Tempting Gifts

by Elena Aitken

  Contents

  Tempting Gifts

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Author Note

  This is a work of fiction. The events and characters described herein are imaginary and are not intended to refer to specific places or living persons. The opinions expressed in this manuscript are solely the opinions of the author and do not represent the opinions or thoughts of the publisher. The author has represented and warranted full ownership and/or legal right to publish all the materials in this book.

  Tempting Gifts (The Steamy Version)

  All Rights Reserved

  Copyright © 2014 Elena Aitken

  Version 1.1

  This book may not be reproduced, transmitted, or stored in whole or in part by any means, including graphic, electronic, or mechanical without the express written consent of the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. Your support of author rights is appreciated.

  Ink Blot Communications

  ISBN:978-1-927968-29-1

  Also by Elena Aitken

  The Springs Series

  Summer of Change

  Falling Into Forever

  Winter’s Burn

  Midnight Springs

  Second Glances

  She’s Making a List

  The Seasons Volume 1

  The Seasons Volume 2

  The Springs—Stone Summit

  Summit of Desire

  Summit of Seduction

  Summit of Passion

  Castle Mountain Lodge Series (Steamy Versions)

  Unexpected Gifts

  Hidden Gifts

  Mistaken Gifts

  Secret Gifts

  Goodbye Gifts

  Tempting Gifts

  Box Set Books 1-3 Steamy

  Box Set Books 4-6 Steamy

  ~ * ~

  Dear Reader,

  I have really enjoyed writing the love stories at Castle Mountain Lodge, and my biggest goal has always been the romance of the story. However, I have always wondered about how the characters would have reacted to a little more ‘heat’ in their stories.

  After hearing the same question from some readers, I decided to go ahead and explore a ‘hotter’ side of Castle Mountain Lodge. If you’ve read these stories before, don’t worry, the heat level isn’t over the top. But there are sexy scenes, similar to my other series, The Springs.

  If a sweet, clean romance is more your style, the original versions of The Castle Mountain Lodge Series will always be available and I will continue writing them.

  I do hope you enjoy the sexier side of Castle Mountain Lodge.

  Happy Reading!

  ~Elena

  CHAPTER ONE

  Lisa Gibbs wiped a smear of blue finger paint off her cheek and then, before the little girl who sat at the miniature table across from her could squirm away, used the cloth to clean most of the paint off her smiling face. She couldn’t do anything about the paint that had found its way into her hair, but it would wash out. Besides, a messy child after arts and crafts was almost always a happy child. And if her parents didn’t like it when they came to pick her up from the Cub Club, well, that was too bad.

  “Why don’t you go play, Emily?” Lisa suggested. “I’ll put your painting on the rack to dry and you can take it with you when you leave.”

  The little girl nodded. “It’s for my mommy. I love her the mostest.”

  Lisa felt the familiar pinch of jealousy. Which was ridiculous because she didn’t even know the little girl’s mother. But it didn’t matter. She didn’t need to know the woman to envy her. Whoever she was, she had a beautiful little girl, and Lisa could guess she also had a husband who doted on her. The perfect family. Just like all the families who visited Castle Mountain Lodge.

  Lisa watched Emily join a group of children building Lego before she cleaned up the painting supplies and returned them to the supply cupboard. She loved her job. Loved working with the children. It was their parents she had trouble with. They were all so damn perfect and happy and…the complete opposite from anything she’d ever had, or likely ever would.

  The bells on the door chimed, alerting her to the arrival of a new guest. Instinctively, Lisa looked for Morgan. Her boss—and friend—was in the middle of reading a story to a small group who hung off her every word. Morgan waved at Lisa to handle the visitor and she nodded her response. Lisa grabbed the registration clipboard and turned around.

  When she saw the man in front of her, tall and filling out his T-shirt with muscles that looked to be earned by many hard hours in the gym, Lisa momentarily forgot what to say. She’d certainly never seen him before. But that wasn’t unusual at the Lodge. Guests were always coming and going, bringing their kids in and out of the child care center.

  “Welcome to the Cub Club,” she said. She gave him a bright friendly smile. “What can I help you with?” He didn’t have a child with him, which was unusual. “Are you picking up your child?” She scanned the list, trying to figure out who he might be picking up. “Because I’ll have to see some ID before we release them to you.”

  “Oh no. I’m not here to pick anyone up.” She raised her eyebrows at his choice of words; he tipped his head briefly and gave her a strange look before he added, “I’m just wondering how this works here.” He gestured around the room.

  “Well, usually you have a child to register in the program.” If he was some creeper who was just trying to figure out a way to be close to the kids, there was no way he’d be getting past her. The fact that he looked as if he could pick her up and throw her over his shoulder hardly seemed like an important detail. She forced a smile and tried to be as friendly as possible until she could figure out what he was after. “This is a club for kids, but if you’re looking for something to do at the Lodge, I could direct you in the right direction. We have a wide variety of activities for our older guests as well, sir.” She put her clipboard down and looked at him pointedly.

  “Oh no.” A smile crossed his face and he laughed as he realized what she was implying. “It’s not like that at all.”

  Lisa’s instincts were to believe him. Despite his broad chest and thick arms, he didn’t look like the threatening type. In fact, he looked like the type of guy she would normally be attracted to. Very attracted. But that was before. Things were different now and a man, even one as attractive as the one who stood in front of her, was not on her agenda. “Well, how is it then, sir?”

  “Jason,” he said. “My name’s Jason. And I actually am wondering about the Cub Club. Not for myself obviously,” he added quickly.

  The man crossed his arms over his chest, which drew more attention to them as far as Lisa was concerned. She tried not to stare at his defined muscles.

  “Obviously.” She looked directly into his big green eyes. “That would be weird.”

  He chuckled and nodded. “That it would. But don’t worry, I’m not some kind of crazy. I actually need to register Kayden .”

  “Kayden? That’s a nice name.”

  “Yeah. His mom named him after his grandfather.” There was a time, not too long ago, when Lisa would’ve inquired further about Kayden, his mom, and whether his extremely good-looking and charismatic father was a single father and potentially in need of a date. But that was before she almost lost everything she’d worked for at the Lodge because of her tendency to flirt, and well, more than flirt, with guests. After the Gage Mitchell incident, when she took her attraction to the movie star who was staying at the Lodge a little too far, she was lucky she still had a job at all. And ther
e was no way she was going to make that mistake again. Things had changed. She had changed.

  She glanced up from her clipboard where she’d started writing. “Okay.” She returned her attention to the clipboard with the professional detachment she’d perfected since the incident. “We can get your son registered without a problem. How many days will you be visiting us at Castle Mountain?”

  She held the pen poised in her hand and waited for his response. When he didn’t say anything, she looked up. “Sir? How many days?”

  “It’s Jason,” he said finally. Amusement laced his voice. “Remember?”

  “I remember.” She returned his smile. He was so disarming, she couldn’t help how her body responded to him. “How many days would you like to register for, Jason?” She emphasized his name this time. “Basically, how it works is every day we plan different activities for the children so they can enjoy some fun, kid time, and you and um…Kayden’s mom…”She tilted her head with the implied question that she knew she had no business asking and tried to tell herself that she didn’t care what the answer was. When Jason only shrugged in response, she continued. “Well, then the two of you are free to enjoy some of the activities at the Lodge that aren’t quite so child friendly, and everyone has a good time.”

  “Sounds good,” Jason said. “I’ll sign him up for the day after tomorrow.”

  “Great. You said your son’s name was Kayden?” Lisa scribbled down the date next to his name.

  “Oh, he’s not my son.”

  His words caught her and she looked up and took a deep breath. “Okay,” she said. “Your stepson then?”

  Jason chuckled. Apparently he found her funny. “I never said he belonged to me. Kayden’s actually my nephew. My sister’s still checking in so I thought I’d come down and take care of things for her.”

  A flush passed over Lisa’s face. She really shouldn’t jump to conclusions. “I’m sorry,” she said. “I just assumed. But we generally only get parents coming into the Cub Club. It was an easy mistake.”

  “And do you flirt with all the parents?”

  “I wasn’t flirting.” Lisa thrust her shoulders back and crossed her arms, because the last thing she was doing or intended to do was flirt.

  “Oh, really?” He grinned.

  She wanted to be irritated by his grin, but it only made him more attractive and that was way too dangerous. “Absolutely not.” She shook her head and narrowed her eyes into a glare.

  “Well,” he said with an easy smile, “if you were, I’d be flattered.”

  Damn it. He flirted with her.

  She bit her bottom lip a little and forced any and all thoughts that were even remotely inappropriate from her head. She wasn’t going to go down that road again. Not even for a man who looked like Jason. She shook her head firmly. “Sorry to disappoint, but I was just doing my job. I am definitely not interested.” She emphasized the words so there’d be no further misunderstanding. And by the transformation on his face, Lisa was pretty sure he got the point. A part of her, especially the part that thought he was a nice guy, felt bad.

  “If you say so.”

  “It’s not that—”

  “Hey, whatever you say.” He tucked his hand in his back pocket, a move so effortlessly casual, it made Lisa’s stomach flip in a way that both annoyed and excited her. “So, what else do we need to get Kayden registered?”

  Lisa swallowed hard; for some unknown reason, she felt the need to explain. “Look, it’s not you; it’s just that I kind of make it a point not to date guests.” She searched his face for an indication that he wasn’t still upset with her, and she couldn’t help but wonder why she cared at all. He was just a guest. He’d be gone in a few days, and as long as she behaved, she’d still have her job. It wasn’t like her to care about what anyone thought, let alone some random guy she’d just met. But there was something about Jason. “Seriously. If it wasn’t for that, I would totally be flirting with you.” Why on earth did she just say that? Lisa bit the end of her pen to keep from talking any more.

  His eyes flashed, and the corner of his mouth turned up in a wicked grin. “And what makes you think it was a date I was interested in? I had something much different in mind.”

  He emphasized the word date and his eyes flashed with a look Lisa had become all too familiar with when it came to men. She took an automatic step back and shook her head. Anger flooded through her. Did he really just proposition her? Clearly her read on men was slipping. It was just her luck that the most gorgeous man she’d laid eyes on in months was also a complete ass.

  It took her a moment to recover, and then with a renewed determination for professionalism, she picked up her clipboard and tried to resume the check-in. Anything to get Jason, and everything he suddenly represented, away from her as quickly as possible.

  “What room are you in?”

  “I thought you weren’t interested?” His eyes were hard, but she detected an edge of amusement in his voice. “But if you insist—”

  A hot blush shot across her face. “I need it for the form.”

  “If I knew it, I’d tell you. But I don’t have it yet.” His grin got wider. “Just put it under Porter.”

  She scribbled down the name. “And anyone who will be picking up or dropping Kayden off? I need their names. His mother, perhaps a girlfriend or—”

  “My sister’s name is Jennifer. I don’t have a girlfriend.”

  Despite how obnoxious he was, the piece of information caused an annoying flutter in her chest. “Okay, and how many days are you staying with us?”

  “Five days.”

  Five days? That was long enough to get to know him. The idea popped into her head before she could stop it. What was she even thinking? He was clearly a player and even if she hadn’t sworn off men, Jason should be the last guy she’d consider. She did not need that type of drama in her life.

  “Five days is a long time,” she said with as much detachment as she could muster. “I’m sure you’ll be able to take in a lot of what the Lodge has to offer.”

  “Doubtful.” He rolled his eyes. “I’m here for a family reunion.”

  “Well, that sounds fun, too.” She raised her eyebrows.

  “I don’t know about that.” He shoved his hands in his back pockets, and in an instant, the arrogant man he’d been melted away to reveal the friendly, approachable man she’d met originally. “But it’s been awhile since I’ve been up to the mountains. I forgot how pretty it is up here. I’m looking forward to exploring, maybe a hike or a—”

  “Doesn’t sound much like a reunion.”

  “Honestly?” Jason leaned in and whispered. “That was just an excuse to get up to the Lodge.”

  “Well, now that you’re here,” Lisa swallowed hard, a chill going down her spine at his closeness, “I hope you find what you’re looking for.”

  He was so close his scent filled her senses. It was a spicy, manly scent, almost like cinnamon, but richer. Almost like chocolate. She fought the urge to pull away even though it was exactly what she should be doing. What was it about this man? She should have been running in the opposite direction, yet something about him drew her in at the very same time it pushed her away. Confusion roiled through her.

  “I’m sure I’ll find exactly what I’m looking for,” he said after a moment.

  His words were loaded with expectation and innuendo. But despite the draw, she had to stay strong and stick to her rules. Especially with a man who so obviously was only in it for the short term. It was probably part of his game to find a holiday fling and she was definitely not in the mood to be anyone’s game. No thank you.

  Lisa was just about to step back and put a safe distance between them when she heard a voice behind her.

  “Lisa?”

  She froze and then spun around to see Morgan stood behind her, a frown on her face.

  “Is everything okay here?” Morgan asked.

  “Of course, I—”

  “He was just—”<
br />
  Morgan looked at both of them in turn. Her eyes narrowed. Eventually she turned to Lisa. “Why don’t you take a break?”

  Lisa looked back at Jason before she turned to Morgan again. She did not look impressed and no doubt she thought Lisa was hitting on the guests again despite all of Lisa’s promises to the contrary. She flicked a look at Jason. Damn him. It was all his fault. He’d done this and he was probably going to go away and have a good laugh with his buddies or his family or whatever, at her expense. She narrowed her eyes and opened her mouth to protest again, but there was no point. Morgan was going to be pissed. That was for sure. Without bothering to look at Jason again, she nodded and walked away.

  There was no doubt that Morgan would want to talk about it as soon as she was done with Jason, but she might as well save her breath. Lisa wasn’t a fool: despite all of her best efforts since the Gage Mitchell incident, her reputation was a hard one to shake. It’s not as if she meant to go over the line—it just happened. Things probably would have been different if her attraction with Gage Mitchell had panned out exactly how she’d planned. But that definitely hadn’t worked out, and looking back, it was probably for the best.

  No, it was definitely for the best. Lisa smoothed her hair back into a ponytail, and tried to rid herself of the memory. She’d decided then that she really needed to stop acting so loose with men. And she had, too. She spared a quick glance to where Morgan still talked to Jason. For the most part.

  “Lisa?” A little voice provided her with the distraction she needed. She looked down at the little girl she’d been painting with earlier.

  Lisa crouched so she was at eye level. “What’s up, kiddo? Do you need something?”

  “Will you play with me? I wanna build blocks, but they keep falling.”

  Lisa smiled and tucked a strand of Emily’s hair behind her ear. “I would love to.” She took the little girl by the hand and let her lead the way to the corner where the blocks were kept.