Irresistible Love at Silver Falls (Island County Series Book 7)

by Karice Bolton

  Surprisingly, tree forts no longer did it for me either.

  “Tell me what?” I crossed my arms and grimaced the moment my elbow pinched the plastic wrap into my belly.

  “You okay?” His dark brows shot up, and he seemed genuinely concerned.

  “Fine. Just a little spa thing I’ve got going on. Anyway, what did my aunt so aptly forget to tell me before recommending this place?” I rubbed my stomach through my sweatshirt.

  “I don’t think face masks are supposed to hurt like that.”

  “It’s not the mask that’s a problem but quit dawdling.” Between the facemask and the wrap squeezing all the life out of me, I felt empowered. Like this was my last stand and I was going to make it a good one.

  “I own these cabins.” He looked proud, but I wasn’t sure if it was because he owned this property, or that he’d managed to get one by me.

  “Yeah. She definitely forgot to mention that part.” I attempted to scowl, but judging by the tightness of my face, my expression never moved. “Well, they’re lovely. Your wife did a great job decorating.”

  “I don’t have a wife.” He smirked, and I suddenly felt like I was sixteen again.

  “Well, your decorator then.”

  He shook his head. “Don’t have one of those either, but I do have wood that I’d love to drop off, so I can get out of your hair. It seems like you’ve got a busy night ahead.” He glanced at the kitchen counter with the spilled chip bag and half-empty wine bottle.

  “Oh, sorry. Yeah. Totally.” I stepped aside, and he walked over to the fireplace and knelt down to organize the split wood into the cubbyhole.

  There was no doubt about it.

  He was no longer the teenager I’d seen last. He’d grown into a full-blown man, at least four inches taller, totally built, with broad shoulders and muscular legs that shouldn’t be noticed in the least, but it was his fault for wearing such snug jeans.

  He stood and spun around before I had time to remove my gaze so I pretended to adjust my ponytail.

  “Well, it’s nice of you to take care of your guests considering your apparent stubbornness and total disregard of hardworking weathermen everywhere.”

  His eyes fell to my flip-flops before he brought his gaze back to mine.

  “You’re my only guest.” The corner of Kyle’s mouth turned up slightly. “Hildie convinced me to open one of my cabins early for you. I generally wait until May to open the doors for obvious reasons.” A collision of emotion thrashed behind Kyle’s gaze. “And I think we both have plenty of reasons to think twice before believing weather reports. Don’t you, Brooke?”

  The way he said my name whipped me right back to that moment.

  The moment in time that forever connected us.

  That being said, I’d fully moved on. I wasn’t one of those women who got stuck in a time capsule along with their first love.

  Well, he wasn’t my first love, but my first crush.

  I’d learned an invaluable lesson that summer. I never depended on a man to make me happy ever again. I made myself downright gleeful, and if a guy happened to be along for the ride, even better for him, but Kyle didn’t need to know all that.

  I shifted my weight from one foot to the other and kept my eyes on his as he took a step forward.

  “Or did you forget about that night?” The deepness of his voice sent me over the edge.

  It felt like all the air had been sucked right out of the room. My head began spinning and my pulse spiked.

  “No, Kyle. I never forgot about that night.” I barely whispered before my world went dark.

  Chapter Two

  “Brooke, are you okay?”

  I slowly opened my eyes to see Kyle hovering over me. I’d somehow gotten to the couch or I’d been moved to the couch. Either way, I didn’t remember a thing.

  “I’ve called the medics, but they’re ten minutes out.”

  “What happened?” I asked, rubbing my head. “My heart is racing.”

  “It is?” His eyes widened, and he placed the back of his palm on my muddy forehead. “You’re so hot.”

  “Thank you,” I teased, and he grinned, shaking his head.

  “Seriously, though. You’re burning up. You don’t remember what happened?” he asked, and I shrugged a no.

  “You passed out. Do you remember anything beforehand?”

  “My heart started beating fast. I felt hot, dizzy.” I moved my hand down my sweatshirt and that was when it hit me. “Get this thing off me.”

  I began panicking all over again.

  “What thing?” He stood, not knowing where to look.

  I lifted my sweatshirt to reveal the clear plastic belly wrap while shoving aside all embarrassment. It wasn’t like he hadn’t seen more of me. Granted, that was like twenty pounds ago, but those were just small details in the big picture of life.

  “What in God’s name is that?” He ran his fingers through his hair.

  “A belly wrap. I was trying to get it off before you came to the door, but I’d been in it so long I couldn’t find the end of it to unwrap myself. It got all twisted and turned.”

  He bolted toward the kitchen.

  “What are you doing?” I sat up on the couch.

  “I’m getting scissors.”

  “You can’t cut me out of it,” I protested, feeling lightheaded again.

  He grabbed a pair of scissors and glanced at the wine bottle. “Did you have anything else to drink besides wine today?”

  “Not really. A latte this morning and that was pretty much it, besides eating the snacks.” I held my head as he laid me back down on the couch.

  “You’re dehydrated.” He smiled. “You probably got all worked up seeing me.”

  “Don’t flatter yourself, North.” I chuckled, as he slid the cold steel between the cling wrap and my skin.

  “That’s the Brooke I remember.” He began cutting the plastic away.

  “Oh, you remember me?” I lifted my brows. “I kind of thought when you didn’t ever return my calls or emails, you somehow forgot.”

  He gave a final snip, and I felt my stomach free itself.

  “Point taken.” Kyle walked out of the room and promptly returned with a cold washrag and a hand towel.

  “Do you treat all your guests this well?” I asked, placing the wet washrag on my forehead and wiping my belly with the soft towel.

  “You know, I’ve never gotten the opportunity before. You’re the first cabin guest to fall ill from cling wrap.”

  I took in my first deep breath in hours, and it felt like a new world had been delivered at my feet.

  “I had no idea how constricting that thing was.” As I shimmied my sweatshirt down, I noticed his eyes skimming over my stomach. “Thank you for your assistance.”

  “Anytime.” He nodded, and I let out a groan as I heard the ambulance come onto the property with sirens blaring.

  “I’m so sorry. I never meant to wrap myself so tightly, but I’m totally over it.”

  “Is this something you do often?” he asked, walking over to the door.

  “First time.” I stood up, felt wobbly, and sat back down. “You can tell the medics I don’t need their services.”

  “Not how it works.” He gave a quick wave as one of the medics made his way into the cabin, holding a bag. I glanced out the window and saw another removing the gurney from the ambulance.

  The moment our eyes connected, I let out a sigh and leaned back against the couch.

  “Are you serious? You called your brother?” I stared at another North brother walking into the cabin and wondered how in the world they could all be so striking.

  “I didn’t call my brother.” Kyle stifled a smile. “I called 9-1-1, and up in the mountains, our pickings are slim.”

  “I’m a volunteer medic up at the resort,” Joel explained, kneeling in front of me. “Now, what seems to be the problem? My brother reported to dispatch that you’d fainted?”

  I nodded and pointed at the
balled up plastic on the floor. “Spa treatment gone awry. I’m just dehydrated.” But he was already wrapping a blood pressure cuff around my arm.

  Joel spotted the open bottle of wine and the bag of chips. “You’re here by yourself?”

  “Am now.” I nodded. “It was supposed to be a girls’ weekend, but they all bailed when they listened to the weatherman.”

  “Boy, did they call it or what?” Joel continued, glancing at his brother. “Why don’t you get her some juice and water?”

  “Wine doesn’t count?” I joked, still unable to crack through my facemask.

  “Afraid not.” His smile was a lot like Kyle’s.

  “I’m doing so much better now that the wrap is off. I don’t want to waste any more of your time. I should have known better.” I rolled my eyes since that was the only visible expression I had.

  The other medic popped his head inside the cabin. “Need me?”

  Joel turned around. “Nah. We’ve got it. She’s a family friend.”

  My shoulders relaxed, knowing he wasn’t going to send me away on the stretcher.

  “Okay. Let me know if you need anything.” The medic left, pushing the stretcher back through the snow.

  Joel shook his head, looking back at me. “Anyway, you’re not wasting my time at all. All the ski resorts closed down so I don’t get many calls.”

  Kyle handed me a glass of orange juice, and I took a sip and then quickly drank the whole glass, not realizing how thirsty I’d become.

  “Well, this isn’t what I expected for a quiet weekend away.” I sat back and Kyle exchanged the empty orange-juice glass for water. “But I promise you that I’m fine.”

  “My suggestion is that you go to an urgent care facility. Your pulse and blood pressure are normal, but fainting can be a sign of many things, and I’d feel a lot better if you went in to see someone.”

  I nodded. “I’ll make an appointment first thing next week. Promise.”

  He traded a frustrated glance with his brother before turning his attention back to me. “And you said you’re here by yourself?”

  “Yup.” I glanced at the food. “But I brought enough food for an army. How about you take some back with you as a thank you. I’ve got meat and cheese platters, sandwiches, chips. . .”

  Joel stood and nodded. “I’ll take a sandwich for me and my buddy.”

  I looked out the window and saw the other medic sitting in the ambulance.

  “Perfect.” I sprang up, but the juice and water hadn’t quite solved the problem.

  “I’ve got it. You just take it easy.” Joel motioned for me to stay seated while he pointed for his brother to retrieve the sandwiches. “You know, I think it might be a good idea if you let my brother check in on you over the weekend.”

  I shook my head. “No… Really. I’m totally fine.”

  “I know he can be a real pain in the ass—a pest actually—but it would make me feel better since you’re not taking any of my medical advice.”

  I nodded, feeling my skin tighten and crack with the movement. The moment the North brothers left, I’d be scrubbing this mask off.

  Kyle handed Joel two sandwiches in plastic baggies.

  “You can call in the other guy, and they can eat it here if they want.” I motioned at the table. “You don’t have to kick your brother out since he made it all this way.”

  “No, it’s best if I get going.” Joel nodded. “It’s nice to see you again.”

  “You too.” I nodded.

  I’d actually only met all of Kyle’s brothers once, and it was the last summer I was with Kyle before he fell off the face of the planet. They’d all come to Colorado to spend time with my cousins, Chance and Jake Harlen. I often wondered if Kyle’s brothers had anything to do with everything that went on.

  And by everything, I mean the complete silence from Kyle after we’d spent our fifth summer together and he took off, promising a sixth.

  Joel made his way toward the door, and I expected to see Kyle follow in his footsteps, but he didn’t. He stayed firmly planted near the fireplace. I went to arch my brow at him and nod toward the door, but I was still stuck in an expressionless world.

  “See ya.” Joel gave one last wave and shut the door behind him.

  “So, how are you doing?” I asked, folding my hands on my knees. “You’re not with the rest of your family, running the resort?”

  The least I could do was find out a little about the man who came to my rescue.

  The North family owned a luxury ski resort up the mountain. The small town of Silver Ridge sat nestled in between the slopes, and last I heard, the town housed all the North brothers, but apparently one got away.

  He pushed his lips into a frown. “No. I did that for enough years. I wanted to branch out.” Kyle walked over to one of the red chairs and took a seat like he owned the place.

  Oh, wait. . .

  “I actually started a little side business thanks to this place.” He motioned around the log cabin. “I dismantle, relocate, and refurbish old log cabins. The first five or six here were so well-received that I started a business doing it across the country.”

  “Really?”

  He nodded, and I saw the same flicker of pride skate across his expression as earlier, so I could safely say he was proud of the cabin, not of getting one by me.

  “It’s gorgeous. I never would’ve guessed this wasn’t built specifically for this land. How do you even do that?”

  “For this cabin, I found out someone was going to condemn and piece out the lumber. I knew with just a few replacement logs I could make it as good as new. I got a team together, we dismantled the logs, and hauled them from Colorado up to here, and from this one, my business just took off.”

  “You always loved being in the woods and building things.” I drew a breath, feeling the concrete weigh heavily on my cheeks. “I can’t think of anything better for you to be doing.” I glanced toward the hall. “Do you mind if I go rinse this stuff off? It’s been driving me crazy.”

  Kyle laughed and stood up from the chair. “Go for it. I’ll just head home, and if you need anything, call me. My number is right by the phone in the kitchen.”

  My heart sank, and I blurted out the words before I realized what was happening. “You don’t have to go. I’ve got plenty of food and wine and it would be nice to catch up.”

  I stood rooted in place as Kyle’s expression warmed and he sat back down. “I’d like that.”

  “Good. Then I can use you to keep the fire going.” I shivered. “It’s getting cold again.”

  I walked past him and let out a deep, silent sigh as I made my way to the bathroom. I almost screamed when I caught my reflection in the mirror. My face looked like a concrete sidewalk with cracks.

  Not wanting to ruin his washcloths, I turned on the faucet and stuck my face under the faucet, attempting to soften and rinse off the clay mask. In between taking gulps of air and streaming the water over my skin, I felt the sensation of air beginning to kiss my cheeks. I kept rubbing until I felt no more grime, turned off the water, and patted my face with a towel.

  “That feels so much better,” I yelled into the other room.

  “I can imagine,” he called back.

  Just hearing his voice did all kinds of kinky things to my insides.

  We were adults.

  Stuck in a mountain cabin.

  During a freak snowstorm.

  I could totally handle myself.

  I nodded with a sudden burst of confidence and glanced at myself in the mirror. My entire face was either pink, magenta, or red, but after the 9-1-1 call, it really didn’t bother me. I could only go up from here.

  I hung the towel over the rack and made my way back into the empty family room. My heart skipped a beat until I spotted him in the kitchen with several trays of food pulled out of the fridge, and a cookie sheet with the frozen chicken wings laid out.

  “I figure with everything your body has been through, you need nourishment
.” He shoved the cookie tray into the oven and set the timer.

  “You know me well. Food cures all.”

  His eyes stayed on mine a second too long, and I felt the same connection from so many years before, but oh, how so many things had changed.

  I walked into the kitchen and poured myself another glass of juice. The least I could do was take Joel’s advice so I didn’t prove him right about not going into urgent care.

  “So you said across the country?”

  His head cocked slightly and he nodded. “Yeah. Pretty much.”

  “Well, how does that work?”

  “Usually, I get a call that someone’s about to demolish an older cabin, and we have X amount of time to purchase it, dismantle it, find a new buyer, and rebuild it. Once I get word that a building is about to be pieced out, the entire process to move it off the land is a quick one. It’s at the point now where I oversee several different teams that go do the hard stuff. I tend to stay back and find the buyers. You know how everyone is nowadays, wanting to repurpose this or that or wrap themselves in cling wrap.” A playful glint I knew all too well darted through his blue eyes, and I sucked in a quick breath and reached for a mini ham rollup from the tray.

  “Why, yes I do.”

  He held up a plate for me that had a nice assortment, which I took from him, and he followed me over to the family room.

  “So what have you been up to?” he asked, sitting in the same chair he’d claimed earlier.

  “You mean since I was sixteen?”

  “If that’s where you’d like to start. . . sure.” He hid a smile and ate a potato chip.

  “I finished high school, went to college, worked for a lovely couple, who owned a bed and breakfast, before I finally started working for one of the biggest resorts in Vail overseeing their marketing for après adventures to lure the big spenders.”

  “So a party job?”

  This time my jaw did drop down. “Excuse me?”

  “You use the term après and you expect me to believe you didn’t take part in the entertainment, endless parties, and night life you offered the clients?”

  It didn’t help his family owned a luxury ski resort of their own.