“I didn’t fall down, but I’m here to tell you that my boys are not happy.” Jack glanced around at his jeans-wearing companions. “The next time I come out here, my guys will be thermally protected and waterproofed. Count on it.”
After the laughter died down, the crowd dispersed with much joking about frosty denim and shrinkage. Trey would have liked to confirm with Elle that they’d meet in his room when she was free, but she was having a long conversation with Jared. Trey decided to go back to his room and get free of the cursed jeans.
Watkins called out as Trey started toward the lodge. The barrel-chested cowboy had his cell phone in his hand.
Trey paused. “What’s up?”
“I have a call from Pam.” He put the phone to his ear and continued to talk as he approached. “Let me check with him, Pam. Should be fine.” He put his thumb over the speaker and glanced at Trey. “As we might expect, Emmett’s freaking out a little about all the fuss surrounding the ceremony.”
“What fuss?”
“You and I haven’t been part of it, but Pam’s been in consultation with the chef about the menu because some items didn’t come in as expected, and the florist shipped the wrong arrangements and Emmett’s coat doesn’t fit quite right. You know, the usual wedding issues.”
“If you say so. I’ve only been involved in one wedding, and that was when Sarah and Pete got married last August. I’m not what you’d call an experienced wedding person.”
“The upshot is, Emmett is stressed. Pam thinks it’ll help if we meet in the room where the ceremony will be held and give them a little preview of the music we intend to play. She thinks just listening to those songs he loves, songs he helped choose, will remind him of how great the wedding is going to be.”
“I’m not sure that will work. It might make him more nervous than ever.”
Watkins nodded. “It could, but she’s running out of ideas short of plying him with whiskey.”
“Isn’t there a bachelor party for him tonight? We can get him toasted then.”
“And we will, but it’s quite a few hours between now and the bachelor party. Anyway, I think we should give it a shot.”
“You bet. After all, she’s rolled out the red carpet for all of us. Does she want us to do the preview now?”
“Yep. As soon as we can change out of our ski duds, or in your case, out of your wet jeans.”
“Oh.”
“You got something planned?”
“Not exactly, but...” Trey couldn’t very well explain to Watkins what he’d scheduled for the next couple of hours.
“Something to do with our ski instructor, maybe?”
Trey’s face grew hot.
“Look, ordinarily I’d put Pam off for a little while, but she sounded desperate. If you want me to go down there and handle it by myself, I will.”
As a testament to his driving need for Elle, Trey considered that offer, but only for a split second. “No, that wouldn’t be right. I’ll go. Give me fifteen minutes to change clothes and grab my guitar. I’ll meet you in the lobby.”
“Thanks.” Watkins squeezed his shoulder. “I know Pam is going to really appreciate this.”
“I’m sure she will.” Trey glanced back at Elle, who was still talking to Jared. How could he let her know the plan had changed?
Too bad he didn’t have her cell number. He’d get it first chance he had, but for now he’d have to stop by her room and slip a note under her door. That wasn’t great, but it was the best he could come up with on short notice.
Knowing he needed time to write and deliver the note before he met Watkins in the lobby, he made tracks for his room, which fortunately was on the first floor. He took off his gloves and jacket on the way there. That soak in the tub wouldn’t be happening.
Inside his room, he tossed his coat on a chair and pulled off his clothes as fast as his cold fingers allowed. Then he grabbed a towel from the bathroom and rubbed it briskly over his chilled body. Ah, better. Not as good as a soak in the tub, and definitely not as good as making love to Elle, but he’d survive.
As he finished his rubdown, he heard a knock at the door. He wrapped the towel around his waist and checked the peephole. Maybe Pam had changed her mind and Watkins had come down to tell him. He could only hope.
Instead, he discovered Elle, still in her ski clothes, outside his door. He pulled it open. “I—”
“Don’t talk.” She hurried inside and began tearing off her jacket. “I have five minutes. Jared’s driving into town to look at some new ski equipment for the lodge and needs me to go. The sale ends today. I couldn’t get out of it.” She dropped the jacket and knelt down to take off her boots.
“But you still want to—”
“Oh, yeah.” She glanced up, and her blue gaze was full of fire as she dispensed with her boots. “I want to.”
He dropped the towel.
6
ELLE HAD KNOWN the sensible thing to do—cancel having sex with Trey. On her way to his room, she’d conducted an inner debate. Her sensible self had put up a really good argument about not appearing too eager.
Except she was eager, and not totally rational, either. A rational woman would have called his room to say she couldn’t make it. The devil in her had whispered that it would be quicker to simply stop by.
Once she’d decided on that course of action, she’d begun to consider another one. Finding him wrapped in a towel had been the deciding factor. Seeing how quickly he reacted to her suggestion had told her she’d made the right choice.
She stood and shoved her ski pants and silk long johns to the floor. He, however, hadn’t moved, except for the elegant rise of his cock. “You’d better get the—”
“Right.” He spun away from her and headed for the closet.
She noticed a tattoo on his left biceps as he turned away. She didn’t get a clear look, but thought it might be a wing of some kind. Now was not the time to ask about it, though.
She pulled her turtleneck over her head and dropped it on the pile of clothes at her feet. Crossing to his king-size bed, she threw back the covers, scattering decorative pillows everywhere. By the time she’d climbed in one side, he’d climbed in the other.
They met in the middle, his mouth hungrily seeking hers as he moved between her thighs. One quick thrust and he was there, right where she ached to have him. The pressure set off tiny explosions that reverberated through her.
His mouth lifted, hovering over hers. “Promise we’ll have longer tonight.”
Breathless with need and not caring that he knew, she pressed her fingers into his back. “I promise. But I need you now.”
“I need you, too.” He began to pump, first slowly and then faster. “So...oh, God...so much.” His breathing grew ragged as he pounded into her with enough force to lift her from the bed.
She rode the whirlwind with him, arching her back and urging him on. “Yes, oh, yes. Keep doing that. Right there...right...” She came in a fiery rush, and he swiftly followed her into the flames with a deep groan of surrender.
She gulped for air. “So good.”
“Yeah.” He kissed her once, hard. “Tonight,” he murmured as he levered himself away from her.
“Yes.” Quivering in the aftermath of her orgasm, she forced herself to slide out of his bed. He’d already disappeared into the bathroom.
She’d loved every minute of that experience, but she’d love every minute of a longer one, too. Jared’s request faded in importance. “Should I text Jared and beg off?”
“No.” He walked out of the bathroom, a study in masculine beauty.
“Are you sure?” She admired his chest, furred with dark hair, and followed the line of hair to his navel and beyond, where dark curls framed his semierect cock and impressive balls. Her body grew moist and
achy all over again.
“I’m sure. I can’t stay, either. Pam Mulholland asked Watkins and me to give her a preview of the wedding music.”
“Now?”
“Yep. I’m meeting Watkins in the lobby. He may already be there.”
“Whoops. We’d better get moving, then.” As she stooped to gather her clothes, the humor of the situation made her smile. “You could have given me a rain check, you know.”
“Are you kidding?” He opened a drawer and got out a pair of briefs.
“No.” She dressed quickly. She’d rather not be here if Watkins got tired of waiting and came looking for Trey. “I would have understood.”
“Lady, I’m no fool. Opening my door to find you ready and willing was a gift. I wasn’t about to say no to an opportunity like that.” He grabbed jeans and a shirt and put them on as he talked. “I’ll be smiling all day.”
“Better be careful. People will wonder what you’ve been up to.”
“Are you worried about that?” He sat on the bed and pulled on his boots. “What people think of us getting together?”
“I’m not super worried, but I’m not used to having everyone know my business.” She hadn’t realized that was a priority with her until now, but maybe that was a big reason why she’d always kept her personal life separated from work. Not dating resort guests, both here and in Argentina, had guaranteed her privacy.
“Then we’ll keep it on the down-low.” He stood and picked up his guitar case. “Ready?”
“Yes.” She zipped her jacket. “If you’re going toward the lobby, I’ll go in the opposite direction.”
“Before we leave, give me your cell number, in case you get some free time this afternoon.”
She grabbed a pad and pen from his desk and scribbled it down. “I doubt it. Jared and I are scheduled to make a promo video for the resort’s ski program. But just in case, let me have yours, too.”
He tore off the bottom of the page she handed him, wrote his number and gave it to her. “And I need one more kiss.”
“Make it a quickie.”
He laughed. “I think we already did that.” Setting down his guitar, he drew her into his arms. His kiss wasn’t quick at all. He lingered and tasted, teased and nibbled.
She moaned softly and drew back. “No fair. You’ve stirred me up again.”
“Just making sure you’ll show up here tonight after the bachelor party.”
“We’ll meet in your room, then?”
“My bed’s bigger.”
“Good point.”
A sharp rap on the door made them jump apart.
Trey mouthed the name Watkins.
“I’ll hide in the bathroom and leave after you do,” she murmured.
He nodded and picked up his guitar.
She put a restraining hand on his arm, stood on tiptoe and finger-combed his tousled hair into place. Now he didn’t look quite as much like a man who’d been rolling around in bed with a woman. Then she retreated to the bathroom and listened as Trey apologized to Watkins for being late.
“Hey, no worries,” Watkins said. “When you didn’t show up in the lobby, I wondered if we had our wires crossed. Is everything okay?”
“Everything is great. Just had to warm up a little is all,” Trey said as he closed the door behind him.
They’d been gone only a couple of seconds when Elle’s phone, which she’d tucked in the pocket of her jacket, chimed. No surprise—it was Jared—but she was grateful he hadn’t called a minute ago. She answered it with a cheery greeting.
Jared sounded slightly impatient. “I thought I’d hear from you by now.”
“Sorry. Something came up.” Did it ever. “I’ll be down in the lobby in ten minutes.” She’d have to race back to her room like an Olympian and freshen up in record time, but she could do it.
“Okay. See you then. Hurry. This kind of sale doesn’t come around often. Carl’s eager to cash in on it, and he wants you to check out the snowboards, since you’ve had more experience with them than I have.”
Elle understood the urgency. The resort got a volume discount from this store, and a sale on top of that could save significant money. Usually she enjoyed shopping for winter sports equipment.
But as she flew back to her room and shucked her clothes for the second time, her thoughts were on the glories of making love to Trey. She expected that once the newness wore off, she wouldn’t be so focused on him.
Their relationship was really only about sex, and that would get old eventually. It always had before with other guys. Elle wasn’t even sure that she and Trey would have things to talk about if they weren’t locked together in feverish delight.
He was a cowboy and she was a ski instructor, so their career paths had nothing in common. She had no knowledge of horses and all he knew about skiing he’d picked up this morning. She was well traveled thanks to her parents’ military lifestyle and her own decision to spend six months on each side of the equator. Trey might be a globe-trotter, but she doubted it.
Frankly, she didn’t care if he shared her love of travel and skiing. She wasn’t looking for a lifetime companion and she’d made that clear. At least she hoped he wouldn’t misunderstand her sexual eagerness for something deeper and more meaningful.
Maybe she needed to reemphasize her philosophy tonight. The sex was terrific, and she’d love to partake as often as possible while he was here, but that didn’t mean she was falling for him. She’d look for any signs that he had a different idea about how things were working out between them.
If he did hope for more than sex from her, she’d have to break it off. Selfishly, she didn’t want to do that. Sex had never been this good before. But she couldn’t continue to indulge if she thought Trey would end up with a broken heart.
* * *
EMMETT WAS ALREADY in the room that had been designated for the wedding ceremony when Trey and Watkins arrived. Pam was nowhere to be seen, though. The decorating had begun, although no one besides Emmett was in the room now.
Trey thought it was a fine spot for a wedding—not too big and not too small. He estimated that about sixty folding chairs had been set up, with an aisle down the middle. Pine boughs were everywhere—over the arched windows and covering a trellis that would serve as the focal point for the ceremony.
Wine-colored ribbons were woven among the boughs, and the same color was used for cushions on the dark wood folding chairs and the runner down the middle of the aisle. The room looked classy and smelled wonderful, and Trey figured the staff wasn’t even finished.
Emmett didn’t seem to be enjoying the ambiance, though, as he paced in the back of the room. In his sixties, Emmett looked like the quintessential ranch foreman with his tall, lanky physique, clear blue eyes and carefully trimmed gray mustache. He was completely at home on the back of a horse or pitching hay into a stall, but he appeared ill at ease in a room filled with expensive wood paneling, thick carpeting and crystal chandeliers.
He spotted them and walked over immediately. “I’m glad you boys are here. I have this great idea, but I can’t get Pam on board with it. I’m hoping you two can help me convince her.”
Watkins set down his guitar case, and Trey followed suit. “What idea is that?” Watkins asked.
Emmett rubbed his hands together, betraying his nervousness. “Pam and I can fly to Vegas this afternoon, get married tonight, and fly back here tomorrow. Then we can all party, just like she planned.”
Watkins stared at him. “Emmett, that’s not going to work.”
“No, it isn’t,” Trey added. “I’m the new guy, so I don’t know all the history, but I can’t see that happening.”
“Why not?” Emmett’s jaw tightened. “The main thing is the party, right?”
“Uh, no,” Watkins said. “The main thing
is folks witnessing the ceremony when you and Pam get hitched. They’re all looking forward to that.”
“I don’t know why they want to sit through some boring ceremony.” Emmett caught himself. “I don’t mean to say your music will be boring, you understand. That will be first-rate. But you’ll still play for the party when everyone can dance instead of being stuck in these rows of chairs.”
“Watkins is right,” Trey said. “They’re looking forward to the ceremony itself. You and Pam are important to them, and they want to be part of this wedding. I don’t think it’ll work for you to fly off to Vegas.”
“And I doubt Pam would go, anyway,” Watkins added. “You can’t get married in Vegas without a bride.”
“See, that’s where you two come in.” Emmett began to pace again, waving his arms as he walked. “If you both tell her it’s a great idea, she might listen. I’ve tried to get Emily on board, but my stubborn daughter won’t hear of it. I’ve talked to Sarah and that didn’t go well, either.” He turned to Watkins. “I even tried talking to Mary Lou a few minutes ago. She popped in to see how the decorations were coming along. She’s completely against the Vegas plan.”
“That doesn’t surprise me,” Watkins said.
“It surprised me! You and Mary Lou got married on a damned Panama Canal cruise, for God’s sake! You didn’t go through all this foolishness!”
“You’re right about the cruise.” In a gesture that said Watkins was stalling for time so he could think, he took off his hat, still damp from the snow, and brushed a speck of lint from the crown. Then he repositioned the hat on his head and glanced up at Emmett. “I’m Mary Lou’s husband, so I understand where you’re coming from.”
“I knew you would. You need to get me out of this circus. The party’s okay. I’m fine with the party. It’s standing up in front of a room full of people dressed in a coat that doesn’t fit right, and saying those words, which should be private, in front of all those folks...”
“You and Mary Lou are alike in that. She didn’t want a big deal, either, especially because we’d both been dodging the question of marriage for so many years.”
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