by Elena Aitken
Something caused her to glance in Jason’s direction one more time as she handed Emily the first block. He took a piece of paper from Morgan, likely his reminder slip, and turned to leave. But before he did, he looked in her direction and their eyes locked. He opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something, but Lisa shook her head and focused on Emily. Kids were easier.
~ * ~
The second he was out of the Kids Club, Cub Corner or whatever it was called, Jason Porter slammed his hand against the wall and cursed. Seconds later, he looked around to make sure no one had seen him. It was a bad habit, gleaned from too many months up North working in the oil patch, but he knew his twin sister, Jennifer, would rip up one side and down the other if she heard him swear like that.
But sometimes there were no other appropriate words for a situation. Like the way he’d just royally screwed things up with the prettiest girl he’d seen in months. And it wasn’t just that she was pretty, although with her blond hair, and womanly curves that just begged for him to—no. He wasn’t going to go there. It didn’t matter anyway, after the way he’d just behaved. He’d more or less offered her a one-night stand. Regardless whether that was the only type of relationship he cared to have these days, it hadn’t been appropriate. And he’d offended her. Any idiot could see that.
But why did it bother him so much? He’d never let it affect him before.
He knew why. Even if he didn’t want to admit it. The truth was, Lisa was the first woman he’d been even remotely interested in since Nikki, and that was a long time ago. Not that it mattered, because she wasn’t likely to even speak to him again, never mind go out with him. Which was probably a good thing, because dating wasn’t an option for him. Not anymore.
He wasn’t interested. Not really. At least that’s what he could—and probably should—keep telling himself. A date wasn’t going to happen, not even if it was just a super casual drink at a hotel where he’d never see the woman again. No. Especially not that. Maybe in a different time, or a different…it didn’t matter.
There was no point giving the situation anymore time and energy. Not when he could be out enjoying the mountains or the Lodge itself, which might as well have been the royal palace compared to the basic camps he was used to up North. And he should definitely be enjoying his little nephew, Kayden. It was after all, the only reason he’d agreed to his sister’s incessant nagging to go to the stupid family reunion. The last thing he really wanted was to have to make small talk with cousins he hadn’t seen since…well, it had been awhile, and he certainly hadn’t missed any of them. There was a reason it’d been so long.
But he was here, and he’d play nice, mostly because it would make Jennifer happy and after all, that’s what he did. Made his sister happy. He made his way down the corridor to the lobby, where she was hopefully done checking them in. He’d offered to look into the kids club thing for Kayden, mostly to get away from the crush of people, most of whom were relatives who all clambered for a position at the front desk. Details really weren’t his thing. He’d let Jen take care of that.
“Hey, buddy.” Jason ruffled Kayden’s hair and plopped down next to him on one of the plush leather couches in the main reception area. “Where’s your mom?”
Kayden pointed to the desk. “She told me to wait here.”
“Probably for the best. This is the worst part of staying in a hotel.” His nephew nodded his head in agreement. “But do you know what the best part is?”
They looked at each other and said in unison, “The pool!”
“Can we go, Uncle Jason?”
“Of course.” He glanced toward his sister who finally, mercifully, made her way toward them. “But let’s wait and get settled in our rooms, okay?”
“What are you waiting to do?” Jennifer raised her eyebrow in question. “I’m sure it has something to do with the schedule of events, right?” She smiled and Jason didn’t even bother to stifle his groan.
With their dark hair and green eyes, there was no doubt they were siblings, but that’s where the similarities ended. Where Jason was always quiet, and preferred to hang out with a few close friends or spend his free time outside, Jennifer had always been the more wild, impulsive twin. She thrived on large groups of people, parties and being the center of attention. A trait that had meant Jason spent most of their high school years playing the role of the protective big brother, making sure the boys who were clamoring for his beautiful sister’s attention were worthy. They often weren’t. And unfortunately, Jason hadn’t been able to prevent his sister from choosing the wrong man to marry and ultimately divorce.
Although, the one good thing that came from that union was his nephew. And that was a pretty damn good thing. Plus, now that she was a mother, Jennifer had completely changed, except when it came to wanting be around lots of people. Hence, the reunion.
“Come on, Jason.” She shoved an envelope at him. “That’s why we’re here.”
“What’s this?” He eyed the envelope somewhat suspiciously but didn’t open it.
“Your itinerary for the weekend.”
With one last look at the envelope, Jason stood and shoved it in his back pocket. “Right.” He grabbed the bags. “Why don’t we go find our rooms?”
Kayden leapt up and led the way across the large timber framed lobby to the bank of elevators. Jason smiled and gathered up the bags. As they made their way across the room, Jason was careful not to make eye contact with any of his cousins. He knew he couldn’t avoid talking to them forever, but he did plan to put it off for as long as possible. Instead he focused on the large picture windows that covered the entire back wall of the lobby, and the magnificent view they afforded. It had been a long time since he’d been in the mountains, too long, and he couldn’t wait to get out there.
“You know you’re going to have to hang out with them a little bit.” Jennifer read his mind, the way she always did, but Jason only shrugged and shook his head.
“Not if I can help it.”
“Jason.” She turned to look at him as they waited for the elevator. “That’s why you’re here. It’s a family reunion.”
“No.” He stabbed his finger at the button again. “That’s why you’re here. I’m here to be with you. And Kayden.” He smiled at his nephew. “And that’s exactly what I plan on doing. And you know, I checked out that kids club thing.” The face of the beautiful blond, with her fiery eyes glaring at him, flashed through his mind. “But I don’t know if that’s the right thing for Kayden.”
“Why not? The lady at the desk said they did lots of fun things, like crafts and hikes and even scavenger hunts.”
“Scavenger hunts?” Kayden was always listening, and had twigged onto the one thing that he’d liked the sound of. “I wanna do that.”
“I’m sure we can sign you up—”
“I don’t think it’s—”
Kayden looked between them and shook his head. He was used to his mom and his uncle disagreeing. He also knew his mom made the final decision.
“We’ll sign you up.” She shot Jason a look.
“He already is,” Jason mumbled and thankfully, the elevator arrived and without another word, he picked up the bags. “The day after tomorrow.” There was no point arguing with his sister. She’d win. She always did. Besides, Jennifer was right: Kayden would have fun in the kids group, and there weren’t very many little cousins his age. The whole family reunion would be even more excruciatingly boring for his nephew than it would be for him.
And more than boring, and dealing with his extended family, it would be the constant reminder of what Jason had once, and had lost.
Their rooms were next to each other, down a long hall, and after Jason dropped the bags in Jennifer and Kayden’s room, he looked forward to a bit of time alone. Of course, his sister had other plans. Before he even had time to cross the room and open the curtains, there was a knock on the door that attached their two rooms. He could ignore it. Pretend he hadn’t heard it. But that woul
d only buy him a few minutes. When his sister wanted something, there was no way she gave up.
With a flick, he unlatched the deadbolt and seconds later, the door opened, and his sister stepped inside. “Kayden’s jumping on the beds, trying to decide which one he wants to sleep in, so I thought I’d come and see how you’re doing.”
“Why wouldn’t I be doing okay?” Jason tugged the cord that opened the thick curtains and let the sunlight spill into the room. It was a beautiful fall day, and although he knew the weather could change in an instant up in the mountains, for the moment it was beautiful.
“Come on, Jason. I know you. I know this can’t be easy.”
Without turning away from the view, he said, “What? Being around all these people who share our name, but not our lives? Who pretend to care about us, but really just want a good story to talk about around their dinner table at Sunday night dinner? You think that’s hard? I don’t understand.”
“That’s not fair.” He turned to see his twin, with her arms crossed over her chest. “You know that’s not fair. They’re not all like that.”
“But most are.”
Jennifer started to shake her head in protest, but turned it into a shrug instead. “Okay, I admit, our family wasn’t totally supportive after…well, when Nikki died, I know they weren’t the best.” The mention of her name prompted the familiar pain in his chest, although admittedly, it wasn’t as sharp as it had been.
“No, Jen. Our family. Mom, Dad, you and Kayden. You guys were great. Everyone else, well they can go to—”
“Uncle Jason!” Kayden’s head appeared in the doorway, promoting a warning look from Jennifer. Not that he needed it—Jason would never swear in front of his nephew. Not intentionally anyway. “Isn’t it cool? Our rooms are totally attached.”
Jason grinned. How could he not? His real family was right here in the room with him. With the exception of his parents, who had to take a last-minute business trip instead of joining them. It was probably for the best anyway, considering his dad mostly shared Jason’s feelings regarding his own family, despite the fact that most of them worked for the family business, Porter Properties. Jason had somehow managed to avoid taking a position there, despite his father’s constant asking. Nikki’s death had changed a lot of things. Too many.
CHAPTER TWO
“You know we need to talk.” For a moment, Lisa pretended she hadn’t heard Morgan, and continued to pack up her purse. “Come to the Grill with me and we’ll make it less formal. But we still need to discuss it,” Morgan insisted. “It’s my job to review a situation like this. Besides, it’s time for a performance review.”
Lisa sighed and zipped up her purse. She knew it was coming. Not only was it time for her quarterly review, but after what happened with that arrogant, player of a guest, she’d known a chat with her boss was imminent. “It doesn’t seem like I have much of a choice.” She turned around and swung her bag over her shoulder.
Morgan smiled. “You don’t really. But I’m your friend, too. So we might as well have a drink while we chat. Right?”
Lisa couldn’t help but return her friend’s smile. Even though she knew she’d be chastised for something that was totally not her fault, she also knew Morgan would be fair about it.
“Let’s go.” Lisa shook her head and held the door open.
As they walked down through the expansive halls of the Lodge, Lisa looked around and tried to remember why she’d come to Castle Mountain in the first place. She’d been there over a year, ever since she’d decided she couldn’t stay in her small town for one more second. Originally she’d been looking for a summer job, something to get her away from the reputation she’d managed to create for herself back home. But it didn’t take long for her to fall in love with the Lodge, and the friendships she’d made. The only issue was that she’d inadvertently caused herself the same problem with men in a whole new place. At least, she had. But all of that was going to change. It had changed. At least until Jason had walked in. Lisa’s mind drifted back to the man with his ridiculously large arms. Arms that could—
“Hey.” Morgan snapped her fingers in front of Lisa’s face. “Are you listening to me?”
“Of course.” Morgan frowned, so Lisa shook her head and apologized. “Sorry, I was just thinking about something. What did you say?”
Morgan shot her a look, but didn’t press the issue. “Let’s find a table first.”
They scanned the room, which was already filling up. The Grill was a favorite of both staff and guests and it wasn’t unusual that it was busy, but Lisa had hoped it might be a quiet night. No such luck, but they did have a bit of luck finding a table and soon they were seated across from each other at a high table in the middle of the room.
As soon as they were settled, Lisa focused on her friend. “What were you saying earlier?”
“I asked you what you thought about taking the kids on a hike soon.”
“I think it’s a great idea,” she said. “I love hiking and the weather’s supposed to be nice for the next few days. We might as well take advantage of it.”
The weather in the mountains in November was unpredictable. They could easily get an early storm that would dump enough snow that would stay all winter, or they could have an extended autumn and enjoy milder temperatures the way they had been.
“That’s exactly what I was thinking,” Morgan said. She grabbed the menu card off the table. “It’s going to be a long winter; it always is. So we might as well get outside while we can. And Bo said the trails were still good when he was up there a few days ago. It should be fun.”
They each ordered a spicy Caesar, a Lodge specialty drink, and a plate of the Grill’s famous nachos to nibble on. It wasn’t until their drinks were in front of them that Morgan got down to business and the real reason they were there.
“You know we need to talk about what happened today,” Morgan said. “So, go ahead and tell me why you would hit on a guest after everything that happened.”
Lisa sighed and swirled the celery stick around in her drink before she pulled it out and took a bite. She didn’t respond to her friend, but raised her eyebrows instead.
“It’s not the first time I’ve gotten a complaint about your flirting, Lisa.”
Lisa swallowed hard and almost choked on the celery. “He complained?”
“No.” Morgan shook her head. “He didn’t and to be fair, I haven’t had a complaint about it in months. But he might have if I hadn’t stepped in. What was that all about, anyway?”
Of course Morgan hadn’t received any complaints about her behavior. Lisa fought the urge to fire back at her friend, but it wasn’t her fault; Lisa only had herself to blame for her past behavior. But things were different now, and there hadn’t been any complaints because she was behaving herself. She hadn’t so much as winked at a man in months and that included other staff members. For all intents and purposes, Lisa had been living like a nun and to get strung up because of Jason’s behavior…well, that wasn’t going to happen.
She took a deep breath and in an effort to calm down, Lisa turned her attention to her drink and dipped the celery stick in again, before she abandoned it for the straw. There was no point answering Morgan. They both knew there wasn’t going to be an answer that would satisfy either of them. Even if Lisa denied what Morgan thought she saw, she wasn’t naive enough to believe that it would be enough. Friends or not, Morgan took her role very seriously, and she wouldn’t stand for any misbehavior from her staff. Not anymore.
“You need to talk to me.”
Lisa took a long sip and let the spicy drink fill her senses.
“Lisa.”
“Okay.” Lisa pushed her drink away and stared at Morgan. “But I don’t know what you want me to say. The truth is, he flirted with me. He more or less propositioned me, and I turned him down; he was insulted and got a bit of an attitude. End of story.”
Morgan narrowed her eyes and waited. And waited.
“Hone
stly,” Lisa said. “It wasn’t anything. And it definitely wasn’t me. I told you, I’ve changed. I’m totally sworn off men. I don’t want anything to do with them.”
Morgan tilted her head.
“I don’t,” Lisa insisted. She pulled her drink toward her and took another long sip. At the rate she was going, she’d need a refill in no time.
“I know the whole Gage Mitchell thing—”
“That wasn’t a thing. His PR rep hated me and made it seem way worse than it was.” Lisa focused on her drink. She did not want to relive that situation. Gage was a huge celebrity who had stayed at the Lodge to escape from his life for a little bit. Of course Lisa had come on to him; he was gorgeous. Anybody would have. And he’d been interested in her, too. At least until that meddling PR rep got involved. And she may have tried to insinuate something had happened, but that was all in the past. “That’s ancient history. I’m over it and I’m totally over men. I told you.”
“I know. I know. But, all men?” Morgan’s voice was serious. Lisa didn’t meet her gaze because she knew it’d be full of concern, and worse, pity. “I’m actually a little worried about you. I agree that you shouldn’t be dating the guests, but what about some of the other guys? It’s not like you. And there are plenty of men here, you just have to…well, will you let me set you up?”
Thankfully, Lisa was saved from answering by the arrival of a large platter of nachos the waitress put between them. She immediately pulled a chip from the pile and stuffed it in her mouth. The last thing she wanted was for Morgan to set her up. Well, maybe it wasn’t the last thing. She did miss going on dates and the companionship of a man. Morgan was right; it wasn’t like her to be single for so long. But maybe that wasn’t a bad thing.
“I’m not leaving here until you talk to me about this,” Morgan said. “You’re my friend and I care about you.” She picked up a chip of her own. “And besides that, I really don’t want to have to write you up for inappropriate behavior with guests. Don’t put me in that position, okay?”
