The Christmas Match
A Castle Ridge Small Town Romance
Book 2
by
ALLIE BURTON
The season for second chances.
After heartache at a young age, single mother Danielle Marstrand has finally found her place in her hometown. A good job, a good home, a great daughter—nothing can sway her from her course until Luke Logan returns to their small Colorado mountain ski town.
Champion skier Luke Logan is ready to return home to Castle Ridge, even if he’s not quite sure the town’s ready to welcome him. Especially his high school sweetheart Danielle. Nursing an injury that nearly ended his career, Luke’s struggling to get back more than his range of motion…he’s hoping returning to where his career began might help reignite the passion he’s lost. But instead of discovering his passion for skiing he discovered the daughter he never knew he had.
Hurt that Danielle never told him about Brianna, Luke is determined to know his child. Danielle’s reluctant to allow Luke in, fearing he’ll just leave again, but she’s willing to compromise when Luke suggests fake dating with Brianna tagging along. Why then, does a kiss for show feel oh so real?
In this classic reunion story, love finds a second chance.
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Allie Burton
Other Books in Castle Ridge Series
Where small town love takes you higher.
The Romance Dance
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The Flirtation Game
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THE CHRISTMAS MATCH
A Castle Ridge Small Town Romance Book 2
Copyright © 2016 by Alice Fairbanks-Burton
All Rights Reserved
No part of this book may be reproduced, downloaded, transmitted, decompiled, reverse engineered, stored in or introduced to any information storage and retrieval system in any form, whether electronic or mechanical without the author’s written permission. Scanning, uploading or distribution of this book via the Internet or any other means without permission is prohibited.
Please purchase only authorized electronic versions, and do not participate in, or encourage pirated electronic versions.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
The author acknowledges the trademark status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.
Table of Contents
About the Book
Dear Reader
Copyright
THE CHRISTMAS MATCH
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Excerpt from THE FLIRTATION GAME
Excerpt from THE ROMANCE DANCE
Excerpt from ATLANTIS RIPTIDE
Excerpt from SOUL SLAM
Other Books by Allie Burton
Acknowledgements
About the Author
The Christmas Match
A Castle Ridge Small Town Romance
Book 2
by
ALLIE BURTON
Chapter One
Luke Logan stomped his booted feet onto the wooden deck of the Castle Ridge Lodge and Resort. The junior ski team flew past him on the slope, swooshing and whooping and having fun. An ache hollowed out the section below his ribs. Being so close to the mountain and not able to ski was a frustration avalanche, rolling and rumbling in his blood.
Maybe his agent had been right. He shouldn’t have come home to recuperate.
He might train in Vail and Switzerland, but the small ski town of Castle Ridge was where his passion for skiing had been born. Where he’d been born. He’d thought completing his physical therapy here would bring back that passion.
The jolly Christmas music playing from the outdoor speakers of the lodge scratched at his ears, mocking him further. For him, Christmas had always meant training hard and partying harder. Now training was out of the question, and partying without his ski chums didn’t appeal.
Fluffy flakes of snow fell from the sky, stinging Luke’s skin with the cold. He pulled the beanie farther down on his blond hair. He’d been watching the young skiers swish around the gates, the scraping sound music to his ears. The urge to forget his injury, to hop on a set of skis and challenge the mountain, itched on the inside of his skin. An itch he couldn’t scratch.
A withered hand slapped Luke on the shoulder from behind. “Good to see you back, Luke.”
The man wore a red flap hat over grey hair. His deeply-lined and tanned face showed his age and his proclivity to being outdoors. His old ski coach had changed over the years.
“Good to be back, Coach.” Not.
His decision had been a mistake, but it was too late to cancel. His doctor had called in a personal favor to get this physical therapist to work with him.
“How’s the injury?” Coach’s voice sounded tentative, as if afraid to ask the question on everyone’s minds, from his agent to Ski Magazine.
Luke flexed his foot and calf, feeling the pain shoot through his knee. A lie slipped from his lips. “Good.”
“You gonna make it back on the professional ski circuit?” The real question on everyone’s minds, especially the marketing departments of about half a dozen sponsors.
“Definitely.” He forced the word to sound positive, upbeat, even while doubts dug into his gut like a spiked snowshoe.
At thirty, he was getting old for this career. That, plus the injury, had set him back. Then there were the kids he competed against. Young and healthy.
“Good to hear.” Coach jerked his head in the direction of the ski team, all wearing matching purple coats and helmets. “Our junior ski team is going to do well this year. See that one?”
The young girl’s reddish-brown braid blew from under her helmet as she barreled down the slope. She had a smooth ski style with an extra push of risk-taking.
“Been watching her. Lots of power and grace.” Luke had skied like that once, the smooth descent over powder, the control over nature’s peaks. He wished he could ski period. With his injury, he’d look like a senior citizen on the mountain.
The girl’s demeanor
and carriage reminded Luke of himself when he’d been young and innocent, and not worried about medals and contracts and all the other responsibilities heaped on a star skier’s shoulders. Occasionally, the girl would make a rookie mistake, like not getting enough edge around a turn. Mistakes he didn’t make once he’d started competing as a junior.
“She only started skiing a couple of years ago.” The pride in Coach’s voice told him the girl was special.
“From Castle Ridge?” Luke wasn’t familiar with kids, but the girl appeared to be around eleven or twelve.
“Yep. Her mom was against her learning to ski.”
Odd that anyone from Castle Ridge didn’t want their kids to learn skiing and snowboarding. It was the town’s lifeblood. Knowledge of the sport could get a kid a part-time job in high school and a full-time position for life.
Coach shifted his feet on the snowy deck. “Girl could go far, with some good coaching.”
“You’re the best. Look where you got me.” Luke’s thoughts warmed, remembering when he’d first joined the junior ski team. Back then, they’d had no uniforms and limited funds. But the team had bonded and fought to become one of the best in the state of Colorado.
“I’m getting old. Ready to retire.” Coach’s voice shook with cold or age, and Luke could relate. “So many new techniques and training regimens. I can’t keep up.”
Wait until Coach heard about this new Japanese company counting on him for an endorsement. The company added a secondary core that acted like a suspension system, quieting the ride of the ski. The improvements would bring even the worst skier up a notch. And for those competing, the new technology could mean the difference between first place and last.
“Don’t suppose you’d be willing to give a little lecture to the team while you’re here.” Coach tucked his ski coat closer to his body, drawing attention to his small frame. “Talk about your training methods. What it takes to make it in the world of pro skiing.”
Sacrifice. Work. Dedication. No personal life. More sacrifice. Injury after injury. Ice pack after ice pack after ice pack.
But he loved the feeling of freedom as he swooshed around the gates and crushed the competition. He enjoyed the accolades and the medals. Competition was his life. Or so he hoped.
The gloom settled over him like an early-fall snowstorm. “Kind of busy with my rehabilitation. Physical therapy.”
“I can see that.” Coach’s eyebrows arched at the lie. He always could sense bullshit through a blizzard.
A few members of the team slid to a stop in front of them. The girl they’d been discussing took off her helmet and untwisted her long hair. Another girl said something to her and poked her with her elbow. The first girl giggled.
A flash of memory hit Luke in the solar plexus. The laugh sounded so familiar, so warm, so sweet. He stared at the young girl.
“Too bad.” Coach touched Luke’s arm, bringing his attention back. “A couple of these kids have got real talent.”
Luke would’ve loved the opportunity to talk to a professional skier before making his decision to leave Castle Ridge and sign his first contract with one of the worst agents ever. “I guess I could consider it.”
“Great. Tomorrow at six.”
Left Luke feeling like he’d been set up. Like Coach had controlled the entire conversation to get him to agree. Begrudging respect for the man filled Luke.
The girl they’d been watching snapped herself out of her beat-up skis. She gathered the skis and poles and followed the group into the team locker room. Her laughter caught at his memory.
He wished he still felt the same sense of enjoyment and exhilaration after a training session. Now all he felt was exhausted. And pressure to push harder, move faster. If he stopped being the best and didn’t get endorsement deals, he could no longer ski for a job. What would he do with the rest of his life?
Following coach and the team into the co-ed locker room, he listened to the banter about who’d been the fastest that day, who had what homework, who thought whom was cute.
It was the last thing that brought back sweet memories. Luke had dated a girl on the team. He’d loved her throughout high school and had thought she loved him. He’d learned a high-school romance couldn’t stand up in the real world.
After putting her nicked and scratched skis in the rack, the girl moved in front of her locker and opened it. Smaller than some of the other girls, she placed her gloves on two hooks and blew on her red hands. She took off her helmet and head liner and stowed them on the top shelf of her locker. Her movements were precise, as if taking care of her equipment was important.
He nodded at her actions. She respected her equipment. Most of the other kids threw their stuff in their lockers, changed their boots, and started leaving.
The girl sat down on the wooden bench and took off her boots. She re-buckled each of the buckles to help the ski boot keep its shape. She glanced up and caught him staring.
He blinked and warmth heated his face. “Saw you taking the slalom course. You’ve got a lot of natural talent.”
“Thanks.” She eyed him warily, probably thinking he was a stalker.
Most of the locker room had emptied, and quietness settled between them.
“I’m Luke Logan.” He went to shake hands and realized that probably wasn’t the cool thing to do, so he shoved his hand in his pocket. He didn’t know anything about kids. “You haven’t heard of me?”
“No, sorry. Should I have?” Her green gaze flickered over him. The freckles on her face seemed to dance with curiosity.
“I’m a professional skier. Won a few championships, gold medals.” He didn’t brag about his accomplishments very often. He usually didn’t need to. In his limited world of skiing, people knew who he was.
“Cool.” She tucked her ski boots in the bottom of her locker, not sounding very impressed. “Your name does sound familiar, but I don’t really follow professional skiing.”
“Well, you should.” He cringed at his telling-her-what-to-do tone. He wasn’t her parent. “I only watched you ski for a little bit and I think you’ve got potential.”
Jeez. Now he sounded like Vivienne, his agent. She was always saying how he was the golden boy and lived the dream. A dream that sometimes felt like a nightmare.
The girl’s eyes widened with wonder. The gleam of a dream in her gaze. Her lips tipped in a smile that tugged at his heart.
“What’s your name?”
“Brianna Marstrand.”
His jaw dropped. That’s why her laugh seemed familiar and her eyes captured him with a single look. Why she’d restarted memories of his past. “Is Michael Marstrand your dad?”
“No, he’s my uncle.”
A bolt of realization zapped Luke, and he stopped himself from staggering back. His bad knee gave a twinge. His gut spasmed, and he sank onto the wooden bench.
His high school sweetheart—Dani Marstrand, the love of his life—had stabbed him in the back the second he’d left town by getting engaged. She’d moved quicker than a speed skier on a steep downhill course. Had Dani gotten pregnant and had to get married?
He did the math in his head. The kid couldn’t be his. They’d only made love once. And the girl looked young.
His heart squeezed at the memories. He and Dani been so good together. And the end so devastating.
He’d left town to pursue his skiing dream, but he’d left his heart behind in her hands. Only to learn that weeks later, Dani was engaged to the richest snob in town. Guess she hadn’t been as heartbroken as him.
That’s when his bad-boy reputation as a party animal and a flirt had begun. He’d used alcohol and women to soothe his pain. To forget Dani.
“How old are—”
“Brianna!” The sweetest voice called the girl’s name.
His memories went live. The past turned into the present. Dani was here. Now.
His aching heart stopped beating. Everything inside him stilled. Just her voice affected him. Years-old ang
er thrust in his gut. Luke twisted around, wanting to confront her, to yell at her about the past. To tell her how much she’d hurt him. But he wouldn’t give her the advantage. He refused to tell her how hurt he’d been.
If anything, he wanted to show her that he was just fine. That her betrayal hadn’t changed the course of his life, hadn’t nearly killed him.
Danielle Marstrand posed by the locker room door like an ice princess. Her long, slender body was covered in tight jeans and a short, warm jacket. She wore a hat on top of shoulder-length brown hair. Snow melted at the edges of the strands giving her an untamed look.
Her full lips didn’t wear lipstick, but the natural color shone. Her pert nose turned up at the end. Her wide, blue eyes radiated with love.
His heart thudded. He remembered that look.
Except this time, the look of love wasn’t directed at him. It was directed at her daughter.
Little Dani Marstrand hadn’t changed much over the years. Still a natural beauty. How many men had she slept with over the years, or was she still married and faithful to the father of her child?
The Christmas Match: Castle Ridge Small Town Romance Page 1
