December 14
messy. Devon was a romance writer, one that only a small handful of people would even consider listing amongst their favorites—although that list was growing—and absolutely not one daring enough to take on such convolution. As far as research went, this sucked. She hated it when the main characters’ lies drove everyone apart, when one simple, honest conversation would fix everything.
Yet, here she remained. Something was up between Pike and Alexei. From what she’d gathered, they weren’t just cousins close in age, but were like brothers and friends. If she wasn’t careful, she was going to drive them apart. She really needed to talk to Pike.
And what would she say? That she was insta-crushing on his cousin but still sort of hoped a spark would happen with him? Shit, what was she doing in the middle of a love triangle thing? Or crush triangle, anyway.
Ugh. Melodrama. So not her. Speeding down the slope, catching air on big-ass moguls, and generally saying fuck-you to gravity and other silly rules of reality would help clear her head.
The living room was dark as she made her way into the kitchen. Of course, nothing was so simple, as to expect no one else to be up yet. She stepped into the open doorway and froze, wrapping her hand around the exposed granite edge of the countertop, wondering if it was too late to sneak away.
Hank Jenner was pouring a hefty cup of coffee, a slight tremor to his hand. Decked out in red plaid flannel pajama pants and a matching reindeer t-shirt, he looked adorable. Half speed, he turned back, and a massive smile brightened his expression as he caught sight of her. “Well, good morning, Devon. Even in the height of ski season, not many are up at oh-Hank-thirty.”
Something about the gentle man set her at ease, and she fell into a soft smile. “I love getting up before the sun. It’s that special time of day, when only the best of the best are up and about.”
He chuckled merrily and stepped back. “You and I think alike. I expect Alexei should be down soon,” he said, nodding toward the living room. “I’ll light up the tree and we can have coffee before sending you young folks off to the slopes. Been a few years since these hips let me ride on the old two-plies.”
Through the glass cabinet doors above the coffee pot, she saw mugs stacked three rows deep, each unique in its shape and design. She grabbed a sturdy green and brown hombre-glazed mug and filled it to the brim.
As she set the pot back in the brewer, Alexei sauntered into the kitchen. Cradling her mug in her hands, steam wafting up and filling her with a heady warmth, she tried her utmost to not openly react to him.
Without pause, he crossed to her, planting his feet wide to frame hers, one hand braced on the countertop. He stood so close, his body heat radiated over her.
She probably should have moved. Could have said something about their agreement to start over. Instead, she nibbled the corner of her lower lip and held her ground.
He twitched a grin and reached into the cupboard behind her. Damn, he smelled good, his shampoo as coolly fragrant as the snowy mountain itself. Sandy hair spiked wet and loosely towel dried, he looked playfully snuggly.
Sliding a mug out from the cupboard, he seemed to add a gratuitous flex just for her. Oh fucking yes, firefighter arms with a tattoo along the inside of his bicep. She indulged in the flirtatious reach-around while he pulled out a coffee cup.
Holding his gaze hostage in hers, she whispered a reminder of their prior conversation. “Reset?”
“Sorry,” he murmured unapologetically, his lips turned up devilishly as he stepped to the side, so close but never touching her. “I was excited to get my morning coffee.”
Pulse juddering under her skin, she tipped her chin up. “I’m going to go sit with your grandpa in the living room.”
He filled his mug and gripped it with both hands, inhaling the steam as he studied her. “He’s got the tree all lit up.”
With Alexei following behind her, she took the long way as she passed through the kitchen, the dining room, and hooked a right into the living room. There was a fire going in the hearth now, and the tree glowed with warm white lights and was decorated with an eclectic collection of ornaments.
“I was about to send out a search party, you two taking so long in there,” Hank said, glancing around the empty room as they walked in. “Not sure who I’d send,” he added, laughing at his own humor.
Devon weaved her way into the living area and sank into the overstuffed couch, running her hand over the soft fabric. Behaving himself, sadly, Alexei sat in the sofa opposite and kicked his feet onto the coffee table between them. His socks were as thick as hers, armor for a cold day. Cozy and snuggleable, he wore gray joggers and a black t-shirt that hugged his arms spectacularly. Of course, she shouldn’t already know that he had sculpted arms and… well, and pecs she wanted to bite. Abs, yeah, those were more than touchable, but how rarely did she read about good pecs? She’d have to make it a thing.
Hank nodded to Alexei and asked, “Charlie settle in okay? You guys got in late.”
“Yeah. She had a few nightshifts in a row, so her clock’s all off. I’m not sure what time she’s going to turn up.”
Hank nodded pensively, then turned to Devon. “What time should we expect to see Pike? He’s normally a late sleeper, but I’m sure he knows you’re itching to test out that fresh coat of powder from last night.”
“I am,” she said, a grin on her face as she felt… understood. She had a grandfather… somewhere. “He said he’d wake early, but…” She bit her lips together, trying to imagine what time he thought early might be. Normally, he got to work about nine, but who knows what he did before work. “I know he’s tired after the drive up here.”
“Of course,” Hank answered. “Alexei, why don’t you take her on out, then when the others wake, I’ll let Pike and Charlie know you two are already there, if they want to join you.”
“Charlie doesn’t ski,” he said flatly. “What do you say, Devon? Feel like grabbing breakfast on top of the world?”
“I think I just slept on top of the world,” she said with a laugh.
“The view from that third floor is something, isn’t it?” Hank said. “It’s been a few years since we’ve ventured up to the top of the peak, but it’s worth the wait, if your stomach can hold on until then.”
Alexei pushed to his feet and reached a hand out for Devon. “Come on. You’re going to love it.”
A burst of fire heated her veins, rushing under her skin as she did the most foolish thing yet.
She took his hand.
Like a blast of lightning, she stilled, her gaze locked onto his, electricity radiating from the point of contact and risking combustion.
He cleared his throat and quickly released her as he stepped back. “Meet you in the garage.”
Devon dashed upstairs and grabbed her ski gear from the bedroom closet. She turned and found Pike knocking on her door. “Good morning,” she said.
“Morning. I was about to get ready to take you out, but it looks like you’re a few steps ahead of me.” He was adorably rumpled in sweatpants and a t-shirt, his dark hair wild from sleep, and his eyes hazed with heavy dreams.
She really, really wanted there to be a little rumbling of thunder when she looked at him. “I didn’t want to wake you, so I thought I’d—”
“Oh. Of course. No, that sounds great. I don’t want to keep you—”
She said, “But if you want to—”
As he said, “But if you want to—”
Catching her breath, she smiled and paused, as he seemed to do the same. Guilt bit her on the ass. “Go ahead,” she said, motioning for him to say something.
“Have you eaten breakfast?”
“Not yet.”
“If you can give me five minutes, I’ll take you out for breakfast. Fill your belly before hitting the slopes? The gondola ride alone is worth it.”
“Sounds great,” she said. Oh boy. Awkward reigned in this house. And her love life was… odd, at best. She’d ended things with Tucker only days prior, and expected a long dry spell. Now, she had two breakfast dates for the same restaurant. Neither of which knew the other was coming. Shit. “I met your cousin. I was going to catch a ride into the village with him. So, I’ll, uh, let him know you’re coming.”
“That’s even better. I’m sure you’re perfectly capable, but it’s always good to have someone out there with you. Alexei’s super competitive, so ya know. Anyway, I’ll meet you guys downstairs in a few.” Frazzled and seeming to get a grip on being awake, Pike dashed back to the bathroom.
With her goggles, gloves, and hat—sans pompom—stuffed into a bag that hung over her wrist, she felt quite organized, and she had stashed her wallet, phone, and lip balm into her secret coat pocket. Or that’s what she called it. The fancy one on the inside. Not for any secretive reason, it just felt more streamlined.
Hiking boots secured, ski pants cinched tight, she dashed down the stairs and made her way to the garage. A gust of cold rushed over her the moment she opened the door, the far garage door open and the gate of Alexei’s truck gate down, the canopy door up. He was just sliding two sets of skis in as she approached.
Damn, that melty grin as he saw her was going to do her in. Honestly, when she’d read about a guy’s “slow smile” in books, she liked the sound of it. It sounded charming, but on the surface, she’d wondered why his smile was slow, and why on Earth that was appealing.
Well, now she knew. There was a pause that came before the smile, like he’d forgotten how to breathe, speechless at the sight of her. As he adjusted to her presence, truly taking her in, the corners of his lips unconsciously arched into a smile, his mind sifting through hundreds of imaginings of the potential of them coming together—physically and emotionally—and his eyes gleamed with the unspoken message that she was the best thing he’d seen all day.
How bad would it be, to say, “Hold that pose, I need to take a pic and jot down notes?”
“Hey,” he said, his smile holding as his chest rose and fell with measured effort. “Ready?”
“Yes,” she answered. Damn, he looked ready to tackle the mountain itself. Black ski pants that hugged that very fine ass. Gnarly black boots. His olive-green jacket was waiting in the back of the truck with a fleece layer, so his upper half was just black t-shirt that showed off… well, his entire upper half that inspired an entire chapter she couldn’t wait to jot down. “Um, Pike’s awake and will be down in a few.”
“Cool,” he said, his smile seeming to fade, but she could see him fighting to hold it. She could relate. It was way too early in the trip for such a mess. “While we wait, make sure you like the boots I snagged for you. I hear you’re borrowing Cassie’s?” He patted the tailgate and readied a pair of sky-blue boots.
She hopped up onto the tailgate and dangled her legs. As if she weren’t crushing hard enough, he sealed the deal. Wrapping his hand around her calf, he unlaced and slipped off her boot, without waiting for her to do it herself.
Whoa. Slow down pulse. Pause imagination.
Put it in slow motion and it was like a massage… not a dirty one, just… intimate.
Worse, without a boot to cover her foot, he slid his hand down to her ankle, lips parted for a moment, then he bit his lower lip as he concentrated. Sparks pinging at the contact, she discovered, for the first time, why some people included that bit behind the ankle as an erogenous zone. His thumb stroked the soft spot as he positioned her foot.
She sucked in a breath and looked up, thrill pounding through her. He probably had no idea how badly he was torturing her right now.
And icing on the cake. The ski boot slid onto her foot with a buttery ease, but stiffened at the heel. He braced her foot against his middle, just off to the right so she didn’t damage the goods. No, he didn’t need to ask, she pushed her foot against him, and he groaned. Not in pain, well, maybe a little, surely from the impact.
Wiggling her toes, she said, “Like a glove.”
He chuckled and looked up at her. Again with the slow smile. Like his blood was so thickly filled with her, he had to focus all of his energy on shifting his gaze up, and when he did, heavenly blue eyes landing on hers, the foot action became foreplay to the shared soul-gazing look. If fireworks had erupted around them, she wouldn’t have been surprised.
As the door to the house squealed open, he pushed back and said to her, “Glad that fits. Consider those yours while you’re here.”
“Thanks,” she said casually.
Pike sauntered in, completely unaware of the orgasmic shoe fitting he’d missed. Shitty shit shit. She was going to have to say something. That was a can of worms she dreaded cracking open. And she had no idea how to even broach the subject, as even skirting near it implied she had been hoping things would happen with Pike, and explicitly said that she wanted to get it on with his cousin.
She switched the shoe back to her regular boot for the drive and hopped off the tailgate. “Hi,” she said. “Ready?”
“I could eat a horse,” he said, rubbing his tummy. He was cute, no doubt about it. Especially outside of work, the low-slung jeans, a slim white tee, and all-weather hiking boots much more fitting than the business attire the credit union required. To add easygoing to his casual look, his winter coat was open in front and his shoes were loosely tied. She could absolutely imagine a few what-ifs.
Puh-hoo. How many tropes could she work into two weeks? Christmas was fun, and something she hadn’t tried before. Fake date? Something she’d always wanted to write. Love triangles… she shied away from that risky theme. Too stressful. Even with a guaranteed happily ever after, there was so much room for heartbreak. Insert into reality? Nope.
She grabbed her bag and stepped back. Alexei shut the tailgate and canopy, then hopped into the driver’s seat without a word.
Pike held the front passenger door open for her. “You’ve got… stuff,” he said when she waved for him to climb in front.
She shook her head. “Your legs are longer.”
“It’s no problem,” he said.
“I wouldn’t want to—”
“Somebody. Get. In.” Alexei dropped his head back against the headrest and he sealed his eyes shut.
Devon masked her laugh and climbed in. “Hangry?” she asked as she pulled the seatbelt across.
He glanced behind him as Pike climbed in the backseat, his regret poorly masked. “Close enough,” he groaned. “Hey, Pike.”
“Alexei.”
As they rolled to the end of the driveway, he clicked a button and the garage door closed behind them. “How’s it going?” he asked his cousin, glancing into the backseat and seeming to find a slice of holiday cheer.
Pike nodded subtly. “Good. Haven’t woken up yet. Sorry,” he added, rubbing his eyes and blinking to refocus.
Alexei laughed subtly and tipped a knowing nod. “Gotcha.”
It wasn’t a long trek to the village, but even the drive was festively quaint, and she absorbed plenty of scenery to paint the elaborate setting in her mind, in case she dared to make a book out of this. The sky barely beginning to lighten, there was plenty of parking. Only the diehard ski buffs were up and about, so early that nothing but coffee shops were open.
Parked up front, not a lot of competition for good spots yet, Alexei climbed out and opened the back of the truck. While they sat on the tailgate, securing their ski boots, Pike looked to be firing off a text. Maybe to his parents? Friends? She knew he had a social life, but realized she didn’t know much about his habits outside of work.
Whatever occupied him, she was alone with Alexei. Again. And putting her own boots on, at this point, wasn’t as fun. Her heel got stuck at the same point, and she growled to tug it the rest of the way on.
Alexei laughed and nudged his shoulder into hers. “Need some help?”
“Confession. I liked it better when you did it.”
He laughed again, puffing out a breath at the end, shaking his head as he smiled. “Me too.”
A blush on her cheeks, she rode the thrill and jammed her foot the rest of the way in. Best not let him help again. Orgasming over a man touching her ankles, in front of the other point in her possibly-a-love-triangle, might be awkward. Of course, soaring close to orgasm at a light ankle touch was probably weird anyway.
“Sorry. Reset?” he asked, tugging off his stocking cap and gripping his hands in his hair.
“Probably for the best. Again,” she said. Guilty, guilty, guilty.
If she had a girlfriend, she’d be on the phone as soon as she had a moment of privacy. Shit. Her tummy wrenched on itself as she thought about it. After running away from the nauseating breakup with emotionally abusive Mickey—which had begun on the tails of a breakup with ignorant Cole—then landing right in Tucker’s lap when she settled in Portland, now she was having a fake relationship with Pike, and wishing she had a real one with Alexei?
Puh. Hoo. In all caps. Mental throat clear. PUH. HOO. Didn’t take a shrink to tell her she might have… issues. Nor her editor to point out that she should probably pick one trope, maybe two, and behave.
But if she was going to use this, which, at this point, she’d damn well better, she needed to trim the excess. Contemporary, action, and the occasional paranormal or fantasy. Those were her subgenres. So why was she working on a farcical erotic drama? Reality sucked.
“You okay?” Alexei asked, his brow and yummy lips dropped into a soft frown as he hopped down and glanced to his cousin, quickly stuffing his hands in his pockets when he looked back to her.
“I’m good,” she said. “Totally fine.”
He hooked a smile tangled with doubt and consideration. Six more chapters, and she could kiss that look off his face.
Ugh. What was she thinking. Since when was her life a romance? She tended to embody quirky fiction that was painfully dry. Hence writing romance. Gotta spice things up somewhere.
“Really,” she insisted.
“Ready?” Pike asked as he strolled closer, then nodded toward the ticket hutch. “Let me get you a ticket.”
“I got it,” she said, catching up and walking alongside him, slowed by carting her skis over her shoulder and Pike offering to help.
Alexei kept moving.
“Let me. I owe you so big for this trip.” Pike glanced ahead, but Alexei didn’t seem to have heard. Pike winced and added, “I mean, I’m so bummed I can’t hit the slopes with you. Maybe next time.”
“It’s okay. I like my solitude, skiing or anything else.”
Anticipating the early risers, the ticket office was ready. While she argued with Pike about buying her own, Alexei picked up his—and hers. He subtly handed Devon her pass and kept walking.