by Nicola Marsh
‘Okay, okay.’ She laughed, a joyous sound that echoed off the walls. ‘Yeah, I happen to think your plan is a good one.’
Holding her close, he nuzzled her neck. ‘Which part?’
‘All of it.’
He pulled back, searched her face for confirmation. ‘You mean—’
‘We’re getting married and we’ll live at Glacier Point and I’ll run Wild Thing with you and study by correspondence. Happy?’
He let out a loud whoop and spun her around until they were both breathless and laughing.
When they finally stopped, their parka zips had tangled and no amount of jiggling could release them.
‘Fate?’
He growled, renewed his efforts to free them. ‘Maybe. But you’ve got on too many clothes for what I have in mind.’
‘In here? Are you nuts?’
‘About you.’
He swooped in for another kiss as the zips gave and, despite his best efforts to stay upright, they fell onto the ice couch.
‘Ouch!’
He righted her, patted her down to check for injuries. Any excuse.
‘You landed on me and you’re complaining?’
In response, she wriggled in his lap and suddenly his butt wasn’t the only thing aching down there.
‘My hero.’
She batted her eyelashes at him and his heart gave a funny twinge at her antics. The same odd gripe since he’d let this special woman into his life.
‘And don’t you forget it.’
This time, their kiss packed enough sizzle to melt the entire room.
Neither cared.
Epilogue
JADE’S breath caught as she stared at the glacier in awe. She never tired of its majestic beauty and, though she’d seen it a hundred times over the last six months, every time was like the first.
‘What are you thinking?’
She gazed up at her gorgeous husband, rivalling the glacier in the stunning stakes.
‘Remember the first time you brought me here? The canoe and how we almost took a dunking?’
He laughed, a rich, vibrant sound that still had the power to reduce her insides to mush.
‘How could I forget? Funnily enough, I thought about jumping into that lake myself many times over the succeeding months. Anything to cool me down after facing the temptress you were. You drove me crazy, you know that?’
‘Drove? As in past tense?’
In response he crushed her lips beneath his, his kiss flooding her body with heat and sizzle and need.
‘Does that answer your question?’ he whispered against the side of her mouth.
At that moment a distant roar quickly turned thunderously loud.
‘Quick, look!’
He pointed at the glacier as a monstrous chunk of ice cleaved off the cliff face.
‘Wow…’
In all her time here she hadn’t seen the famed ice calving she’d heard so much about and witnessing nature’s grand display brought a lump to her throat.
Slipping his arms around her waist, she leaned back against him, his familiar, solid heat a comfort as always.
‘You’re awfully quiet.’
He brushed a kiss across her hair and she turned her head slightly, glanced up.
‘We’re two of the luckiest people on this planet,’ she said, tears of happiness stinging her eyes as his love for her shone clearly, rivalling the myriad rainbow colours over Davidson Glacier in its brilliance.
‘Yeah, we are.’
‘Uncle Re-e-e-s! We can see you!’
‘Sprung,’ he muttered as she laughed and slipped out of his arms in time to catch one of the twins barrelling towards them.
‘Hey, you guys, you just missed an ice calving.’
Polly, a precocious three year old, whispered loudly in her brother’s ear. ‘That’s silly. Only cows have calves.’
Squatting to the kids’ level, Rhys hugged them both close. ‘You know what? I reckon we should celebrate this occasion with some ice…cream! What do you say?’
Screams of ‘yay!’ filled the air as the lump in Jade’s throat expanded.
Rhys was so great with kids. She couldn’t wait to finish her degree and get started on another pressing project: adding to their family.
As Rhys tussled with the kids Callum and Starr arrived.
‘You missed—’
Callum smirked. ‘We didn’t miss it. We saw you two—’
Starr elbowed Callum. ‘And thought you deserved some privacy.’
‘Thanks.’
Callum jerked his thumb at the twins. ‘Try restraining those two. No mean feat, let me tell you.’
Jade smiled as Starr glanced at her kids, maternal pride adding to the perpetual glow the beautiful dancer had.
‘Rhys seems to be doing a fair job now.’
‘That’s because he gets to spoil them and play the generous uncle while I—’
‘Spoil them just as much.’ Starr rolled her eyes. ‘These Cartwright guys are putty in the right hands.’
Rhys glanced up at that moment and their gazes locked, Jade’s heart instantly jackknifing. ‘Tell me about it.’
With a fond grin at his wife, Callum shouted out, ‘Hey, Rhys. These two are ganging up on us.’
Rhys laughed. ‘Again?’
Polly tugged on Rhys’s hand. ‘I’m starving!’
Hamish joined the cry. ‘Me too!’
‘Salmon steaks for everyone.’ Jade slipped her hand into Rhys’s as the twins scampered ahead on the trail and Callum and Starr brought up the rear.
‘I like this place,’ Callum said, his teasing tone alerting her to another incoming brotherly missile. ‘Even a drifter like you can make a home with the right woman.’
‘Right back at you, bro.’
Rhys cocked his hand and made a firing gun sign as the brothers laughed.
Starr shrugged, smiled in a ‘what are we going to do with these bozos?’ grin.
Jade knew what she’d like to do with her husband, and as they reached the house he pulled her off to the side while Callum, Starr and the twins continued on.
‘Callum’s right. While I love this place, always have, you’re home to me.’
A second before his lips met hers, she whispered, ‘Right back at you.’
All the characters in this book have no existence outside the imagination of the author, and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names. They are not even distantly inspired by any individual known or unknown to the author, and all the incidents are pure invention.
All Rights Reserved including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. This edition is published by arrangement with Harlequin Enterprises II B.V./S.à.r.l. The text of this publication or any part thereof may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, storage in an information retrieval system, or otherwise, without the written permission of the publisher.
This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, resold, hired out or otherwise circulated without the prior consent of the publisher in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition including this condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.
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First published in Great Britain 2010
Harlequin Mills & Boon Limited,
Eton House, 18–24 Paradise Road, Richmond, Surrey TW9 1SR
© Nicola Marsh 2010
ISBN: 978-1-4089-1846-3
on Archive.