10. Carter
Chapter ten
Carter
“ I thought you wanted to see me outside the office .” His cheeks flush in that bashful manner I can’t seem to get enough of as he closes the door and steps lightly to my desk.
“I do, which is why we aren’t staying here.”
“Janice said you wanted a massage.” Sloan tips his head to the side as I stand up, a tiny crease separating his brows.
I bite back a chuckle, rounding the desk and pulling him into my arms for a chaste kiss that has him so stunned all he can do is blink. Adorable . “Janice said what she needed to so you’d come up. We’re actually going on a field trip.”
“She said…” Sloan’s face pales. “Please tell me your assistant isn’t making booty calls for you.”
I tip his chin up so he has to look at me. “I told Janice I wanted to take you to lunch since you’ve been so accommodating and helped me get back on track. Neither of us thought you’d show up unless it was under the guise of doing more work.”
Sloan gnaws gently at his plump, pink lip, making it hard to concentrate. “Just lunch?”
“As far as Janice knows. ”
“So, this is a booty call?” He steps back and crosses his arms in front of his chest, tapping his index finger on his forearm.
It takes all my willpower not to laugh at his indignation. “It’s a request for input on a very important business decision. I promise it will all make sense when we get there. Shall we?” I sweep my hand toward the door, indicating he should go first.
His eyes narrow slightly before he turns for the door, and I give in to my grin when he’s a step ahead of me and can’t see it.
Downstairs, I gesture to a resort truck. He climbs in and looks innocently out the window as I drive up one of the fire roads that weave toward the top of the ski run. Reaching the top, I put the truck in park and turn it off. “We have to walk from here.”
“You do know it’s supposed to rain today, right?” He doesn’t even attempt to hide his skepticism.
“Not for hours yet. This won’t take that long.”
I swap my dress shoes for a pair of Vans and pocket the keys as I get out. He follows my lead and climbs down from the passenger seat, falling in step beside me as I make my way up the ridge. No words are spoken, which is soothing in the sense that I don’t feel the need to speak, yet there’s still tension in the quiet. I thread our fingers together, needing to feel his skin on mine, and my body instantly feels lighter, despite the fact he raises his eyebrows inquisitively.
“What?” I give a tiny shrug.
“I know what happens when I touch your hand.”
“You know what happens when you rub sensual little circles on my hand. Keep your fingers still and we’ll be fine.”
His knowing little smirk says he doesn’t buy that for a second, but he doesn’t pull his hand back either.
Fifteen minutes later, we reach the spot I was aiming for, a break in the trees where you can see all the way to the adjacent valley. Gray clouds are closing in in the distance, but for now the bright blue of the high mountain air is a vibrant contrast against the rich green of the pines.
“It’s beautiful,” Sloan says beside me.
“It is.” I squeeze his hand. “But that’s not why I brought you here.”
He looks up at me with curious yet patient eyes.
“Finn wants to develop this part of the mountain. It’s more extreme than the terrain I had in mind, but one lift could service the whole area instead of the three or four I’d need for a bunch of blue and green runs.”
“Okay.” He nods but stays otherwise silent, so I continue.
“Adding lifts here might make us more of a destination for intermediate athletes instead of beginners. Finn thinks that’ll increase revenue in the area without inundating the town with visitors.”
“Wouldn’t any increase in visitors have the potential to inundate the town?” He looks up at me.
“Possibly, but in the sense this area isn’t as large or accessible as the other area I was looking at, it could be a natural barrier to large crowds.”
“Makes sense. Is that what you wanted to hear?” He rubs his thumb over mine, a reassuring gesture.
“Actually, I wanted to hear your thoughts about skiing this area. Is it too extreme, or do you think people would travel here just for this?”
“Why would you want my opinion?” That sweet blush is back.
Sloan doesn’t strike me as the type of man who’s insecure or uncertain of his worth, but there are times, like now, when he seems to question why I’d value his input. To me it’s simple, he jumped to my defense at the wedding despite barely knowing me, which to my way of thinking means he’s not the type of person to jump to conclusions. He takes the time to weigh his words before he says them. I value that type of integrity both professionally and personally, so he’s the perfect choice of person to bounce ideas off of. His skiing background doesn’t hurt either, and since he seems skeptical of my motives for bringing him up here, I use that to justify asking his opinion.
“You grew up skiing,” I answer him. “I’m willing to bet that means you know the best destinations in North America, and I want to know if you think this could be one of them.”
Sloan moves his head back and forth, assessing the land in front of him. It’s not for the faint of heart. In addition to being fairly steep, sections are peppered with trees, and there are giant rocks protruding from the hillside. It’s the kind of run guys like me travel the country to find, but as a former pro I’m not the typical skier.
Of course, you don’t have to be a former pro to appreciate a run like this, but you do have to be an advanced rider. I’m gambling that Sloan fits into the advanced category, and that his response to this idea will help me decide if it’s worth pursuing.
“It’s hard to say without any snow here. I’ve never seen it in the winter since you have to hike to get here, and I don’t usually have enough time to do that between shifts at the spa and Murphy’s.”
Though I have no reason to feel proud about his answer, I do. It’s hard to envision whether this spot would be appealing when there’s no snow, and the fact that he knows the fifteen-minute hike we took to get here would be closer to forty-five in several feet of snow means he understands the value in having a lift to do most of the work.
“Assume you had all the time in the world to make your way back here to this run. Would you choose to do that or stay on the other trails?”
“Does your scenario assume this run has several feet of fresh powder?” He shifts to face me, a tiny smile pulling at the corner of his lip.
“It does. ”
His eyes flash with the familiar excitement of a man about to take an epic run. “Then I’d come back here.”
“Thank you.” I lean forward and brush my lips delicately over his.
“What for?”
“Your honesty.”
“I didn’t confirm this was a good idea though.” He traps his lips between his teeth and shakes his head.
“That’s why I wanted your opinion. It’s yours , not mine or Finn’s or anyone else’s. And it’s based on your experience as a rider, not a bunch of environmental reports or spreadsheets. You got excited about the idea of skiing this run, and I’m thinking if your eyes light up imagining that then this is a viable option for the resort.”
He makes several false starts before ultimately saying nothing and nodding his head. Adorable .
“Time to head back.” I give his hand a gentle tug and turn to go, loving how he so easily matches my stride, almost as if we’re walking as one.
“Why skiing?” He asks as we retrace our steps back to the truck.
The question catches me off guard since we’ve had this conversation. “I told you, it’s one of the only sports my parents would support.”
“I mean why did you pursue it the way you did? Going pro takes a lot of dedication, and I know it took you away from your family for months at a time. Why go through that?”
We walk for a few minutes before I find the words I’m looking for, though to his credit Sloan doesn’t press me to answer before I’m ready.
“It gave me a sense of freedom. My parents aren’t bad people, but they are difficult. They have high expectations, and I always felt pressured to please them. Speeding down the mountain, especially when they couldn’t keep up, let me forget all that and just be a kid, even if it was only for a few minutes at a time. I chased that feeling as long as I could.”
“Were they proud of what you accomplished as a skier?”
“I think so. But they would’ve preferred I leave it behind after my injury instead of diving deeper by buying a resort.”
“They still support you though, right? You said there’s a timetable to make it work, but they gave you until then.”
“Always the optimist, aren’t you?” I cut him a sideways glance with a warm smile. He returns it before ducking his head.
“I suppose you’re right.” I shift my gaze forward before I lead us into a tree. “They aren’t making it easy on me, but they didn’t object outright. That’s something. So—” I steal a quick glance at him “—why physical therapy?”
“My sister, Ally. She’s several years older and was sort of my hero as a kid. She raced for a while, and even though she was never considered the one to beat, she held her own in every competition.” Sloan smiles wistfully as he thinks of his sister. “Ally’s very determined.”
“Anyhow,” he continues, “She got injured, and I got dragged along to all her rehab appointments. I saw what recovery was like. She’d be visibly struggling after the exercises, but her therapist was always so positive and determined. I think that somehow made healing go faster. As a kid that seemed like magic. A way to help people overcome obstacles. I guess it stuck.”
“You do seem to have a magic touch.” I give his hand a playful squeeze.
“Are you making lewd jokes?” Taken separately, the words seem defensive, but there’s an almost naughty quality to his voice that hints at playfulness.
Chancing a peek in his direction, I catch him licking his bottom lip. It sends a wave of lust through my core so powerful I’m helpless to ignore it. I stop and turn so fast he can’t avoid walking into my chest, trapping him against my body with an arm around his waist.
“I am. But I’m also giving you a compliment. You’re very good at what you do, and the ski team would be lucky to have you.” I brush my lips over his, unable to wait a second longer without touching them. “Do you want me to talk to the coach?”
Sloan pulls back so quickly I find myself kissing the air.
“No!” It’s a cross between a shout and a whisper. “I am not the kind of person who sleeps his way to the top.”
The outburst takes me completely off guard, and I hold up my hands in surrender, hoping that calms him down. “I wasn’t suggesting you are.”
“Why make the offer then?” His green eyes darken a shade as he crosses his arms in front of him.
“Because I believe you’d be great at it, and I’m happy to help you reach that goal.”
Those eyes flare with ire. “I don’t want help.”
“There’s nothing wrong with accepting some, if it helps you reach your goals. I did.”
“And a whole town thinks you’re playing at being Mr. Big Shot CEO because of it.” Sloan’s venomous glare quickly softens as he realizes what he said, eyes falling shut with a heavy exhale. “I didn’t mean that. I’m sorry.”
“You did mean it, and it’s okay.” I drop my hands to my sides and turn to look at the valley beneath us, a blanket of green beneath uncharacteristically gray skies. “I’m used to people assuming things are handed to me. Lots of times they are. Skiing is the only thing that wasn’t, which is maybe why I want to work in the industry. I don’t know,” I sigh heavily, the burdens of the resort, my family, the entitled handout like the one I just offered to bestow on Sloan converging around me and making me feel weighted to the ground, as if even this, the one thing I thought might bring me freedom, is really just a prison of my own choosing.
I feel rather than see Sloan step to me and place a soft hand on my arm, an apology of sorts, so I continue. “I’ve never known anything different, so accepting help, and the bias that comes with it, are normal for me. I respect that they aren’t normal for you, and that you want to do things on your own. I never meant to imply you couldn’t reach your goals without my interference.”
He slides his hand down my arm and links our fingers together, leaning his head against my shoulder. “I appreciate the offer. Truly. And if I’m honest, it’s something that crossed my mind before…,” he trails off. “But I think it’s more acceptable for a father to help his son than for a man to help the guy he’s sleeping with.”
I let go of his hand to wrap my arm around him, pulling him to my side. “You’re right. I should have thought of that before saying anything.”
“It means a lot that you did. Just knowing you think I’m capable is a huge boost.”
“You’re more than capable. In fact…” Cupping his chin in my hand, I guide his lips to mine, seeking the sweet friction I’ve been thinking about since that first kiss barely twenty-four hours ago. We’re a hairsbreadth apart when a clap of thunder echoes around us, giving us only a few seconds to register that we’re about to get soaked. I grab Sloan’s hand and make a break for the truck, getting only a few steps before the downpour engulfs us.
So much for those “late afternoon” showers.
We’re sopping wet and shivering by the time we get into the cab, and I turn the heat on full blast to take the edge off before I attempt to drive. But it’s not the air steaming from the vent that warms me, it’s the man sitting next to me, emerald eyes greedily drinking me in from under the heavy locks of wet hair.
My cock stirs to life as I pull him to me and crush my mouth to his.