Chapter 3 #3
Gavin didn’t say anything, but his body pressed against her from behind as he pushed off, and then they were skiing to the left.
He guided them with his skis to turn to the right.
They were easily weaving back and forth down the slope, and she was trying to remember his instructions and turn her skis with pressure on the outside like he’d taught her, but it was hard to think straight with him close.
They made their way slowly down the hill, and she could see now that it wasn’t very steep at all—the first lip seemed steep, but the rest was pretty gentle. She felt silly that she’d gotten so panicked, but the result of having Gavin close was definitely, definitely worth it.
They glided to a stop close to the lodge. She worried that he would pull away, but he leaned around to her side again. Their helmets touched as he asked, “How was that?”
She turned so she could look into his eyes.
Their faces were aligned perfectly. Was it too soon to write a kiss into their story?
Normally, she’d say yes, they hardly knew each other and the tension wasn’t built up enough.
In reality, there was so much tension happening that her chest felt like it would explode from it.
She wished he’d lift her goggles up, throw his gloves off like a hockey player, frame her face with his hands, and take possession of her mouth.
At least his goggles were still up on his helmet.
She drank deeply from his dark gaze. She could swear he was inching closer and closer.
He wanted to kiss her. He was as drawn to her as she was to him.
A ringing noise jolted her from the moment. She glanced around, then realized the ringing and buzzing was coming from Gavin. “Your phone?”
Gavin eased back away from her and came around to her side. He unzipped the pocket of his coat and pulled out his phone. His brow furrowed as he silenced it and put it away.
“Everything okay?” she asked, ticked at whoever had shattered their moment.
“My assistant,” he said. “I only blocked out from ten to noon, and it’s almost one.” He gave her a very forced smile. “I guess I should be grateful for the break I got.”
She nodded quickly. “I’m the grateful one. Thank you for teaching me.”
His eyes swept over her. “Will you be okay on your own?”
“For sure. I’m going to go up this lift and do it all by myself; then I’ll get some lunch and write down some thoughts; then Austin is meeting me at four to teach me.”
Gavin almost smiled. “He’s a much better teacher than me.”
“I doubt that.”
He lifted his eyebrows.
“I doubt anyone could best you, Gavin Strong.” It was too bold, but she wanted him to know how drawn she was to him, before he had to leave. When would she see him again? She might not, but he’d taken the initiative to teach her to ski. That had to mean something.
“Have a good day,” he murmured. “Have them put your lunch on my tab.”
“When will you eat?” The question felt almost as bold as her earlier statement. She wanted to eat with him.
“My assistant will have something for me. I’ll be rushing to catch up before hockey practice.”
Kari was being written off. She’d already taken too much of his time. She nodded and lifted a hand. “Thanks again.”
“Sure.” He looked like he wanted to say more, but she was certain he was just going to ski off without giving her any indication that he wanted to see her again.
Had she messed up by being too wussy to go down the hill by herself?
He’d seemed to enjoy that as much as she had, but maybe she was projecting her feelings onto him.
He suddenly handed over his poles. “These might be a little long, but you can use them so you won’t have to go back to the rental shop for some.”
“Thanks.” She grasped the poles, hoping they’d make her feel more confident being on her own. “Where should I take them when I’m done?”
He licked his lips, paused a couple of beats, and then said in a husky voice, “Take them back to your room. I’ll come get them tonight.”
Kari felt like the breath had been knocked clean out of her. Tonight? He’d come to her room tonight? Yes! He wouldn’t do that if he wasn’t interested. “Okay,” was all she managed to get out.
Gavin lifted a hand and skied off toward the lodge.
Kari stood watching him stop next to the rear lodge entrance, pop off his skis, and swoop to pick them up.
She realized she was leaning forward and staring like a teenager, but she didn’t care.
That incredible man had taken three hours out of his busy day to teach her to ski, and he was coming to see her tonight.
As he disappeared into the lodge, she pushed off for the smaller lift.
She was going to conquer this hill, and tonight …
All kinds of schemes and ideas started playing through her head.
Somehow, she was going to kiss that man.
Gavin hurried into the lodge, carrying his skis but not his poles.
A rare smile curved his lips as he thought about how gutsy that had been for him, asking Kari to take them to her room so he’d come for them later.
If she had any clue how uncharacteristic his behavior was for him, she would realize he was far too lame for a woman as vibrant, smart, and beautiful as she was.
He’d tried to push himself to talk and engage her the hours they’d had together this morning.
It hadn’t been as tough as it usually was for him to be social, but maybe that was because Kari was so open and appealing.
He couldn’t believe he’d held her like that skiing down Little Falls.
He always shied away from physical touch, but he found himself wanting to be closer to Kari.
He responded to employees’ greetings as he worked his way through the lodge and into his office.
Sure enough, Thomas had soup, salad, and a sandwich from the restaurant waiting for him.
He took off his ski boots and outerwear and stashed it in his closet, used his private bathroom to wash up, and then pulled a flavored water from his fridge before sitting down to eat and start working.
He sent a quick thank-you text to Thomas and was immediately inundated with marketing questions, along with inquiries for everything from the lifts to the snow conditions to employee issues.
Luckily, with the lodge only half full, there weren’t any problems with the rooms or guests staying there.
He’d missed Ella since she and Trey had moved to Kauai, but he could handle all of this.
If only his mind didn’t keep sliding to the golden-haired beauty he’d spent the morning with.
He wanted to go find her, eat lunch with her in the lodge, and keep skiing down the bunny hill, holding her close, until Austin found them at four and the three of them skied together. Like some happy family or something.
He startled and quickly pushed those thoughts away. He and Austin were a family with Mama, Papa, and all of his siblings making up the perfect picture. He didn’t need some fanciful romance writer popping into his life and distracting him. His son was his focus, exactly as he should be.
Gavin worked steadily and almost kept his mind focused, only occasionally daydreaming about an intriguing pair of blue eyes.
By the time three-thirty rolled around, he was in his car, heading down the valley to the grade school to pick up Austin.
Focused. That was him. If only he could finagle an invitation to ski with Austin and Kari at four.