What are the Chances? Read online

  His mom squealed, said good night, piled the dishes in the sink, and ran up the stairs with his dad chasing behind her.

  Mason squished his face. “Sorry about that.”

  “They’re cute,” I reassured him.

  Mason washed the dishes, then took my hand and showed me to the home theatre room. The room was dark, with no windows and there were several leather couches and recliners arranged in front of a screen. A shelf full of trophies and medals for basketball, rugby, and hockey hung on the back wall.

  “Wow. You’re a good athlete.”

  “Not anymore. I blew out my knee in grade twelve and ended my career.”

  “Oh right, I remember when you were on crutches.”

  He nodded and smiled at the memory. “That was the first time you ever really spoke to me. Do you remember that?”

  “Yes.” I leaned my butt on the back of one of the couches and crossed my arms as he stepped behind the wet bar.

  “Would you like a glass of wine?” he asked.

  “Oh, no thank you. You go ahead. I’ll just have water.”

  He slid the bottle of wine back in the rack and grabbed two waters out of the fridge. Then he turned on the microwave to pop a bag of popcorn.

  I smiled as I remembered back to that day in high school. “You don’t know this but that day at school when you were on crutches I stood in the hall and waited until you got to your locker just so I could offer to help you. I convinced myself I should do it to be nice because I couldn’t bear watching you struggle with the crutches and your books. But really, I just wanted the excuse to talk to you. I even rehearsed a couple of conversation starters in my head so you wouldn’t think I was dull.”

  “Really?” He glanced at me. “I wasn’t sure if you really knew who I was before that.”

  “Everyone knew who you were, Mason.”

  He shrugged as if it was news to him. “I would have asked you out then, but you were dating Steve.”

  He handed me the bowl of popcorn and I had a vision: Something broke, snapped. Then I fell for a long time. I landed on something hard and cold, smashing my cheek and ribs. It hurt to breathe.

  “Derian.” Mason squeezed my arms.

  My eyesight came back into focus and he looked concerned.

  “Sorry.”

  “What happened? Do you have epilepsy or something? You kind of blanked out for a second.”

  “Interesting.” I smiled to play it down, then moved to sit on the couch and ate a handful of popcorn. “The amazing Mr. Cartwright doesn’t know everything about me.”

  “Should I take you to the hospital?”

  “No. It’s not epilepsy. Don’t worry.”

  “What is it?”

  My visions weren’t something I felt comfortable sharing with most people. Unfortunately, it had been happening with unusual frequency that did border on some sort of mental-health problem, even by my standards. So, if we were going to hang out more, he’d eventually have to know about it. “If you make it to the next date I’ll tell you everything,” I promised.

  I tugged on Mason’s hand to force him to sit down on the couch beside me. He still looked concerned about my well-being, which was sweet. I pressed buttons on one of the remote controls to get the movie to play. Obviously, I pressed the wrong things because Mason smiled and took the remote away from me.

  “So, what are we watching?” I asked.

  “My sources may have failed to mention that you experience seizures. However, I was informed that you are a fan of eighties movies, especially John Hughes films.”

  I grinned as the opening scene of the movie started to play. “You’re not actually going to sit through Pretty in Pink just for me.”

  “Yes. I like how it ends. Plus, if you sit close enough to me I won’t really be paying attention to the movie.”

  I took off my shoes and snuggled in next to him, completely relaxed. He wrapped his arm around me and I rested my head on his chest. The No Chance nickname crossed my mind. There was a possibility it was true, but not for the reasons I was worried about. Unlike the other guys I had dated—although my experience was limited and not a valid sample to compare to—he didn’t use the movie as an opportunity to make out or get gropey. We just snuggled. It really didn’t feel like his plan was to sleep with me and then dump me. Maybe I was naïve but it felt more like he actually wanted to spend as much time as possible with me. Admittedly, that kind of attention was intoxicating. If he did make a move I might be too lulled into a comfortable stupor to resist.

  “Derian,” he whispered as the credits rolled across the screen. “It’s late. I should drive you home.”

  I groaned a little because I was too tired to get up. “I can sleep here on the couch.”

  “That won’t help my reputation at all,” he joked.

  I sat up slowly and grabbed my shoes in my hand, but I was so sleepy. My upper body flopped down onto my lap. “I won’t tell anyone I slept here.”

  “Maverty will know,” he said and scooped me up. He carried me to the garage, then propped me up against the wall as he opened the passenger door of the McLaren.

  I sank into the leather seat and rested my head back as he walked around to the driver’s side. Once he got in, I said, “I had a really nice time. Good job.”

  He smiled at the compliment and started the engine.

  “This was by far the best date of my life.”

  “I agree.” He kissed my cheek softly before he backed out of the garage.

  We were back in Britannia Beach in what seemed like minutes. It might have been because I was tired and relaxed, or maybe because Trevor’s bike therapy had worked, but I didn’t even care how fast Mason must have been driving. He pulled up in front of the Inn and ran around the back of the car to open the door for me. I stepped out and leaned up against the hood, expecting a goodnight kiss. He did his shy smile and inched closer. His hands slid up to rest on either side of my jaw and he gently pulled my face towards his. His lips lingered closely to mine to tease me. “Good night, Derian,” he said and then pulled away.

  Well played. Not kissing me was obviously a calculated move on his part. And I had to admit it worked. I studied the features of his face one more time and smiled. “Good night, Mason.”

  The 4Runner turned off the highway and the headlights lit us up for a second before it pulled into the parking lot and stopped in front of Trevor’s house. We both watched Trevor hop out of his truck and slam the door. He stepped up onto the porch and disappeared into his house.

  I looked back at Mason, who seemed interested, but unfazed by Trevor’s timing. His arms were wrapped comfortably around my waist.

  I glanced at Trevor’s bedroom window, then at the porch where Lindy had stood waiting for him. A slight pang of guilt needled in my stomach for rubbing my date with Mason in Trevor’s face. On the other hand, I was free to do whatever I wanted. His shitty timing was his fault, not mine.” I stepped back from Mason’s embrace and said, “Thank you for a very memorable evening.”

  “What are my chances for another date?”

  “It’s a definite possibility.” I smiled at him over my shoulder as I walked away. He was still sitting against the hood of his car grinning when I closed the door and turned out the light.

  CHAPTER 15

  At five in the morning, I was surprisingly alert and energetic given the limited sleep. I hurried to get everything set up for Sunday breakfast before the high of my date with Mason wore off and the sleep deprivation caught up with me. Trevor didn’t come over at all. No surprise, but it felt weird to know he was just next door avoiding me. I was going to have to talk to him at some point because I couldn’t stand having awkward feelings between us. The conversation would have to wait until I really missed him, though, otherwise my anger would make it go all wrong.

  Paula wanted to work the front desk by herself for practice, so once the dishes were done, I went to my room to relax. My photo albums were already packed into boxes and prepared
for my move, but I pulled out an older one and flopped onto my bed to flip through pictures of Trevor and me growing up. He had his red baseball hat on backwards in almost every shot. I smiled thinking about that hat. I used to steal it just to make him chase and tackle me. He would straddle his legs and sit on my chest until I said mercy. I tried not to say mercy for as long as I possibly could. Unfortunately, I couldn’t breathe and eventually had to give in. His dad always got mad at him for fighting with me and made him stop because I was a girl, so I got smart and started stealing the hat only when his dad wasn’t around.

  Because my parents were keeners with the camera, there were a lot of photos. One that made me stop flipping the pages was a picture of Trevor and me standing next to a tranquilized black bear. It had wandered into the village and was rummaging through garbage bins. After conservation officers sedated it to relocate it, Trevor and I posed beside it pretending we captured it. My dad snapped the photo, then the bear moved and growled, which made me scream and run. Trevor didn’t run. Instead, he jumped over the bear and stood between it and me. Thankfully, the bear flopped back down, still in a daze. Trevor was always crazy brave like that.

  There were photos of us on the raft we had made with logs and a sheet from the Inn for the sail; in the tree fort we built for sleepovers; beside the totem pole we tried to carve with an axe; and outside the igloo we dug into a snow bank after a huge storm. The last picture in the album was a picture of my dad and me that Trevor had taken with our camera the winter before my dad died. We were snowshoeing and there was a family of deer on the trail behind us. The forest was silent that day and the fresh snow made everything perfectly still. We could hear the deer breathing. It was a cool shot.

  All those memories of my dad and Trevor were going to fade away once Paula and Alan took over the Inn and I wasn’t living in Britannia Beach anymore. I didn’t want to think about it so I closed the album and closed my eyes to take a nap.

  Just before noon, my phone rang with a call from my mom. “Hi baby. How are you doing today?”

  “Okay, I guess.” I got up and went into my bathroom to brush my teeth. “How are you?” I asked with toothpaste foaming in my mouth.

  “I’m hanging in there. Are you planning to go to the cemetery?”

  It took me a second to figure out what she meant. With all the drama, I had totally forgotten it was my dad’s birthday. “Uh, I haven’t really made plans yet. I will probably go, though.” I brushed my hair and put a little bit of makeup on to hide the fact that I had just woken up.

  I left my room and headed to the library as my mom continued to talk. We discussed my dad and the sale of the Inn for a while, then she asked about Trevor. I was able to avoid telling her what happened and distract her with questions about U of T. She was excited about me going to her Alma Mater, and even though it had likely changed drastically in the last quarter century since she was a student, she filled me in on everything about it. I thought about asking her about her boyfriend but then decided it wasn’t the best timing. Eventually, she moved on to a story about a woman at work who contracted some weird disease. I was only half listening because the guy from room 208 was pacing back and forth in front of the Inn. He was on his phone and appeared agitated. I threw in a few ‘mm hmms’ at the appropriate junctures in my mom’s story. The guy hung up, looked around as if he thought he was going to get jumped, then pushed his glasses up on the bridge of his nose and unlocked his car. I headed into the lobby and wrote down his licence plate, then stared at him as he backed out of the parking spot. Before he turned the wheel to pull away, he paused and looked directly at me. I didn’t care that he caught me staring at him. I wanted him to know he was being watched. I smiled at him the same way I would to any other guest. He didn’t smile back. He just drove away.

  Mom finished her story. Apparently, the woman found some miracle cure in Southeast Asia. “How are things going with that Cartwright boy?”

  “What?”

  “Mason. You’ve been dating him, haven’t you?”

  Paula was at the reception desk, so I ducked into the empty dining room and sat at a table by the window. “Um, not really. He took me on one date. What do you already know?”

  “He called me at work and introduced himself. He told me where he works and where he lives and he asked me what some of your favourite things are. He seems nice and I know his family is well off.”

  “What difference does that make?”

  “Well, with someone like Mason you would have more opportunity to travel and meet influential people. I know you adore Trevor, but face it, he’s a Search and Rescue junkie like his dad. He’s not going anywhere. He’ll always live under that bloody mountain risking his life for strangers, and one day he just might not make it home. And then what?”

  “And then what?” I repeated, strangely furious. She had triggered an anger that I didn’t even know was inside me and my mood took an instant and crazy one-eighty. My first instinct was to hang up on her. Instead, I raised my voice and started ranting, “And then what? Well, if I ended up with Trevor in the future and he didn’t make it home one day, I’d send our daughter to live with you so she could take care of you as you get old.” I stood and squeezed my eyes shut. “And then what? Well, then she’d raise herself and I’d just call her once a week or so to make sure she hadn’t turned into some sort of delinquent.” I was pretty much yelling into the phone. “And then what? Well, then without telling my daughter, I’d just go out and get a new guy and let him move into the home I used to share with Trevor. Then I’d pretend like my old life never happened and I’d forget about the one day that he didn’t make it home. And then what?”

  “Derian Marie!” What has gotten into you?”

  I clenched my eyes shut, instantly regretting the tirade. I lowered my voice, worried that Paula probably heard. “I’m sorry. Things have been weird and stressful lately. I got hardly any sleep last night and I’m feeling really pressured about my future. And I’m upset that I forgot Dad’s birthday. I don’t know why I said those things. It was out of line. I’m so sorry.”

  Mom was silent on the other end for a while before she asked, “You know about Ron?”

  “I didn’t know his name. I saw some men’s things in the medicine cabinet when I was over for lunch. I assumed it meant you were seeing someone.”

  “And you’re not comfortable with that?”

  I sat back down and used my thumb to apply pressure to the knot of tension forming in my neck. “I don’t know. Everything is just coming at me too fast and all at the same time. I need some time to think and sort out how I feel.”

  “Okay.” Her tone sounded more hurt than accepting, but a least she wasn’t angry.

  “I’m sorry I snapped at you. I’ll call you when I’m feeling better.”

  “Okay. I love you.”

  “Love you, too.” I hung up feeling like an awful person. It wasn’t fair to dump my mood on her. And I was embarrassed that I still acted so immature around her. “Grow up, Deri,” I mumbled to myself.

  I turned the corner back into the lobby, braced for Paula’s reaction. Fortunately, she had moved into the library and was busying herself by cleaning the windows. Whether it was lucky timing or if she had done it on purpose to avoid the awkwardness of over-hearing my hissy fit, I was relieved.

  Trevor and his dad both ran to their trucks and took off for another Search and Rescue call. The same vision from the night before flashed through my mind again: Something snapped. I fell. My cheek hit something hard and all of my breath was knocked out of me. The pain was excruciating.

  “Are you okay?” one of the guests asked as he stared at me.

  Apparently not. “Yes. I’m sorry.” I shook my head to focus. “May I help you with something?”

  “Beach towels.”

  “Sure, here you go.” I handed him four towels and recorded his room number. “Have a great day.”

  “Are you sure you’re all right?” he asked again.


  “Yes, I’m fine. I was just daydreaming. Sorry.”

  He didn’t seem convinced. I wasn’t either. I was pretty sure Trevor was going to get hurt on the rescue.

  CHAPTER 16

  The guest who asked for the towels left for the beach with his family. I debated about whether I should warn Trevor about my vision or not. If I was wrong, I didn’t want to distract him while he was on a rescue. But I couldn’t pretend that my visions hadn’t been getting stronger and more accurate. If I was right, I didn’t want to live with the knowledge that I could have prevented him from getting hurt.

  I finally decided to text him: Be careful.

  After not getting a response I looked up from the phone to see Mason pull into the parking lot and park the Range Rover. He hopped out and walked towards the front door, wearing a white t-shirt, grey cargo shorts, and canvas slip-on shoes.

  He stepped into the lobby and smiled. “Hi.”

  “Hi.” I didn’t know what else to say. I was honestly shocked to see him.

  “Sorry to drop by unannounced.” He ran his hand through his hair. “I don’t want to seem like I’m coming on too strong, but I have a bunch of work projects over the next couple of days and I’m going to be really busy. I was worried if I waited too long to ask you out again you would assume I didn’t have fun last night. And I did, so I was hoping to take you for a picnic lunch today. Nothing fancy. If you want to.” He studied my expression, which was likely hard to read since I didn’t know exactly how I felt. “Are you hungry? I already packed everything. It’s in the truck.”

  A picnic did sound nice. I glanced at the clock. Trevor was going to be gone for a while. I wanted to go out to visit the cemetery anyway. Paula had things under control without me. Getting outside to enjoy the weather might be good for reducing my stress. And sorting my feelings. Plus, he already packed the picnic and drove down.

  I nodded to accept the invitation. “Sure.”