The Strong Family Romance Collection

by Cami Checketts

  Chapter Four

  Jed thought this family and their resort were incredible. He loved going skiing at Heath’s resort in Park City, and everything from Heath’s gondolas to the quad lifts to the gorgeous lodges were top of the line. This Colorado resort was beautiful but not as ritzy as Park City. Jed liked it better, as he felt the intimacy of family here and the love and years that had been poured into this dream becoming a reality, first by Heath’s parents and now by his brother Gavin.

  Even better, this resort had Cassandra Strong. She wasn’t as good of a skier as her siblings, probably because she was off saving the world instead of spending her winters on the slopes. Stetson also wasn’t as flashy and technically sound of a skier as the rest, probably because he’d been busy with football and hadn’t skied much. Both Cassie and Stetson were natural athletes, and had probably skied since they were toddlers, so they kept up pretty well. Well, none of them could keep up with Trey and his fluid backflips and three-sixties, but he was an extreme sports professional, specializing in skiing and mountain biking.

  Austin had asked Jed to ride up the different lifts with him the last couple of times, wanting to show off his tricks or speed. The little guy was so adorable. Jed found himself wishing that Will had a brother, a cousin, or even a friend like Austin. Austin’s natural happiness and confidence would be a boost to Will, maybe help direct his efforts to something more productive than stealing wallets.

  Jed and Austin reached the bottom of a different ski lift than they’d been on today. They were way ahead of the rest of the family, as Austin had asked him to “bomb the hill with him” that run. Jed said conspiratorially to him as they waited, “You know how you have all those girlfriends?”

  “Yes, sir.” Austin lifted his goggles onto his helmet and did his cute half-wink, half-blink, at him. “I’m pretty good at drawing them in.”

  “I bet you are.” Jed chuckled. “Could you give me some help with getting one girlfriend?”

  Austin tilted his head. “You only want one?”

  Jed laughed louder. “Yes. One is all it takes. If she’s the right one.”

  “If you say so.” Austin shrugged his thin shoulders. “Gav told me the same thing before. Said to have lots of girlfriends until I graduate college, and then I have to find the one I can’t live without and make her happy. Good plan, right?”

  “Great plan.” He could see the rest of the family approaching, so he rushed on. “So you’ll help me?”

  “Sure. You got a hottie in mind?”

  “Cassie.”

  Austin’s mouth and eyes widened; then he hooted. “That’s why you didn’t get ticked when she sprayed you with that pepper stuff. I thought you were just a crazy nice guy, but you want Cassie.”

  Jed pressed a finger to his lips as Mama, Gavin, Trey, and Ella approached. Cassie and Stetson weren’t far behind. They chatted for a few seconds about which run to do next and how much time they had before they should get back to Papa and the traditional Christmas Eve festivities. Jed loved being included with this family. His surrogate family, the Ollivers, were great, and he missed them today, but he liked being with the Strongs, especially the beautiful Cassie. He thought she was looking at him, but he couldn’t tell because her goggles were on.

  Everybody started pairing up for the lift. Austin gave him a wink, put his goggles down, and pushed off with his skis. He glided up to Stetson and Cassie, skiing between them, and throwing a very obvious glance over his shoulder back at Jed. “I want to ride with Stetson this time.”

  Stetson extended his fist to bump. “Of course, my favorite brother.”

  “Sorry, Gav’s always my favorite,” Austin admitted innocently. “But you’re awesome too.”

  Stetson put a hand to his chest. “Ouch. I’ll take it, though. Gav is pretty cool.”

  “Thanks,” Gavin grunted, smiling.

  Jed had noticed how close Gavin and Austin were. He admired that Gavin was basically raising his little brother. Again, he wished he could do something similar for Will, more than what he was doing, help him like Jed had been helped by a police officer when he was young.

  He shook it off and skied over next to Cassie. “Do you mind going up with me?” he asked with bated breath.

  The rest of the family was watching them with interest.

  “Sure,” she said quickly, pushing off toward the lift.

  Jed followed her, staying by her side as they got into line and then loaded up a minute later. He settled down in the chair and put his goggles on his head, hoping she’d do the same so he could look into her expressive dark eyes. “How’s the skiing going?” he asked.

  “Thank you for not ratting me out,” she said before he’d finished the sentence. Her cheeks reddened. “I’m sorry. It’s been great. I love this tradition for Christmas Eve.”

  “It’s a great one.” Could he lift her goggles up, or would that be too intimate? He wanted a glimpse of her eyes. He had some time, as Austin had told him this was one of the longer lifts at the resort. Jed wanted to see her eyes, get a glimpse into what she was thinking. “You’re welcome for not ratting you out,” he added.

  Cassie’s upper body was turned, and she seemed to be focused on him as well, but then she murmured, “The view’s incredible.”

  Jed kept staring at her. “The view I’m looking at is pretty incredible too.”

  Her cheeks reddened, but maybe that was simply the crisp winter day. He loved being outside with her. The cold mountain air alleviated his usual worries and stress over keeping Park City safe, solving crimes, and making a difference for kids like Will.

  She didn’t respond to his awkward compliment. He wished he had Austin’s confidence with women, but he’d been serious with the little guy. He didn’t want hundreds of girls; he only wanted one, had wanted to find her again her for the past three months. She was sitting close to him, and he was messing it all up.

  “I’ll talk to Gavin and Heath about the times I’ve been attacked and what I’m doing to protect myself,” she said in a quiet voice.

  Jed really needed a read on those eyes. Maybe it was too bold, but he shoved his poles under his leg, tugged off his gloves and put them under his other leg, and then reached over and lifted her goggles off her face and up onto her helmet.

  She was focused on him now. Those deep brown eyes held interest and a touch of wariness. He wanted to tell her how deeply invested he already was in her and see if she might return those feelings—even with their rocky first meeting, the pepper spray incident, and the fact that she didn’t seem to know if she could trust him.

  “I won’t rat you out,” Jed felt the need to say, “but I want you to be safe. Thank you for being willing to tell them.”

  She nodded shortly and looked back at the view. Jed wished he could press her for a timeline of when she’d talk to her brothers. During the holidays, before she left on another trip somewhere? Would she leave January second like he had to? He would be thrilled to spend at least the next nine days with her. Would that be enough time to get to know her? He certainly hoped so, because he’d never been so impressed or inspired by someone. He didn’t want to go home and miss this ray of sunshine. Yet what end was he hoping for? She’d made it pretty clear that her charitable missions were her focus. You couldn’t selfishly ask the woman of your dreams to give that up so you could have her light constantly in your life.

  “What’s your favorite spot?” he asked her. “In all your travels?”

  “Here,” she said wistfully. She shook herself and glanced over at him. “It’s easy to love home at Christmas, right?”

  He shrugged. He loved Park City and the older home he’d been remodeling there, but he couldn’t say he was attached to it like she must be to this place. He hadn’t lived in Park City until high school; instead, he’d been shuffled to different foster homes throughout the Salt Lake Valley.

  “But if I had to say a favorite spot away from here …” She pursed her lips. “Costa Rica is incredible. It�
�s so pretty and lush by the rainforest. Garden of Eden type of stuff. Have you heard of Jex Steele?”

  He nodded. “The extreme athlete who hurt his leg and never fully recovered?”

  “Yeah. He and Trey are buddies, so Trey got me in contact with him, and I spent almost a month at Jex and his wife Pearl’s facility in Costa Rica. It’s like a nonstop party for the children there—mostly children of refugees, but some locals too. The people leave their kids during the day so they can work, or try to find work, and know their children are safe. Jex, Pearl, and his crew do fun activities like zip-lining, rafting, adventure courses, and all kinds of stuff with them, plus feed them delicious meals. Jex is a riot.” Her face was all lit up as she told him about it. “That’s been one of my favorite spots.”

  “That sounds like a party.”

  “Yeah. Plus the kiddos go home at night, so there aren’t the demands that you have on some missions or trips.” Her eyes got a faraway look.

  “What’s been your hardest trip?” he felt compelled to ask.

  She met his gaze again, and it was obvious she didn’t like the question. Her eyes filled with pain, and she bit at her lip, glanced away, and finally said, “Some of the trips where we help in special needs orphanages are really rewarding, but they drain me too. The people we’re helping are anywhere from babies to adults, and though I love them, it’s physically challenging and it hurts too.” She put a gloved hand to her heart. “Hurts inside, you know? Most Americans have no clue how blessed they are and how many programs there are to help people in need. It’s not like that everywhere.”

  Jed loved her insight. She was right: as Americans, it was hard to see beyond the blessings and prosperity they enjoyed. He’d heard how even the poorest Americans had more than the rest of the world, but he hadn’t traveled enough to experience that like Cassie had. A twinge of worry hit him. He thought he was this tough, street-savvy detective, but maybe she had too much experience to be interested in a hometown police officer like him.

  The end of the lift was approaching. Jed retrieved his gloves and poles from under his legs, put his goggles on, and prepared to get off. The time with Cassie left him only wanting more time with her. Nine days. He’d have to try to convince her to fall for him, but he was afraid he didn’t have any hope of convincing her to stay with him.

  Chapter Five

  Cassie enjoyed the morning skiing with the family, especially the ride up the lift and the run down that she’d taken with Jed. Austin had continually finagled to keep Jed by his side earlier in the day, but then, like a switch had been flipped, he’d done everything he could to push her and Jed together. She wondered if Jed had said something to her youngest brother. Sneaky, but it made her happy.

  While she didn’t know Jed well, she was definitely interested in spending more time with him. She doubted they’d get much alone time with the busy holidays the next couple of days and then getting ready for Ella’s wedding on New Year’s Day.

  They made it back to her parents’ house. Papa was more than happy to see all of them. The house smelled like a turkey roasting, and Cassie saw rolls rising on the counter. How Mama accomplished all she did, Cassie had no clue. They had a lighter lunch of soup and salads Gavin had delivered from the lodge’s restaurant.

  Everyone chatted animatedly at lunch about skiing and Christmas and Austin’s girlfriends—the number now was approaching two hundred. Gavin gently told him not to exaggerate, and Austin finally admitted, “Okay, okay, maybe I only have a hundred and twenty-six.”

  Jed met her gaze from across the table. His bright blue eyes and handsome face were so appealing that sometimes it robbed her of breath. She looked away. Kellen had been incredibly handsome too, and look how that turned out. Yet she knew Jed would never mistreat her, or anyone. The way he’d reacted to her pepper spray alone would tell her that. He’d been more than understanding despite the pain he was in, only worrying when she’d let slip that she’d been attacked before. He had been too strict with Will when they first met but maybe he felt he had to be with his job. She’d like to talk to him more about that, and see if he’d seen Will lately and how the little guy was faring.

  After lunch, the group broke up, and everyone but Cassie, Papa, and Mama went to ice skate or play hockey on the lake. Cassie wanted to go with Ella and all the boys, especially as Jed had teased about her teaching him to ice skate, but she felt guilty leaving Papa and Mama. She helped Mama chop veggies and start getting the mashed potatoes, squash, and corn ready for tonight while Papa chatted with them and worked on a fresh veggie platter at the table.

  The back door swung open, and Cassie’s gaze darted up. Jed filled the doorway, giving her a slow grin she felt down to her toes. “Hey,” he said.

  Mama and Papa both looked at him with interest, but let Cassie respond.

  “Hi,” she said—too eagerly, if Mama’s sly glance at Papa was any indicator. “I thought you went with everyone ice skating.”

  He stepped in and closed the door behind him, nodding to Papa and smiling at Mama. “I was going to, but when Ella came over without you, I told them to go ahead and I’d come talk you into going.”

  Her heart beat a little faster.

  “You promised to teach me to ice skate.” He lifted his eyebrows.

  “Promised is stretching it,” Cassie couldn’t help but tease.

  “True, but I don’t want to learn to skate without you.” He extended a hand. “Please.”

  “I don’t know. Chopping veggies is pretty exciting.” She hated to leave her mama to the work, but she wanted to be with him so badly.

  “Cassie,” Mama admonished. “You go teach Jed how to skate. We’ve got this.”

  “Are you sure, Mama?”

  “Go be a young person for a minute.” Mama tsked. “You always think you have to be serving everybody.”

  “So do you,” Cassie shot back. She caught Papa giving Jed a nod and a wink.

  “I’m the mama. It’s my job. Someday you’ll be the mama; right now you’re going to go play.” Mama gave her a little shove.

  Cassie smiled at Jed, though her stomach churned. She didn’t know that she’d ever be a mother. Her lifestyle wasn’t conducive to raising children. “I guess I’m going.”

  “Great.” His answering smile told her that he couldn’t be happier with the way this had turned out. They’d be behind the group and have some time alone to walk the two miles to the lake.

  She darted to the laundry room off the kitchen and grabbed a hat, gloves, and skates, shoving her boots on. Mama had a backpack for her to put her skates in.

  Jed was waiting for her. They said goodbye to her parents and walked out into the brisk winter day. Jed’s skates were sitting by the back step. He loaded them into the backpack and slung it over his shoulder.

  Neither of them said much as they walked to Gavin’s house, then strolled around and through the backyard. They hit the trail, and it got a little cooler in the shade of the thick pine trees. Cassie shivered unconsciously.

  Jed stepped closer. “You cold?”

  She nodded, wrapping her arms around herself. “I should’ve put a coat on, but we’ll work up a sweat hiking and then skating.”

  “Do you mind if I … warm you up?” His voice dropped low.

  Cassie swallowed hard and murmured, “No, I don’t mind.” Not at all. He could warm her up with a simple glance, but she didn’t think that was what he meant. She was drawn closer by the appealing smile on his face.

  Jed wrapped his arm around her back, pulling her against his side. She could feel the lean muscles of his shoulder and arm. His palm rested around her upper arm.

  Cassie shivered again.

  “It isn’t working?” Jed’s brow furrowed as he looked down at her.

  Cassie laughed. “It’s working great.”

  His smile returned and they slowed their pace, falling into step together. Cassie wondered if he wanted to extend their time alone as much as she did.

  “You pr
obably rarely work in cold climates,” he said.

  “No.” She laughed but then shook her head. “It’s crazy, but I’ve never even heard of a humanitarian mission going to a cold climate. Hmm.”

  “Everybody wants to go serve somebody in warm weather?” He smiled down at her.

  “Or people in need are smart enough to get away from areas where they’ll freeze to death without proper shelter.”

  “Good point. We rarely have homeless people in Park City. There are quite a few down in Salt Lake, where the shelters are better.” He focused on the trail. “I picked up a guy once hitchhiking near Salt Lake, in the winter. Told me he was headed to Cody, Wyoming, because he’d heard they had a great mission there where you could stay inside from seven p.m. until eleven a.m.”

  “In Cody, Wyoming?” She shook her head. “He didn’t realize that unless he got an eleven-to-seven job, or top-of-the-line snow gear, he could freeze to death between those hours?”

  “Exactly. That’s exactly what I told him. Sadly, he didn’t even plan on looking for a job to either change his situation or even get him out of the weather, so I bought him a bus ticket for Phoenix.”

  “Smart.” She shivered again just thinking about being exposed to the freezing Wyoming wind out on the streets. “Even in Salt Lake or Denver, it’s a little milder than Park City or Wyoming, but I can’t stand the thought of children being exposed to that.”

  He looked down at her. His blue eyes were pensive. “Children like Will?”