Chapter 7
Seven
Aspen woke to cocooned warmth, with six-foot-plus of man wrapped around her. The light filtering in through the blinds was weak enough that she knew it was stupid early. They’d had another late night, so she ought to try to get some more sleep. But her brain wouldn’t switch off.
At least she didn’t have anywhere to be this morning, so she could simply lie here and bask.
There’d been no opportunity for that yesterday.
She’d been too busy freaking out over what the hell the protocol was for a morning after and trying to pack the last of her things without waking him.
She hadn’t imagined ending up back in his arms.
She hadn’t imagined any of this.
For so long, pleasure of any sort had taken a backseat to being healthy and responsible.
She’d been afraid of reaching for anything, lest it get yanked away from her again.
That had included relationships deeper than friendship.
She’d had a couple of guys she’d been intimate with before.
Men she’d dated long enough to feel comfortable going to bed with.
But they’d both wanted more. Wanted a long-term she hadn’t been willing or able to commit to.
So there’d been no one in quite some time. That, too, had been about fear.
When she’d planned this trip, she hadn’t set out to take a lover.
She hadn’t ruled out the idea, but certainly, she hadn’t anticipated finding herself fake engaged.
And she hadn’t anticipated liking that lie nearly so much as she did.
Maybe because somewhere, deep down, she hadn’t believed she’d ever get to that point for real.
Maybe, somehow, she’d known she wouldn’t get enough time for that.
And that made her want to throw herself into this week with Brooks to a degree she never would’ve allowed herself.
Because what if this was as close as she ever got to having a fiancé who loved her for real?
And yet the more she indulged that fantasy, the more likely it was that she’d catch actual feelings.
Maybe she was already starting to. Last night had been…
different between them. It had felt like so much more than mutual lust. Even laying here with him like this, feeling the weight of his arm around her waist, his big hand splayed across her torso just below her breasts, felt intimate in a way she hadn’t anticipated.
She could stay right here for hours. She could, she knew, turn to him and coax him awake with her hands and mouth, starting the day with another round of really stupendous sex.
The mere idea of it had her skin starting to hum with arousal, aching for more of his touch.
How easily she’d become addicted to it. To him.
To the point that she wondered whether he’d want to keep in touch after their week was over.
Because that made her itch between her shoulder blades, she slowly eased herself free of his hold. Indulgence was one thing. Pretending this was something it wasn’t was another.
Brooks rolled over into the warm spot she’d vacated but otherwise didn’t stir as she rose from the bed. Moving quietly, she pulled on clothes. A run around the lake would be just the thing to loosen up aching muscles and clear her head.
The sun was just cresting the treeline as she started at an easy jog on the trail around Lake Waawaatesi.
Trees blanketed the mountains that rose around her.
The twitter of birds and rustle of the leaves overhead were a lovely melody over the baseline thud of her footsteps on the path.
As she made her way around the lake, the tension that had grabbed hold of her began to ease.
Of course she wanted to spend more time with Brooks. He was a great guy. Thoughtful, sexy as hell. Their chemistry was off the charts. And they shared something deeper in having both lost their mothers early in life. Membership to a truly shitty club that no one wanted. But they had no future.
She didn’t actually know where he lived.
Other than mentioning she was from Georgia, she hadn’t told him about Cooper’s Bend, either.
But either way, he was a pro hockey player.
Wherever he did that, it wasn’t near her.
He’d necessarily be on the road a big chunk of the year.
She’d absolutely hate that. Not to mention that if things went the way she expected with her biopsy, she wouldn’t want him worrying about her.
And God, after his mom not even telling him she was sick, how could Aspen even consider getting involved with him for real?
The last thing he needed was to lose someone else he cared about.
No. Their liaison or affair or whatever this thing was ended when camp was over.
They’d both go back to their respective homes, and that would be that.
That had to be that.
She’d have wonderful memories. And he’d, hopefully, be a little close to healed.
She didn’t have the right to want more than that.
If she was already halfway to in love with him, that was just the lust talking. He’d overwhelmed her with his charm and good nature. Of course she’d be dazzled by that. She was only human.
But they had most of a week left together.
If things continued like this, she was going to be more than half in love by the end.
Maybe a fractured heart was just the price she paid for this little adventure when it was all over.
A very human pain to remind her that she was alive for however much time she had left.
A few miles and a solid sweat later, Aspen’s head was clearer.
The sun glinted off the surface of the water, and more guests and staff were moving around the grounds.
She stopped in at the grub shack to grab some bottled water and pick up coffees to take back to the cabin in case Brooks wasn’t up yet.
Snagging a bottle from the cooler, she opened it right where she stood and began to drink.
Another guy stepped past her, snagging a bottle himself. Judging by the way he was dressed, in athletic shorts and a performance T-shirt, he’d also been out for a run. Lifting his bottle in a toast, he flashed a smile and guzzled half the bottle in one go.
“Good morning for a run.”
Aspen nodded, pausing for a breath. “Beautiful area for it.”
“I saw you on the trail around the lake.”
He had? She’d been too much in her own head to notice anyone else.
“You’ve got great form.”
She glanced in his direction, her brain trying to process.
Was he… hitting on her? Given the way his gaze seemed to skim her body, lingering on her bare legs, it seemed like maybe he was.
Nonplussed, she took her time finishing the water, wondering what to say.
She’d just rolled straight out of bed this morning, so she wasn’t wearing her ring.
Blurting out that she was engaged seemed too bold in case she’d misread the situation.
“How fast is your mile? I’m looking for a new pace challenge.”
“My fiancée is too fast for you, pal.” Familiar hands curled around her hips from behind in an unmistakably possessive hold.
Aspen instantly relaxed back into Brooks, not caring why he was here, just grateful he’d saved her from a prospectively awkward situation.
The guy took one look at Brooks and went a little pale. “Sorry, man. Didn’t know.”
Aspen glanced over her shoulder to see Brooks glowering at the guy with a look that would’ve done a marauding Viking proud. Why was that hot? By the time she looked back, the other runner was beating a hasty retreat.
“Is scaring smaller guys how you prefer to start your morning?” she teased.
The fierceness melted into a cocky grin. “Breakfast of champions.” He dipped his head to press a kiss to that spot between her neck and shoulder. “I missed you when I woke up this morning. Thought you’d sleep in after last night.”
“I wanted to go for a run.”
“That’s something I should probably do. Get back into it. I kind of fell off the wagon with my training after… well, everything.”
Did that mean he’d decided for sure to go back? She didn’t know how to ask him. Didn’t want to pressure him if he hadn’t made up his mind. And didn’t want to tempt herself with the idea that he might choose something else, lest she delude herself into believing that he’d choose her.
When she said nothing, his hands fell away, and he stepped back a bit.
“You know, I didn’t think about the fact that maybe you came here to find somebody for real.
I’d understand if you want to back out of our arrangement.
” His words said one thing, but the stiff posture of his body said something else entirely.
Aspen kept her tone mild as she looked up at him. “Do I really strike you as somebody who’d be willing to jump straight from your bed into someone else’s?”
“No.”
“Good. Because I’m not. I’m fine with what we’re doing here. I’m fine with temporary.” If she kept saying that, she’d start to believe it. Determined to get them back on the right foot, she closed the distance, looping her arms around his neck and pressing close. “And I’m more than fine with you.”
The instant relaxation told her that had been the right move. He didn’t want to end things between them yet any more than she did.
Brushing a quick kiss over his lips, she dropped back to her feet. “Come on. Let’s get some breakfast and figure out what we want to do today.”
“We’re being watched.”
At Aspen’s words, Brooks looked over at the cluster of other guests utilizing the archery range. There were, indeed, several people staring at the two of them. One even had their phone up to snap a photo.
His temper kindled. Angling his head, he lifted a brow at the woman in a Really? gesture. She had the good grace to flush and put the phone back into her pocket.