Chapter 12
Chapter Twelve
OLIVER
I wanted to share my family's resort with Carolina. It didn't make any logical sense because we were only supposed to spend the night together. It was just physical. But I wanted to show her what we worked so hard to build. It was something that was important to me.
She was doing a good job hiding how much her family's indifference to her efforts to keep them together at the holidays affected her. I wanted to cheer her up, and I wanted to show her everything the resort had to offer. After we ate dinner and I suggested we go skiing the next morning, Carolina had climbed into my lap and rode me right there on the chair.
It was hot, and I had a feeling it was a thank-you of some sort. I wondered if she was the one in her family that always organized every event and holiday. She was a professional planner in her work life. If I wanted to treat her in some way, maybe planning a date was a good option. It took the pressure off her, and she could just enjoy it.
Her obvious pain over her family's decision was calling to me. I wanted to make it better, but I couldn't. This was the only thing I could do for her. Because we only had these next few days. Then she'd go back to Maine for Christmas. She didn't have another event scheduled at the resort until April. The anniversary of the first time we'd met.
It was too far away. I wouldn't survive four months without seeing her. Or at least I didn't think I would. But that wasn't our deal. I was already breaking our original agreement by spending the day together. But Joey was in school for a couple more days, and I wanted to take advantage of my free time.
Eli had taken a much-needed vacation with Scarlett, so I was in charge while he was gone. It was a little reckless, but I wanted the next few hours with Carolina.
I couldn't stay overnight in her hotel room because I wanted to get home to Joey. It was a school night after all.
After I'd gotten Joey off to school, I arrived at the resort with plenty of time to arrange breakfast in Carolina's room.
After walking down the empty hall, I softly knocked on Carolina's door, and she let me in. I could have used my key card, but this felt like a date if I knocked.
"Morning," Carolina said softly as she kissed my cheek, her sweet scent surrounding me. She'd answered the door in a silky robe.
When she stepped back, I stopped her with a hand curled around her wrist, then leaned in for a kiss, tasting the fruit on her lips. I should tell her about Joey. She should know.
But I couldn't. Joey was separate from our relationship. As much as Carolina shared herself with me, I didn't feel like I could do the same. My life wasn't my own. I had to protect Joey.
Carolina patted my chest one more time, then sat on the chair by the table, her legs curled underneath her.
"Are you almost ready to go skiing?" I asked, sitting next to her. Every platter was open, and it looked like she'd eaten her fill.
She sipped her coffee. "Mmm. I can't wait."
I loved that she was excited to go skiing. I'd never taken a woman on the slopes. That was more of Xander's thing since he led the lessons. I never spent any time with a woman at the resort. With Carolina, this was our place, where we spent all our time.
"I have everything reserved for us." I wanted to get on the slopes because I already had a late start due to Joey's school start time, and she had to get back for work.
"Let me get dressed. Then we can head out." Carolina unfolded her legs, the bare skin peeking out, and touched my shoulder as she brushed past me on her way to the bathroom. She was absolutely gorgeous in the morning, all warm and flush from sleep. I wanted to untie her robe and touch her soft skin, but I wanted to get on the slopes too.
This was something she'd never done before, and I was going to be the one to show her. I took the time to cover her uneaten food and placed everything on the tray for housekeeping to take when they cleaned the room.
When she returned, she was wearing sweatpants and a hoodie.
"I got you a snowsuit. I wasn't sure if you had one."
Carolina's shoulders lowered. "Thank you. I was a little worried if I had the right clothes for this. I don't usually go out in the snow at these events. No matter where I am, I tend to stay inside, whether it's Texas, Las Vegas, or Colorado. The most I do is get in a bathing suit and check out the pool."
I crossed the room, brushing the back of my hand across her cheek. "I'd love to see you relaxing at the pool in your bathing suit."
Her cheeks flushed a deeper pink. "I'd like that too."
"But today we have to hit the slopes. Are you ready?"
At her nod, I grabbed her hand and led her to the door. Knowing we wouldn't be able to show much affection around the hotel, I pressed her against the door, and kissed her thoroughly. When I pulled away, she asked, a little stunned, "What was that for? "
"I can't kiss you for a few hours. I needed to get my fill." I opened the door as she touched her lips and smiled.
I wanted to keep that pleased expression on her face. I tried not to think about how this relationship that was supposed to only take place at night was changing. But then I told myself I was just showing her something at the resort. If anyone saw us, I'd tell them she wanted to go skiing, and it was our responsibility to show her a good time.
It was a risk to be seen with her. There was a chance someone would say something, and rumors would fly. I just hoped no one would recognize us in our layers of snow gear.
I'd put everything in a locker, so we headed there first, and she put on the snowsuit I'd gotten her. Then we went outside. I'd reserved everything ahead of time so we wouldn't run into any of my employees. At this hour, the slopes were quiet too.
I took her to the bunny slope, knowing Xander didn't have any classes this morning. We were winding down with lessons since it was almost Christmas and kids were in school on the weekdays.
I helped her snap her boots into the skis and handed her the poles. "Now we're going to practice our balance."
I told her how to bend her knees and push off, and she got it fairly easily. "Do you think you're ready for a green hill?"
"As ready as I'll ever be." I was impressed she picked up the mechanics easily. "Do you ice skate or roller blade?"
"I used to love roller-skating when I was young. I worked at the rink."
"Really?" There was something about this woman wearing roller-skates and tiny shorts that got me excited.
Carolina smiled. "Yes."
"I bet all the boys loved that," I murmured.
Carolina dropped her head back and laughed. "What?"
"I bet you wore tiny shorts with those knee-high socks." The image easily came to mind.
She grinned. "How did you know? "
“I remember what the girls looked like at my roller rink. Xander used to drag us there every Saturday afternoon to flirt."
Carolina shook her head. "I never saw anyone like you at our rink."
"So the boys didn't flirt with you?"
"I was too worried about doing a good job at work to give the boys who were there to have a good time any thought."
How could I forget that we grew up differently? Her family might have needed the money to survive whereas we were expected to work at the resort to help the family out. None of us were paid a salary. My dad always said we all contributed. Then we had access to the family money, within reason of course.
I showed her how to sit on the lift, and then we were gliding up the mountain.
Our feet dangled as we looked down on the sea of white. "It's so peaceful up here."
"Yeah, not many people come here this week. The locals are getting ready for the holidays, and the tourists will return after Christmas. That's why we booked your conference this week. We figured we draw people in when we’re normally quiet."
Carolina glanced over at me, her expression soft. "You must love when it's quiet here."
"A busy resort is one that's making money." I couldn't quite let go of that thought. Business was always at the forefront of my mind.
A smile played on her lips. "Mmm. Ever the business owner."
I shrugged, my shoulders tight. "I'm the numbers guy. I can't let that go. My ex called me boring."
She tapped her chin. "I don't think skiing is boring. You got me ski equipment, a snowsuit, and a lift ticket. I'd say you're winning me over. "
Then I leaned in close. "How was the kiss against the door?"
Her eyes darkened. "It was a promise of things to come."
"I like that." We were descending. "When we land, just place your skis down and push off to the right. I'll hold your hand and guide you."
"I'm not afraid. I know you'll take care of me."
Carolina was an independent woman, but she enjoyed me taking care of her. I kept that in the back of my mind for the future. Then I remembered we only had this week. We hadn't made any promises to each other. This was only supposed to be a fling.
But I was going to ignore all of that and enjoy our morning on the slopes. The chair dipped down, and we both landed on our feet, sliding to the side without an issue.
Carolina laughed, and I looked over to find her cheeks red from the cold and her expression happy. She was enjoying this. "It feels good to get out."
I couldn't believe she never spent much time exploring the resorts she stayed at. It was all work for her. Not much different than me. But I wanted her to enjoy her stay here.
We skied to the edge of the green slope and looked down.
"How do we do this?" For the first time, Carolina sounded nervous.
"You just push off, and then you can tack from side to side to slow yourself down." I mimicked the motion with my hand. "Although the slope isn't too steep." Then I shoved away, gliding back and forth a few times to show her what I meant.
"That looks easy enough." She pushed off and was able to mimic my movements. When she got close, I repeated my movements and we continued like that down the hill. At the bottom, Carolina came to a stop in front of me. "I can't believe I just did that."
"You looked like a natural out there." I didn't think it had anything to do with my coaching. She probably had a great sense of balance since she roller-skated for her job as a teenager. She knew to bend her knees when she lost her balance and to shift her weight from side to side to control the direction she was moving.
"Can we go again?" she asked eagerly.
I couldn't resist kissing her softly on the lips. There was no one around us, and we weren't visible to the lodge.
When I pulled back, she asked, "What was that for?"
I brushed a strand of hair that had escaped her hat off her face. "You're so beautiful. I couldn't help myself."
She ducked her head. "I like when you say things like that. You're not worried about what anyone thinks."
"I'm just saying how I feel." I was incapable of playing games.
"Let's get on the lift. We have time before we need to head back."
Carolina grinned and pushed off the same time I did in the direction of the empty lift. I hadn't been skiing in a long time, and not in the morning like this. There was something peaceful about being out here with no one else. The air was crisp. The snow was a pure white. It was gorgeous. When was the last time I took a second to appreciate what was around me? I was usually cooped up in my office or fulfilling Joey's needs.
We went down various green slopes for the rest of the morning. I enjoyed the glide of the blades through the snow and the sound of Carolina's laughter. I couldn't remember a morning I enjoyed more.
When it was nearing lunch time, I placed an order for hot chocolate and sandwiches to be delivered to her room. By the time we removed our snow gear and made it to the room, it had already been delivered. The food was sitting on the table by the window.
"I hadn't realized how hungry I was until I smelled the food. "
"I thought you might be," I said, following her to the table.
"You've thought of everything." Carolina opened the containers to find marshmallows and candy cane shavings.
I kept the extras on hand for Joey. It made his visits to the lodge while I was working less tedious for him. He had something to look forward to, and now I enjoyed her reaction to the simple pleasure. I plated the sandwiches.
"Skiing and hot chocolate. What's not to like?" Carolina said with a smile as she sank into her chair. She piled the marshmallows and shavings onto her hot chocolate, topping everything off with whipped cream. "You're not going to add anything to yours?"
I looked down at my plain hot chocolate. "I don't normally."
With a giggle, Carolina dumped a spoonful of marshmallows on top.
"Hey," I protested, trying to block her, but it was too late.
Her eyes sparkled with joy. "Will you try it for me?"
I sighed like it was a chore. "Fine."
She kept her gaze on me as I slowly sipped the warm liquid. "Mmm. It's actually good." When I looked up, she had whipped cream on her upper lip.
I reached over to swipe the whip from her mouth. "You have something there?—"
She licked her lips. "Thank you."
"You're welcome." What was happening? This was supposed to be purely physical, but now we were spending more time together, and I found that I liked it. I liked her. I refocused on my sandwich, taking a large bite so I wouldn't blurt out anything that was going through my head. She didn't even know I had a kid. That was a deal breaker for many women. But I wasn't ready for this to end yet. I had a few more days, and I didn't want to think about what came afterward .
"Thank you for skiing. You keep feeding me too." She dropped her gaze. "You take good care of me."
"I hope it's not breaching the boundaries of our relationship."
Carolina lifted her gaze to meet mine. "I don't mind."
I didn't either. That was the dangerous part. I was falling for this woman. But I couldn't bring myself to pull back. When would I get a chance like this again? To enjoy the company of a woman I was attracted to and not have any expectations. This was the perfect arrangement. I just had to stick to the rules.