Close.
Too close.
Tucker’s face hovered mere inches from her own, and at some point, she realized they weren’t laughing anymore.
Blaire wanted to go back to that—to the carefree laughter of when she didn’t realize what Tucker’s presence had the potential to do to her.
This was Tucker—the brooding albeit handsome man who worked for her father. She’d never looked at him in any other light.
Then again, she’d never looked at anyone in that way. She was a romantic, yes. She loved reading all the books and watching all the movies. But she didn’t have time for romance. And she definitely didn’t have time to develop feelings for a coworker—least of all Tucker Woods.
Blaire should have felt the cold seeping into her clothes as the seconds ticked by. But she didn’t. All she could feel was the heat of his body shielding hers. Even the sounds of the snowball fight that raged on the other side of the large pine tree were muted somehow.
She should say something—anything—to break this spell, but she couldn’t.
Why couldn’t she pull herself from her clouded thoughts?
Blaire pressed her lips together, but before she could draw on her courage to say anything, Tucker rolled off of her.
He mumbled an apology as he got to his feet and held out his hand toward her. She offered him a smile, though inside, she was still utterly shaken. Blaire shot a glance at him. “Thanks for stopping Eve. She’s got an arm on her.”
Tucker laughed quietly, a sound she had never before heard. She gave him a funny look, which caused his expression to sober. “What?”
Shaking her head, she let out a laugh of her own. “Nothing.”
He shuffled to the edge of the tree and peered around the side. “I can’t believe you started this.”
“Me? I wasn’t the one who nailed a billionaire in the chest with a snowball.” She continued dusting off her pants, even though they didn’t need it, in an effort to avoid looking directly at him.
He snorted. “They wouldn’t have come down if someone hadn’t seen you throwing a snowball at me. I was an innocent victim.” His tone was lighter, with notes of genuine happiness, and she couldn’t hold back her smile.
Mission accomplished. Maybe now, he wouldn’t demand to drive down to the town and risk his life in the process. She edged closer to him, staying behind his shoulder so she could use him as a shield if the need arose. “Have they noticed we’re missing?”
She could sense more than see him stiffen beside her, and she prepared herself for an attack, but one never came. Tucker glanced over his shoulder and shook his head. “I don’t think any of them would care even if they did. They’re all still going at it like a bunch of children.”
Blaire snickered. “Snowball fights and being a grown-up aren’t mutually exclusive. Adults can have fun too.”
He turned to face her more fully, and she had to take a step backward to keep a respectable distance between them. “Yeah, okay. I’ll give you that.”
She blinked, not expecting that reaction. Then she forced herself to school her expression so he didn’t catch on. “What do we do now? How do we get back inside without being caught?”
Tucker’s lips quirked upward at the ends, and he tilted his head slightly. “Really? You don’t want to play anymore? Are you scared?”
His teasing tone took her off guard. Once again, he was surprising her.
“What? Of course not.” She poked him playfully in the chest. “I just figured you wouldn’t want to see this through because you’re such a stick-in-the-mud.”
“Oh, no you don’t. We started this, and we’re going to finish on top. Never retreat. Never surrender.”
She tossed her head back and laughed, which drew another smile from him. “You’re not what I expected.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
Blaire chuckled again. “Nothing. Forget I said anything. So, what’s the plan, then? How do we finish this on top? How do you even win a snowball fight?”
He shrugged. “Simple. You have to be the last man standing.”
“And how do you propose we do that?” She expected him to come up with some grand idea that would force the others to retreat inside. Maybe he’d spread the word that there was hot chocolate waiting for them. Or perhaps he had a plan for hitting them all at once somehow.
Instead, he faced her, and with not a single drop of sarcasm, he stated, “We stay hidden until they give in.”
For a moment, she thought that was it—his grand plan was to hide. But wasn’t that the same as retreating?
He nudged her, his face breaking into a smile. “Nah. We’re going to make a bunch of snowballs—as many as you can carry—and then we’re going to go out there as a team.” He crouched and started balling up the snow then glanced up at her. “Well? Are you gonna help or what?”
Blaire couldn’t remember the last time she’d laughed this much in one sitting. Tucker was proving to be someone who could surprise her. She’d just had to get him out of his shell. And she found she couldn’t wait to see how the rest of their stay would shape up.
She knelt in the snow and created several snowballs, glancing in his direction every so often. He was severely focused, but if he met her gaze even once, she knew she’d blush uncontrollably. She needed to be careful he didn’t catch her staring at him. The last thing she needed was for him to return to his ornery self again.
As soon as he thought they had sufficient ammunition, he got to his feet. “Ready?” His eyes were bright, and the look of excitement on his face was the complete opposite of how he’d looked when he’d come outside with her.
Nodding, she rose, her arms overflowing with the snowballs she’d created. “Let’s do this.”
They stepped out from behind their hiding place and back into the war zone.
Immediately, she was hit in the side. She let out a surprised squeal and spun around to launch a few balls at the perpetrator.
“Get behind me,” Tucker called.
And that was how the next thirty minutes went. No one seemed keen on being the first ones to end the first snowball fight any of them had probably participated in since they were children. She wasn’t sure who actually surrendered first, but by the end of it, everyone was breathing heavily and wearing happy expressions.
Eventually, everyone made it inside, soggy and cold. Cheerful voices floated through the lobby as Tucker and Blaire followed them toward the elevator.
The crowd broke up into three groups but still filled the elevators enough that Blaire and Tucker opted to wait for one to return.
When they were left alone, Blaire glanced at Tucker. “Thank you,” she murmured.
“What for?”
She lifted a shoulder. “That was fun.”
“Yeah,” he said with a smile. “I guess it was.”