Christmas on the Last Frontier (Last Frontier Lodge #1)

by J. H. Croix

  Marley rolled her eyes and grinned. “How’s it going?”

  Ginger shrugged. “Nothing new except I’m gonna be giddy for months that you’re finally home for good. You’ll just have to put up with it.”

  Marley’s chest tightened. It felt so good to be home, she couldn’t quite believe it. “It’s not hard to put up with. Safe to say, I’m just as happy as you are,” she said with a grin.

  A waitress arrived and took their drink order. Ginger brushed her dark hair away from her face and tucked it behind her ears. “So, what’s new with Gage?”

  Marley felt the flush on her face. Ginger’s eyes widened. “Well then. No details needed. If you’re blushing like that, then I know how last night went.”

  “Oh my God! How do you know something happened last night?”

  “Because I left with you. So, something happened between then and now or you wouldn’t be blushing.”

  Marley considered last night—another night when she lost herself in the wild heat that engulfed her whenever she was with Gage. She almost couldn’t believe she was the same woman who’d fallen apart in his arms last night. Heat streaked through her. She shifted uncomfortably. Amazing as it was, her complete lack of control with Gage chafed at her. She was trying to get her life back under control, not lose herself in a man. The second her mind questioned it, her body remembered the feel of his rough hands on her, and she felt a ping of longing in her center.

  Marley distracted herself by grabbing the menu and flipping through it. “Last night was great,” she mumbled. “He’s also meeting us here.”

  Ginger squealed again. People at nearby tables turned in their direction. “Ginger,” Marley hissed. “Do you mind? It’s enough that I’m talking to you about him, you don’t need to make a scene. He’ll be here any minute, so how about not embarrassing the hell out of me?”

  Ginger sat back with a humph. “Okay, okay. I’m excited for you. You deserve something good, and he’s good,” she said, dragging the last word out.

  Marley fought her blush and gave up with a giggle. “He’s definitely good.” Which was part of her problem. Gage was so good, he was knocking past her guard and she didn’t know what to do about it. He was so out of the stratosphere when it came to sexy, he blew her mind with just a touch.

  Ginger’s eyes sobered, and she reached over to squeeze Marley’s hand. “I can’t help but tease, and I’m happy for you.”

  “Don’t get too excited. I’m not really sure where things are going.”

  Ginger released her hand and leaned back when the waitress arrived with water and a bottle of the house red wine. Ginger waved the waitress off when she started to pour, deftly taking the bottle from her and filling both of their glasses. After a quick toast, Ginger angled her head to the side, eying Marley thoughtfully.

  “What?” Marley asked.

  “Just thinking maybe you should give yourself a chance to think something good might come of this thing with Gage.”

  Hope flashed in Marley’s heart. She hadn’t planned on any of this, but it was impossible for her not to want more with Gage. She immediately tried to quell the feeling. The last thing she needed to do was pin her hopes on something that couldn’t go anywhere.

  “I didn’t say it wouldn’t, just that I’m not sure where things are going.”

  “I know, but that’s an easy way to keep him at a distance. I think he really likes you.”

  Marley flushed because it was hard to comprehend a man like Gage would really like her. He was the kind of man many a woman would fantasize about—a body honed to perfection, the military sexy vibe he gave off, and so good in bed, he nearly set her on fire. She’d never been known to turn heads and definitely lacked experience. When she was skin to skin with Gage, her doubts didn’t crowd her mind, but outside those moments, she wasn’t quite sure what to think. She had no idea what he considered them to be. It was obvious he had eons more experience than her, so for all she knew, he figured they were having a good time and when it was over, it would be over. She didn’t know if she wanted it to be something else, but she wanted to feel more in control.

  Ginger’s voice broke into her thoughts. “I know I can’t talk you into it, but you’ve spent most of your adult life oblivious to the guys checking you out. You were too damn busy with your work to pay attention. How about you practice making your brain shut up and just go with it?”

  Marley took a sip of wine and leaned back, working to keep her expression calm. Trying to “just go with it” with Gage scared the hell out of her. He pushed her so far past her comfort zone, she lost control in ways she never had before at a time in her life when what she wanted was to feel like she had control again. Complicating matters was the fact that after she climbed peaks of passion she’d never even contemplated, the way he held her made her feel safe and secure—made her want to give herself over and let him take care of her. When she knew she needed to take care of herself. No one else could do that for her. She took another gulp of wine and met Ginger’s eyes. “I’ll work on it.”

  As Marley looked over at Ginger, Ginger’s grin widened. Marley’s back was to the door, so she jumped when she felt a warm hand curl around her shoulder. Turning to glance up, her eyes collided with Gage’s. His lightning eyes darkened the moment they met hers. Without a word, he leaned down and took her lips in a swift kiss, his tongue stroking deeply inside. In what couldn’t have been more than a few seconds, he left her flustered when he pulled away. If she doubted her control with him, all it took was one kiss and she forgot where she was. The undertow of passion was so strong between them, she felt powerless to resist it…and part of her didn’t want to resist.

  He turned to Ginger. “Hey Ginger, nice to see you again,” he said smoothly as he slid onto the seat beside Marley.

  Dazed, she wiggled over so he had room beside her. His leg rested against hers, the warm heat curling through her.

  Ginger smiled brightly at Gage. “Nice to see you too! What’s new at the lodge today?”

  “Almost done on the inside. Don tells me he’ll have the lifts running by next week. I also hired his daughter Delia to cook. I’m hoping to persuade her to help manage the front, but she says she wants to see how it goes first.”

  “Delia will be perfect. She was there all the time with her mom. Have you seen her since you’ve been home?” Ginger asked, directing her question to Marley.

  “I ran into her at the store, but we barely had a chance to talk. I was with my mom, and she had her son with her.” Marley glanced to Gage. “I’m so glad Don sent her your way. She worked with her mom when she got older, so she knows her way around the kitchen there. I bet she’ll do great managing the front too.”

  Just looking at Gage flushed her again, so Marley took another quick sip of wine. The conversation moved on with Ginger offering suggestions for who to hire for cleaning and reception. As they talked, Gage rested his arm across the back of the booth, his thumb idly caressing her neck and driving her to distraction in the process. With the slightest touch, he turned her into a puddle. The current between them snapped and crackled. She lost track of the conversation though she managed to nod and make enough vague comments for Gage and Ginger to carry on.

  Ginger’s sharp question jolted her. “How come you didn’t mention the emails to me?”

  Marley swung her eyes over to Ginger and then to Gage. “I thought you’d have mentioned it to her,” Gage said, holding her eyes, his gaze clear. When she didn’t reply, he arched a brow in question.

  Though she hadn’t been purposefully withholding anything from Ginger, she felt bad she hadn’t mentioned it. Gage’s concern made her feel protected, which felt so good she didn’t know what to do. On the heels of that came her confusion about how to rein in the feeling he elicited—the wish to simply let him take care of her.

  Marley focused on Ginger again. “It’s only been two emails. The second one showed up last night after you left. I didn’t want to m
ake something out of nothing.” Thinking about the emails sent a curl of discomfort up her spine. She took another sip of wine. Gage’s thumb kept stroking softly across the base of her neck.

  Ginger chewed her lip. “What the hell? Are you worried they’re connected to the robbery?”

  Marley shrugged. “I don’t know. They don’t make any sense. Aside from my own stuff, I had nothing to do with human resources. I definitely never had any data from them for my work there.”

  “I’ve got a friend who works in private security in Seattle. He’s going to trace the source of the emails and follow up with the police in Seattle,” Gage interjected.

  “Are you sure that’s necessary? I mean, what if it’s nothing?” Even though Gage had asked her about doing this, whenever she considered it, she wondered if she was overreacting.

  “If it’s nothing, then it won’t matter,” Gage said flatly. His thumb ceased its soft strokes as his hand tightened on her shoulder. “I’m not going to sit by while you wonder who’s sending those. We’re also not going to let the police sleep on the investigation of the robbery.”

  “I’m sure they’re doing everything they can. I don’t want you to think you have to do this…” The part of her that savored his protectiveness bumped up against the part of her that wanted to pull the pieces of her life together on her own.

  Ginger cut her off and turned to Gage, her expression somber. “Thank you for checking on this.” She paused and looked at Marley. “You haven’t heard from the police in weeks. Even if they mean well, they’re busy and you moved away. The squeaky wheel gets the grease. If Gage has someone down there to follow up on things, maybe they’ll keep digging and figure out who the hell did what they did to you. It’s not okay for you to go through that and have the investigation just peter out. Gage is right, if the email thing is nothing, it won’t matter what his friend finds.” Ginger turned to Gage again and nodded firmly. “It means a lot to me that you’re taking care of this and her. Marley’ll be pissed at me for saying this, but sometimes she takes independence a little too far and never asks for help.”

  Marley lobbed a napkin at Ginger, but didn’t have it in her to argue the point. She’d been steadily sipping her wine and had quite the buzz going. Gage glanced at her, his eyes assessing. Turning back to Ginger, he simply nodded. Their food arrived and conversation moved on. Marley couldn’t think too much about the emails or the robbery because it rattled her too much. Gage’s involvement unsettled her because she felt vulnerable enough as it was. But she also felt a sense of relief. He’d so easily stepped in and lifted the weight off of her, she didn’t quite know what to make of it. She didn’t want to get too comfortable in whatever it was between them, but it felt so good, she couldn’t seem to think clearly.

  Before she knew it, Gage was standing and tugging on her hand. Ginger chuckled. “You’re driving her home, right?”

  Marley started to protest, but Gage shook his head. “You’re not driving. I’d bet this dinner was the first thing you had to eat all day. That wine hit you hard.”

  He was entirely right, but she didn’t want to admit it. After he’d left this morning, she’d had coffee and buried herself in working on a few apps she had in development. She tended to lose track of time when she was working like that. If it hadn’t been for Ginger’s call about dinner, she’d likely still be working.

  She met Gage’s eyes and the heat that lay banked inside whenever he was near sparked and flickered. She forced herself to focus. “Fine. I might have had a tad too much wine.”

  Gage gave her another tug, and she slid out of the booth. When she stood, her legs felt rubbery, and she was thankful for his strong arm clamping around her waist. Ginger stepped to her side and dropped a quick kiss on her cheek. “I’ll pick you up tomorrow if you need a ride into town to pick up your car.” With a smile and a wave, she was off.

  Marley stood at Gage’s side, savoring the delicious feel of his muscled body against hers. Gage tilted her chin up. “Ready?”

  When she nodded, he reached past her to snag her purse and began walking. Marley realized how hard the wine had hit her as she realized she’d likely have lost her balance without his strong grip on her. The cold air hit her forcefully when they stepped outside. The wind kicked up and blew her hair in a swirl. She shivered as they made their way across the parking lot. When they reached his truck, she glanced up. He looked down just as she looked his way. In a flash, electricity crackled between them. Gage turned, sheltering her between his body and the truck. He took a breath, and she felt his heartbeat against her breasts. He held her gaze in the dark.

  Gage brought his lips to hers, the heat of his kiss a brand. Desire thundered through her. The icy air around them was such a contrast to the heat between them, she thought she might melt. He delved deeply, his tongue tangling with hers, before he pulled back swiftly. Their breath misted in the air. He ran his hands up and down her arms. “It’s freezing. Let’s get you home,” he said gruffly.

  They drove home through the dark night, snow starting to fall, illuminated in the path of his headlights. Gage hooked his arm around her waist when they walked inside and efficiently started a fire in the woodstove before carrying her upstairs. Marley drifted into sleep, snug against his side. The moon hung low over the mountains, leaving a shimmering path on the water below.

  Chapter 12

  “Okay, what’s the status on those emails?” Gage asked. He stepped around a furniture dolly in the hallway as he walked toward the office. Aidan had called him while he was in the middle of directing a crew of movers to move out the old furniture and relocate the new furniture. After Gage had attempted to persuade Don he could handle all of the moving himself, Don had simply handed him the number of a local moving company.

  “I thought Navy SEALs were supposed to be smart,” Don had commented.

  “We like to take care of things ourselves.” It chafed at Gage to pay for something as simple as lugging furniture around. He figured his relentless physical conditioning might as well come in handy where it could, so he stubbornly ignored Don and set out to move everything himself.

  “You’ve got the funds to pay someone, don’t wear yourself out moving furniture.” At that, Don had walked away.

  After a few hours of trudging up and down stairs by himself, Gage realized Don was smarter than he was and promptly hired someone else to do it. The last week had flown by. Delia’s initial hesitance to manage the front had dissolved under the face of how much work needed to be done. She’d promptly hired cleaners and was slowly working her way through applicants for managing the reception area. After quickly discovering Gage was no help with recommendations on the menu, she’d wrangled Marley and Ginger into meeting with her to look over her ideas and offer suggestions.

  Thanksgiving was days away, and Gage was due to fly down to Bellingham for one day only. He had too much to do to stay away longer and couldn’t imagine being away from Marley more than that. Which should have given him pause, but he swatted away any hesitation. She’d blushed like mad when her mother stopped by to check out the progress on the lodge and invited Gage to Thanksgiving dinner. Given that Gage was either at Marley’s place or she was here every day, he had enough sense to know her family would be wondering what Marley meant to him. Her mother had nodded approvingly when he’d explained he needed to see his family then since he’d be at the lodge for Christmas. He considered inviting Marley to come with him, but he sensed it was more important for her to be with her family after everything she’d been through this year.

  He finally reached the office and swung the door shut behind him. “Sorry man, I missed half of what you said. I’ve got guys moving furniture here. I’m finally in my office.”

  Aidan chuckled. “No worry. I heard the racket and was talking to my receptionist here.”

  “So, those emails?”

  “Right. When you asked me about it, I figured we might end up in a dead end. Most companies often hav
e one internet service provider address. If anyone sent it within the company, we’d have a hard time sorting out who it was. In this case, we got lucky. The guy sent it right from his house…”

  Gage cut in, anger bolting through him. “Who the hell sent it?”

  “If you hadn’t interrupted me, I was getting to that. Kent Walker rents the apartment where we traced the ISP address. He works at the same company Marley did. We’re working on it on this end to see what else we can find on him.”

  Gage swore and sat down abruptly. He almost broke the phone in his hand and had to consciously ease his grip. “I’m coming down there. Let me…”

  “My turn to interrupt. Hold your horses, man. Don’t come down here until we have some more info. If you show up and blaze your way in to haul off and punch this guy, we may never figure out what’s behind his emails. You’re too emotionally involved. Let me do my job. I’ll keep you up to date. Once we’re ready to move, then you can come down here and be all badass.”

  Gage’s chest was tight, anger pulsing through him. He forced himself to breath slowly. He knew Aidan was being logical, but it didn’t make it any easier. “I’m not too emotionally involved.”

  Aidan barked a laugh. “No offense, but hell yes you are! I don’t know Marley, but that woman has your number. You were one of the coolest, calmest guys on our team. You never did anything that didn’t make sense even when it was damn near impossible to stay sane. You know damn well it would be stupid to show up on this guy’s doorstep until we have time to figure out what’s behind it. We don’t even know if he had anything to do with the robbery, but I’d bet money you’ve already decided he did. Sit tight and wait.”

  Gage heard Aidan’s words and knew they were rational, but the cool, calm part of himself Aidan was referring to—that part was not running the show when it came to Marley. The thin thread of control he had was due solely to his years of training and work as a SEAL. By virtue of habit, he’d trained impulsiveness out of his system. It took all he had not to throw his phone at the wall and ignore everything Aidan just said.