by Cari Quinn
Before I have a chance to ask him what’s wrong, Jason gets up and walks away. I sit at the table and chat with the girls. Jason yells from across the room. “Guys, let’s go!” A flurry of helmets, mittens, and coats respond.
I spend the afternoon giggling with little girls. The whole dynamic of our group has turned silly. It helps keep my mind off Jason until I bring them back. He isn’t at the sign to meet parents. Heather is with his boys instead. “Hey, where’s Jason?”
“He wasn’t feeling good, so I told him to go. I’ll let you deal with this.” She gives me a quick wave as she walks off to tend to her usual duties.
After the last child is gone, I collect my skis and hike back to the locker room. I wipe snow off the top of a ski and shake it onto the ground. If I didn’t know better, I would swear Jason is avoiding me. This is so strange. I clomp down the metal steps with trepidation.
I place my skis in the rack and a firm hand grabs my arm. “What the hell, Casey?” It’s Megan, and her teeth are clenched with anger. She pulls me into the ladies room. “What the hell did you do?” Whoa.
“What are you talking about?” My face flushes with shame. Why? I have no idea, but I must have done something awful.
“I thought you were into Jason. Blaine shows up, and the next thing I know, you’re getting married. What the fuck, Casey? I can’t believe you’d hurt Jason like that.” Her hands move a mile a minute, and her eyes are wild.
“What are you talking about? Blaine and I aren’t getting married.” Now my blood starts to boil. “Where did you hear that?”
“Jason told me and Nick a little while ago. He said Blaine proposed to you in The Baked Bean yesterday.” She runs her hands through her hair. “So, it isn’t true?”
Wait. Oh. Oh, shit. “No. Wow. Okay, I think I know what happened.” I start to pace. “Remember Tim’s kids, Jenny and Benjamin?” She nods. “Benjamin gave me a plastic ring for Christmas because he thinks he wants to marry me when he grows up.” I place my hands on the edge of the sink and look into the mirror at her. “Blaine put it on my finger, and I’ll bet Jess saw it happen.” I close my eyes and hang my head. “Crap, Megan. It gets worse.”
“What do you mean it gets worse?”
I take a deep breath. “I kissed Blaine. It wasn’t anything more than a friend kiss. But I kind of lingered because I knew Jess was watching. My inner bitch wanted to see her squirm.”
“Wow. Karma sucks big time right now.” She crosses her arms and shakes her head. “Don’t get me wrong. I would have done the same thing in your shoes. But you have a mess to clean up. You better find Jason.”
“I know.” No wonder he was so pissed. I pull out my phone and pound out a text to him. “It’s not what you think. I can explain everything. Where are you?”
And then I realize I’ve heard that before. I need to do better. I send another text. “Blaine and I are not engaged.”
Chapter Sixty
This is killing me. Jason won’t return my texts. I’m about to be stalker girl and go to his house. Either that or wear a hole in the carpet pacing. I shove my feet in my boots, grab my coat and keys, and jog to my car. The night sky is crystal clear with hundreds of stars. I can just make out the ominous mountain line of the Continental Divide. My engine whines as I speed down Gold Camp road.
Slowing down, I can’t spot Jason’s truck. Where is he? I pull to a stop on the side of the road by the walkway. The emergency break screeches as I give it a yank. I can’t help it; I jog to the door and let myself in. “Anyone home?”
Bill steps out of the kitchen. “Hey. Jason isn’t here.” A blond head leans out. Jess?
I send lasers at her with my eyes. “I need to talk to you.” My feet pound the wood floor to the kitchen. “I know what you saw at the coffee shop probably looked like it, but Blaine and I aren’t engaged. He was giving me a toy ring from Tim’s son.” Oh hell, I should tell all. “And the kiss.” Crap, I can’t do it. “It was just a friendly one.”
“It’s okay. I know. Blaine explained everything this afternoon. And I mean everything.” She shakes her head, and with a sneer adds, “I can’t believe you dated him so long before you knew.”
Yeah, okay. I’m still glad I made her squirm with that kiss. “Good. Do either of you know where Jason is?”
Jess’s mouth twitches with a smile she tries to contain. “Nope. But he was really pissed at you this morning.” She gives me a fake apologetic look. “Sorry.”
Yeah, I’ll bet. My eyebrows lower and my eyes squint. I’ve never beat up a girl, but I’m tempted right now. Instead, I turn and stomp back to my car.
When I get home I check my phone for the millionth time just in case I didn’t hear or feel a text come in. Damn it. I call one more time and leave another message. “Jason, please. I hate that you were hurt by a misunderstanding. Please, let me explain everything. I love you.”
It’s late and I’ve got to stop. I lay my phone on the kitchen counter and flop down on the couch. I reach over to the coffee table and pick up the ring. The glass gem catches the living room light. I picture Benjamin and hear his little voice. “Casey, can I marry you?” Tears spill out. I cry myself to sleep.
Chapter Sixty-One
I park next to Jason’s truck. Chances are good he just got here if I got a space next to him. Waking up late on the couch ruined any shot at first chair today. But at least I’m at work on time. Still no reply to my texts or phone calls, my stomach is in knots. What’s going through his head?
I throw my bag over my shoulder and hear the click of the lock turn on my car door. Jogging to the locker room, I have one thing on my mind: find Jason and explain. I glance at my empty aisle and move on to the ski rack. His skis are gone. I take a deep breath and let it out.
Padding back to my locker, I form a new plan. Okay. I don’t want to do this in front of the kids. My locker door twangs with the impact of slamming against metal. I yank out my things and shove my bag inside.
He knows what happened if he read his phone. As of this morning, his texts didn’t show up as read, but he could have seen the notification on his screen without opening them. I wiggle into my ski pants. I turn on my phone and check again. He’s read them. Whew.
I hear the tearing sound of my fleece zipper as I pull it up. So why is he avoiding me? Guess I’m about to find out. A quick turn of my combination lock and I’m on my way.
Jason is already standing at the sign talking to a little boy. “Hey. You read my texts?”
“Yeah. It’s fine.” He continues to talk to the boy.
That’s it? I know it’s inappropriate to talk about this in front of the child, but that’s all I get? An “It’s fine?” I’m a girl here. I need a little more. How about adding a “We’re good.” A wink? Maybe touch my arm? Smile? I huff. I’m dangerously close to stamping my foot too.
Jason interrupts my internal hissy fit. “I’ll take the boys on their own again today.” Turning to the kids that have gathered by him, he adds, “We’ve got jumps and trees to ski, right?” He fist bumps each one of them.
I shake my head, but put on a professional face. “Sure.” I turn to the girls. “We have bumps to ski today, right girls?” They smile at me and one sticks her tongue out at the boys. Got it. I guess today I’ll bounce through the moguls and wonder what the heck is going on.
Fortunately bumps are my favorite thing. I have a competent group of girls, and we head to E chair. Cool wind wraps around me as the sun kisses my face. The snow is light and the moguls are huge. These girls are about to learn the joy of quick turns and shock-absorber legs. And I’ll make the best of this day until I can force Jason to talk to me.
* * *
I make it down a little late with my group at the end of the day. They were so great in the moguls that we snuck in one last run. Almost all the parents are waiting when we get to the sign. “Your girls will be tired tonight. These little ladies skied bumps like nobody’s business. I’m so proud of them.”
I
wave to them all as the families ski off. I grin because it was a fantastic ski day. I lean on a ski pole to push the back of my binding and release my foot. I hear a click and remove it from the ski. My legs feel a bit like jelly as I shuffle toward the locker room. A yawn creeps up on me. My face prickles with the burn of too much sun. I can’t seem to wear enough sunscreen and probably have quite the goggle face.
Megan skis down and stops just below me. She lifts her goggles onto her helmet. “Did you get everything sorted out with Jason?”
I sigh. “I don’t know. I didn’t get to talk to him until we were meeting kids. All he said was, “It’s fine.” He didn’t even open my texts until this morning.”
I stop and wait as she wipes the snow off her skis before putting them on her shoulder. “That’s it?”
“Yup. I’m going to force him to talk to me now. I can’t take this.” Snow flies forward from my kick at the ground.
“I bet he turned off his phone. Last night he went to the gym with Nick, and then they went out for burgers. I didn’t get much, but I think after the shock wore off Jason realized you wouldn’t marry Blaine.” She pulls open the door and the scent of sweat wafts toward us.
“That’s good to know, thanks.” I drop my skis in the rack with a clunk and don’t see Jason’s. Huh, I thought he was back already. “He’s not here.” Tears fight to fall.
Megan tilts her head to toward the ladies room. “C’mon.”
As soon as the door shuts, Megan pulls me into a hug. “Go ahead, cry if you need to.”
I hug her back and sniff. “No, I’m okay.” I pull away. “I didn’t get much sleep last night. This whole thing is so screwed up. I’m pretty sure he isn’t mad now, but something isn’t right. Why would he be avoiding me?” I check out my sunburn in the mirror.
“Who knows? He’s a guy. He probably thinks it’s all sorted out because of some conversation you had in his head.” She chuckles.
I give her a wry grin. “You may be right.” I hold open the door for us to go to our lockers.
* * *
Nippy winds blow my hair back as I walk out of the locker room. My legs ache with the familiar exhaustion of a hard ski day. I look toward my car and see Jason’s truck is still here. Perfect. He can’t escape me now.
I throw my bag into my car and move to the back of his truck. My quads whine in complaint as I squat down and slide my fingers along the underneath of the bumper. The grit is rough, but I find the little magnetic metal key box. With force, I slide the rusty cover open and pull out his spare.
I let myself into the cab and find the blanket tucked behind the passenger seat. Benjamin’s ring is in my coat pocket. I slide the light plastic onto my finger. The woodsy scent of Jason drifts over me as I snuggle in for the wait.
A few rounds of a game on my phone pass the time until I notice him. Recognition spreads to his face. Nope, he’s not mad. I think he might even be amused.
The door opens. “You found my spare key?” He slides in, slams the door and turns to lean against it. His arms are crossed.
“I did.” I rush on before he can manage to avoid me. I hold my hand up to his face so he can see the ring. “Remember me telling you about Clara’s kids? This was a gift from Benjamin. Jess must have seen Blaine put it on my finger and jumped to the wrong conclusion.” I take a deep breath. “And I also made a friendly kiss look like a passionate one to make her mad.” I cringe at my pettiness. “I’m sorry.”
He chuckles. “Only you could make such a mess.” And then his face turns sober. “I was pretty pissed at you when Jess told me. But once I calmed down, I thought long and hard about us. I figured maybe you said yes because he offered you children.”
“I—” He holds up a hand for me to stop.
“I know you think it doesn’t matter now. But it will matter someday. I can’t be with you knowing that will happen if I don’t want kids.” My stomach clenches and my throat gets thick.
“The past couple of days teaching kids have showed me how important children are to you.” I start to shake my head as tears threaten to escape. He takes my hand. “It’s also showed me they aren’t so bad. I like kids. They like me.”
He continues, “I was convinced I would be a terrible parent given my childhood. But now I think I might not be so bad. That’s why I wanted to have the boys alone today. I needed to prove to myself I could do it without you.”
Hope blossoms in my heart. “You’re great with them. So are you saying having kids isn’t out for you?”
“That’s what I’m saying. Kids are a possibility and not just because I know you need them. I might need them, too.”
I throw myself into his arms and pull his face toward mine. My lips sear him as my tongue darts in his mouth. He responds with hunger. My core quivers as I fall into the depth of our kiss.
We break apart and Jason touches my lips to quiet the tremble. “There’s more. I just finished talking to Heather and transferred over to kids. You’re looking at the newest children’s instructor.”
“Really? You’ll be so amazing.” I climb over and straddle his lap.
His eyes twinkle. “Will be? I already am.”
I slap at his chest. “What am I going to do with you?”
He raises his eyebrows and pulls my hips in tighter. His arousal is hard against me. “I have a rain check from last winter I could cash in.”
I rotate my hips under his hands. “The parking lot is almost empty.”
His husky voice answers, “Uh-huh.”
I unzip his jacket. “And I already steamed up the windows.”
“Uh-huh.” His fingers slide under my waistband and toward the button of my jeans.
I taste the salty skin of his neck as I lick up to his ear and nibble on the lobe. I whisper, “Who needs foreplay when you’re about to explode?”
I hear the hum of the seat motor move us backward as my button pops in one quick motion. He rips open my zipper and tugs on my jeans. I rise up on my knees and grab his pants to do the same. Rough denim scrapes my thighs as I release him from his underwear.
I say, “Wait, I’m trapped.” I flop over to the passenger seat and make short work of removing my jeans and panties. He opens the glove compartment and pulls out a condom box. Okay, he’s been ready for this.
Straddling him again, my voice is raspy. “Now, where were we?” My stomach twitches and my legs tremble.
Jason slides a finger in me. “Jesus, you’re soaked.”
“Like I was saying.” I grind into his palm with a sigh.
Teeth tear a foil wrapper, but I impatiently take the condom from him. As I roll it on, he chuckles. “You’re something else.”
“Shhh.” He holds my hips as I guide him home. I slide down the length of him. He groans.
I hear a soft cry escape as I lean my head back. God, I’m already so close. I rise up and slam down hard. My core pulses around his cock as the pace quickens. I hear him pant and continue to pump as I shatter. My body convulses with an orgasm, but I can’t stop until he’s there. I focus on a steady rhythm. Shudders shake my shoulders as another climax builds.
Jason twitches and I feel his release. I barely hear him. I ride at an increasing pace. I quake and then erupt. My cry is almost a scream as I slide down one last time and collapse. Every piece of me shakes. “I’ve missed you.”
Hands slide under my sports bra to cup my breasts. “I think you did explode.” Jason flicks my nipple, and damn if it doesn’t send electric pulses through me. Through hooded eyes I stare at his mouth. I touch his lips and he sucks my fingers, hard. An aftershock twitches and I bite my lip.
He whispers, “More?” He’s already sliding out of me. A finger rubs my clit and I moan.
I thrust my hips. “Whatever you do, don’t stop.”
My juices seep as he presses his palm against my mound and flicks his finger. My hips thrust quickly as a wave of pleasure threatens to drown me. I’m on the brink when he stops. A whimper escapes.
He
reaches past me for the condom box on the dash. He grins and I ask, “More?”
He whispers, “Shhh.”
Chapter Sixty-Two
Jason takes my hand. “Come up to my room with me.” He has a gleam in his eye, and I wonder what he’s up to. I see Kaleb’s room as we go by. His door is shut and I assume he’s already left. My heart warms as I think about his New Year’s with Lori tonight.
I take off my boots at the bottom of his ladder while Jason waits for me to climb first. Once up, I’m drawn to his window and the view. Mistletoe is hung over the window seat. I turn to him with a smile. “Hmm, I think I’ve been set up.”
I hear him fumble in one of his cubbies. He turns to me with a small present in his hands. “I got you something.”
“You did?” I know that I sounded like a little girl, but I’m surprised he got me a gift. The paper is smooth in my hands as I unwrap it. Opening a little white box reveals a small star charm hanging from a silver chain. Tiny letters spell, “Jason.” My heart beats a bit faster. Is this what I think? My fingers tremble as I remove it from the box.
“Your wish came true. You have me. And, maybe, that family someday.” He pulls me close. “I love you. More than I thought possible.” He glances at the mistletoe and kisses me. It starts off tender as he nibbles at my lips, but intensifies, and I’m swept away as my body tingles. His hands move down my back. Our bodies touch and we meld together as one. There’s no denying our desire, but this is more than sexual. Erasing any doubt in my being, I feel totally and helplessly loved as the kiss ends. I look up into his eyes. “Oh, Jason, my heart is so full right now. I love you, too.”
I reach the chain around my neck. Turning, I ask, “Will you do the clasp for me?”
He takes the ends and I lift my hair. Fingers brush my skin. He leans down and kisses the back of my neck. A shiver goes down my spine as lust radiates through my body. I take a deep breath and let it out with a tiny shudder.
