The second Kate made it out onto the veranda, she regretted not snatching her coat from her seat in the ballroom. The air was colder than she remembered it being earlier in the day. Then again, she’d been wearing her coat.
Her face practically burned with all the compliments Liam had thrown at her. Either he was either very easily impressed, or he had some ulterior motives. It was possible he wanted the grand prize as much as she did.
He hadn’t given her any details regarding why he was there alone. It didn’t seem likely that he’d had a similar experience to her own. Otherwise, he would have shared it, right? She snorted, and a puff of warm air floated around her face. Guys weren’t usually the sharing type. For all she knew, he might be in the same position as she was.
Kate rubbed her bare arms with brisk motions. She definitely needed a longer break from being in Liam’s presence, but it was far too cold to hide out here forever.
Something heavy and warm draped over her shoulders. She jumped, a yelp escaping her lips as she spun around and found Liam.
He gave her a crooked grin. “You need this more than me.”
Her gaze dipped to the suit coat, and she pulled it tighter around her shoulders. “Thanks.”
Liam brushed some snow from the railing, leaned against it, and stared out at the ice-skating rink below, where the pool would probably have been. They were about three stories up, and the snow was beginning to fall again. He gestured to the rink. “Do you skate?”
Kate wrinkled her nose. “Last time I tried that, I spent more time on my behind than on my feet.” She shifted her focus to Liam.
His elbows rested on the edge of the railing, while his hands dangled over the side. He let out a shudder, and his warm breath rose in a cloud around his face.
She reached for the suit coat. “Here, you should take this.”
Liam gave her a disgruntled look. “Absolutely not. I’m fine. You need it more than I do.”
Kate stilled, holding back a dissent that was on the tip of her tongue. He would probably just get angry if she argued with him—and it was hard not to feel somewhat flattered.
Her gaze ticked from his perfect hair to his sculpted jaw. He wasn’t half bad to look at. More than once, she’d thought it was strange he’d come to a couples retreat on his own.
As if he felt her studying him, he looked up and gave her another crooked smile. He straightened, rubbing the back of his neck. “Look, I wanted to say—”
“You don’t have to tell me, but—” she blurted.
They both stopped, and she let out a small laugh. “You first.”
Liam peered at her, tilting his head slightly. “I wanted to apologize for earlier today. I shouldn’t have gone as fast as I did. We could have avoided hitting that ditch.”
Her eyes widened for a small moment. “Oh.” She adjusted the coat around her. That had been unexpected, and very big of him. She offered a small smile. “I appreciate that.”
“Now you.”
A lump formed in her throat. She’d lost her nerve to ask him. It might be a really personal issue. Kate cleared her throat and moved her attention to the rink below them once more. “It’s nothing really.”
“Okay.” The tone of his voice implied he still wanted to hear it.
“I shouldn’t have even brought it up. Really, it’s none of my business—”
The door behind them whooshed open. “Oh, my goodness! Were you two the couple who sang ‘Baby, It’s Cold Outside’?”
Liam turned slightly and glanced at their intruders. He slipped an arm around Kate’s shoulders and pulled her close to him, lighting all kinds of electrical currents from his touch. “That we are,” he said with a grin.
The woman was probably in her late forties, and her date looked to be a few years older than her. They were dressed to the nines. She was in a sparkly red-sequined dress with faux fur around the neckline and wrists of her long sleeves. The gentleman wore a suit with a bowtie to match.
Kate bit back a laugh that threatened to bubble from her throat. These two obviously loved Christmas a little too much.
The woman reached over and took Kate’s hand in her own. “I simply adore that song and you—” She broke off and brought her fingers to her lips in a chef’s kiss. “You were marvelous.”
Looking away, Kate felt the blush flood her cheeks. This was another reason she never sang in public.
The woman continued. “Both of you were. You’re such a beautiful couple.”
“Oh, we’re not—”
“Thanks.” Liam tightened his hold on her shoulders, and she stiffened. Almost everyone already knew they weren’t a couple because of Kate’s endless arguments. These two were probably just late to the party.
The gentleman finally piped up. He clapped Liam on the shoulder. “It looks like you’re going to get the most points for this event. No one has come close to how well you two did. We wanted to be the first to congratulate you.”
Kate’s stomach flipped. Really? They’d gotten the most points so far? That couldn’t be right. They’d failed miserably on the snowmobile ride. Then again, perhaps the points had been awarded for their trip up the mountain and not back. This might actually work. She could pull it off with Liam as long as he was serious about helping her.
At some point, the crazy Christmas couple had slipped back inside. Kate whirled around and faced Liam. She opened her mouth, excitement bursting from every part of her.
“I know. I shouldn’t have said we were a couple.”
Her voice died in her throat. “What?”
“That’s what you were going to say, right? You didn’t want me to pretend that we’re a couple.”
Kate frowned. “Oh. Right. Yeah, that was kind of weird.” She sliced her hand through the air. “But more importantly, did you hear what they said?” She beamed at him, turning so she could hold both his hands in hers. “They said that our team has the most points. We could win.”
His lips quirked up. “You’re not upset I lied?”
She rolled her eyes and waved him off. “It’s not like anyone here knows us. And it would probably be more embarrassing to tell them how we ended up being coupled together anyway.” She hopped up on the balls of her feet. “If we keep up with this streak, we could win, and I could get the refund for this trip.” She couldn’t keep the excitement from her voice. “What do you say?”
Liam shrugged. “I wasn’t the one who demanded a new partner. What if I said I wasn’t on board?”
Her face flushed, and she looked away. That was more than a little mortifying. “I was wrong,” she murmured. “I should have—”
“Hey,” he murmured as he reached out and grasped her upper arm. “I’m game.”
Kate’s head popped up, relief washing over her like the first gentle snowfall. A wide smile stretched across her face. “Really? Thanks so much! You won’t regret this.”