by Nina Singh
The well-placed outlet night-lights afforded just enough illumination to make it downstairs without disrupting the other guests. There was at least one more couple staying at the inn. Within moments, she had a steamy hot cup of creamy milk in her hands. Not quite ready to go back upstairs, Carli made a detour through the lobby into the main sitting room. She’d always loved this room, even as a small child when her mother had come to visit Betty and dragged her girls along. Carli had spent hours sitting in front of the large fireplace with her book while her mother and Betty chatted over tea. She walked over to the hearth now. It was no longer a wood fireplace. The Mills had a newer, more convenient electronic model installed several years ago. But the rest of the room looked achingly familiar. Carli flipped the switch on the wall and a blue-tinged fire roared to life in front of her. She sighed with satisfaction as the heat spread over her skin.
“You can’t sleep either, huh?”
Though he’d spoken softly, the unexpected sound of Justin’s voice behind her made her jump. Warm milk sloshed over her cup and spilled onto her hand. She wiped it away on the side of her borrowed nightgown.
“Justin, you startled me.”
“Sorry,” he said, and made his way into the room. He came to stand next to her by the fire. “I thought I’d come down and watch the storm through the big bay window down here. It’s something to behold. All this snow.”
“We get at least one or two of these a year, and it never ceases to amaze me, the sheer magnitude of their power.”
“It’s beautiful, really. The entire town covered in sparkling white. Like an ivory blanket sprinkled with glitter.”
She turned to look at him. “Wow. That was very poetic. We’ll see how pretty you think it is when it’s time to shovel tomorrow. And don’t think my father won’t ask you to. Guest or not.”
He laughed, then surprised her by lowering himself to the floor and sitting cross-legged in front of the fire. “I have an electric fireplace too,” he offered. “Back in my condo in Seattle.”
Feeling awkward and rude at speaking down to him from her standing position, Carli felt no choice but to join him on the thick faux fur rug on the floor. “Yeah?”
“Yes. Funny though. It’s not nearly as...cozy as this one is. It’s designed to look like a pit. With fake charcoal and kindling. I like this one much better.”
She wasn’t sure what to say to that so she remained silent and took another sip of her milk. It wasn’t doing a thing to make her sleepy, not that she had any hope of that with Justin sitting right next to her. He wore drawstring flannel pajama bottoms that somehow looked sexy on him. And a crisp white T-shirt that accented his solid chest and biceps. She could feel his warmth next to her along with the warmth of the fire in front of them, like a safe comfortable cocoon.
An empty yet easy silence settled between them. This was nice, Carli decided, allowing herself to relax into a peaceful lull. There were worse ways to sit through a storm than lounging in front of a fire watching the flames while listening to the sound of the wind.
So she wasn’t prepared for what came next. When he spoke again, the next words out of Justin’s mouth shocked her to her core.
“I need to ask you something. Are you in love with your sister’s boyfriend?”
* * *
Justin hadn’t meant to blurt it out that way. Subtle, it was not. Carli was clearly uncomfortable now, and he could have kicked himself for that. They’d been having such a pleasant and casual conversation. He’d just ruined the whole relaxed ambience with one question.
“Why do you ask?” She took a sip from her mug, not taking her eyes off the fire.
They were sitting so close together, his knee brushed against hers when he turned. Shadows from the flames fell across her face and highlighted the silky chocolate brown of her eyes. He fought the urge to pull her into his lap.
“Never mind. Forget I said anything.”
“But you did.”
“I shouldn’t have. It’s none of my business. I apologize.”
Carli set the cup she’d been holding on the floor. “There’s nothing between Warren and me,” she said with a firm note of finality.
She was clearly uncomfortable talking about it. Which had to mean there was something there. A surge of emotion shot through his chest, a feeling he refused to acknowledge as jealousy. What he’d said earlier was true. It really was none of his business. In a few short days, he’d be back on the West Coast and likely not see Carli Tynan again for a good long time, if ever. There could never be anything real between them. Carli wasn’t the type to have a casual fling, and there was no way he could give her anything more.
“He and I had a messy breakup about a year ago. I was angry and betrayed when he ended it.”
Justin sucked in a breath. Hearing how much she’d cared for another man affected him way more than he would have liked, more than it should have.
“Because you were in love with him.”
“I thought I was. But he fell for my sister. As I’m sure you surmised at dinner.”
“I can’t imagine that.” He meant that with all his heart. How could any man prefer the quiet, albeit beautiful sister to the dynamic, intelligent woman who sat beside him now?
She looked off into the fire, the reflection of the flames dancing in her eyes.
“Why do I get the feeling there’s more to the story?” Justin prodded.
She didn’t look away from the fire when she answered. “Very perceptive, Mr. Hammond.”
“So I’m right.”
“Yes. But the summary is that I felt betrayed and deceived. The two of them were too afraid to tell me what was happening at first. Maybe for fear of hurting me, I don’t know. But I just felt deceived. To make matters worse, I felt like my parents sided with Janie, at first.”
“How so?”
She shrugged. “Little things. Warren was still always welcome at the house. I know that sounds petty. But I felt like he should have been made to feel at least a little out of place.” Her chest heaved as she took a deep sigh. “Plus, Mom and Dad would make these quaint remarks about how things that are meant to be will happen. Or not. You know, que será, será.”
He wasn’t sure what to say to that. After witnessing how close the family was, he couldn’t imagine what it must have felt like to think you were losing your place within it.
She wrapped her arms around herself, lost in her thoughts. Justin had never felt a stronger urge to comfort someone. He leaned closer to her, literally giving her a shoulder to lean on if she so wanted.
It thrilled him beyond words when she took him up on the offer and placed her head gently against him.
He could smell the sweet fruity scent of her shampoo. Her warmth settled over his skin. “I have to tell you something,” he began.
“Hmm?”
“I think Warren is a fool.”
Her first response was to snuggle in closer to him. “But you’ve seen my sister.”
“So?”
He could feel her breathing; her hair tickled his chin. “So she’s stunningly beautiful. Poor Warren can hardly be blamed.”
He cupped her chin, turning her face to his. “I’ll repeat. Warren is a fool.”
Carli sucked in a breath, studied his face. She was so close, barely half an inch separated them. “Do you really think so?”
“Without a doubt. Janie’s a pretty girl. But I never went for the frail, dainty type. I prefer women with unruly hair and inner strength. Like you.”
She swallowed, and he couldn’t resist leaning even closer. “You do?”
“Oh, yeah.”
Justin didn’t even know who moved first. He just thanked the heavens that suddenly her lips were on his. She tasted like sugar and cream, her mouth warm and soft against his. It was the slightest,
gentlest of kisses.
But somehow he felt it through to his soul.
* * *
What time was it? Justin awoke disoriented and confused. The wind outside rattled the windows. There was a clear crisp chill in the air; the fireplace had gone out. The room was dark as hades. They must have lost power at some point, as Carli had predicted. But somehow he felt surprisingly warm. It took a moment for his eyes and senses to focus.
He realized with a shock why he wasn’t cold. Carli was nuzzled against him, cradled along his length. Her back snug tight against his stomach.
They’d fallen asleep in front of the fireplace. Right there on the faux fur rug. His traitorous body immediately reacted.
Control.
But it was no use. He was only human, and he’d been wildly attracted to this woman from the moment he’d laid eyes on her. His arousal hit fast and strong. She’d be horrified if she woke up and became aware of the current state he was in.
“Carli, wake up.”
Her response was to nuzzle her head against the bottom of his chin. The action did nothing to diminish his arousal. He bit out a silent curse.
“Carli. Hon. It’s the middle of the night.”
That attempt didn’t work either. She moaned softly and shifted closer to him. Justin couldn’t help but groan out loud. This was torture. He dared a glance at her face. Thick dark lashes framed her closed lids. She looked so peaceful, so content.
He couldn’t do it. He couldn’t force her awake. Just a few more minutes. Let her get some rest, she’d been yawning all day yesterday. Clearly she needed the sleep.
He would just have to suffer it out for a while.
* * *
Justin found himself second-guessing that decision three hours later when he heard footsteps approaching. Through some miracle, he’d fallen asleep despite his inconvenient reaction to having Carli in his arms. And now someone was about to find them in a very compromising position.
There was nothing for it, nothing he could do to try to rectify the situation. Way too late for that.
Making himself look up, Justin found Betty staring down at them with clear shock on her face. But was there also a ghost of a smile? She cleared her throat. Loudly.
Carli awoke with a start and jolted back in his arms. A harsh flash of pain shot through his jaw as the top her head connected hard with his chin. He couldn’t help his grunt in response.
“Good morning,” Betty said, as if nothing was amiss.
Carli removed herself from his grasp. She opened her mouth to speak and then promptly shut it again. Clearly at a loss for words, she sat up.
“Hello, Betty,” Justin managed to choke out. His jaw actually clicked. Just then the lights flickered and the power came back on. Something hummed back to life in the kitchen area, and the fireplace lit up.
“Well, thank goodness,” Betty said, still staring at the two of them. She had to be referring to the lights coming back on, right?
“Mr. Freider has been trying to get a hold of you, dear.” She addressed Carli. “I’m afraid he has some bad news.”
Justin helped Carli to her feet and then stood himself, ignoring the aches and pains that came with sleeping on a hard floor all night.
“What’s happened?” Carli asked, a little unsteady on her feet.
“It’s the toy store. Apparently, the roof was too weak for the massive onslaught of snow in such a short period of time. It collapsed under the weight, snapping a water pipe as it came down.” She took a breath. “I’m afraid the store has flooded.”
Carli gasped. “Oh, no. How much damage?”
“I’m sorry, dear. That’s all I know.”
CHAPTER ELEVEN
IT WAS EVEN worse than she’d feared. The whole back corner of Hammond’s Toys Cape store looked like a demolition zone. Carli bit back a cry of despair as she and Justin entered what was left of the store. Most of the damage had occurred in her favorite section, the Book Nook. Her heart broke when she saw the collapsed shelves, the scattered books with soaked and torn pages. A mountain of snow had piled up in the corner; thick icicles covered the shelves.
Mr. Freider was already there, trying to save anything that was salvageable. The poor man must have been freezing. Either that, or he was shaking from sheer sadness. Probably both.
“Oh, Mr. Freider.” She walked over and gave him a gentle hug. “We’ll find a way to fix all this.” Though she couldn’t imagine how. The store’s very existence was already in jeopardy. Not that Mr. Freider had any idea. And now this.
He gave her a skeptical look. “Thank you for coming, dear.”
“Would you like me to call the insurance company?”
For some reason, Mr. Freider’s eyes started to tear up at the question. Then she understood. Technically, this would be considered flood damage. Something most insurance companies didn’t cover.
This was devastating. What were the chances Justin would ever commit to keeping the store open now? It would take considerable cost and resources to repair all this and open up again.
“The alarm went off and alerted me at home around dawn,” Mr. Freider told them. “I ran down as soon as I could to shut the water off. But by then...” He let the sentence trail off. “For it to happen this time of year.”
Justin stepped over and placed a hand on the other man’s back. “Why don’t you take a break, Mr. Freider. Go home for a couple of hours. If you’ve been here since dawn, you’re past due for some rest.
“Carli and I will take over for a while,” Justin added when he hesitated. Finally he gave a reluctant nod and put down the book he’d been holding.
Carli watched him walk away and had an urge to hug Justin too—for the consideration and kindness he’d just shown. “That was very thoughtful of you.”
Justin shrugged. “He looked ready to collapse. It was a no-brainer to send him home.”
“Where do we start?”
“I’m going to find some boxes. He must have some empty shipping boxes somewhere.”
“What for?”
“We can’t do this out here. We’ll freeze. It’ll be easier and more effective if we work in batches. We’ll carry a box or two at a time to his office and sort them out there.”
“Great idea.” Good thing one of them was thinking straight. “I’m sure there’s some empty boxes in the storage area. Follow me.”
Twenty minutes later, Justin had covered the exposed area with a heavy tarp he’d found in the storage room and the two of them were in the back office. They’d already made several piles, sorting through the various books and items depending on their level of damage.
Despite the unfortunate distraction with the flood, Carli couldn’t stop thinking about what had happened this morning. Or last night. Justin had to be thinking about it too. How could he not? They’d spent the night in each other’s arms. The fact that it had happened without knowledge or intent mattered little. He’d been the perfect gentleman; she had to let him know how much that meant to her.
“Thank you for helping me with this.” Carli clutched the book she was holding against her chest like a shield. “And there’s something else I should thank you for.”
“What’s that?”
“Last night. When you...uh...you know...didn’t even try. I mean, all we did was sleep.” She clutched the book tighter. Why was this so hard?
“Trust me, it wasn’t for lack of wanting to.” He blew out a breath. “If you only knew.”
Electricity cackled between them. “You shouldn’t say such things.”
Justin visibly stiffened. “What exactly am I supposed to say to that?” He threw the question out like a challenge, a hard glint in his voice. Anger flashed in his eyes.
“Is something bothering you?”
“One of my
family’s retail locations has just incurred considerable damage.”
She nodded, mustered a wealth of sarcasm into her voice. “Mmm-hmm. You’ve cared so much about the family business over the years, I can see how that would agitate you now.”
She saw immediately that it was the wrong thing to say. He clearly didn’t appreciate the sarcastic remark. Justin’s mouth tightened into a thin line. But she wasn’t buying that his sour mood was the result of the flood or the damage it had caused. So what else could it be?
“You know what’s bothering me?”
A shiver ran through Carli at his tone and the tightness in his shoulders. But she decided to take the bait. “What?”
Suddenly, he’d moved in front of her. A mere breath separated them. Her heart pounded in her chest. She couldn’t even tell if it was due to the proximity or because of the frustration blaring in his eyes.
“The way you’re standing there thanking me for not touching you last night.” With a finger, he lifted her chin. “When I make love to a woman, I can guarantee you it won’t be when she’s half asleep and tired after a restless night.”
Her mouth went dry. She’d simply meant to thank him. “I didn’t mean to imply otherwise.” He had to know that.
“Right. I just have one question: Did you want me to?”
Well, he’d clearly gone and thrown the gauntlet down, hadn’t he? She refused to lie. “I think you know the answer to that.”
“Oh, no you don’t. You’re not getting off that easy. Answer the question. Did you want me to?”
Her breath caught in her throat. But she blurted out the only answer she could. “Yes.”
She didn’t know what she’d been expecting, but in the next instant, she found herself lifted up by the hips. Justin carried her the few steps to the desk behind them. Then he set her down and conquered her lips with a savage kiss.
Desire slammed through her as he ran his hands along her rib cage, then plunged them into her hair. She wanted him, all of him. The taste of him sent fire through her nerve endings, igniting wants and needs she could no longer hope to suppress. All that mattered was this moment and where it might lead to. She lay back on the desk surface, bringing him down with her. All the while, his hungry lips continued their sweet onslaught.