Wild Promises (The Wilde Brothers #4)

Chapter 6

6

TORI

I couldn't believe I was moving in with Xander. I was excited and nervous at the same time. I'd gone over there on Saturday to get a feel for the place. It was a small two bedroom with one bathroom an open-concept living room and kitchen.

There wouldn't be much room. But it was only temporary until Xander bought a house. When I told my parents I was moving in with Xander, they weren't concerned. They thought it was great that I was reconnecting with my best friend.

They'd asked when I was a teenager if I had a crush on him, and I must have been convincing because they'd never questioned our relationship since. I'd always felt this awareness when I was around Xander, but I never thought about it.

I cared about our friendship too much to go down that road. Even if I liked him as something more, it was just a crush. I'd never throw out our friendship for something so uncertain.

I never thought Hugh would cheat on me or be one of those egotistical doctors that thought he could sleep with every girl he met and I'd be okay with it. It just proved that you never knew anyone.

Mom made me eggs and bacon. "Are you going to miss my cooking?"

"I will." I didn't even know if Xander cooked. I enjoyed it but wouldn't mind if he wanted to cook a meal here and there. We probably should have discussed what it would look like to live together. We hadn't gotten past the effect it would have on our families.

I was more concerned about what it would be like to live with him. Would that pesky awareness turn into something more? Maybe the time and distance between us the last decade eliminated it.

Mom sat across from me, cradling her coffee mug. "You could have stayed here until you found your own place."

"That twin bed was small, and you have your routine."

Mom nodded. "You need your own space. That's what I told your father."

I ate for a few seconds in silence. Then she asked, "Dad told you that he's looking to sell the practice?"

"I can't afford to buy him out." I didn't even need to see the paperwork on what it was worth.

Mom touched my hand. "I'm sorry it didn't work out."

I shrugged. "It's no one's fault but my own."

"Your father always talked about you working at his side. I think he's enjoyed you being there this week."

"I have too." My throat tightened.

"What will you do if the new owner doesn't need a doctor?"

"I'll need to look at a nearby hospital." I'd probably have to move, but I wanted to live here. I hated to even think about leaving again.

"I'd hate to lose you when you've only just come home."

"You need to plan for your retirement, and the practice is a big part of that."

Mom nodded. "We want to spend some time traveling."

I squeezed her hand. "I'll be okay. Don't worry about me."

I finished breakfast, then packed my suitcase and headed to Xander's place. The moving truck was due any minute.

I carried the suitcase up the staircase on the outside of the building. When I knocked, Xander opened the door wearing a black Wilde Ski Resort T and worn jeans that hung low on his hips. He immediately took the suitcase from my hand and motioned me inside.

He set my suitcase next to the island. "Coffee?"

"Sure."

The kitchen seemed even smaller with him in it. He grabbed a mug, poured coffee, and slid it over to me. "Cream or sugar?"

"I got used to black at the hospital." There wasn't time to doctor up your coffee when you could be called for an emergency at any second.

"I cleaned out the spare room for you."

"Hopefully my bed fits in there." I blew over the steaming coffee.

"It should."

Then we fell silent. This was awkward. I couldn't remember ever feeling this way around Xander. He was the one person I could be myself with. Did that change when you lived together? I hoped I hadn't made a mistake.

My phone buzzed. "That's the movers. They're parking now."

"I'll go meet them. Finish your coffee."

I sat on the stool at the island, marveling at how nice it was to let him take care of things for me. With Hugh, I was the one who'd arranged everything. He was never home for movers or the installation of anything. He was too important for such details.

The next time I was with someone, I'd want to be on equal footing. I wouldn't let anyone make me feel like I was inferior.

A few minutes later, the guys came in with boxes.

The first one asked, "Where to?"

I hopped off the stool to show them the spare bedroom. Once we had the bed assembled, I added sheets and a comforter. It would be a while before I could unpack everything.

I had another full week of work. I unpacked clothes for the week and toiletries for the bathroom. Sharing a bathroom with Xander would be interesting.

"You ready to eat?" Xander asked.

"Yeah, what are you thinking? Delivery?" I could eat an entire pizza myself.

"I thought we could go out."

I wiped the sweat off my face. It wasn't cold outside, but unpacking was hard work. "Where were you thinking?"

"There's a brick-oven pizza place nearby."

"It will be nice to walk to places." That was a possibility in New York, but I hadn't wanted to eat out by myself. "Let me jump in the shower. Then we can go. Unless you need to?"

"You go first."

I swallowed. I hadn't considered what it would be like to live with Xander. That it would feel like so much more than anything else we'd ever shared before. I gathered clothes, then stepped into the bathroom. It smelled like him: soap and aftershave.

When I turned on the water, the scent only intensified. Why had I never noticed how sexy Xander smelled before? I'd definitely noticed the way he filled out that shirt and those jeans. I was flustered from watching him lift heavy boxes and furniture all day.

And the way he knew his way around tools didn't turn me off either. But if we were going to live together, we couldn't give into any temptation to make this more than a friendship. I didn't want to lose him.

I shouldn't have been thinking about the way he smelled, or that he was usually naked in this very shower. Does he jack off here? I nearly groaned out loud. I'd only been living with Xander for a couple of hours, and I was already seeing him in a different light.

Xander wasn't a teenager anymore. He was all man, and his confession about watching rom-coms hadn't diminished his attractiveness. He filled out his clothes in a way I couldn't ignore. I had to get my shit together, or I wasn't going to make it through this deal.

We were pretending to be together to convince our families that we made good decisions and weren't planning to leave Telluride.

Satisfied my brain was on board with my plan even if my body wasn't, I quickly showered, dried off, then got dressed. With my hair damp, I opened the door and stepped directly into a hard and very naked chest. "Oof."

"Sorry."

"You don't have to apologize. This is your place." I stepped to the side so that he had a direct path to the bathroom.

Xander waved a hand at the still steamy room. "You done in there?"

I nodded. "Yup."

"I'll be quick," he said as he moved past me and closed the door.

I wouldn't imagine what he looked like when he took off his clothes and stepped under the water. Would he smell me? Would it drive him as crazy as his scent had driven me? I mentally shook myself as I went back to my bedroom. We were friends. I shouldn't be thinking about Xander this way.

Moving in together had heightened whatever awareness I'd always had around him. I'd have to keep it under wraps if we wanted our plan to work. If I was attracted to him, it would ruin everything. We were supposed to be proving to our parents that we were mature. Right now, I didn't feel very responsible. I felt reckless, like I was careening down a mountain with no care as to how I'd come to a stop.

I took a deep breath and drew a brush through my still-damp hair. We were going to dinner as friends. This wasn't a date. I didn't need to take any extra care with my hair or makeup. How would I have gotten ready when we were younger?

Back then, I never worried about what I looked like when I was with Xander. I could relax around him and be myself. I didn't want to change that dynamic.

I dried my hair, threw on a swipe of mascara and layer of gloss, then headed down the hallway to where Xander was already waiting for me. He wore a thin sweater that stretch tight across his chest and shoulders, dark-wash jeans, and leather shoes.

He lifted his gaze from where he was looking at the screen of his phone. "Are you ready to go?"

I tried to be casual. Reminding myself yet again that this wasn't a date. But my heart was pounding, and there were flutters in my stomach. "Let's go."

He grabbed my jacket from the hook, holding it for me. He swiped my hair off my shoulders as I adjusted the coat, sending tingles down my neck. How was I going to survive living with him if him helping me put on a coat made me tremble?

He held open the door for me, and I took a steadying breath as I stepped into the cold and headed down the stairs.

"We can walk. Unless you'd prefer to drive." He flicked a hand in the direction of his large black truck that sat behind our building.

"I lived in New York. I'm used to walking."

Xander nodded as we turned the corner and stepped onto the sidewalk. "I keep forgetting."

"We should probably use this time to get to know who we are now. Then when we're dating, people won't question us as much."

Xander stuffed his hands in his pockets. "I suppose it's a little odd that we didn't talk much while you were in New York, and then we fell right back into our friendship."

"We need to fill in the blanks to make it more believable."

Xander shrugged, his face tight. "I took some courses at the local community college, but I never finished. The entire time, I worked at the resort as a ski instructor and, eventually, head of outdoor adventures."

"That sounds so official." I bumped shoulders with him.

He didn't even budge. "It's not enough for my brothers."

"Tell me how everyone else is involved in the business?" I adjusted my scarf to block the worst of the wind.

"Oliver is the numbers guy. He handles the finances. Eli is the manager, essentially the CEO now that my parents retired. Killian doesn't have much of a role because he's still training and competing."

"You think he'll ever come home?"

Xander let out a breath. "Who knows? He's not getting any younger, and with most highly competitive sports, there's a limit on how long you can compete at that level. And there's always the possibility of injuries. I just don't think he'd be happy staying in one place and running the business. He thrives on traveling and competing. He's quite famous in the snowboarding circles, not as much here."

I smiled, happy Killian made it. "He's enjoying the lifestyle."

"I don't expect him home anytime soon, other than for a quick visit."

"Eli and Oliver are the ones giving you trouble?" I asked as he opened the door to the pizzeria.

"You could say that."

We waited by the hostess stand to be seated. In the booth, we took off our jackets and accepted menus from the waitress.

"Do we need to look, or can I just get the meat lovers?" Xander asked, amusement tinging his tone.

I set my menu aside. "That's what I want."

"Sometimes it feels like so much has changed, and other times it's the same."

"It's nice coming home to something familiar. Everything in New York was so foreign. I worked so much; I didn't have time to make friends outside of the hospital."

Xander cleared his throat. "Eli and Oliver run the business side of things because they're the oldest and had the aptitude for it. I couldn't sit in an office like they do. I want to be outdoors."

"Sounds like you have the perfect job."

"But it's not enough anymore. They want me to contribute to the business plans somehow."

"I'm sure there's some way you could suggest improvements. You're the one who sees what's going on outside: the lessons, skiing, snowboarding."

"We added zip lines for the offseason. Eli just recently built luxury cabins, and the next step is a spa."

I nodded. "All high-end offerings."

"What could I possibly offer that could match something like that? Luxury ski lessons? I already offer beginning, intermediate, and even one-on-one options."

"I see your dilemma."

The waitress stopped by. "Xander, it's so good to see you."

From the way she gushed, I got the impression they either had hooked up or she wanted to.

Xander winked at her. "It's always my pleasure."

The woman softened at his words, touching his shoulder. "You're such a flirt, Xan."

I raised a brow. Xan? Only his brothers ever called him that.

"You know me," Xander said, then gestured toward me. "Would you mind getting us a meat lovers and a couple of sodas."

The woman finally moved her gaze from Xander to me, her lips curling in irritation. "Sure. I'll get that in right away."

"Thanks, Cici."

Cici walked away, and I leaned close to Xander and said huskily. " It's sooo good to see you, Xan." Then I leaned back and deepened my voice. "The pleasure's all mine."

Xander rolled his shoulders back. "I can't help that I'm attractive to the ladies."

I scoffed. "Your charm doesn't work on me, Xan ."

Xander chuckled. "Ain't that the truth?"

"You know, when you give the women the five-star charm, they fall all over you. If you don't want their attention, maybe dial it back a bit." I mimicked turning a dial counterclockwise.

Xander sobered. "I can't help it. When I talk to a woman—any woman—it just comes out. I can see that they're enjoying it, and it gets worse."

I shook my head. "Those poor unsuspecting women falling for your charm. Young and old. No one is immune."

Xander leaned in close and covered my hand with his, his expression serious. "You know, I don't hook up with every woman I meet."

"Of course not." I laughed and tried to draw back. Maybe I should ask about the details of his love life. I was fairly sure being reminded of his prowess with other women in town would squash this pesky attraction in no time.

"I'm being serious." Xander seemed hurt by my dismissal.

"You're telling me you never hooked up with our waitress?"

Xander's face pinched. "Never."

My gaze flicked to the attractive woman behind the bar. "What about the bartender?"

He looked over at the bar. "Nope."

"Any of the other waitresses?" I asked him, scanning the room.

He kept his gaze on me. "I've never hooked up with anyone who works here, and I don't like taking women home from bars. This town is too small for that."

I raised a brow. "But your reputation says otherwise."

He stretched his neck as if it was stiff. "I know it does. I don't do or a say anything to change it either. I realize I'm doing this to myself."

My forehead creased. "I don't understand."

"It was just something that happened. When I was a teenager, it was cool that everyone thought I was getting some from the cheerleaders. Then it became this thing I couldn't stop, and maybe I didn't want to."

His tone was genuine, his expression sincere.

"I want to have a relationship with someone. I just haven't met anyone I could be friends with first."

I tilted my head to the side, studying him. "You think you should be friends first?"

"Yeah, I think it has something to do with our relationship. It was always so easy." His gaze slid off my face.

"Yeah, but we met when we were kids." It was long before hormones came into the picture. "You saw me as a sister."

His nose wrinkled, but he didn't dispute my characterization. "I like our friendship. Is it wrong to want that in a relationship?"

"Not at all. Now that I think about it, I don't think Hugh and I were ever friends."

"I think you should be friends with your significant other. How else will you weather the storm of marriage?"

I pointed at him. "You might be onto something there. Who knew you had such a soft heart?"

He shook his head, his cheeks tinged pink. "I don't know about that."

"You want a relationship with someone who could be your friend. You flirt with women to make them feel good but not to take advantage of them. How did I not know any of this? I just assumed?—"

"Everyone does, and you haven't been around much since high school."

"That's true." We'd started to drift apart even then; I just hadn't realized it at the time. "You never fail to surprise me, Xander Wilde."

He winked at me as the server placed the pie on the table between us. "Don't tell anyone my secret. I wouldn't want it to get out."

There was so much more to Xander than I ever gave him credit for. It only made him more attractive.