Sugar Pine Trail--A Small-Town Holiday Romance

by RaeAnne Thayne

  She deserved far more than a guy like him could offer her.

  “But you won’t,” she murmured.

  “Is that regret I hear in your voice, Ms. Winston?”

  Her color rose a little higher, but to his surprise—and secret delight—she gave a throaty laugh. “A little, if I’m honest. But a little regret is better than great, steaming buckets of regret—which is what both of us would carry away from this, if we don’t stop here.”

  “Where’s a guy’s charm sledgehammer when he needs it?” He was only half joking.

  “I’m that most unique of women, someone who is apparently immune to that particular weapon.”

  He wasn’t so sure. He had tasted the desire in her kiss, had sensed it in the trembling of her fingers in his hair and the press of her body against him.

  “Are you?” he murmured.

  “Yes,” she said firmly. “And that wasn’t a challenge. Only a statement of fact.”

  “Which of us are you trying to convince?” She pursed those swollen lips, becoming the prissy librarian he found so very intriguing. “I like kissing you. You’re very good at it, which I would have expected.”

  “Should I say thank you?”

  She made a face but avoided the question. “It sounds as if we have a big day tomorrow,” she said. “We both should try to get some sleep.”

  He had a feeling he wouldn’t be able to sleep any time soon, and when he did, he would be tormented by heated dreams of the impossible, but he forced himself to nod. He should never have brought her here. He should have let some other guy—some better guy—help her check off all those items on the list, though he hated the very idea.

  “Are you sure you’ll be okay out here?” he asked.

  “Absolutely.”

  He added another log to the fire, then put the screen up to keep any stray sparks from jumping out. “The fire will probably burn for another hour or two, though the embers will stay hot for much longer. If you get cold, just throw another log on.”

  Or come crawl into bed with me.

  He couldn’t say the words, as much as he might mean them.

  “Got it. Good night, Jamie.”

  He nodded and forced himself to turn and head into the other bedroom.

  He should never have kissed her again, but at least it accomplished one objective—it distracted both of them from discussing topics he preferred to avoid.

  * * *

  AS SOON AS his door closed behind him, Julia sank onto the sofa, gazing at the glittery dance of sparks. She felt like her insides were filled with embers, smoldering and crackling and spitting. She had no idea how she had resisted the man under these difficult circumstances—or how she would possibly do it the next night.

  She was halfway in love with him.

  The realization burned through her, in all its stark, unadorned, slap-to-the-head reality.

  What a disaster. She was falling in love with a man who had basically told her not to expect anything but a few kisses from her, who shied away from any serious discussion by kissing her until she forgot what she was saying.

  It was just like her to be so foolish, to throw her heart after something completely impossible.

  She had to keep her emotions in check. How humiliating, if he figured out that what had started as a crush was rapidly becoming much more. She would simply have to maintain perspective, to remember that none of this was real. When the weekend was over, they would both go back to their respective lives and the roles they had created.

  Jamie would continue womanizing and flying and charming half the population of Haven Point.

  She would try her best to return to real life. Her house, the library, her friends. Those things were real. This weekend was only make-believe. If she could keep that in mind, she just might survive with what was left of her heart intact.

  * * *

  WAS SHE REALLY doing this?

  The moaning of the wind through the trees sounded like a warning of impending doom while the butterflies in her stomach seemed to be auditioning for the Radio City Music Hall Rockettes.

  Julia tried to relax her death grip on the ski poles she had no idea how to use. This was crazy. Sane, moderately intelligent people didn’t strap sticks to their feet and head down a snowy mountainside. They stayed inside by the fire with a mug of hot cocoa and a good book.

  She didn’t do this sort of thing. Oh, she didn’t mind winter hikes or a bit of snowshoeing, but downhill skiing was way outside her comfort zone.

  “I don’t think I can do this.”

  “Don’t be nervous.” In the morning sunlight, Jamie’s smile was bright and encouraging. She couldn’t see his eyes behind his sunglasses, but she was certain they would match his smile, an expression designed to make any woman think she was the most important thing in his world and he completely believed in her.

  She was as much a sucker as the next girl.

  “I’m not nervous,” she answered. “I’m terrified.”

  “You’re doing great. You aced the lesson. Just remember that. You know how to turn, and you can snowplow and stop without any trouble at all. You didn’t fall once on the bunny slope. This is just the next step. Don’t worry. I’ll be here the whole time. Visualize yourself with the wind in your hair and your face.”

  The bunny slope hadn’t seemed at all threatening, but they were now atop a real mountain. All she could manage to visualize was a moving picture of herself in the middle of some spectacular cartwheel of death.

  Everyone else seemed to be oblivious to any sense of fear. People were whizzing off the lift one second and heading down the mountain without even pausing to take a breath.

  Even the boys had picked up the sport with astonishing speed. Brendan, along with Andrew Caine’s teenage daughter, were keeping an eye on the two boys and Brendan’s children.

  “Maybe I could walk back down and meet you at the lodge,” she suggested.

  He sidestepped to her, that supportive smile pasted firmly on his face. “You’ve got this, Jules. We can wait right here until you’re ready. Just breathe for a minute and enjoy how pretty it is up here.”

  Psychology 101. He was trying to calm her, distract her from her nerves. It might even work. She sucked in a deep breath and then another. The air tasted sweet and pure up here, in a way she couldn’t begin to describe, and the view really was spectacular.

  The vivid blue sky contrasted sharply with new powder, and she could see the reservoir they had passed on the way from Hope’s Crossing up the canyon to the Silver Strike ski resort, as well as the road snaking back to the pretty town.

  He pointed down the mountain. “Look how well the boys are doing. They’re ripping it up.”

  She spotted the boys’ parkas amid the sea of other skiers and snowboarders, under the watchful eye of his family members. “How do they pick it up so easily, like they’ve been skiing their whole lives?”

  “Kids are amazing, aren’t they? They can be fearless.”

  She, on the other hand, was suffocating under the weight of her fear.

  “I don’t suppose I could take the ski lift back down, could I?” She had to ask, didn’t she?

  He grinned. “Nice try, but that’s against the rules, I’m afraid. You’ve got no choice here. That’s one of the good things about skiing. Once you take that lift up, you’re obligated to see it through to the bottom—unless you end up needing the ski patrol to carry you down on a gurney. Let’s try to avoid that particular scenario, shall we?”

  Oh, cripes. He had to bring up ski patrol and gurney. Now she could picture that humiliating scene entirely too clearly, her lying in the snow with some broken limb, cold and in pain and mortified while Jamie stood by looking gorgeous and concerned.

  “We can take this as slow as you want.”
/>   “I think you forgot a little thing called gravity.”

  “You’re in control of gravity up here, believe it or not. You’ve learned how to turn and how to stop. This is a nice, wide, gentle ski run. We’re not heading straight down—we’re zigzagging down from side to side. You get to decide the angle of our zigs and your zags. You want to go faster, you turn more often. You want to slow down, just ease back on the turns and make your path wider.”

  She let out a breath and tried to give herself the same pep talk she had delivered the day before on his jet. She wanted to experience more of life. This was something she had always wanted to do. Hadn’t she put it on that stupid list she made during book club?

  Two items down on her list in two days. That wasn’t bad at all, if she could only find the strength to follow through.

  “What if I fall?”

  “Then I’ll be right there to help you get back up.” He gave her that teasing smile she secretly adored. “Of course, if you fall, and I have to help you, you’ll have to pay me back with a kiss. It’s the rule.”

  The matter-of-fact way he imparted that information forced a laugh out of her that only sounded a little hysterical. Or so she hoped.

  “Says who?”

  “It’s clearly listed in the Jamie Caine ski instruction rule book.”

  “Given your reputation, that seems remarkably counterintuitive. If you promise a kiss every time someone falls, you would have women lined up from here to Haven Point, trying to sign up for lessons.”

  “It’s a big job, but I’m willing to take it on. Somebody has to teach all those lovely women how to ski.”

  She laughed again, relieved to sense some of her fear floating away like ice crystals on the wind.

  Despite his urging her to take her time, she knew he couldn’t stand here forever. He was right; she had to do something or she wouldn’t make it off this mountain.

  That seemed to be an entirely too apt metaphor for the rest of her life. She wanted to live, and she wouldn’t do that while she stood around dithering and giving in to her fears.

  “Okay. I’m ready. Let’s go.”

  Jamie’s approving smile gave her the last bit of courage she needed. She pushed off with her poles and took off. Her stomach twirled as she headed down.

  Okay. She could do this. Adrenaline sizzled through her as the wind rushed to meet her, and her heart thundered in her ears. Maybe there was something to this whole skiing business, a valid reason that might explain why the industry made billions every year.

  As he suggested, she made her turns wide and slow, but momentum and gravity still carried her faster than she felt comfortable with. She did fine on her first turn, then her second and third, but somehow on the next one, her ski caught an edge. As she moved into the turn, she could feel herself losing her balance. Despite her efforts to regain it, her feet slid out from under her. At the last minute, she remembered how he had taught her to fall, and she turned her body to absorb as much of the impact as she could, keeping her arms in a braced position at her sides.

  He was at her side in seconds. “You okay?” he asked, his features worried.

  “I think so.” She didn’t bother to tell him her pride was the only thing bruised.

  He reached a gloved hand to help her up, and when she was on her skis again, she stumbled into him a little. Instantly, his mouth was on hers. His lips were warm and tasted of the coconut lip balm sunscreen she had seen him put on earlier. Delicious. Why couldn’t they just stand here and do this, instead of having to make it all the way down the mountainside?

  “I warned you,” he said with a laugh.

  “You did. Maybe I fell on purpose, just to see if you meant it.”

  “Did you?” He sounded genuinely shocked.

  “What do you think?”

  “I think you continue to surprise me, Julia Winston,” he said with another laugh.

  Her heartbeat was still fierce in her chest, but now she wasn’t sure if it was from the skiing or from the kissing.

  Not that it mattered.

  “If it helps, that was a textbook fall. Perfection.”

  “At least I’ve got that part down, right?” She drew in another breath and pushed off again.

  She fell twice more before they reached the bottom. The first one was accidental, but the reward of his warm mouth on hers was just too enticing. What woman could possibly blame her?

  When she and Jamie reached the bottom, Brendan and the children skied over. The boys seemed to glow with excitement.

  “Did you see me, Julia? Did you?” Davy asked.

  “You did so well,” she said.

  “Better than you.” Jamie’s nephew Carter didn’t hold back any punches. “How many times did you fall down?”

  “Not nearly enough,” Jamie murmured, earning a surprised look from his brother, which quickly turned speculative.

  Julia could feel her face heat and didn’t dare look at him. “So many, I lost count.”

  “Should we try one more run?” Brendan said. “Maybe I should give Julia a few tips. Looks like your methods aren’t working.”

  “Or are working too well,” she couldn’t resist answering.

  “Are you up for another run?” Jamie asked.

  “Yes!” the children all shouted in unison.

  “Julia?” Brendan asked.

  “Yes. You can’t stop now, especially when you’re beginning to get a taste for it,” Jamie said.

  “This time, let me take you,” his brother suggested. “I’m a much better teacher than James here.”

  Somehow she doubted she would have the same incentive to fail, with Jamie’s happily married brother. It wouldn’t be nearly as fun but she would probably genuinely learn how to ski instead of merely discovering more creative ways to fall.

  “That would be great. Let’s go.”

  “I guess that leaves you with the kids,” Brendan said with a grin at his brother as they all headed to the ski lift again.

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  “THANK YOU FOR letting my brother drag you here. It’s so fantastic to see you again.”

  “He didn’t drag me anywhere,” Julia said to Charlotte Gregory. “I’ve been delighted to be here. The boys and I have had a fantastic time.”

  “I heard you went skiing today for the first time. How did you like it?”

  Julia thought of Jamie’s mouth, which tasted improbably tropical, his laughing eyes, the heat of him that had seeped through her skin despite the December chill. Her face flamed, and she prayed his sister didn’t notice—or at least couldn’t ascribe the cause to Jamie. “It was wonderful. I almost wish we had a ski resort closer to Haven Point.”

  Charlotte smiled. “Any time you want to ski, I imagine Jamie would be happy to bring you here. Maybe he’ll start coming around more. We don’t see him nearly often enough.”

  Julia didn’t have the heart to tell Charlotte that after Jamie moved out of her second floor apartment in a few weeks, it was likely she herself wouldn’t see him at all. What reason would they have for their paths to collide?

  “You look beautiful, by the way,” Charlotte said. “I love your dress.”

  “Thanks. It’s Eliza’s. She was kind enough to lend me one for tonight.”

  “She should give it to you. Seriously. It suits your coloring perfectly.”

  Julia did feel more glamorous than she ever had in her life. Tonight she wasn’t a dowdy librarian. Jamie might have been feigning the stunned look when she finally came out after getting ready, but somehow she didn’t think so. How could she not find that gratifying?

  She and Charlotte chatted for a few more moments about some of the similarities between their respective towns until Dermot Caine wandered over to talk to them.

  He k
issed his daughter on the cheek, then did the same to Julia. “What are the two prettiest women in the place doing over here in the corner by themselves? Some smart guy should take one of them out to the dance floor.”

  “I don’t know where all the smart guys have gone these days,” Charlotte said with a teasing smile.

  “I don’t know either. I do know my sons are over talking basketball with a couple of NBA stars, which means I get to be the luckiest fellow at the gala. Too bad there’s only one of me.”

  “I need to go talk to Evie and Claire about our Christmas party anyway,” Charlotte said. “That should narrow your choice.”

  Her father smiled and turned to Julia. “Will you dance with me, my dear?”

  He was such a darling man. How could she refuse? “Certainly. I would be delighted.”

  Jamie’s father led her out as the jazz combo began playing a familiar ballad.

  “Ah. One of my favorites,” Dermot said, further cementing her adoration of him. “You should have heard the great Billie Holiday sing this one,” he said.

  “I like that version. It’s a classic. But what about the soulful touch Nina Simone brought to the table?”

  He gave her an appreciative smile. “A beautiful woman who knows her jazz. I knew you were a woman after my own heart.”

  She laughed, utterly charmed by Jamie’s father. He was simply adorable and probably made every woman he spoke with feel as if she was the most important person in his world.

  Rather like someone else she knew.

  Was that why she liked Dermot so much? Because he reminded her so very much of Jamie?

  His behavior wasn’t feigned either, but an utterly genuine reaction. She felt like the most important person in his world because in that moment, she was the most important person in his world.

  “Are you enjoying yourself, my dear?” Dermot asked.

  “Very much. Hope’s Crossing is lovely. Everyone I’ve met has been nothing but kind to me.”

  At a small dinner party earlier at the huge, luxurious home of Harry Lange, who apparently owned the ski resort, she had met dozens of people. She was likely to remember only a few of their names.