“I see him! I see him!” Silver called out from the window by the front door. Dropping her small backpack, Silver flung the door open and took off running down the front walkway.
“Silver! Put your jacket on!” Lexi yelled out. But Silver didn’t listen, and kept running toward her father, who was just climbing out of a large black pickup truck. Lexi cursed under her breath. Anderson was going to think that Lexi let Silver run around in the dead of winter without wearing a jacket.
A few moments later, Lexi cursed again, a little louder this time. It had been over a month since Anderson had visited, and, in that timeframe, Lexi had convinced herself yet again that she didn’t feel any attraction toward him. But, yet again, as she locked eyes with his across the front yard, she felt herself melting under his heated gaze. Something about the way he looked at her turned her insides to jelly. She grabbed a hold of the doorframe to steady herself, willing herself to keep her composure as she felt a thrill pass through her core at the sight of Anderson.
She tried to speak, to yell out again to Silver to get her jacket. But she couldn’t tear her eyes away from Anderson’s. Luckily, a moment later he broke their gaze, turning his attention to their daughter as he swept Silver up into his arms. He spun her around in circles until she squealed with delight.
“How’s my favorite little ballerina,” he said, lifting Silver onto his shoulders as he walked toward the house. “Ready to get back to Frost Peak and see your Auntie? She misses you something awful. She asks me every day how many days are left until you come home, even though I’m sure she has a countdown on her refrigerator to remind her.”
“I can’t wait to see Auntie,” Silver said. “I want to bake Christmas cookies with her.”
“I’m sure she’ll be happy to do that with you,” Anderson said, ducking way down low so that he could fit through the door without taking Silver off of his shoulders. Lexi admired the ease with which he moved. For such a large man, he was surprisingly agile.
“Hey there,” he said, smiling as he finally let Lexi slide down to the ground. “Thanks for taking such good care of my girl. It sounds like she’s learned a lot over the last few months. Every time I call to talk to her, I can hardly get a word in between her excited chattering.”
Lexi laughed nervously. “I’m glad she’s enjoyed it so much. It’s been a joy having her here. I hope you’re considering sending her back for another term?”
Anderson laughed. “I’m pretty sure I don’t have a choice at this point. It’s either let her come back for another semester, or live with a moping child for the rest of the winter.”
Lexi glanced at Silver, who was happily twirling around the front entryway. It suddenly crossed Lexi’s mind that if she ever had a daughter, she would want her to be exactly like Silver. Lexi shook the thought off, not quite sure where it came from. She wasn’t sure if she would ever have kids, since she wasn’t getting any younger and still didn’t even have a serious boyfriend. And how was she supposed to find a man while being antisocial and spending her days holed up in an Alaskan town with just over six thousand residents—many of whom were already paired off with someone?
“Any big plans for Christmas?” Anderson asked as he easily lifted Silver’s suitcase off the floor.
Lexi winced. It was almost like he knew how lonely she was and wanted to rub it in. Lexi knew that this was an absolutely ridiculous thought, and that he was just making friendly conversation. But she still couldn’t keep the defensive note out of her voice.
“No big plans. It’s been a busy year, so I think I’m just going to hang out here and relax for a bit.” She smiled a bright smile, hoping that he would let the subject drop. But he didn’t. He frowned in her direction and gave her a searching look.
“Just hang out here? By yourself? You’re not going home to New York or something?”
Lexi snorted. “And risk stirring up the paparazzi again? No way! Besides, New York isn’t home anymore. I don’t have any family there, and most of my friends who live there are jetting off to other places for Christmas. I’d be just as alone there as here, so I might as well stay in my cozy house and relax.”
Anderson looked like he was about to say something, but then clamped his mouth shut. Silver, however, made no secret of the fact that she thought being alone at Christmas was not an acceptable option.
“You can’t just stay here by yourself at Christmas!” Silver said, her eyes widening as she looked up at Lexi in disbelief. “Christmas is supposed to be spent with people you love.”
“Silver, honey—” Anderson started to say, but Silver didn’t even realize he was talking to her.
“Why don’t you come to Frost Peak with us?” Silver asked. “There are lots of guest cabins there, and you can help my Auntie Grace and me bake Christmas cookies. It will be way more fun than being alone.”
Lexi saw a pained look cross Anderson’s face, and she knew he wasn’t thrilled about his daughter inviting her to spend Christmas with them. She understood that she wasn’t exactly a close friend, but she had to admit that it hurt a little that he reacted so quickly and negatively to the idea of her spending Christmas with them. Obviously, any feelings of attraction he might have had toward her weren’t strong enough for him to want to explore his feelings further.
“Thank you, Silver, but I think I need to just stay here and relax at home,” Lexi said, hoping that by quickly declining Silver’s invitation the awkwardness of the moment would end. Lexi refused to meet Anderson’s eyes again, choosing instead to focus on the sweet face of the little girl standing in front of her. And that little girl looked extremely disappointed.
“But won’t you be bored all by yourself here? Who will you eat Christmas dinner with?” Silver asked.
Lexi opened her mouth to reassure Silver that being alone wasn’t always such a bad thing, but before she got the words out, Anderson cut in.
“Silver’s right,” he said. “You can’t spend Christmas alone. Pack a bag, and fly back to Frost Peak with us.”
Lexi looked up at Anderson in shock. Hadn’t he just winced moments ago at the idea of her coming to Frost Peak? Why the sudden change?
“I couldn’t,” Lexi said, even though deep down she knew she really wanted to. “I have too much to get done here, and I don’t want to impose on you.”
Anderson rolled his eyes. “It’s not an imposition, because we’re inviting you. And you don’t have stuff to get done here. All your classes are on winter break right now. Don’t be stubborn and spend your holidays alone. No one likes being alone at Christmas.”
Silver started jumping up and down with excitement, and Lexi found her resolve wavering. She had been dreading the idea of spending Christmas alone. And she was curious to see another city in Alaska. Besides, as much as she tried to deny it to herself, she knew that the possibility of spending more time with Anderson wasn’t something she wanted to pass up. So, somehow, she found herself shrugging and saying “Okay,” then heading off to her bedroom to pack a small bag.
What in the world was she getting herself into?
* * *
A little over an hour later, Lexi found herself in the copilot’s seat of a tiny airplane, rising high above the Alaskan landscape below. She had never been a big fan of flying, let alone of flying in a plane that was so small you felt like it wasn’t much bigger than a toy. But Lexi tried to put on a brave face and look like she was enjoying the ride. She didn’t want to admit that she might have been just a tiny bit nervous.
Okay, a big bit nervous.
Silver, on the other hand, seemed to be completely unaware of how they were being held up in the air at a precariously high altitude by only a tiny box of metal. She was bouncing around in one of the back seats, which were even tinier than the front seats, and asking her dad question after question about Christmas plans while he maneuvered the plane toward the north. Lexi wanted to tell Silver to be quiet and let her dad concentrate on flying the plane, but Anderson seemed completely unbother
ed by the interruptions. Lexi knew, thanks to Silver’s exuberant retelling of the story, all about the instance where Anderson had been forced to crash land one of the planes due to an engine failure. Lexi had no idea how Silver—or Anderson, for that matter—could be so relaxed after experiencing such a traumatic event. But they both acted like it was no big deal. Lexi had actually asked Anderson about it before they had boarded this plane, and he had shrugged.
“It happens,” he’d said. “It’s really rare, and it’s unlikely to happen again. But don’t worry. I know how to land a plane even if it loses an engine. You’ll be just fine.”
Lexi had smiled bravely, and that smile was now frozen onto her face as she tried to mentally unravel the knots in her stomach by telling herself that Anderson was one of the best pilots around. It was true. She’d heard people in Kodiak telling tourists that the pilots from Frost Peak Tours were the ones you really wanted to fly with. They supposedly had more experience, training, and skill than any of the other pilots in Alaska. Still, it was hard to put your complete trust in anyone, no matter how talented they were, when you were hovering about fourteen thousand feet above the ground in what essentially amounted to a glorified beer can.
The bumpy flight wasn’t the only thing that had Lexi’s stomach in knots, though. She still couldn’t believe that she was about to spend two weeks out in a wilderness town with Anderson. What had she been thinking? Sure, he told her she’d have her own cabin, so at least she would have her own space. But she was invading his Christmas celebration, and she barely knew him. She wasn’t even sure why he had insisted that she make the trip. He was so hard to read, looking angry and disinterested one minute, then kind and happy the next.
Lexi’s stomach dropped as the plane lurched and dropped several feet. She glanced nervously over at Anderson, who seemed unfazed.
“Sorry,” he said, his voice crackling in the headpiece. “The weather is a little squirrely up here today. I have a feeling we’re in for a bumpy ride.”
Yes, we are, buddy, Lexi thought. Yes, we are.
Chapter Ten
When Anderson finally collapsed into bed that evening, he finally let himself face the reality of what he had done today. He had just invited his daughter’s ballet teacher, a full human, to stay in the middle of a town of grizzly shifters for two weeks. And not just any human. A human who was known to have been followed by paparazzi. Oh, and a human who made his heart beat like he’d overdosed on energy drinks any time she came within fifty feet of him.
“This oughta be fun,” he mumbled, putting a pillow over his face as though the cool, soft material could block out the truth of the situation.
He didn’t know what, exactly, had come over him. He’d felt a pang of sadness for Lexi when she’d said she would be spending Christmas alone. He could tell she was trying to sound lighthearted about it, but the dark shadows in her eyes gave her away. He knew she was dreading the holidays, no matter how brave she tried to look. And when Silver had jumped in to invite Lexi to Frost Peak, Anderson had been surprised but a little proud, too. He was proud of his girl for being sensitive to others’ feelings, and for realizing that people should do everything in their power to include others in celebrations, especially when it was someone who didn’t have anyone else to celebrate with.
But Silver was too young to understand how important it was to keep shifter and human worlds separate. Sure, she had been warned ad nauseam not to let anyone in Kodiak know that she was a shifter. Thankfully, she seemed to have followed those directions well. And she knew better than to let her bear out to play while around full humans. But, beyond that, the lines between shifter and human worlds blurred for Silver. She was young and innocent and accepted everyone as they were. She could not understand why anyone would judge someone else just for being different. So she had invited Lexi to Frost Peak for Christmas.
And Anderson, fool that he was, had agreed. He had a feeling Sawyer was going to want to strangle him tomorrow, but Sawyer couldn’t be too angry. After all, Sawyer’s lifemate was a human, too.
Lifemate.
The word always stirred a strange sadness somewhere deep in Anderson’s chest. He’d thought he had a lifemate in Silver’s mother. And he had, but her life had been too short. Anderson felt the old familiar tentacles of pain wrapping around his heart as he wondered yet again whether he would ever find another lifemate.
He knew deep down that he had invited Lexi here because he thought there was a possibility, however small, that she could be his new lifemate. Actually admitting that to himself was something of a shock, though. There was obvious chemistry and attraction between them, but their lives were so different. She was in Kodiak, running a dance studio. And he was here in Frost Peak, helping to run a clan of shifters.
Anderson wasn’t sure whether they could find any common ground, but, as he lay with his pillow pressed over his face, he determined that he had to at least try.
* * *
As the sun rose over Frost Peak the next morning, Anderson made his way to his kitchen and started mixing up batter for pancakes. He had been planning for weeks to make Silver’s favorite breakfast as a big welcome home, complete with buttery, syrupy pancakes and crispy strips of bacon. Anderson cracked a smile as the bacon started sizzling in the pan. Silver was definitely his child. She had a deep love for anything involving bacon.
Predictably, Silver appeared at the edge of the kitchen not long after the smell of bacon started filling the air. She saw the makings of pancakes and squealed.
“My favorite!” she said, jumping up and down in place.
“I know,” Anderson said. “That’s why I made them for you. Why don’t you run over to Miss Lexi’s cabin and ask her if she wants to come have some breakfast. I’m sure she’s hungry, and I don’t think there’s any food stocked in her guest cabin right now.”
Lexi nodded, then ran to put on her boots and coat over her pajamas. Anderson didn’t bother to tell her to change into real clothes first. It was Saturday, and they didn’t have anywhere to be. Besides, Silver often took her sweet time when getting dressed, and Anderson wanted her to get back quickly so her food wouldn’t get cold.
Fifteen minutes later, Silver arrived back at the front door, with Lexi following closely behind. Anderson’s heart leapt in his chest as soon as he saw Lexi. Her hair was neatly combed, and she was wearing makeup already. When she took off her coat and boots, he could see that she was wearing a pair of dark blue jeans that perfectly accented the curves of her ass. Her dark green sweater brought out hints of green in her dark brown eyes, and Anderson had to turn back to the stove and stop looking at her for a moment. Her beauty overwhelmed him.
She had obviously been up for a while already, since she had spent some time on her appearance. Anderson let himself momentarily imagine her waking up slowly in bed, with the gray light of dawn illuminating the soft outline of her face. He bit his lower lip and went to the cupboard to grab a few mugs. Anything to redirect his mind away from the thought of waking up next to Lexi. This was crazy. He was crazy.
“Coffee?” he asked, trying to make his voice sound normal.
Lexi nodded. “That’d be great. With cream, if you have it. I’m dying for some caffeine. The only thing I found in my cabin was peppermint tea.”
“Sorry about that,” Anderson said. “I should have taken you to the grocery store last night, but it was so late by the time we got in.”
“No worries. I’ll get some food today. And this spread looks amazing. Thank you.”
“Pancakes are my faaaaaaavorite!” Silver sang out, clapping her hands excitedly as she sat down at the table.
Lexi laughed, and Anderson smiled as he set down a coffee mug in front of Lexi. “I always make her pancakes on special occasions. I figured getting home after being gone for such a long time was a special occasion.”
“You must have really missed her,” Lexi said. “Thanks for letting her come study with me for so long. She really has an amazing talent.�
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Anderson nodded as he started assembling generous piles of pancakes onto three separate plates. “I missed her like crazy, but I’m trying really hard to not be an overprotective dad. Or, at least, not as much of an overprotective dad as I have been in the past.”
Silver let out a big sigh. “Sometimes you’re so clingy, Dad.”
Anderson laughed as he set one of the plates of pancakes in front of Silver. “I know, pumpkin. But it’s only because I love you so much. Now, eat your pancakes up before they get cold.”
Silver reached for the butter and syrup as Anderson set another plate in front of Lexi, and then set the last plate in front of the empty chair where he would sit.
“So, what are your plans for the day?” Lexi asked as Anderson took his seat and reached for his coffee mug.
“I’m baking cookies with Auntie,” Silver chimed in before Anderson could answer. “Daddy, can Lexi come? Please? Pretty please?”
Anderson sighed. “You’ll have to ask Auntie Grace if it’s okay with her.”
“It is. I already asked her. She said to ask you if it’s okay with you.”
Anderson laughed. “Well, aren’t you a little go-getter,” he said. “Then I guess the only thing left to do is ask Lexi if she’d like to go.”
“I’d love to,” Lexi said. “Baking cookies used to be one of my favorite things about the holidays, and I haven’t baked any in ages.”
“Well, then, that’s settled,” Anderson said. “I have some business to take care of down at the airport, but I’ll be back in the afternoon. We can go get you some groceries, then, if you want.”
Anderson looked expectantly at Lexi who nodded as she chewed a big bite of pancakes. Anderson watched the way her mouth moved, and wished he could kiss her soft, pretty lips. Honestly, he didn’t want to send her off to bake cookies with Silver. He wanted to take her for a long walk in the forest, and find a secluded path where he could find out if she was as interested in kissing him as he was in kissing her. But Anderson did have some business to take care of, and, besides, he had to go warn Sawyer that he had brought a human to Frost Peak. He wasn’t sure that his alpha would be happy about it, but, Sawyer had been the one to tell him not to run from love, hadn’t he? Surely, he would be understanding.
Grizzly Flying Free (Air Bear Shifters Book 2) Page 7