Chapter 8
8
ROSS
Bonnibell swung open the front door of Christmas Lodge as soon as Ross pulled his snowmobile up in front an hour after he’d left Grizzle beside the fire, muttering complaints in his sleep.
‘Afternoon, you’re just in time!’ she sang, her red velvet skirt swishing as she joined him on the porch before bending to greet Moose and Snowball as his pets bounded up to say hello.
‘Where’s your journalist today?’ Ross asked lightly and peered into the hallway.
‘The article’s all done so she’s already gone,’ Bonnibell said.
‘Oh.’ Ross’s shoulders sagged, wishing he’d had one last peek at Ivy before she’d left.
‘It’s such a shame you didn’t get a chance to talk to her yourself.’ Bonnibell’s tone was disapproving. ‘However, the client booked in for your adventure is waiting in the kitchen. She’s already filled in all the relevant health and safety forms, and I’ve loaned her one of the resort’s coats, some boots, gloves and a hat, but you might want to make sure you’re happy with the number of layers she’s wearing before you leave. I’ve made up a small picnic including a flask of hot chocolate for you to take out so you have supplies. I’m not sure of your exact plans today and’ – her brows knitted as she glanced across the decking into the trees – ‘I’ve heard there’s a storm coming.’
‘There’s always a storm coming. I don’t think they forecast anything else around Christmas Village this time of year.’ Ross chuckled. ‘I’m sure the clothes you’ve provided will be fine,’ he said mildly, stamping his feet on the rug and dislodging a flurry of snowflakes as Moose and Snowball bounded ahead.
Bonnibell led them all across the hallway, and Ross followed her into the kitchen, trying not to think about the woman who kept invading his thoughts. Then he stopped in his tracks as his heart swooped into his throat. Sitting on a chair at the breakfast bar, wearing a coat, hat and gloves and sipping from a mug of hot chocolate, was Ivy.
‘It’s you,’ he said, surprised, instantly regretting it when Bonnibell let out a strange choking sound. ‘I mean, hello again.’
What was Ivy doing here? Hadn’t Bonnibell just told him she’d left the resort?
‘ You’re Ross Ballentine?’ she squeaked, her eyes rounding. ‘Of course,’ she said as she studied him. ‘You’ve shaved off the beard but I still would have recognised you the other day if it hadn’t been for the scarf.’
‘You’ve met already?’ Bonnibell’s gaze bounced between them.
Ross winced as Ivy nodded.
‘I bumped into Mr Ballentine in the woods beside Snowman Chalet yesterday afternoon,’ she explained. ‘He didn’t manage to introduce himself though.’ Her tone was mild. ‘Why is that?’ she murmured.
But Ross decided not to reply.
‘Well that’s brilliant.’ Bonnibell clapped her hands. ‘Ross, Ivy here’s been looking forward to meeting you. Especially since you missed your appointment.’ She gave him a look that told him she knew that had been deliberate. ‘She’s got news from your grandmother which I’m sure you’ll be excited to hear.’
‘Miriam sent you,’ Ross said slowly as everything clicked into place. Ivy wasn’t the journalist – she was the woman his grandmother had sent to speak to him. The person he’d been trying to avoid.
‘That’s right.’ Ivy hopped from the barstool and Ross saw she was wearing a thick black coat that skimmed her ankles and almost touched the floor. ‘And I’m really looking forward to spending time with you today. There are so many things we need to talk about, it’ll be the perfect chance for me to fill you in on what Miriam wants.’
Ross made a face as he tried to come up with a reason not to stay. His eyes skimmed her outfit and he nodded. ‘Well I’m sorry but you’re going to have to change if you’re getting on the back of a snowmobile. That coat is far too long which means you’ll have to unzip the bottom. There’s a bad storm coming and you have to wrap up properly. Do you have salopettes or a snowsuit?’ From the look of the negligible luggage he’d seen on Ivy’s bed when he’d been in the chalet, she didn’t have anything warm.
‘But I thought—’ Bonnibell began, her forehead crevassing.
‘I’ve had a rethink,’ Ross jumped in. ‘I apologise, but I can’t take you out if you’re not properly equipped,’ he said to Ivy. ‘It’s not worth the risk to our insurance. I hadn’t anticipated the change in weather and I really can’t risk you getting cold. Perhaps we could reschedule or you’ll accept a refund for the trip? Now I really must be going.’ He began to turn.
Ross knew they had guests due to move into most of the cabins at the resort in a few days which meant Ivy’s time here would surely be limited. So he’d just make sure he wasn’t available to run any new adventures until he was sure she’d gone. Okay, so he might be being unfair, but he didn’t want to talk about his grandmother. Didn’t want the uncomfortable emotions he could already feel stirring in his chest. Whatever Ivy was supposed to tell him, he already knew it wasn’t something he wanted to hear.
‘I don’t have anything else to wear,’ Ivy said, sounding unhappy.
‘Oh don’t be dafty, hen.’ Bonnibell quickly recovered. ‘I’ve got something in my wardrobe you can have.’ She glanced down at her curvaceous figure. ‘The outfit is a few years old and doesn’t fit me anymore, but…’ She eyed Ivy critically. ‘Aside from being a bit long in the leg they should fit you perfectly, and I’ve got an underlayer that will keep you extra snug. I’ll get them now.’ She gave Ross another odd look as she marched from the kitchen, leaving them alone together.
The silence stretched until Ivy cleared her throat. ‘I’ve got news and a letter from your grandmother. I wanted to explain everything to you at our meeting.’ The look she gave him made it clear she’d been surprised when he hadn’t turned up. Which meant Miriam hadn’t filled Ivy in on the details of their relationship. ‘Why don’t you want to talk to me?’
Ross cleared his throat. ‘Because unless you’re here to tell me she’s not well…?’ He waited and felt a rush of relief when Ivy shook her head. ‘I’m really not interested, and I think you’ll find my grandmother isn’t that invested in contacting me either.’
He watched her forehead crease as she digested his words. Felt a sliver of guilt, but his life at Hawthorn Castle was in the past. He wasn’t sure what game Miriam was playing but he did know he wasn’t really wanted there – and there was no reason to open old wounds that had healed years ago. He stepped closer so he could look into Ivy’s eyes, steeling his wayward hormones as they began to race.
‘Look, you might as well save time and cancel this trip. I’m not interested in hearing what my grandmother has to say. I’m sure she’s paid you a lot of money to track me here. Now you can tell her we’ve met, and you told me what I had to know and we can leave it at that.’
Ivy studied him, her eyes wide. ‘I would have recognised you if you hadn’t been wearing that scarf,’ she said, her voice husky. ‘You look a little like Simon, but not an exact match. You’re more…rugged.’ She flushed. ‘I mean less polished.’ She gulped. ‘But I can see it’s you because you still look like you did in the photo from Miriam’s office.’
‘Photo?’ Ross murmured. As far as he was concerned, when he’d left the castle, his grandmother had removed all traces of him. The happy flutter in his chest was irritating.
‘I can show you,’ Ivy said, turning around.
‘No!’ Ross snapped before she could get to her bag. ‘Look, I really don’t think this is a good idea.’
Ivy looked hurt. ‘Will spending one afternoon with me really be so awful?’ she asked quietly. ‘Can’t you at least give your grandmother that?’
Ross opened his mouth to tell her she didn’t understand just as Bonnibell came trotting back into the room, clutching a pink snowsuit and matching underlayer.
‘Here you are,’ she sang, handing the clothes to Ivy. ‘I’m sorry both, but Innes, our housekeeper, just called. Apparently I have to meet with her now – there’s some kind of linen emergency.’ She winked. ‘Have a good afternoon, I hope you get plenty of time to talk, I’ll catch up with you soon.’ She nodded at Ivy, then pointed to the small backpack on the table. ‘And don’t forget your picnic.’ With that Bonnibell was gone.
Ivy studied Ross silently, until she started to unzip and remove the long, puffy coat she was wearing and tugged off the hat too.
‘You fixed your hair,’ Ross said, surprised as the dark bob slid into place – and immediately regretted the observation as crimson flames shot across her cheeks.
‘It’s different, but it looks a lot better than it did before,’ she said shyly, tugging at the new fringe, playing with the jagged edges that had been trimmed to cut in around her cheekbones.
The style was whimsical and very flattering. It made Ivy’s green eyes impossibly large and drew attention to the curve of her mouth. Ross stared until she moved and hung the coat over a chair then began to take off her boots ready to pull on the snowsuit.
‘I’m sorry,’ he gulped as she tugged on one of the legs and he realised he was still watching, his pulse revving hard. Alarmed, he took a wide step backwards towards the door. ‘Why don’t you finish changing and I’ll wait for you outside.’ He turned abruptly, then realised he’d forgotten the picnic, so grabbed it without looking back and stomped into the hall. ‘Moose, Snowball!’ he barked as he reached the front door and realised neither of them had followed, and were most likely still gawping at Ivy too.
Both animals appeared as he made his way onto the porch and carefully shut the door, feeling out of sorts. As he got to his snowmobile and secured the picnic onto the back, he heard footsteps crunching in the snow.
‘Ross!’ Connell shouted as soon as he turned around. ‘Good to see you made it to the meetup this time.’ He pointed to the lodge.
‘You didn’t mention the client who’d booked in for the tour was the same one I’ve been trying to avoid,’ Ross grumbled.
‘Ach, lad, you couldn’t dodge her forever,’ the older man said. ‘I don’t think Ivy was planning to give up and I couldn’t get away with fibbing to Bonnibell again. I felt bad about it the other day. Just do the trip – I’m sure all the lass wants to do is talk, and hearing a few words from your grandmother surely won’t hurt, will they?’ He pulled a face, his rosy cheeks reddening.
‘Let’s hope not.’ Ross didn’t add that the wrong words might stir up all kinds of uncomfortable feelings. He’d avoided talking about his family for years and didn’t particularly relish having to do it now.
The door of the lodge suddenly opened and Ivy walked out and spotted them immediately. Bonnibell’s snowsuit was long, but the hot pink outfit hugged her frame, drawing attention to a delicate figure and impossibly small waist. Suddenly Ross wished he’d left her wrapped in the shapeless black coat.
He dragged his eyes away and grabbed a helmet as Connell greeted her. ‘Well I’d best be off, have a smashing day.’ He gazed into the sky. ‘Word is there might be a storm coming,’ he repeated Bonnibell’s warning. ‘Make sure you take extra care. That said, Ivy, you’re in really good hands.’ With that the older man gave her a merry wink and headed for the woods.
‘You look warmer,’ Ross said gruffly, handing Ivy her helmet.
She glanced down. ‘It’s a surprisingly comfortable fit. I’m glad you agreed to let me come.’ She pulled the helmet on and tried to fiddle with the clasp but her gloves got in the way.
In the end Ross stepped in and pulled off his, taking care not to brush his fingers across Ivy’s chin, but failing, which meant the surface of his skin began to fizz. He stepped away and swiped his hand on his clothes, before pulling the gloves over his fingers again.
‘I only have a few things to say. I promise it won’t take long and I think you’ll be happy once you know why I’m here,’ she said quietly.
‘Can we do this later?’ he said stiffly. ‘You’ve paid for a resort adventure and it’s my job to deliver that this afternoon.’
‘Sorry, of course.’ Ivy gave in. ‘Where are you planning on taking me first?’
She tried to meet his eyes but Ross dropped his gaze to her mouth, quickly adjusting it again when he found himself tracing the plump curve of her top lip.
‘That depends on what types of wildlife you want to see,’ he said. ‘There’re all kinds around the resort. If you’ve a desire to spot a particular species, it might change where we head to first. Unless you don’t care?’ he added hopefully.
If she didn’t – if this really was just an excuse to deliver a message from his grandmother – then he knew exactly where to take her. It wasn’t far and the trip wouldn’t take long. He could let Ivy talk for ten minutes and with any luck he’d have her back at the lodge in a couple of hours.
Ivy unzipped a side pocket in the snowsuit and pulled out a piece of paper before handing it to him. ‘I did some research into local wildlife when I booked the tour last night. Then I created this chart and Bonnibell printed it for me this morning.’ She cleared her throat as Ross studied the page, his eyes widening.
‘It’s colour-coded,’ he said, stunned.
‘I’ve ranked the species I’m interested in seeing using colours.’ She pointed to one of the columns. ‘Everything highlighted in red is in my “must-see” column. I’ve always fancied seeing a reindeer, but donkeys, otters, mountain hares and eagles are also on my wish list. I also really like vegetation and I know you get all kinds around there.’ She blinked. ‘So there’s another spreadsheet just in case we have time for that.’
Ross cleared his throat as he perused the pages. ‘Are you always this efficient?’ he asked, studying the charts, reluctantly impressed. Understanding why Miriam had asked Ivy to track him down and why she hadn’t been so easy to put off.
‘It’s not my happy place.’ Ivy pursed her lips. ‘But since I’ve been working for your grandmother…’ She winced. ‘Well, she likes things done in a very particular way.’
‘Her way or the highway.’ Ross nodded, remembering her saying from his teens. He quickly scanned the list as his heart sank, because some of the plants and animals could take a while to find. It also meant he’d have to travel to the far corners of the resort, which meant any chance of a quick afternoon out had just disappeared. ‘We’d better get on. If we’re going to find any of these species, we’re going to have to hunt for them, but I can’t promise we’ll see them. I’m sure you read that in the resort’s terms and conditions.’ He kept his eyes averted so they didn’t accidently meet hers again. ‘We’ll do a circuit around the far edges of the property to see what we can see, and there are a few places where we can sit out of sight to wait. If the animals are shy, I know a few tricks that might draw them out. I laid down a few treats earlier today.’ He hesitated, wishing again that Ivy would change her mind.
‘Should I get on?’ She nodded at his snowmobile. ‘Or do I get my own?’
Ross looked resigned. ‘As it’s only you on this trip we’ll stick with mine. Just climb on the back and put your feet in those stirrups.’ He pointed to the metal bars. ‘There are also special places where you can hold on.’ He showed her those too. ‘If you don’t feel secure you can put your arms around me.’
Ivy widened her eyes and nodded before swinging a leg over the back of the snowmobile and making herself comfortable. Ross was pleased when she opted to grasp the handles, which meant he wouldn’t have to try to ignore her while she was holding him.
‘Did you learn about the wildlife when you were living in Hawthorn Castle?’ she shouted. ‘It’s a beautiful place, you must miss it?’ Ross swallowed down a frisson of annoyance. Then he grunted and tugged his helmet over his head and signalled that he couldn’t hear. As Ross fired up the engine, he felt Ivy slide forwards on the seat so she could place her hands over his hips.
Dammit , he thought as he slid the snowmobile forward, realising spending the day with Ivy Heart was going to be even more difficult than he’d imagined.