes!” Max says way too excitedly. “There are tons of great hiking spots. I’d be happy to show you some. I try to get out on the trails at least once a month. Sometimes I can convince Savannah to come with me, but she’s more of an indoor kind of girl. Maybe we can all go together.”

I roll my eyes, but it’s true. I’ll run outside, but only if the temperature is between sixty and seventy degrees. If it’s raining or even a chance of rain, game over. Not doing it.

“That would be great,” Logan says. “What do you think, Savannah?”

“Hmm. Yeah, I’ll have to think about that.”

Max wraps his arms around my shoulder, pulling me in and kissing my forehead. “Come on, Sav. It’ll be fun.”

I wince. I hate being pulled into him like this, and I especially hate being put on the spot. “Ugh, fine.”

Max releases me, satisfied that he got what he wanted. “See, Logan. She’s not so bad.”

Logan smiles and shakes his head. “So, Savannah, are you from Colorado, too?”

“No. I’m from Nebraska.”

“Do you miss it?” he asks. I look up from my food to see if he actually cares or if he’s just asking me to be nice, but he’s giving me his full attention while he waits for my answer.

“Um, not really. My parents and my siblings moved to Colorado with me when I was young. There were more opportunities here for skating. We lived in a really, really small town. I like it better here.”

“What do you do here if you don’t like to hike?”