by Leslie North
“I’m going to my room.” She crossed her arms over her chest, one hip jutting out. If Chase wasn’t so worried about her, it might have been funny—her small six-year-old frame, with such attitude. Lindsey stalked away, stopping only once to look back at them. Her eyes dared them to follow. She shut the door hard, not enough to call it a slam, but loud enough to let them know how she felt.
Chase didn’t want her out of sight, not exactly, but he desperately needed to hash this out with Tana. He took a deep breath. Never, not once in his life, had he ever felt stakes as high as these. It was a heavy weight to carry, being someone’s parent. He’d experienced a single, powerful jolt of fear out there on the ski slopes, but Tana had to deal with that kind of feeling every day. Chase struggled for the words to describe it to her—this shred of understanding he had now. Not a full understanding, of course, but—something.
“Tana...”
“Wait just a second, okay?” Tana slipped by him, kicking off her boots as she went down the hall to check on her daughter anyway.
If Tana wanted to stop ski lessons altogether, he wouldn’t blame her. He stepped out of his boots and wandered across the living room, waiting. He would do whatever it took to make Tana feel better about this, even if it meant ending the lessons. Anything.
10
Your safety is the most important thing to both of us. We needed to make sure you were all right. It’s important to be careful when you’re skiing. Tana tried out fifty different things to say to her daughter, but none of them seemed right. She’d been telling Lindsey to be careful all her life, and maybe that was the problem. Still, the instinct to shield her daughter from all possible pain was a powerful one. It didn’t want to be ignored.
Tana closed Lindsey’s door behind her and stepped on a jacket “Lindsey...” She bent to pick up the carelessly discarded coat, and her eyes followed a trail of snow clothes—pants, helmet, thick socks—all the way to her daughter’s twin-sized bed. She expected to find Lindsey glaring at her from the corner, but instead her daughter was curled up under her pink-and-purple comforter.
Tana crossed the room and leaned over Lindsey. Sure enough, she was fast asleep, her breathing deep with exhaustion. Lindsey’s leg hadn’t seemed to bother her when she walked into the house and to her room. And there were no other signs that Lindsey had been injured. Tomorrow her daughter might have to deal with extreme weakness in her bad leg, but only time would tell. It wasn’t anything they hadn’t dealt with before. Tana’s pulse slowed, relaxing. The grip of anxiety released her.
In the quiet of Lindsey’s room, she recalled Chase, strong and sexy, carrying the most important person in her life. He’d been so gentle with her. So unfazed by Lindsey’s arguments. And he hadn’t even hesitated for an instant when it was time to get into the car. He’d been by her side through it all. She took a deep breath, gathered up the rest of Lindsey’s snow things, and backed quietly out of the room.
Chase stood in the living area, the light from the picture window making him a manly silhouette. The line of his jaw became sharper as he watched her cross to the front closet. Her heart thudded, but it wasn’t out of fear.
When Lindsey’s clothes were put away, Tana joined Chase at the window. From here, the barely contained sorrow on his face was evident. He’d taken off his coat and hat, and his ginger hair was mussed in a way that made her want to run her hands through it.
“I’m sorry, Tana. I know I said it before, but—” Chase met her eyes. “I shouldn’t have encouraged the skiing. I get it.” He put a hand to his heart, and Tana saw that he did get it—he really did. “I get why you were so protective of Lindsey. Seeing her fall...” Chase let out a breath. “My heart stopped. I’ve never been so scared, and it’s because of me that—”
“Stop.” Tana put her own hand over Chase’s, there on his chest. She had to set him straight. “I’m the one who was wrong. I’ve been too overprotective. There’s a difference between keeping a child safe and keeping them from living. I was trying to keep Lindsey from living on the off-chance that she’d get a few bruises and bangs.” Something she’d been doing to herself as well.
“You sure about that? Because I’m to blame, too.”
For so long, she’d tried to avoid getting hurt again. The stakes were even higher now that she had Lindsey. It was one thing to get your heart broken when you were young and single, but with her daughter in the mix...
“Some things are good enough to take risks for,” she said softly, recognizing the truth.
His eyebrows shot up, the green stunning her all over again. Fierce, sweet anticipation flashed over her skin. Tana had a deep sense that he understood what she was trying to tell him. It was like the last day of winter cold before spring warmth breaks, and Tana wanted to savor it.
“Some risks you have to take,” Chase murmured.
They both reached for each other at the same time.
Chase’s hands went to Tana’s waist, and she threw her arms around his neck, pulling him down so fast that their lips met in a sultry crash. A rush of oxytocin barreled over Tana like an avalanche. All her years of single-mom worry disappeared. They’d come back, but at this moment, she was a woman in a man’s arms. With his mouth on hers.
Kissing him back, she parted her lips to let him explore deeper, and Chase took the invitation. His hands landed on her waist and she wanted to know what it would feel like to have his body close to hers. She couldn’t stop kissing him. Wouldn’t. Not this time.
“My room,” she murmured against his mouth. “Please, Chase.”
He surfaced to take one breath and pulled her down the hallway, their feet soundless on the carpet. All she could hear was the pounding of her heart and thought it might explode. She pointed to her room, eager for more.
In her bedroom, he backed against the door to close it. The click of the doorknob sounded louder than a firework, and both froze, breathing hard. Listening.
Tana kept kissing him. She kissed the side of his neck. The line of his shirt against bare skin. She nipped at his earlobe, which made him groan. She stifled that groan with another kiss.
They started stripping off their clothes, not wanting to waste another minute. Flannel shirt. Jeans. He was the most gorgeous man she had ever seen in her life, all lean, muscular, and cut.
She’d been working in jobs like dance and skiing long enough to see the slight size difference in his legs, but the power in his stance covered it. The scar on his leg gave her a slight pause, but only because she was worried about hurting him. When his T-shirt came off it was her undoing and nothing else mattered. Talk about abs. Tana discovered she was gaping at him, and especially at the thick, hard length of him. He hid nothing from her.
Chase stepped closer, the heat of his body coming off him in waves as he took her chin in his hand. He tipped her face up to look at him. Those full lips—she wanted them back on hers. Every nerve buzzed with wanting him. It was enough electricity to start a house fire.
“Are you sure?” His deep, quiet voice stoked something low in her belly. Desire.
“Yes.” Because the choice was obvious. Stark. Black and white. She could either risk the heartbreak of falling for someone who seemed perfect or risk living the rest of her life filled with regrets. She was done with regrets. Tana took Chase’s hand and pulled him onto the bed.
They fell into the blankets, tugging them out of their neat arrangement. The moment her back hit the bed, Chase was on top of her. He balanced himself on his elbows and kissed her hotly. Her mouth. Her neck. Her collarbone. Hurry, hurry, she thought. And slow down.
Chase teased one of her nipples with his teeth, and she arched off the bed, her desire combusting into something superheated and pure. He moved to her other nipple and she scrabbled for him, finding purchase wherever she could on his skin. Tana spread her legs open for him, as wide as she could. She ached for him.
“I want more of you.” He pulled out of her grip and slid down on the bed, his big hands holding h
er thighs in place. “I need to taste you.”
“Chase, no, no—we don’t have time, we don’t—”
“I said taste. I’ll devour you later.” He bent his head to her most sensitive flesh and licked, one long, lingering stroke that ended on her clit. She’d been so foolish to think he was skilled at skiing more than anything else. Her thighs trembled. “So sweet,” he said, and it took all her restraint not to thread her hands through his hair and keep him where she wanted him.
Tana couldn’t catch her breath. She felt empty without him, needy, and she opened her mouth to tell him so. What came out instead was a whimpering moan. She fumbled in her bedside table and came up with a condom. Tana put her hand over her mouth to stop herself from making any more noises and pushed the condom into Chase’s hand.
He rolled it on and crawled up over her, bent his head to her neck, and pushed himself inside of her inch by inch, his breath hot on her skin. They had to hurry, but he was still finding ways to take it slow, at least for now. It was unbearably sexy. Tana rocked her hips toward him, urging him in, urging him deeper, and when their hips met, she hissed her approval.
“Hard,” she managed. “Now.”
Chase gripped the headboard, eased himself out of her, and entered again in a hard stroke. Yes. It was everything. He picked up the rhythm with her bucking against him.
Tana couldn’t keep her hands to herself, didn’t want to. She raked her fingernails over his chest, tested his hips with her hands, pulled him tight. Tighter. Pleasure sparked between her legs, running in a current up her spine and out to her fingertips, down to her toes. She curled her toes against the blanket and used the bed as leverage. More. Deeper. He sucked in a breath, and Tana realized she was clenching around him, knowing the white-hot force of release was almost on her. There was no stopping it—all she could do was inhale deeply and let the pleasure wash over her.
Chase cursed, the words coming out as a low, guttural noise that was all man, all pleasure. He pinned her to the bed as he came. Hard. Relentless. Her hips still tried to meet his, but there was nowhere to go. She pulsed around him.
He let his head fall to her shoulder, and Tana lay there panting against him. Slow, deep breaths. Chase stirred inside of her and raised his head to look her in the eye. “Amazing,” he breathed. He brushed his lips across her forehead and rolled to her side. He paused just long enough to send her heated look that clearly said getting out of bed was the last thing he wanted to do.
Hazy with desire now, the space inside her bedroom was imbued with heat and courage. Tana hadn’t brought much when they moved in, hadn’t put her laundry away last week, but even the basket of clean clothes struck her as meaningful.
“Bathroom?” Chase asked, a gleam in his eye.
“Next door on the left.” As soon as she heard the bathroom door close, Tana fell against her pillow and covered her face with a clean T-shirt. That was the most incredible sex of her life. Chase was in her bathroom, freshening up, and probably putting his clothes back on. Covering up that beautiful body of his.
She needed to do the same thing—Lindsey could wake up any second. But just for a moment, Tana let herself bask in total satisfaction. It felt so good.
11
Chase walked into Jonas’s office on the main floor of the lodge with bleary eyes and an emotional hangover. Or was it a physical hangover? Whatever it was, it made his whole body pulse with the need to be back with Tana.
Jonas sat behind his desk in the office. He’d renovated the place a few years back to be a modern oasis in the middle of the Elkin alpine-themed ski resort. He’d carried the theme straight through to Christmas—meaning that there were zero Christmas decorations in the office. No tinsel. No nutcrackers. Not even a miniature tree at the corner of his desk.
Maybe Jonas had his own issues with the holiday, but now wasn’t the time to ask him about it. After the red and gold and silver riot of the rest of the resort, Chase’s eyes didn’t mind the break. It just seemed a little empty, compared to the lobby with its towering tree and the needlessly decorated bower at the edge of the parking lot.
Jonas had been working on something, pen hovering over a stack of papers in the middle of his desk while he peered at his computer. He blinked, squinted up at Chase, and flicked off his screen. “You’re up early.” Jonas frowned. “Plenty of time to shave if you cared to do so.”
Chase ignored the comment. The guests wanted to talk to him no matter what state his facial hair was in, and more importantly, Tana hadn’t seemed to mind it last night. Chase had far more important things to worry about right now. Namely, the conversation he was about to have with Jonas.
“I’m good, thanks.” He crossed the room and sat down in an oversized chair in front of the desk, ignoring the ache in his knee from overdoing it the day before. Chase tossed a folder in front of Jonas. “I can’t help you with the hiring process anymore. Here are the best ten outside applicants.”
Jonas glowered at the manila folder like Chase had just dropped a sack of spoiled food onto his desk. He made no move to touch it. “What’s your excuse for not finishing the job this time?”
From the set of his brother’s shoulders, Chase could tell Jonas was stressed. They were all stressed. It was the holiday season, and his grandmother was ill. Guilt flared in Chase’s chest. Maybe he should have put the job first, but he hadn’t, and now there was no way to undo what had been done. Not that he wanted to.
“I can’t help with the hiring because I’m involved with someone who applied. I’m here to ask for your discretion.”
Jonas leaned back in his chair and slid both hands into his hair. “God, Chase. I shouldn’t have to warn you about putting your libido ahead of the family, but here we are.”
“There’s no need for you to warn me about anything,” Chase shot back. “I’ll probably leave soon after the holidays anyway, and you won’t have to think about me.”
His brother looked incredulous. “Really? That’s just like you. Show up and leave when someone asks you to pitch in.”
Chase took a deep breath and steadied himself by gazing deeply into the stark white walls of Jonas’s minimalist office. He wasn’t about to justify the ridiculous comment with an answer. “Do you want me to go through the candidates with you or not?”
“What’s the point?” Jonas made a dismissive gesture at the folder. “You probably chose these resumes at random. I’m going to have to start at the beginning.” Jonas was in rare form. This felt like old jealousies between the brothers. Jonas had always envied him. For some reason, he thought Chase was their grandmother’s favorite, although it was Jonas who would be taking over the resort.
“Fine by me.” The sooner he could get out of here, the better. “Good luck with that.”
“I saw you, you know.” Jonas’s voice stopped him halfway to the door. “Coaching that instructor’s little girl.” Jonas scowled at him, eyes narrowed. “And what makes me the most furious is that you’re a surprisingly great teacher.”
“Seriously? That’s the thing that’s going to turn you from kindly resort manager to behind-the-scenes jerk?”
Jonas sat up straight and pulled the folder across the desk to him. “You’re right, Chase. You should go. A candidate will be here to interview shortly, and someone needs to do this work so that our grandmother isn’t more stressed than she needs to be.”
Chase had no argument with that. And technically, he’d fulfilled his part of the bargain—he’d found the best candidates for Jonas to choose from. The only thing he wasn’t going to do was sit in on the final interviews. Besides, he wasn’t going to hang around after the holidays, so it made no sense for him to weigh in on who should get the job.
He turned on his heel and went out, leaving Jonas flipping pointedly through the slim stack of resumes. He greeted staff members and the front desk crew, but his mind was elsewhere. Jonas seemed as though he was at a maximum stress level, and Chase wondered what was eating at him. Aside from the usual hustle a
nd stress of running the resort, that is.
Chase headed outside into the crisp morning. He took a minute to soak it in, the cold air welcome on his face. Maybe Jonas was having girl problems of his own. That would be enough to make anyone stressed. But no—that was unlikely. Jonas worked so much that he was probably suffering from the inverse problem. A total lack of companionship. He’d renovated himself into his ideal life, but maybe discovered something was still missing.
He took the trail back to his house. Chase wanted to go see Tana on the slopes but knew it was a bad idea. He couldn’t be the kind of boyfriend who stood at the bottom of the ski hill, watching her. Boyfriend. He snorted at the thought. He was not Tana’s boyfriend.
His phone buzzed, and he stopped at the edge of his driveway to check the message. An apology from Jonas? Ha. That would never happen.
Gabe: You busy?
Chase swiped through his phone and dialed his brother’s number.
“When a person texts,” Gabe said by way of greeting, “you should text them back.”
“I’m walking up my driveway. Not looking to text and trip. I think I’ve done enough damage to my leg.”
“What’s up, Chase?”
“I got a job offer.”
“What job offer? At the resort?” Gabe asked.
Chase let out a breath. “No—basically the opposite.” Chase told Gabe about the sportswear company and the opportunity his friend had presented. His brother remained silent. “What do you think?”
“I think that if you came out to LA, we’d be closer to each other. That would be good. But, wait—why are you still there, anyway? Did you miss your flight?”
“Miss what flight?”
“Your flight away from Elk Lodge, to wherever you’re going next. I thought you wanted to get out of there.” Gabe’s tone shifted. “Anything wrong? Grandmother made a big deal about everybody coming back, but I thought—”