Sweet Snowfall [Frostbite Falls Christmas 1]

by Willa Edwards

  Frostbite Falls Christmas 1

  Sweet Snowfall

  Nash Phillips and Cassidy Rasnick have lusted after bookish Grace Perry for years. She’s the only person in town that never held their dubious past against them. But they never acted on their feelings, unwilling to risk their friendship or her reputation. But when a mix up drops Grace’s book in their laps, they see a whole new sexy side of their curvy librarian and they can’t stop themselves any longer. They have to make her theirs.

  Grace didn’t think anything could be more embarrassing then literally knocking into Cassidy outside the post office, until he and Nash revealed they read her soon to be published book. The book includes bondage and sex with two dark dangerous lords. But to Grace’s surprise they aren’t disgusted by her work. Instead they offer her all the sordid details she’s written about.

  But as the night wears on, she realizes that saying good-bye to them is going to be harder to do than she ever guessed. But this has to end, right? Nothing this great can last forever.

  Genre: Contemporary, Ménage a Trois/Quatre

  Length: 39,523 words

  SWEET SNOWFALL

  Frostbite Falls Christmas 1

  Willa Edwards

  

  Siren Publishing, Inc.

  www.SirenPublishing.com

  A SIREN PUBLISHING BOOK

  SWEET SNOWFALL

  Copyright © 2017 by Willa Edwards

  ISBN: 978-1-64010-798-4

  First Publication: November 2017

  Cover design by Harris Channing

  All art and logo copyright © 2017 by Siren Publishing, Inc.

  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED: This literary work may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic or photographic reproduction, in whole or in part, without express written permission.

  All characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead is strictly coincidental.

  WARNING: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000.

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  PUBLISHER

  Siren Publishing, Inc.

  www.SirenPublishing.com

  DEDICATION

  For everyone who believes in second chances.

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Willa Edwards has dreamed about being a writer since she was four years old. When she picked up her first romance novel at fifteen, she knew she’d found her place, and she’s never looked back.

  She now lives in New York, where she works with numbers at her Evil Day Job and spends her nights writing red-hot tales of erotic romance. When she’s not at her computer, you can usually find her curled up in bed with her furry baby, her nose pressed to her e-reader.

  Willa loves to hear from her readers. You can contact her at willa.c.edwards@gmail.com or visit her on the web find out more about her current projects at www.willaedwards.com.

  For all titles by Willa Edwards, please visit

  www.bookstrand.com/willa-edwards

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  Copyright Page

  Dedication

  About the Author

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Landmarks

  Cover

  SWEET SNOWFALL

  Frostbite Falls Christmas 1

  WILLA EDWARDS

  Copyright © 2017

  Chapter One

  Grace tugged her jacket a little tighter around her throat. It was cold as heck today. But even the biting cold snapping at her nose couldn’t dilute how much she loved this town. She waved at Mrs. Dunn placing a new row of gingerbread men and sugar cookie snowflakes in her bakery window, no doubt having run through the previous batch already.

  Grace loved her town all year long. She’d been raised in Frostbite Falls. But Frostbite Falls was never better than at Christmastime. Cherry-red ribbons hung from the street lamps. Deep-green wreaths decorated every door. A small dusting of snow covered the rooftops and trees giving the whole place the look of an old-world Christmas card.

  Grace wasn’t naïve enough to think Frostbite Falls was perfect. They had the same problems everyone else did. But this time of year, it almost felt like it could be perfect.

  “Will I see you at the ball, Grace?” Mrs. Dunn asked out the bakery window. Cinnamon and vanilla followed her like a cloud, even in the middle of summer, but it was strongest around Christmas. “Victoria had me bake those dark chocolate candy cane cookies you love so much.”

  Tonight was the annual Frostbite Falls Christmas Ball. Hosted by the mayor’s daughter and her best friend, Victoria Willis. The night was always an event to remember. Victoria demanded it. Given how much work they’d all put into this year’s party, Grace had no doubt the same would be true tonight.

  “I can’t wait.” Grace continued down the sidewalk, loving the way the woman’s face lit up at her words. “My stomach is growling already.”

  She clutched the package in her hands closer. This year she had even more to celebrate. In only a few short months she’d finally accomplish her deepest dream. She’d be a published author. With the completion of the final round of edits, it would only be a few short months before her book was out in the stores, available for anyone to buy.

  Not that anyone in town would ever know. Grace chuckled to herself. It was her little secret. She hadn’t even told Victoria. Maybe she would, someday. Right now, only her editor, her agent, and Grace could connect her to the name on the book jacket.

  “Good morning, Mr. Herbert.” She waved to the seventy-year-old grocer, who used a large broom to remove the snow from his front stoop.

  He only glared back at her. “Not good for someone with bones too old to shove this muck.” He pointed to the snow. Grace wouldn’t call it muck. The snowbanks were still white and clean from the midnight snow, though the corners were turning grey with dirt. However, she imagined it looked different when you couldn’t clean it up.

  “I’m going to catch my death out here.” He sniveled, tightening his scarf around his neck.

  “I’m sure you could hire someone to help you out with the snow.” Grace refused to let him damper her mood. “One of the bag boys or stockers maybe.”

  Mr. Herbert sniffled again. “I did hire someone. That damn Rasnick boy. But he’s late. Lazy slacker.”

  “I’m here, Mr. Herbert,” Cassidy Rasnick called from six feet down the sideway, walking toward the grocery.

  Maybe someone Mr. Herbert’s age would call Cassidy a boy, but Grace wouldn’t describe him that way. Partially because he’d been two years ahead of her in school. But mostly because there was nothing boyish about Cassidy.

  The local gardener and an overall helpful guy, Cassidy was lean muscle personified. Even through his coat, she could decipher his thick biceps and broad shoulders. Not as well as she could in his T-shirts when he pruned the bushes around the library windows while she worked, but she could still see them.

  “I had to pick this up at the post office.” He held a manila envelope in the air, showing off the package, as if he needed proof he spoke the truth. “I’ll be right there.”

  Against his b
ronzed skin, his nose and cheeks glowed pink with the cold. He looked so damn cute. It was hard to think anyone that burly could be cute, but Cassidy was.

  “Lazy ingrate,” Mr. Herbert murmured under his breath. Grace ignored him. A lot was said about Cassidy and his foster brother, Nash Phillips, around town. In their youth, they’d been wild. They’d made some bad choices. They even went to prison for a few years.

  She hadn’t really known them back then as more than just town gossip. And they’d obviously been set straight. She’d never heard one whiff about either of them stepping a toe out of line since. But bad reputations had a habit of sticking with you in small towns. Not all of Frostbite Falls was ready to accept them as changed.

  Judging from the droop of Cassidy’s lips, he’d heard Mr. Herbert’s comment. Her heart almost broke for him. No one deserved to have their worst mistakes thrown in their face the rest of their lives. Especially when they tried so hard to change.

  Noticing her stare, Cassidy picked himself up. He pushed his shoulders back and met her gaze head-on. “It’s nice to see you, Grace.”

  “You, too, Cassidy,” she responded, ignoring the way her heart beat a little faster.

  “I’ll be over at the library as soon as I can. It’s been a busy day,” Cassidy defended immediately, as if he feared she might rail at him the same way Mr. Herbert did. Nothing could be further from the truth. She hadn’t even thought about the library parking lot yet and the snow no doubt overfilling the slots. As long as she could get to the front door, she’d be fine.

  “I can imagine.” Even for a town prepared for snow, a few inches could halt everything. At least for a little while. “No rush. I doubt anyone will be running out to get a book today. They’ll be digging themselves out for most of the morning.” If her house wasn’t in town and her neighbor didn’t offer to do most of the shoveling, she’d still be snowed in, too.

  “I have to drop this off at the post office, and then I’m heading to the library.” Grace raised her own padded envelope. “Come by when you can.”

  She offered him a big smile, hoping to help compensate for Mr. Herbert’s snide comment. If the grin he offered back was any indication, it had.

  “Thank you.”

  Maybe it was her imagination, but his gratitude sounded like it was for more than just her flexible schedule. But that was probably in her head. Exactly where thoughts of Cassidy and Nash should stay. Or maybe on the pages of one of her books. But definitely not anywhere else.

  Guys like Nash and Cassidy didn’t lust after plump, bookish girls like her. They dated adventurous exciting girls. Ones that wore bikinis to the beach and short skirts out to the bar. And if town rumors were true—which was usually the case—they found plenty of girls that fit that requirement. They didn’t need to go skimming the bottom of the barrel for a girl like her.

  “I’ll see you then.” She waved, both to Cassidy and Mr. Herbert, extracting herself from the conversation before she got any more ridiculous ideas. Which, knowing her, wouldn’t take long.

  She may not have gotten much in the long legs or small butt area, but in overactive imagination she had more than her fair share. Or at least that’s what her pappy had always said. Just like him. Around Cassidy and Nash, that overactive imagination tended to go into overdrive. It was best if she just stayed away.

  She stepped back from the two men toward the small post office, but the second her boot touched the ground she’d knew the mistake she made. Her foot slipped out from underneath her, tossing her forward. Damn black ice. A patch was hidden under the snow, throwing her completely off-kilter.

  She stumbled, flinging her hands out in front of her. She reached for anything to stop herself from face-planting into the sidewalk and knocking out several teeth. Desperate to maintain a fraction of composure in front of Cassidy.

  If she wasn’t already firmly planted in the friend zone, watching her eat asphalt would definitely put her there for good.

  The world swirled around her, and she braced herself to smack right into the cold concrete. Unfortunately, it wasn’t the first time. Probably not even in this spot. But moments before she made contact, two arms wrapped around her, twisting her away from the cold concrete and into a warm chest. The surface was still a little hard, but she could deal with that. It was much better than cement. There was no chance she’d break a tooth on his pecs.

  A groan rumbled beneath her cheek as they slammed into the ground, and a pang of regret echoed inside her. She hated hurting him, even though the other option was scraping her face against the sidewalk. But he didn’t complain. Instead he held her close, keeping her protected.

  Stunned, Grace lay there for a minute, aware she rested on Cassidy’s hard body. A part of her mind—or was it her body—screamed to do something. Snuggle deeper into him. Kiss him. Offer to make mad passionate love to him in thank-you for protecting her.

  But she remained frozen. Unmoving and unable to follow through on any of those fantastic ideas.

  “Are you okay?”

  She glanced up into Cassidy’s compassionate eyes even as she regretted lifting her head from his chest. The beat of his heart beneath her ear was comforting. She loathed to part with it. But they couldn’t lay in the street all day.

  She nodded. Her tongue refused to work enough to respond with words.

  Cassidy outlined the edge of her face with his fingertip, tracing down her temple and across her cheeks. She fought back the urge to moan and lean into his touch. He was just checking for injuries. Her mind knew that. But from the heat coiling through her, starting where his fingers touched and curling outward, her body wasn’t as smart.

  “Thank you,” she mumbled through a throat that felt clogged with marbles.

  The smile he offered her was dazzling. It was the kind of grin that gave a woman ideas. Ideas that were definitely not true when it came to her.

  “You’re welcome.”

  Bracing his hands on the cement behind him, he shifted away, and the moment was broken. If there had been a moment at all.

  Gangly and uncoordinated, Grace scrambled away from Cassidy as fast as she could. No reason to draw out the moment any longer. No doubt the rest of the town would be talking about their little interlude very soon. There wasn’t much else to talk about in a small town, so anything that happened was big news.

  Beside her, Cassidy rose, with the powerful movement of a man in charge. Standing at his full height, their eyes meet, his deep blue gaze setting her off balance. If she didn’t know better, she’d say fire lit those eyes. And hunger.

  But that couldn’t be right. Cassidy couldn’t be interested in her. Their bodies smashed together must have triggered him to think of another girl laying on top of him. Someone fifty pounds lighter without a big ass and bulky stomach. It was the only thing that made sense.

  As quickly as the blaze flared in his eyes, it vanished, disappearing like her breath in the cool air. Maybe it hadn’t been there it at all. It was probably just a trick of her mind. She must have been up too late writing, setting her brain on seduction, when the reality was anything but.

  Cassidy picked up the manila envelopes that had been tossed aside during her fall and his subsequent rescue. He held the top one out to her. She took the package quickly from him, shoving it beneath her arm without looking at it, refusing to make eye contact. It was humiliating enough to fall on her ass in front of Cassidy. The pity in his eye would be too much.

  “Thank you,” she mumbled low. The urge to flee sizzled through her so thick she could hardly breathe. Embarrassment seized inside her, threatening to eat her alive. Of course she had to humiliate herself in front of someone like Cassidy. Stuff like this never happened when she was alone.

  Well, actually, these things happened to her when she was alone, too. It just didn’t bother her as much when she was by herself.

  But Cassidy didn’t look down at her with pity. He only smiled as he always did. Big and friendly and open. Cassidy slipped his own envelo
pe into the back of his pants, protected from the snow by his jacket.

  Mr. Herbert grumbled behind them. Cassidy acted as if the old man didn’t exist. If he could only use that selective hearing a little more, he’d save himself a lot of pain.

  “See you soon.”

  She nodded, stepping around him toward the post office. “Whenever you’re ready,” she added for Mr. Herbert’s benefit. She didn’t want Mr. Herbert to blame him for doing a crumby job to get to the library faster.

  It was only a few feet from the grocery to the post office, and she managed to walk the whole way without another incident. It felt like a miracle, though she knew it wasn’t. She’d strolled all the way to the grocery without slipping, a much longer distance than the few steps to the post office.

  But she’d been of clear mind then. Before she’d run into Cassidy and her mind had gotten away from her. Her entire mind more focused on the way Cassidy’s body felt against hers, and his deep masculine smell, she was having trouble focusing on anything else. Even the package in her hands felt different, lighter somehow. Her steps were shaky, as if her feet weren’t completely touching the ground. Her granny had always said her overactive imagination would be her downfall. Pappy only smiled. Granny said the same to him. They’d been birds of a feather.

  The bell above the door dinged as Grace entered the post office. She stamped her feet inside the door, brushing off the snow from her treads. Anything she could do to prevent another spill sounded like a good idea. She’d hit her embarrassment quota for the day.

  “Good morning.” Brooke Newman smiled at her from behind the counter.