by Nomi Summers
The snow was wet and slippery beneath their feet. This was not anything like the snow Luke had been used to from skiing in Vail. This snow was ferocious, and it was coming down fast. The wind coming off Lake Michigan blew the snow sideways, making it difficult for them to walk.
He noticed Jordyn start to slip, so he reached out to grab her around the waist to steady her. Why did she still have those heeled boots on? Probably because she hadn’t planned to get out of the car since she was only bringing him down to get his laptop.
“Here, hold onto my arm,” he yelled, but he was sure she couldn’t hear him in the howling wind. Not with the scarf wrapped around his mouth. He held his arm out to her anyway, hoping the gesture was enough for her to understand. She quickly looped her arm through his as they made their way through the wooded lot that housed his cabin. Something about having her by his side, even under the circumstances, was comforting.
When they got to the cabin door, after he tore his glove off and dug the key out of his pocket, he’d never been so happy to get inside and out of the cold. He closed the door behind them, abating the deafening roar of the wind. A wall of darkness and stillness greeted them.
Luke retrieved his cell phone from his pocket, using the flashlight feature to illuminate the pitch-black room. Without a word, they unraveled their scarves and removed their wet coats and boots.
“I’ll get us a fire started,” he told her, taking Jordyn by the hand to lead her over to the couch that sat across from the fireplace. He pulled the flannel throw blanket off the back of the couch and wrapped it around her. She looked wet and cold; he was foolish for getting them into this situation. “Are you okay?” he asked.
“I’m fine. Just get the fire going because it won’t be long before this cabin loses its warmth.”
Luke kneeled in front of the hearth and grabbed a couple of logs from the stand beside it. He went to work, and before long, the wood took, and an amber glow lit up the room. He collapsed on the couch beside her.
He looked over at Jordyn who stared straight ahead into the flames. She didn’t look pleased, and he couldn’t blame her. If there was ever a time to man up and admit fault, this was it.
He turned his body slightly on the couch to face her. “Listen, Jordyn. I want you to know I’m really sorry for getting you into this mess.”
She let out a long, audible sigh before looking over at him and meeting his eyes. “Well, there’s nothing we can do about it now, so there’s no use dwelling on it.” The fire cast a warm glow on her face, putting a twinkle in her eyes. Man, her eyes were beautiful. How had he not noticed that until now? She held his gaze for a moment before turning her attention back to the fire.
Luke tried to dial Shane, but the call dropped immediately. He already knew from earlier today that he didn’t have cell reception down at the cabin, but he at least had to try. “Do you have reception on your phone?”
“My cell phone is in my room. I had no use for it at Shane and Avery’s rehearsal. Some of us aren’t glued to our phones,” she added, shooting him a pointed look. It was a low blow, but he deserved it.
Luke fought to keep his wits about him, but he was frustrated and panicked inside. What if nobody came looking for them? What would they eat down here? Since he’d caused her to miss dinner, the least he could do was keep her warm. He got off the couch and headed for the bedroom, his phone illuminating the way. He pulled some pajama bottoms and a sweatshirt that he’d put away earlier from the dresser drawer. They would be a little big on her, but at least she could get out of that dress and put some dry clothes on. While he was in there, he changed his own clothes, getting into jogging pants and a fresh sweatshirt.
“Here.” He held out the clothes to her. “I thought you might want to get into something dry. You can take my phone to the bedroom to change.” He handed her his phone.
She gave him a small smile and took him up on the offer. He sat on the couch as she stood, dropping the blanket she’d had wrapped around her, giving him one final look at her in that formfitting sweater dress. Just like the first time he’d noticed, he nearly lost his breath all over again.
Chapter 5
Jordyn closed the bedroom door behind her and took off the wet dress. She picked up the sweatshirt he’d handed her, held it to her face, and inhaled to see if it carried the same intoxicating scent that Luke had been wearing. To her delight, remnants of his cologne lingered there, instantly warming the chill that had taken up residence inside her. She’d never known a man to smell so good.
She pulled on the sweatpants and tied them tight at the waist to keep them from sliding down and reappeared from the bedroom. Her eyes fell straight to Luke and the two glasses of red wine sitting on the coffee table between the couch and the fire.
Luke looked up and froze, his hand hovering over the half-sliced summer sausage. His mouth dropped open for a moment before his lips slowly turned up in a smile as he looked her up and down.
“What is it?” she asked, looking down at the oversize sweatshirt and pajama bottoms that hung off her hands and feet.
“Nothing,” he said with a boyish grin. He went back to slicing, but the smile stayed on his face. “It’s just that you look just as beautiful in my oversize clothes as you did in that dress.” He hadn’t looked up at her when he’d said it, and she was thankful for it.
The heat pricking at her cheeks told her they’d reddened, so she decided to ignore his remark. It was not what she had expected to hear, but she had to admit, there were worse men she could be snowed into a cabin with. Her body flushed with warmth as she made her way back to the couch beside him. Was it the fire, or was it his scent lingering on the sweatshirt that caused her to overheat?
“Thankfully, Shane and Avery left this welcome basket of goodies in my cabin, or I’m afraid we wouldn’t have much else to eat or drink tonight,” he said, handing her a glass of wine before picking up his own.
“I got a basket, too. That was nice of them.” She accepted the glass and pulled her feet onto the couch to tuck beneath her legs.
“Have I mentioned how sorry I am about all of this?” he asked, taking a sip of his wine.
“You don’t have to keep apologizing. Really. There’s nothing we can do about it now but try to make the best of it. Besides, they’re all up there in the lodge without power as well, so I don’t think we’re missing much.”
“At least we have this fire. And summer sausage,” he joked, putting a piece of sausage on a cracker and handing it to her before building one for himself.
“Thanks for dinner,” she teased back. Even in the unfortunate situation he’d put her in, she was finding it harder and harder to stay upset with him. “I just have one question for you.”
“Yeah? What’s that?” he stuffed the cracker into his mouth and leaned against the back of the couch, turning his body to get comfortable so he was facing her.
“What was so important that you had to get your laptop to go to work during your friend’s wedding weekend?” She cupped her wine glass in both hands and leaned back on her end of the couch, facing him as well. “If you don’t mind me asking,” she added.
“When you put it like that, it sounds pretty bad, huh?”
She nodded her head yes and crinkled her nose.
“My company was just offered a large sum of money for an app I developed. Except, the app is not functioning properly, and my team is having trouble fixing it. Since I developed the app, I was going to work on it tonight. If I can’t get it fixed, I’m afraid we’re going to lose the deal.”
“Oh? What’s the name of the app?”
He took a sip of his wine, hesitating. He finally responded, “VidChat.”
“VidChat is your app?” She sat up straight in her chair. She knew of the app. All of the kids in school used it. It was a new social media-based platform where users sent short video snippets for communication. “Why would you want to sell it?”
Who knew the arrogant guy she’d bickered with all day
was a tech genius? She never would have guessed it. She figured him for a lawyer, or maybe even a stockbroker, but not an app guru.
“It’s a really good offer. One too good to pass up.”
“But if you sell it, you’ll lose all of your rights to it, won’t you?”
Luke paused before answering. “Yes, I will. But I’ll make another. It’s what I do.”
“So, you develop apps just to sell them?”
“Precisely.”
“Doesn’t it ever bother you to lose control over a product that you created? Just for the money?”
Luke set his glass on the table and went silent, breaking the eye contact between them. Had she overstepped her boundary? Perhaps she shouldn’t have meddled. It just seemed odd to her. Visions of her art danced in her mind, and how she loved to paint for herself. She would never, for any amount of money, allow someone else to buy the rights to call her work their own.
“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have—”
“No, it’s fine,” he finally said. “I just never really thought of it that way or had anyone say it to me quite like that before.”
She looked down at her wine, tracing the rim of the glass with her finger. She’d better not ask any more questions. The last thing she wanted to do was start an argument with a man she’d be stuck inside a cabin with until who knew when.
“What about you?” he asked.
“Huh?” she looked up and met his eyes, which studied her intently. Her pulse quickened at the connection.
“What do you do for a living?”
“I teach fifth grade just outside of Chicago.”
“Chicago? Great city. I love it there.”
“You spend time there?”
“I have. I’ve traveled there for business a time or two.” He picked up the cutting board from the table and leaned forward to offer her another piece of sausage, which she quickly accepted. The rumble in her tummy reminded her she hadn’t eaten since breakfast, and she was actually starving. “So, did you grow up there?”
“No, I grew up here.”
“Ah, that makes sense as to why you know Shane and Avery.”
“I moved after college. We only have one elementary school here, and there were no job openings.”
“Is your family still here?”
She looked down at her glass and swallowed the emotion that fought to surface. “My mom and dad live here, but they divorced this year.”
Luke leaned forward and placed his hand on hers. “I’m sorry to hear that.” A tingling sensation crawled up her arm at his touch. She looked down at his hand on hers. Oddly, it was comforting, and when he pulled it away, she could still feel his warmth on her skin. Perhaps she should slow up on the wine because she had enjoyed his touch far more than she’d anticipated.
“Hey.” She perked up with an idea, hoping it might shift the tone in the room. “Avery’s family used to keep these cabins stocked with board games in the closet. What do you say? Up for a game of Monopoly?”
“Monopoly?” he laughed. “I haven’t played that since I was a kid.”
“Well, there’s not much else to do.”
“I’m in. But I get to be the car.” He shot her a grin.
“That’s fine. I like the horse.” She smiled back.
She got up and headed for the hall closet with Luke in tow.
“You’re beating me,” Luke told Jordyn with a wink as he handed over Park Place. “Apparently board games are your thing.”
“Yeah, you’d better stick to apps,” she teased back, and the way her smile lit up her face, illuminated only by the light of the flickering flames in front of them, had a fire of his own building inside his body. “So, what about you?”
“Huh?” He was puzzled by the question.
“Did you grow up in California?”
“I did. With a single mother.” He rolled the dice and moved his car forward six spaces. “I passed go; hand over my two hundred.” He held out his hand to her with a small smile, silently hoping the change of subject would allow her to forget the questions she was about to ask.
Jordyn handed over the two hundred from the bank, and as she did, her fingertips grazed his hand, causing a chain reaction to ignite inside of him.
“Where does your mother live? Will you see her for Christmas?”
Luke ran his hand through his hair and drew in a breath. Usually, he didn’t talk to anyone about his mother, but something about Jordyn felt safe. “Honestly, I don’t know where she is at the moment. Last I saw her, I was checking her into rehab. All I know is she didn’t stay, so it will only be a matter of time before she is calling me for money for her next high.”
Jordyn dropped the dice in her hand, a look of pity taking over her face. “And your father?”
Luke swallowed hard to push down the emotion rising in his throat. “I’ve never met him.”
“Luke…” she started, but her voice trailed off as she stared at him with sorrow in her eyes. He didn’t want her to feel sorry for him. That wasn’t why he’d shared these things with her.
“It’s fine, really.” He offered her a smile motioning to the dice on the floor. “It’s your turn.”
She rolled the dice and moved her horse ahead three spaces. “Why, yes, I’ll be taking Boardwalk, thank you. You’re dunzo now!” He was thankful that she’d seemed to be able to read him and knew he didn’t want to talk more about his family. They went back to the game as if the conversation never happened, but something in her had softened with his admission.
The rest of the evening, time slipped away as they played and laughed and flirted on the floor, camped out in front of the fire. After a round of Monopoly, a game of Yahtzee, and a bottle of wine, Luke glanced at his watch to see it was after midnight. Jordyn yawned and stretched her arms over her head.
“I’m getting tired,” she told him, pulling herself to her feet. She walked over to the window and slid the curtain back. “It’s still coming down something fierce.”
“I don’t think anyone is coming to look for us tonight. How about I make you a bed on the couch? I’ll put another log on the fire so it doesn’t go out,” he told her, getting off the floor himself and following her to the window. There was something magnetizing about her, drawing him to her. He longed to hold her in his arms, to feel her close to him.
“Where are you going to sleep?” she asked, turning around. She must not have known he had walked up behind her because she seemed startled to find him so close. Her eyes making their way up his body to meet his.
“I’ll sleep in the recliner,” he said softly, his voice barely above a whisper. They were face-to-face, their eyes only inches apart. As were their lips. Luke looked down at her mouth, and it took every ounce of self-control he had not to take her lips in his. He hadn’t had such a strong desire to kiss a woman in a long time. Maybe even ever. Why was he having these feelings for someone he’d just met?
There was something about her that he just couldn’t place. For one, she spoke her mind and had no problem telling him what she thought of him. That was refreshing because lately he had the feeling everyone he encountered was just trying to impress him and tell him what he wanted to hear. Not Jordyn.
Sure, they’d gotten off on the wrong foot, but that seemed like forever ago. Being snowed into the cabin with her, he genuinely enjoyed her company. He hadn’t had so much fun doing absolutely nothing in a long time. And oddly, he wasn’t even stressed about the fact that he couldn’t work on the app. Maybe Jordyn was right. Why was he trying to sell it in the first place? People loved VidChat. And it’s not like he needed the money. Her comment had given him something to think about—later—but right then, he couldn’t take his mind off the woman standing inches from him or the itching desire to taste her lips.
He stepped closer to her, closing any space left between them, and swept a strand of hair from her face before tucking it behind her ear. Gently, he trailed his thumb along her cheek to test her response. Her eyes fell to hi
s lips and her mouth parted. She wanted it too; he was sure of it.
Luke cupped her face with his palm and leaned in. In the exact moment her eyes drifted shut, he took the mouth he’d been longing for in his. Gently at first, he brushed his lips ever so lightly across hers until her demeanor surrendered. When she placed her hands on his shoulders and pulled him closer, it was clear she wanted to take the kiss deeper. Luke’s arms fell to her waist and pulled her body against his at the same time she laced her fingers behind his neck.
He’d kissed his fair share of women, but none had ever compared to her. To this kiss.
Suddenly, Jordyn moved her hands to his chest and pressed off, creating space between them.
“We’d better get some sleep,” she said softly looking from his lips to his eyes and taking another step back. But he could’ve sworn he’d detected a tremble in her voice. Why had she stopped him? There had been magic in that kiss—she had to have felt it, too, hadn’t she?
They’d had fun, laughing and playing games, talking about their lives, and getting to know each other. Had he imagined the connection between them?
“Yeah, tomorrow is going to be a big day,” he turned around and walked back toward the fireplace to add an extra log. The sting of rejection weighed heavy in his chest, but the feeling of her pillow-soft lips still lingered on his.
Chapter 6
Jordyn woke to the sound of metal scraping pavement. She’d know that sound anywhere. It was a snowplow, and that had to mean someone was clearing the roadway. She sprung from the couch and moved to the window. To her delight, Shane had parked and was walking up to the cabin.
“Shane’s here.” She looked over her shoulder at Luke who’d just woken up in the recliner.
“That’s great news.” The dryness in his voice didn’t match his words. Was he upset with her that she’d stopped their kiss? She’d never been kissed like that before. Ever. And as much as she had wanted it—and she’d definitely wanted it—she wouldn’t let herself go down that path with Luke. She wasn’t looking to be anyone’s weekend fling. As attracted as she was to him, he’d be leaving on Monday, and she would be leaving shortly thereafter. They lived on opposite sides of the country, so a relationship would never work. Plus, he was loaded, and she was a school teacher. What could they possibly have in common?
