It's In His Forever (A Red River Valley Novel Book 5)

by Shelly Alexander

  “Zeus!” Langston scolded.

  Did no good.

  Sandra disappeared through the hanging snowsuits, falling to the floor under the rack.

  The front half of Zeus’ body appeared through the sale merchandise, and he licked her face with his gigantic tongue.

  “Good to see you, too, big guy.” Sandra stroked his black and white spotted coat.

  She could lay there in the dark under the clothing rack until Langston left. That would be preferable to having to resist his smile and ridiculous good looks.

  “Um.” A part appeared between a pair of lady’s leopard print ski pants and a lime green parka. “You okay, Sans?” He held a white paper bag in one hand. The aroma was divine, and Sandra knew what was inside. Only Langston would bring her favorite pastry.

  She let her head fall back for a beat. “Fine.” She pushed herself up, ignoring his outstretched hand, and climbed from under the rack of clothing. She used her sleeve to wipe Zeus’ kisses from her cheek. “Just a little wet.”

  Langston’s gaze went sultry, and an awkward silence filled the room.

  God, she loved it when he looked at her that way. As though she was the only woman in the whole world who could capture his attention. As though he wanted her and only her. Right then. Right there.

  She smoothed a hand over her hair, which she’d pulled back into a ponytail so she could work on the board. “You highjacked my meeting and my event.”

  “It needed to be highjacked because you weren’t thinking of what’s best for the safety officer’s job.” He reached for a stray lock that had escaped the ponytail.

  She leaned away, and he let his hand drop to his side.

  If she felt his warm, tender touch, her resolve would crumble. “So now you don’t have any more faith in me than the rest of this town?” A hand went to her hip.

  His gaze followed, then trailed upward. Heat licked over her as he let those gorgeous, dark eyes linger on the skin where her fleece pullover opened at the neck. Slowly, they climbed to her mouth and stayed there even longer.

  Finally, he said, “Oh, I have faith in you.” He pretended to tap knuckles against the side of her head. “I know the intelligence in that hard, little head of yours. Which is the reason I don’t get why you never would let our relationship go public. And I certainly can’t understand why you won’t give up this laughable notion that it’s over between us.”

  Because I don’t want you to have to choose between me and everyone…everything you care about.

  What kind of person would put someone they loved in such an impossible position?

  Her breath hitched.

  Love.

  She swallowed hard, forcing air back into her lungs.

  She did still love Langston. But she could never tell him so again. If she did, he’d never give up on her. And he really, really needed to give up on her, even if he didn’t realize it yet.

  “Fine.” She marched to the front counter, pulled out two specific pieces of paper from a file folder, and marched right back to Langston. “Here.”

  He held out his free hand, the white paper bag still in the other.

  Ignoring the pull of warm pastry aroma, she shoved the papers at him. “The top sheet is a list of the safety officer’s responsibilities for the event.” The ISA had sent her a job description for each required position so she could hire people with the right skill sets. “The bottom sheet is a list of the entire event staff, along with our cell numbers and emails. We’re meeting daily since it’s only a few weeks away.”

  “I’ll be ready.” He glanced around the store, taking everything in for the first time since he’d arrived. He hadn’t been to her shop since they’d broken up, and a crease appeared between his brows. “Why do you have so much stuff on sale? You don’t usually run sales on your winter gear until your summer merchandise is about to arrive, and it’s way too early in the year for that.”

  Shee-ot. She didn’t want him to know that she was trying to get rid of as much merchandise as possible before she closed the shop and left town. She’d already informed the landlord that she wouldn’t be renewing her lease. With the extra shoppers the snowboarding championship would bring in, she could reduce her inventory substantially and close up shop as soon as the ski and snowboarding season started winding down.

  If Langston found out about her plan, he’d throw up every obstacle he could to stop her from leaving.

  She raised a shoulder but glanced away, unable to look him in the eye. “Just getting rid of some overstocked items.”

  A tremor of guilt rocketed through her. Well, it wasn’t a lie. Not really.

  He raised the white paper bag in his hand. “Brought you something.”

  Her mouth watered. “I’m not hungry.”

  “You’ve never needed to be hungry to enjoy your favorite scone from the Ostergaard’s bakery.” He kept holding out the bag.

  “Langston,” she whispered, her voice a little desperate. A little helpless against both the scone and his gesture because she knew what would come next. They’d done that dance a thousand times. He’d feed her one morsel, as though it was foreplay. She’d moan and open her mouth so he could place another bite on her tongue. By the time the scone was gone, they’d both be so aroused they’d end up naked against the storage room wall. “Don’t do this to yourself.”

  Ha! She doubted he was suffering even half as much as her.

  He sat the papers on top of a rack, opened the pastry sack, and withdrew a small piece of scone. Then he stepped into her space and held it to her lips, like he’d done so many times before. It was their special ritual after he’d been away for several days, working helo life flights.

  She should smack his hand away. She should.

  Instead, her lips parted, and he placed the morsel on her tongue.

  It literally melted in her mouth, her taste buds bursting at the flavor.

  She moaned, her eyes sliding shut.

  A deep, guttural groan escaped from him, too, and he molded a palm to her neck, his fingertips sending desire bolting through her.

  He nipped a crumb from her bottom lip, and yep, her resistance disintegrated into dust.

  When her lips parted, his tongue swiped across hers. Once, twice.

  Her arms laced around his neck, one set of fingers disappearing into his hair, and the gentle caresses of his tongue against hers turned ravenous as he devoured her mouth with a punishing kiss.

  The bag fell to the floor as his solid arms closed around her, molding her body to his. Even through his winter coat, his heat enveloped her. Always did.

  Always would unless she stopped this nonsense.

  He must’ve sensed her momentary return to sanity, because one large hand found her ass cheek and he pulled her tighter.

  A jingle of the bell as the front door to the shop opened had her breaking away from him, and instantly she missed his touch.

  “Hey,” said the snowboarder who’d stopped into the shop earlier. She was mid-twenties and dressed head to toe in white snow gear, a sign of her expertise on the slopes. Only an experienced snowboarder who knew they wouldn’t be falling a lot would wear white. “I’m here to pick up my board. Beautiful dog.” She smiled, staring at Zeus. “Bon appétit, dude.”

  Sandra looked down, taking in the mess at her feet.

  The paper bag from the bakery was torn to shreds. Crumbs dotted the commercial grade carpet.

  Zeus’ downcast puppy dog eyes telegraphed his guilt. Then he let out a small belch.

  “Looks like he’s been a naughty boy,” the snowboarder said. She gave Zeus a wink. “My kind of guy.”

  Sandra’s stare locked with Langston’s. Like father like dog. The smoky look in his eyes said he wanted to get naughty.

  She wanted that, too, more than she could ever admit.

  The snowboarder cleared her throat. “Um, how much do I owe you?”

  Sandra pried her gaze from Langston’s, hurried to the board, and handed it over. “I’ll
meet you at the front register in a sec.”

  When she and Langston were alone again at the back of the store, she said, “I’ve got work to do.” She retrieved the papers from the top of the clothing rack and handed them to Langston. “Don’t forget these.”

  “I’ll look over these and call you with questions.” He took the papers. “Better yet, I’ll stop by to ask questions in person.” One corner of his delicious looking mouth quirked up. “I’m looking forward to working with you, Sans. Every day we spend together will only prove that I’m right.”

  Her pulse quickened. “I’m the boss, and I’m telling you don’t stop by. Besides having a business to run, coordinating this event keeps me insanely busy. I’ll only have time to see you at the daily staff meetings.” She headed toward the cash register, but then stopped and angled her body back toward him again. “Don’t call either, unless you have a real question.” She nodded to the typed job description in his hand. “Which means I don’t expect to hear from you at all outside of the staff meetings because, as you claimed in the council meeting this morning, you can do the job in your sleep.” She’d just driven her point home, so he’d know calling her with silly questions just to talk to her wouldn’t be well received. “With both hands tied and possibly even blindfolded.”

  Instead of looking contrite, Langston looked…amused. At her!

  He stepped into her space again, glancing over her shoulder, as though he was making sure they weren’t being watched by the customer who waited at the front register.

  Well, at least he could still be discreet.

  “Oh, I’m going to get the job done.” His voice turned husky, and laughter sparkled in his eyes. “But you’ll be the one tied up and possibly even blindfolded.” He leaned in and whispered, “And there won’t be any sleeping going on…boss.”

  Heat prickled over her.

  Enough was enough. She had to end this.

  “I’ve told you it’s over.” Her heart thudded against her ribcage at what she was about to say. It was awful. She was awful. But it had to be done. If Langston refused to look out for himself, then she had to do it for him. That’s what love was—putting someone else before yourself.

  Right?

  She hauled in a breath. “I don’t love you anymore, Langston. That’s why I ended our affair. That’s why you need to forget about me.”

  Tears stung the backs of her eyes, and she could hardly breathe. So this is what a broken heart feels like? She’d experienced it after her father threw her under the bus when she was still just a teenager. But this? This was much, much worse.

  Langston pulled winter gloves from his pocket and turned them over in his hands. “Right, about you ending our affair.” He stared at his gloves as they tumbled over and over in his hands. “I called bullshit then, and I call bullshit now.”

  He brushed passed her and let out a sharp whistle. Zeus gave her a sad look, then fell in line behind Langston.

  For the second time that day, he left her speechless. Flustered. And not feeling the least bit like a boss.

  Chapter Four

  Langston leaned against the back wall in the main lodge at the base of the slopes, arms folded over his chest and legs crossed at the ankles.

  It was day five since his addition to the event staff, and as the safety officer, he waited for his turn to give an update. The boss usually made him go last.

  The room full of staff chomped on donuts from the Ostergaard’s bakery, courtesy of Sandra.

  Smart.

  Free food or booze usually increased attendance at just about any gathering, and she had provided fresh, warm pastries at every daily staff meeting.

  Holding a clipboard and looking hot as hell in a pair of black leggings, faux fur lined boots that hit her mid-calf, and a black turtleneck sweater—all of which fit her like a body glove—she listened patiently. Every person in charge of a task took a turn. With a red pen, Sandra ticked off items on her clipboard and made notes.

  The lady in charge of concessions finished up her report about how the order of extra hot chocolate, marshmallows, and paper cups needed to accommodate the mammoth sized crowd they were expecting for the event was driving her insane. Ordering from different suppliers because the regular wholesale food vendor for the lodge couldn’t fill the entire order was, apparently, very stressful. The woman seemed worried the crowd might riot if they ran out of cocoa.

  Langston covered a yawn with his hand, which drew a scowl from his boss.

  Hell, if he’d known that was all it would take to get Sandra to acknowledge him, he’d have yawned the second he walked into the meeting. She’d spent every day ignoring him as though he didn’t exist. Since she’d told him she didn’t love him anymore, the only time she’d looked at him instead of through him was when it was his turn to give the safety officer’s daily progress report.

  So instead of just yawning, Langston gave her an innocent look and stretched, as ift he’d rather be home in bed. Truth was he would rather be home in bed, as long as Sandra’s naked body was tangled with his.

  Her scowl deepened to a full-on glare.

  He refolded his arms and went back to holding up the wall.

  Talmadge Oaks, another high school buddy and world-renowned green architect who’d returned to Red River a while back and married a gorgeous local innkeeper—gave an update on the construction of the course for the competition, per the International Snowboarding Association’s guidelines. It had just been finished the day before, and the ISA was sending a representative out to look at it before giving their stamp of approval.

  Next, Clifford—Red River’s most popular maintenance man—started his hand-wringing spiel over whether or not the number of portable outhouses should be increased. Same concern he’d voiced during every damn meeting.

  The man did have a point, though. Langston would give him that. The event was going to draw an enormous amount of people from far and wide. A shortage of toilets could get ugly.

  “We’ve been over this with the vendor,” Sandra assured Clifford. “They know how many people we’re expecting and have sent more than enough units.”

  Clifford plopped back into his seat, still wringing his hands.

  Poor guy.

  The world needed guys like Clifford because his job was a dirty one, and someone had to do it.

  Finally, it was Langston’s turn. He pushed off the wall. “Since the course is finished, I’ll need to take a look at it.”

  Sandra nodded, her expression unreadable.

  “When we’re done here, I’ll go up the lifts and ski down to check the spectator barriers.” It was his job to assess risk, and no one was getting hurt on his watch.

  “Can I go with you?” A member of the ski patrol, Jordyn, beamed at him.

  As safety officer, the ski patrol for the event reported to him. Directing them was one of the responsibilities listed on the ISA’s job description that Sandra had printed and given to him. Most of the members were already part of Red River’s regular winter season ski patrol who helped out injured skiers on the slopes, but a few new faces had shown up from different parts of the state. One of them was this particularly cute blonde with a personality as bouncy as her curly hair. She was a first-year nursing student and had been looking at Langston with adoration from the moment she found out he was a flight medic.

  Something flared in Sandra’s eyes.

  Huh.

  Jordyn inched closer.

  Which seemed to cause Sandra’s eyes to narrow into slits.

  Well, well, well.

  He’d been waiting for an opening to call out Sandra’s indifference as the bullshit that it was. This might just be the chance he’d been waiting for.

  Unfortunately, he’d have to pull a dick move and flirt with a girl who was already crushing on him. He glanced at the innocence in Jordyn’s bright blue eyes. The kid couldn’t be more than nineteen. Was being labeled a dickhead worth chipping away at Sandra’s I don’t love you anymore lie?


  Jordyn’s smile widened, and she eased even closer so their arms brushed.

  If Sandra’s eyes could shoot daggers, Langston would be ducking for cover.

  Totally worth being a dickhead. Frankly, he’d been called worse.

  But hell no. He couldn’t bring himself to lead on someone he had zero interest in. Plus, impressionable nineteen-year-old girls weren’t his style. He wanted a real woman who could challenge him. Keep him in line. Kick his ass when he needed it. Which was far too often if he had to be honest.

  He kept his gazed trained on Sandra. “I could use the company out there on the slopes. Haven’t had much lately.” He let a beat go by without breaking eye contact with her, waiting for her to rise to the challenge.

  She said nothing.

  “I’ll go!” No joke, Jordyn bounced on the balls of her feet, and Langston half expected her to raise her hand like they were in high school.

  Fuck’s sake.

  “I can always use more time on the slopes,” Jordyn said with the enthusiasm of a high school cheerleader at a championship game.

  Nice as she was, he was not going out onto the slopes alone with a teenie bopper.

  Two tables were occupied with the rest of the ski patrol crew. They weren’t hard to pick out of a crowd. Seeing as how their jobs were out on the slopes, they were already dressed in ski gear and matching red winter coats that had Ski Patrol printed in bright yellow letters across the backs. He found Calvin Wells, Cooper Wells’ much younger brother, in the crowd. He was a good-looking kid with even better manners, and he was much closer to Jordyn’s age than Langston.

  He went over and whispered in Cal’s ear, “You’ll join us.” It wasn’t a request, it was a command.

  “Yes, sir,” Cal said.

  Which made Langston feel a million years old.