A Blazing Little Christmas

by Jacquie D’Alessandro

  Chapter 3

  Heather had never thought of herself as having an addictive personality. But Jared’s kiss made her rethink that position.

  Far away in the back of her mind, some obnoxious little piece of herself shouted shrilly that she should be the seducer and not the seducee yet again. But, dear, sweet Lord. The shrew within probably just needed to get laid because a kiss this good didn’t deserve to be stopped under any circumstances.

  Her arms tightened around his neck, savoring the wall of solid shoulders beneath them. The heat of him around her fired away any chill at being outdoors in a snowstorm, his body a furnace of taut muscle and rigid angles. And speaking of rigid…

  She was wrapped around him so thoroughly she felt the full extent of his desire for her, every impressive inch of him tattooed against her stomach.

  He broke the kiss before things got any more carried away and he tipped his forehead to hers while she caught her breath. Or maybe he was waiting to catch his. She noticed their ragged inhalations rasped in synch.

  “I swear I didn’t ask you up here to take advantage of you.” His words took a long moment to make sense inside her scrambled thoughts.

  When they did, they stung.

  “Since when would I allow myself to be taken advantage of?” Did she look like a woman who wasn’t in control of her own desires? Okay, not counting the way she allowed her family to maneuver her. And even then, she drew lines when necessary.

  She stepped back, out of his reach.

  “I didn’t mean—”

  “Furthermore, if and when I let you take me, I can assure you it will only be to my advantage.” She stressed the last word, turning his phrase back on him as she spun on her heel and walked away.

  For all of two steps. Before she remembered she had no idea where she was headed. She’d never possessed her mother’s flare for dramatic exits, but then, she had precious little practice since she preferred to run her life based on hard work instead of high emotions. Unfortunately her practical nature seemed to fly out the window around Jared.

  “It’s the second cabin on the left.” He pointed the way, apparently guessing her dilemma. He already had her suitcase in hand and he held out his arm to her.

  A nice enough offer since she would have fallen on her butt earlier if not for his quick reflexes. And decidedly strong arms, a mutinous voice in her head reminded her.

  “Thank you.” She took his arm for the rest of the trek, hoping against hope she could pull herself together and stay focused for the weekend.

  She didn’t come to Lake Placid just to see snow or escape the family resentment over her failed engagement. Her number one reason for this trip was to leave Jared Murphy naked and alone in his bed on Sunday morning so he would know how if felt to be abandoned and left wanting…

  As they reached the cabin, Jared slipped the key card from her hands and used it to open the lock. Their arrival chased away her dark thoughts for the moment and she allowed herself to take in the charm and beauty of the place.

  White clapboard siding made the cabin blend in with the snowy landscape, but the numerous windows were bracketed by black shutters and a small wreath with a red bow had been hung on each set of glass panes. The classic holiday decorations continued with a length of fresh greenery roped all around the entryway. Scented smoke puffed from nearby chimneys, lacing the snowy air with the smell of burning hickory or maybe pecan—something nutty and sweet. A six-foot toboggan rested against the cabin as if waiting for her to take it for a spin down one of the neighboring hills. Mountains, actually.

  Peering over her shoulder she took in the pristine scenery once more. The inn property nestled on a mountainside as the faint smudge of sunlight sank deeper in the sky.

  “Heather?” Jared held the door for her, waiting for her to enter the cabin and she experienced a twinge of guilt for her thoughts of sensual vengeance.

  What if Jared had really gotten in touch with her to smooth over their past or make some kind of amends? He’d certainly chosen a charming setting and not some cheap interstate motel that smacked of a one-nighter.

  “Sorry,” she murmured, too confused to sift through what this weekend together

  might mean. For now she simply stepped into the cottage and out of the snow. “Wow. This is really wonderful.”

  Tugging off Mr. Krause’s Santa hat, Heather peered around the cozy space with a practiced eye, enjoying the authentic touches to make the place look more like an Adirondack great camp.

  “You like it?” Jared set her suitcase inside and pulled the door shut behind him before approaching the fireplace where a bundle of wood had already been laid.

  “It’s so full of warmth and character.” She ran one hand along the rough-hewn boards that made the interior look like a log cabin.

  At the far end of the room, Jared used a long stick of fat wood to light the fire inside a gray stone hearth. The living area furniture all faced the fireplace, the pieces just mismatched enough to make it look like a family homestead instead of a hotel. A pair of old skates hung on the wall, the silver blades polished to gleaming even though the leather was worn and cracked.

  Framed pictures of Olympic events hung in a grouping near the entry while an antique game table sat to one side of the living room. The hallway that must lead to a bedroom was at the far end while the kitchen was situated on the opposite side, the appliances small and well-proportioned for the scale of the space. And although the gas range was antique-looking with cast-iron grills, Heather knew the model was modern.

  “I’m glad you like it.” Jared stirred the pile of sticks with the poker until the flame he’d fanned began to steady.

  “If I tossed a few pieces of fabric across the couch, this place could be an advertisement for The Attic.” She worked hard to incorporate this same kind of easy timelessness in her designs. An antique sensibility minus the fussiness.

  Standing, Jared walked toward her, lighting sparks within her faster than he’d ignited the blaze in the fireplace.

  Thankfully he dropped onto the arm of the couch a few feet away, sparing her wound-up emotions the agitation of his physical nearness.

  “I read some about your business online. It sounds like you’re doing very well.”

  The compliment pleased her, as did the interest she read in his gaze. Slipping out of her coat, she prepared to tell him about The Attic but the phone rang before she could speak. Frowning, she searched for the handset and found an old-fashioned black telephone with a round dial on a table behind the sofa.

  “Excuse me.” She picked up the receiver, expecting to hear from the innkeeper or his wife.

  “Heather, thank God you’re there. Why aren’t you picking up your cell?” Her sister’s voice blasted into her ear on the other end. With the vocal cords of an opera diva and the projection of a kindergarten teacher, Trish never had a problem making herself heard. “Never mind. What’s important is that mom is trying to set me up with Gary. Have you heard about this?”

  Heather tried not to let her frustration show in front of Jared. Not that she was angry with Trish, because heaven knew if her mother tried to set up her up with Trish’s former fiancé, Heather would have wanted to vent, too. Especially since Trish’s exes tended to be heavily tattooed, pierced and emaciated by the rock-and-roll lifestyle.

  Mostly Heather was frustrated because her problems had followed her a thousand miles north.

  “I know and I’m sorry.”

  “Don’t you be sorry.” Trish sounded offended that Heather would dare apologize and she roundly cursed family politics.

  “If it makes you feel any better, she’s mad at me for not sewing you a dress for the party so you could make a good first impression.”

  Trish snorted. “I think my nose ring was all the first impression Gary wanted from me.”

  “Yes, well, the fallout pressure from The Wedding That Wasn’t turned out to be more than I could take, so I’m hiding out for a few days if you could just burn th
is phone number, okay?” She shifted uncomfortably, unable to leave the room since the phone in the cabin was circa 1940.

  Jared stood to peer out the window at an incredible lake view Heather hadn’t even gotten to enjoy yet. Damn it, she shouldn’t let her family intrude on this weekend. When she wasn’t seducing Jared into making him regret walking away from her, she could be outside playing in the snow.

  “You? Being the bad girl for a change?” Trish squealed on the other end of the phone and Heather thought she slipped into that octave range that would make animals cringe. “Well, I can’t wait to hear what made Little Miss Junior Peach Blossom turn rogue, but I’ll let you get back to whatever hell you’re raising up there at the North Pole or wherever you are.”

  In the interest of temporary peace, Heather said goodbye, ignoring her sister’s—half sister’s—implication that Heather could never raise hell.

  As she hung up the phone, she glimpsed at Jared’s back silhouetted against the window where the scarcest of daylight now illuminated the lake. She opted to skip mentioning the phone call altogether and joined him by the window, hoping they could resurrect their talk about her business. Maybe he hadn’t even heard about the wedding she’d mentioned.

  She didn’t know how or when she’d get back to seduction tonight, but Trish’s phone call had taunted her to follow through on the plan. Being a good girl had given her one broken heart, one broken engagement and a reputation as the Woman-Most-Likely-to-Answer-Her-Cell-Phone.

  Tonight would be different.

  * * *

  Jared waited outside a store in the Olympic Village in downtown Lake Placid while Heather bought a hat later that evening. Over a foot of snow had fallen since she’d touched down that afternoon and the inches kept accumulating. He hadn’t bothered to drive his truck into town since the village was walking distance from the Timberline Lodge. Heather had already made a few comments about the fact that he’d never be able to drive home tonight, implying he should sleep over at the cabin although she’d never said it outright.

  Peering over his shoulder at her through the glass panes in the store’s front window, Jared watched her charm the guy behind the counter in that effortless way she had. He’d gotten so much pleasure out of watching her that first night they’d met, observing how she turned heads everywhere she went. Not because she was exceptionally beautiful, but because of the comfortable way she carried herself, the ease with which she worked a room or bartered down the price on a knit hat. People wanted to make her happy, partly because her smile was an addictive drug that could bring a man to his knees, but more because she radiated a warmth of spirit that people could spot a mile away.

  He knew he wasn’t the only one who’d noticed this. That first night at the outdoor bar, he’d seen the way her girlfriends listened to what she had to say, the way she was always at the center of the group and still managed to be the first to reel in an outsider. The bartender looked to her for the group order. The bouncer flirted with her first. The band sent out a tune to her. And judging by how fast her cabin phone rang earlier, Jared guessed her family relied on her. She’d admitted her half sister had been on the other end but then she’d clammed up about the call, including a mystery wedding in the family.

  Hell, he hoped it hadn’t been hers she skipped out on this weekend. Maybe she’d just had a spat with a family member Bridezilla or something.

  “What do you think?” Heather appeared in front of him suddenly as he heard the jingle of the store door chime while it closed.

  She wore a sky-blue knit cap with a snowflake stitched on the front and gloves that matched. She’d taken her hair down from the ribbon that held it earlier, so the mass of chestnut waves spilled haphazardly over the shoulders of her dark wool coat.

  “All you need are some ski poles and the locals would never know you’re not a genuine snow bunny.”

  “I’m not even going to ask about snow rabbits or why I resemble one.” She looped her hand through his arm and his insides contracted at the ease with which they moved together.

  The kiss they’d shared earlier had never been far from his thoughts. Of course, fantasizing about what that kiss might have led to only hurt his cause to make Heather look at him as a man with more to offer than being able to last all night long. Damn it, he needed to make things right between them if he ever hoped to expel the memories of one crap Christmas after another. Even last year—when he’d first come home from overseas—he’d spent the holiday holed up in a stripped-down cabin to work on renovations in the hope of blasting away bad memories.

  This weekend, he’d be making some new memories to replace those and who better to supplant all those dark thoughts than a woman who could light up the whole freaking village with one sexy grin?

  “Ski bunnies are the visitors who are new to the slopes.” He steered her past a couple of antique shops and a street vendor selling hot chestnuts. “They usually dress better than the pros who wear their gear every day.”

  “Kind of like the northern golfers who show up on Hilton Head with spiffy new clubs and no idea what they’re doing?”

  “Bingo.” He tossed his pocket change into a bucket for a bell-ringing Santa, then stopped by the wooden toboggan run erected over the frozen lake.

  “So you’ve just insulted me and my new snowflake hat.” She peered up at the weatherworn contraption where kids climbed a winding set of stairs to the top with sleds of every color. “No wonder tourism is so much bigger down South where we are gracious and welcoming to our guests.”

  “You realize we only show up in the South so we can make fun of your accents, right?” He could listen to her talk all day long, and he had the feeling if he ribbed her about that sweet Southern drawl she’d only pour it on thicker.

  “We just like to speak s-l-o-w-l-y to y’all as a subliminal cue to take a deep breath and relax once in a while before y’all keel over from the self-importance of your frantic pace.” She smiled sweetly and pointed to the toboggan run. “Now, if you’re done trying to make me out to be Ellie Mae in mittens, could you tell me what that is?”

  She craned her neck to see where the network of wooden tunnels and archways ended but trees hid the outlet over the water.

  “It’s a sled run that shoots you out onto the ice.” He figured they’d be better off out in the snow than in the all-too-heated atmosphere of her cabin back at the lodge, so he planned to push outdoor fun to the limit tonight. “Want to try it?”

  She was already picking up a toboggan at the foot of the platform.

  Jared paid for the rental and the ride and followed her up the stairs to the chute, taking the toboggan from her. At nearly six feet long, the wooden sleds were awkward but fast as hell.

  They moved through the line quickly since the families were beginning to disperse now that it was almost nine o’clock. The sled run was lit all the way down to the ice, the snow shimmering in the reflected glow as they reached the top.

  “Oh, my God.” Heather watched as the kids in front of them fell off to one side on their way down the shoot. “Is this dangerous?”

  “It’s one hundred and sixty-six feet of fun, babe.” He plunked the sled down at the top and waited for her to get on. “But just in case, you’d better sit in front.”

  “The front?” Her question was accompanied by shrieking from the next trail over as another group went down the twin chute.

  “That’s the safest place.” He helped her get settled on her knees and then realized he’d need to wrap his legs around her if he wanted to keep her steady.

  The position shouldn’t be a big deal since she wore a long winter coat that tucked around her where she sat.

  “Well?” She turned around to peer at him, her cheeks flushed pink from the cold. “Ready?”

  He remembered other times he’d seen her fair skin suffused with color like that, right before she hit her peak…

  “Yeah,” he lied, straddling the sled and lowering himself to sit behind her.

&nb
sp; “Oh.” She let out a note of surprise at his sudden proximity, his boots tucking under the front of the sled so his thighs bracketed her hips. “Ooh.”

  She settled against him, leaning her back into his chest and shifting her legs to fold beneath her. The movement wriggled her butt right into his lap and he acknowledged all the snow in the world wouldn’t be able to cool him off if they kept this up.

  Ah—poor choice of words.

  He ground his teeth against a surge of primal possessiveness.

  “Hold on,” he warned her, using his arms to tip the sled forward down the chute.

  Gravity shifted, pushing them into their seats as they tore across the icy run. Heather screamed and wrapped her arms around his knees, squeezing him tight to her. It was probably the ideal date for a hormonal teenager, but damn it was killing him. Her hair blew back on one side of his face, the silky strands whipping in the wind and couching him in her scent. He slipped his arms around her waist to anchor her to the sled, his hands aware of the exact distance between his thumbs and the underside of her breasts.

  Are we there yet? Jared squeezed her hips with his legs as they flew over a small rise in the run that had them airborne for a few heart-stopping seconds. Heather murmured something that sounded like “Ohmigod, ohmigod, ohmigod” under her breath then squealed with delight when they touched down on the frozen ice and skidded to a stop midway across the lake.

  For a tantalizing moment, they sat there, breathless from the run and seared together by the soaring temperatures wherever their bodies touched. If he shifted his arms or his weight a little bit, he could roll her right underneath him, his body perfectly aligned with hers…

  “Don’t let go.” She whispered the words a fraction of a second before he would have bolted from the sled, her hands tightening on his knees.

  He froze there, oblivious to the other tobogganers who must be coming down the chutes. Luckily their combined weight had propelled their sled much farther than the younger kids who took the ride, so they were fairly out of view beyond the lights of the run.