by Leslie North
“Where’s the birthday girl?” Tana’s mom asked, drawing her in for a hug.
“Yeah. I need to wish Lindsey a happy birthday. Seven years old!” Tana’s dad looked all around, a smile crinkling his eyes.
Tana laughed. “She’s right here, Dad. I think she was—” The sentence died before it ended. Because Lindsey wasn’t about to take her turn at Pin the Tail on the Donkey. She was off to the side of the room, Tana’s phone pressed to her ear. Not something she’d authorized.
She made a beeline for her daughter, who moved the phone out in front of her. On speakerphone, no less. Who had she called?
“I had to tell you I love my gift. It’s the best. It’s awesome.”
“Every girl needs a good pair of skis,” Chase answered.
Tana blushed. The skis were good. Too good. At this very moment, Chase probably looked sexy as sin in a dark suit. Mouthwateringly sexy. And he was on the phone with her daughter about the outrageous gift he’d gotten her, a set of customized Frozen-themed skis. She’d known they were skis, but custom ones? Lindsey had been doing just fine on a set of rental skis, and Tana figured they would do until she got the promotion.
“Well, thank you,” Lindsey said. “It’s my birthday party today.”
One of Lindsey’s friends had noticed she was on the phone and came over to see who she was talking to, and then another, and the three of them were huddled around, giggling.
Tana reached in and plucked the phone from her daughter’s hand, then swiped madly at the screen to get it off speakerphone. She didn’t love Lindsey making calls without at least asking first. “Hi, Chase.”
“Hi.” The warm familiarity in his voice made her knees feel as weak as they had in bed with him the other day. “How’s the party?”
“Getting a little out of hand, clearly.” Her face felt hotter than it ever had in her life. Tana turned toward the wall, waving the girls back to the party game. “Sorry about that. Lindsey grabbed my phone, and I’m really sorry she put you on the spot like that.”
“It’s all right. I’m touched.” He wasn’t joking—his sincerity traveled all the way through the phone and squeezed her heart. “Was there anything else the two of you needed?”
“No,” she said. “We’re good. And thank you, uh, again, for the skis. Lindsey loves them. She can’t wait to use them on the slopes.”
“I can’t wait to see it.” Another squeeze to her heart. Chase, looking forward to Lindsey’s first run on her new skis. “Am I going to see you at the employee cocktail hour? Need to be honest with you, Tana. You’d brighten it right up.”
“Oh, please.” She laughed, even more embarrassed. “You should see me if everybody picks up their kids from the birthday party. And my parents are taking Lindsey for the weekend.” A beat passed, and Tana wished she could see Chase’s face.
“She must be really excited,” Chase said, his voice brimming with anticipation. “Birthday weekend fun?”
“So much fun.” And she was still doing the birthday thing. “I’ll see you at the lodge, okay? Soon.” She hung up before he could say anything else to make her blush.
The game of Pin the Tail on the Donkey was ramping up, and Tana let them play a few more rounds before it was time to start settling down. They’d already had pizza and cake. The first parents to pick up kids filtered in a few minutes later. She’d made it through another birthday party.
“Hey, Mom.” Lindsey tugged at Tana’s sleeve. “I forgot my suitcase at home.”
Tana and Lindsey waved goodbye to the last party guest, and Tana looked down at her daughter. She looked exhausted—hanging on by a thread. Tana stroked Lindsey’s hair. “That’s okay. It was really me who forgot it. I was concentrating on all the party stuff. We’ll go back and pick it up, okay?”
“Go get your things, birthday girl,” Tana’s dad said from behind them. “We’ll take over the party cleanup.”
“Oh, dad, you don’t have to do that. I can—”
“Go,” he said with a smile. “We’ve got things under control here.”
Tana drove home. If she was going to make the cocktail party, she had to change fast. She hadn’t wanted to wear something too sexy to the birthday party, obviously, and now she was pressed for time. While Lindsey grabbed her suitcase from her bedroom, Tana rushed to the back of the house and pulled her best little black dress from the closet. Her only little black dress.
She swept into the bathroom and reached for her makeup bag, Lindsey close on her heels with her suitcase. A little lipstick, a little blush, and she’d be good to go. Oh, and mascara. Lindsey picked up a makeup brush and dipped it into some blush powder while Tana put mascara on.
“I think Chase would be a cool dad.” Lindsey kept her eyes away from Tana’s in the reflection. “That would be a good birthday wish, don’t you think?”
Tana’s hand froze midway to her eyelashes. Clearly, she’d been hanging around Chase too much. She was setting Lindsey up to have unrealistic expectations. Eventually, Chase would zoom off to some new high-flying career and leave them both.
“Chase isn’t my boyfriend,” she said flatly. Focus on the mascara. Don’t stick it in your eye. “We’re work friends, honey.”
Lindsey pouted and pointed the brush at Tana. “You like him, though. Right?”
“I do. As a friend. Nothing more.”
Lindsey had too much cake, too much soda, and too much fun with her friends. Her face crumpled, and she got off the stepstool in front of the sink, stalking out of the room. “I want to go to Grandma’s,” she yelled back. “I want to go now.”
Tana put her mascara away, her own heart aching. It had only been a few days ago that Lindsey had taken her first steps. Hadn’t it? She’d gone from a chubby baby to a top-speed toddler to an almost-seven-year-old in no time at all. And Tana hadn’t learned anything, apparently. Her first mistake was bringing the gift from Chase to the party. It was sure to raise questions.
Her second mistake was hurting her daughter’s feelings. She’d been dishonest with her, and that didn’t feel good...but being honest didn’t feel right, either.
Suddenly, Tana didn’t feel like going to the cocktail party. She felt like cuddling up with Lindsey on the couch and watching Frozen. They could try to stop time for a little bit.
“Mom, we have to go,” Lindsey whined.
Tana was pushing her luck. She went into the living room where Lindsey stood with her rolling suitcase, a picture of Elsa and Anna from Frozen on the front.
“Hey.” She knelt in front of her daughter and pulled her in for a hug. “I’m sorry I was short with you.” I wish Chase was your dad, too. “I shouldn’t have been. Did you have a good birthday?”
“Yeah.” Lindsey rested her head on Tana’s shoulder. “But I really want to go to Grandma and Grandpa’s.” She yawned. “I’m tired.”
“Then let’s go meet them. Okay? Couple more car rides, then you can go to bed.”
Tana drove Lindsey back downtown to the pizza place. The timing couldn’t be more perfect—her parents were coming out the front door as they pulled up to the curb. She got Lindsey’s suitcase out of the car and loaded it into the back of her parents’ Honda.
“Grandma! Grandpa!” Lindsey ran to them with a squeal, even though she’d just seen them at her party. It warmed Tana’s heart. They were going to have a great weekend. Lindsey wheeled around on the sidewalk and came back for one more hug. “I’ll see you on Sunday, Mom. Don’t be too lonely without me. I’ll call you, okay?”
“Okay.” She breathed in the scent of her daughter’s shampoo and hugged her tight. Whatever came next, they’d get through it together. That was the one thing Tana could count on in life. “I love you, Linds.”
“I love you too, Mom.”
Her parents came up and took Lindsey by the hand. “Time to get going, birthday girl,” her dad said. “It’s a bit of a drive. But we can listen to Frozen on the way there, if you want.”
“I do, I do!”
“I will. Tomorrow maybe I’ll take a nap after my lessons, get some reading in…” Why? Why was she saying this? What she really wanted to do was spend all weekend in bed with Chase. “Have a good time. Call me if you need anything.”
“We won’t need anything,” sang Tana’s mom. “Now get out of here. Have the time of your life.”
14
Chase glanced around the room, noting all the smiling faces. The employee happy hour—really, a cocktail party hosted by his grandmother—was a big event for the staff at the Lodge. She’d been hosting them for decades, and they’d settled into a familiar pattern. They always started with a staff meeting but then ended with free food and drinks. Employees loved it.
They especially loved the cocktail hours hosted at Christmas, and this one—so close to the holiday—was one of the best. A tall Christmas tree took up most of the space in one corner, soaring toward the ceiling with a rainbow of glass globes decorating the branches. A champagne fountain and a chocolate fountain graced the center of the room. Chandeliers glittered overhead, bathing everything in a warm light that probably made most people think of glamorous fireside Christmases.
It just wasn’t Chase’s favorite. For one thing, he preferred casual attire. For another, spending the evening making small talk about his injury held zero appeal. Surrounded by all the people in the room, an odd feeling of loneliness settled over him.
Lonely.
After his skiing career ended, Chase welcomed the solitude. Now, he missed Tana. He was lonely, even in the middle of the crowd, without her. He didn’t like it. It made his suit seem itchy, the lights too bright, and everyone’s voices too loud. She’d said she’d be there, though.
Chase crossed the room and picked up a plate, helping himself to the appetizers, before circling the ballroom again. There was no sign of Tana.
His phone buzzed in his pocket, and his heart leaped, hoping it was her. But the name on the text wasn’t Tana’s.
Brad: Have you given any thought to my offer? It’s yours if you want it, but I need an answer by the end of next week. We’ve got to get you started the first week of January.
Chase slid the phone back into his pocket and continued his search for Tana. Two ski instructors stood in the corner, both describing routes down the slopes based on their hand motions. His grandmother held court at one of the center tables, a smile on her face. Even Jonas had come to the cocktail hour. However, he alternated between listening to his grandmother and studying his phone intently. If he knew Jonas, he’d rather be working.
All of this, Chase reminded himself, was supposed to be temporary. He’d been itching to leave. Brad had offered him the chance of a lifetime—of his new lifetime—and the Elk Lodge had been the place where his old career had taken form. With the new job, he’d be able to prove himself somewhere new. He’d have to prove himself.
Chase popped a pig in a blanket into his mouth, one of his favorite appetizers from the lodge’s kitchens. He felt more enthusiastic about the pig in a blanket—it was, after all, a really good pig in a blanket—than he did about taking the job with Brad. And that shouldn’t be the case. He should want the job more than anything, but instead, he wanted Tana.
At the party and by his side. And leading her around the room on his arm, as his guest. Chase wanted to take her home and have sex with her in his big bed, and he wanted to curl himself around her and sleep all night. And in the morning, he’d show her the sunrise across the mountain when the snow was fresh and unmarked. And then later, he’d help Lindsey with her school lessons, cook them both dinner, and—
Horror seized him.
This wasn’t some imaginary exercise and it wasn’t infatuation. He was falling in love.
The future he wanted was there in his mind, in clear, terrifying detail. He didn’t want to be out west. He could be perfectly happy here, maybe coaching kids like he’d done with Lindsey. It would put all his skiing experience to use and keep him sharp. They might not be professional skiers, but he could teach them to love the wind in their faces and the glide of snow beneath their skis. And at the end of the day, he would go home to Tana and Lindsey.
“Having regrets over quitting the one job Grandmother asked you to do?” Jonas’s voice cut into his thoughts. “You’re staring at your plate like it offended you.”
Chase blinked at his brother. “No. No regrets.”
He could tell Jonas didn’t want to care, but they were brothers—on some level, no matter how much they fought, they did care about each other. “What is it, then?”
“Just thinking about my options.” Chase was struck by the urge to tell Jonas about Tana—it would relieve some of the pressure in his chest—but he’d promised her he wouldn’t say a word.
Jonas narrowed his eyes. “What options?”
“Job options.”
“Oh.” Jonas gave him one last look. “Don’t stare at your food that way. It makes people think something’s up. Besides your injury.”
“Thanks, Jonas. That’s very helpful of you.”
His brother brushed past him to get to the bar. In a way, he had been honest with Jonas. There weren’t options with Tana. She seemed focused on her daughter and her career. Would she really want to devote all her spare time to a relationship with him? Especially now that he wasn’t a ski champion—that he wasn’t much of anything, really, except a man from a wealthy family?
“You’re doing it again,” Jonas said, heading back to his table.
“Doing what?”
“Staring off into space.”
“Just thinking.”
The real question wasn’t what Tana would have done if he were still a ski champion. The real question was what he should do now. No matter how sparkling and wonderful his vision of their potential family appeared to him, he had to deal in reality. He was moving on from this place, and Tana was putting down roots. They wanted two different things.
Chase put his half-empty plate down on one of the tables to the side of the ballroom meant for collecting dishes. He needed to be at home, in the quiet. Besides, it didn’t look like she was going to show up anyway.
He was still in the middle of the room when he saw her.
All the things he’d been debating furiously in his head, while smiling and nodding at the people around him, fell away. Tana stood framed in the double doors leading into the lodge’s ballroom in a pair of low heels and a black dress that hit just above her knees. Her hair fell in loose waves around her shoulders. And she was looking for him. He knew from the way her eyes danced over the room, searching.
She caught sight of him, and a smile spread over her face. The smile went straight to his core. In the black dress, she looked...transformed. He thought Tana was breathtaking, but in this dress, it was like watching a sunrise as she moved. Graceful, elegant, and inspiring.
Tana raised her hand and gave him a wave.
Chase moved toward her, anxious to be close enough to touch her. Tana cocked her head to the side, for a friendly peck on the cheek. He’d forgotten almost too late they couldn’t kiss in the middle of the ballroom, but she’d remembered.
His nerves were singing with the sight of her. “Hey, beautiful,” he said, dropping his voice to a low whisper so no one would hear.
Tana blushed. “You look pretty good yourself.”
They were clearly both thinking of yesterday and the hot passion they shared. It wasn’t exactly forgettable. Chase glanced around and caught his grandmother watching him. She didn’t miss anything, did she? He tried not to look lovestruck. His grandmother already suspected it was Tana that day in the shed.
“Hey, you two.” Pete, one of the chair lift operators, approached, clapping him on the back. Saved by the bell from making a mistake
in front of his grandmother. “How have things been with you lately, Chase?”
“Hey, Pete. Good to see you here. I see someone I need to talk to, but I’ll catch up with you later, Chase.” Tana strolled away, not bothering to wait for an answer. It was hard not to watch the sway of her hips with every step like a hungry man.
Chase forced his attention back to Pete. “Good. Thinking about getting back on the slopes again someday.”
“That would be awesome.” Pete grinned. “It would be good for you to get your snow legs back.”
“It would definitely cause a stir with the guests if I announced a comeback.” He’d lost sight of Tana. No—there she was, talking with a group of women. He and Pete got into a discussion about new skis, which led them to clothes, which led them to jobs. Opportunities.
Chase sensed Tana behind him in the crowd, and he glanced over his shoulder to find her. She was standing next to his grandmother, and the two of them were deep in conversation. He watched as they embraced, then Tana crossed the room toward him. He needed to get her out of here. Chase wanted nothing more than to peel the dress off her body and have her all to himself.
His heart raced. “Honestly, Pete, I might not be around the lodge much longer.”
“Really? Why?” Genuine concern filled Pete’s expression.
“I got a job offer from a friend.”
“That’s great news!” Pete nodded a little. “Isn’t it?”
“Yeah. The only thing is the job is in LA. And he wants me to start at the beginning of January.”
“Telling everybody about your west-coast offer?” Tana spoke from directly behind him and a chill of regret went down his spine. She patted him on the shoulder and came to stand between the two men.
“A job in LA, man? You should take it.”
“You really should,” Tana seconded Pete’s opinion.