She almost said that she had Andrew and she was still jealous, just to see how he’d react. She didn’t, though. Couldn’t. Because what woman in her right mind would set herself up for public humiliation and heartbreak? None that she knew.
One thing was becoming clear. If she couldn’t get a handle on her emotions, she’d have to get the hell out of Steamboat Springs as soon as humanly possible. Otherwise, she might not be able to stop herself from falling completely, irrevocably in love with the wrong man.
How ironic was it that she’d arrived in Steamboat Springs with the goal of giving her heart to Andrew, only to discover that Cole still owned a decent-sized chunk of it? It was incredibly unfair. Depressing. Pitiful. And, Rachel thought, an absolutely no-win situation.
On all accounts.
Chapter Six
Saturday dawned bright and sunny with nary a snowflake in the sky. With Andrew’s work crisis momentarily solved and a perfect day for skiing awaiting them, Rachel called Cole and canceled their planned shopping trip. She didn’t lie, either. Told him that since she’d spent all of yesterday with him, she owed Andrew some one-on-one time.
Surprisingly, he didn’t argue. Of course, that could be because they’d actually made some headway last night in purchasing gifts for Mary. He’d bought a photo album that he planned on filling with pictures—or as he had called them, memories—of he and Mary, of their “journey so far,” along with a camera to “capture more memories” with.
She couldn’t negate the romance quotient of either of those choices, even if the whole idea caused her stomach to hurt.
Next, he’d chosen a bottle of Rachel’s favorite perfume, saying that he didn’t know offhand what Mary’s scent was, and he liked Rachel’s, so why not? Sure. Why not? Soon, Cupcake would be prancing around with the fragrance Rachel had worn for the past five freaking years squirted behind her ears. Lovely. Just lovely.
She’d thrown her personal bottle away the second she’d arrived home. Then, feeling guilty over being wasteful, she yanked it out of the trash. She had no intention of wearing that particular fragrance ever again, but maybe Haley would.
So, after the memory-making conversation and the perfume debacle, Rachel hadn’t had the energy to object when Cole dragged her into the hardware store for the final gift of the day. Well, okay. She was also quite curious to see what type of hardware Cole would deem romantic. A flashlight, apparently. A huge, heavy, spotlight of a flashlight. Why? She didn’t have a clue and she didn’t bother asking. She’d learned her lesson on that one.
Today, though, she didn’t have to think about that. Tomorrow, either. Her only plan for the entire weekend was to relax, enjoy herself and bolster her connection with Andrew. Monday—when she and Cole had now decided to finish their shopping extravaganza—would roll around soon enough. Hopefully, by then, she’d have put every last issue into perspective.
And if she hadn’t? Well, she’d tell Andrew she’d changed her mind and wanted to go to Hawaii. He’d be pleased, her promise to Cole would be fulfilled and her parents could have an empty house to wage war in. Though she’d wait until her father arrived. Despite Rachel’s unwillingness to become the tennis ball again, she couldn’t leave her mother here alone.
She shook her head to clear her thoughts. If she didn’t hurry, Andrew would be on the phone with the office again—just checking to be sure everything was still “good-to-go.” Rachel ran the brush through her hair, applied a touch of makeup, gave herself a quick once-over in the mirror and considered the job done.
They’d start with breakfast out, hit the slopes for a few hours, grab a late lunch, and if Andrew’s schedule still remained free—which she very much hoped would be the case—they’d finally see about getting a tree. All in all, the day’s prospects looked bright.
“I’m ready,” she called out as she headed down the stairs. She expected to find Andrew in the kitchen or maybe in the living room. He was in neither. With a heavy sense of foreboding, she cracked open the office door.
Andrew sat behind her father’s desk with his phone pressed to his ear, concentrating on whatever appeared on his laptop. He looked up, saw Rachel and smiled. Holding up one finger, he whispered, “Sorry, darling. This shouldn’t take long.”
And that, Rachel knew, could mean anything from five minutes to two hours to all day. She nodded and pivoted on her heel. She’d make some coffee, check her email to see if her mother had made flight arrangements yet and...wait.
* * *
“You’re letting her spend the day with that man?” Haley asked Cole with her hands planted on her narrow hips. “Are you crazy? You might as well wrap her up in a bright red bow and gift her to him. Geez, Cole. I thought you were in love with Rachel.”
“She has to be able to freely choose.” Cole turned and escaped the confines of the small office at the back of the store. Seeing how his plans with Rachel were canceled, he figured he’d give Haley the day off and work the shift she’d already agreed to work for him. “Don’t you have friends to spend the day with?” he said over his shoulder. “You’re free, kid. Shoo.”
His sister trailed after him. The store didn’t open for another thirty minutes, which meant she would badger him until the second he unlocked the door. He wasn’t exactly happy that Rachel had canceled, but what he’d said to his sister was true. There were many, many actions he was more than willing to take to achieve his goal, but he refused to do anything that could potentially hinder Rachel’s ability to choose.
That was paramount. If he were fortunate enough to have this whole mess work out well, then he needed to know she’d chosen him for the right reasons. And yup, that meant stepping back and understanding that she currently had a boyfriend she wanted to spend time with.
Even if the images of what they might be doing together just about killed him.
“You’re pitifully lacking in the how-a-female-thinks department, aren’t you?” Haley asked, skidding to a stop next to him. “If there was a man that I ‘might’ have feelings for, and I canceled a date with him, and he didn’t utter one word of complaint, I’d think he couldn’t care less. So, I’d do everything I could to expunge my feelings for him.”
“Hmm,” Cole murmured in a non-committal way. Food for thought, he supposed. But not enough to alter his decision. “It wasn’t a date. Technically speaking.”
“And if I had canceled said date to spend time with another man, that man would suddenly appear much more interesting to me than he had before. Interesting enough that I might forget all about man number one and focus all of my loving attention on man number two.”
“Too much information.” Haley might be a full-grown adult, but she was still his baby sister. He had no desire to hear about her bestowing her loving attention on any man. No matter how generic the description might be. “What would you have me do? Kidnap her?”
“Um, no. That would just tick her off.” She tapped her bottom lip with one finger. “Unless...you know, if you did it right, a kidnapping could be romantic.”
“While I adore you and thank you kindly for your advice, I believe I’ll avoid breaking the law,” Cole said with a laugh. “You really don’t have anything better to do today? Because if not, I’m sure I can find other ways to occupy myself. Or I can always call Mom. She mentioned last night that several employees were out sick.”
Like all the Fosters, Haley helped where help was needed, but her main role in the family businesses was more detail oriented. She took car
e of the books, purchased supplies, updated the websites and kept everyone else organized.
“Unfair.” She wrinkled her nose. “I was there all last weekend, on top of a full week in the office. I know Reid is off somewhere saving the day, but where’s Dylan?”
Cole chuckled again at the reference to their oldest brother. Reid did his duty by the family, but his primary gig—especially during the winter months—was as a member of the national ski patrol. So yep, Reid was very likely saving the day somewhere.
“I don’t know where Dylan is. Shall I phone Mom and ask?”
“No, no,” Haley said quickly. “I have plenty to do, thank you very much.”
He gestured toward the front door. “Then what are you still doing here?”
“Leaving!” With a quick grin and a wave, she hot-footed it across the store, only to stop three short steps from freedom. “Did Mom mention how many employees are out sick?”
“Go. Have. Fun,” Cole ordered his sister. “If Mom really needs you, she’ll let you know. You’ve put in more hours than anyone else the past two weeks, and we all know it.”
Facing him, she shrugged. “My social life is fairly bleak at the moment. Working is better than sitting at home being bored out of my skull. And I like helping.”
“I know you do. So, how about a compromise? Do something fun for a few hours and then check in with the folks?” He grinned, thinking of the dinner-table conversation the other night. “Go lurk in the bookstore and see what you can do about livening up your social life.”
“Ah...no.” A rash of red spread over Haley’s cheeks. He knew his sister well enough to recognize the flush of anger, not embarrassment, when he saw it. “That’s over.”
“That was quick. Didn’t you just go out last night?” he asked in a genial tone. “Did something happen, or just a change of heart?”
“Something happened, but it isn’t important enough to discuss.”
He gave her a closer look, didn’t like what he saw, and concern rode in to replace his earlier amusement. “Haley?”
“Cole?” she fired back.
“You know I’ll get it out of you eventually, so you might as well spill.” He waited, she didn’t speak, so he said, “You two did have a date last night, correct?”
“Yes,” she said in a low, I-don’t-want-to-talk-about-this voice.
“And?”
“I’m fine, Cole.” He didn’t speak, just worried. Watched her wrap her hair around her finger. Ten seconds later, with a stubborn lift of her chin, she said, “He was a little too touchy-feely for a first date and he didn’t seem to comprehend the word ‘no,’ which ticked me off.”
It ticked Cole off, too. But unlike his two older brothers, he had zero doubts that their sister could take care of herself. “I assume you...taught him the meaning of the word ‘no’?”
“Oh, yes,” she said with a wide grin. “In no uncertain terms.”
“Good.” He might have to pay a visit to the bookstore later. Just to be sure. “Let me know if he requires another lesson.”
“Will.” She started to turn toward the door again, but stopped. In a too-casual-to-be-casual way, she said, “This guy came by yesterday to see you. He might try again today. He was curious if you were hiring any ski instructors for the season. I told him I didn’t know what your plans were, but that he should talk to you.”
“I think we’re all set this year, but if he stops in, I’ll get his name for next.”
“His name is Gavin. Gavin Daugherty,” Haley filled in. “From what he said, I believe he recently moved here. He...ah... Are you sure we couldn’t use one more instructor?”
“I’m sure.”
“Really, really sure?”
Cole narrowed his eyes. “Yes, Haley. Why?”
“I don’t know. I... He’s new here.”
“You mentioned that.”
“So he probably needs a job, and...” She trailed off, darted her gaze to the side of Cole’s. Her cheeks, which had resumed their normal color, grew pink again. This time, though, her blush had zip to do with anger. “You know what?” she said in a huff. “Forget I even mentioned it.”
“Gavin...Daugherty? That his name? I’ll be sure to tell him you said hi. If he were to drop in today, that is.” Cole walked behind the sales counter and grabbed a pad of paper, scrawled Mr. Daugherty’s name in oversize letters. “There. Now I’ll be sure to remember.”
Certain things, like teasing your younger sister, never grew old.
“You do that,” Haley said with a sweet-as-sugar smile. “Okay, I’m off. I wonder if Rachel is around? Might just call her and see if today’s a good day for that visit.”
“Go for it,” he said with an equally sweet smile. “She’ll probably be happy to see you.”
“We might have a nice, long chat,” Haley said. “I’m sure the topic of men will come up. It almost always does, you know. And relationships. Us women love to talk about men...who they’re dating, who they used to date, why are they dating that person, and so on.”
“Cool. Have fun,” Cole said without concern. Haley would never rat him out.
She wrinkled her nose again. “You’re not worried in the slightest, are you?”
“Nope.”
“Figures.” She paused, nervously ran her fingers through her shoulder-length hair. Then, “You won’t mention me to Gavin either, right?”
“Nope,” Cole repeated. “But you knew that.”
“I did,” she affirmed, but he didn’t quite believe her. “Be nice to him, okay, Cole? Let him down easy. He seemed...I don’t know, sort of lost and...just promise you’ll be nice.”
Ah. Well, that explained it. Haley was a sucker for picking up strays. That, believe it or not, caused Cole greater concern than what he’d learned about her prior evening’s date. Between Reid, Dylan and Cole, Haley had been taught how to take care of herself in sticky situations.
But none of them had yet to figure out how to protect her from herself, from her soft heart or her frustrating penchant for diving in to problems—i.e., involving herself with people she thought she could “save”—that should be avoided.
Even so, he knew better than to say another word on the topic.
“I’m not typically mean to anyone,” he pointed out, hoping that would suffice. There was a world of difference between “mean” and “nice,” and until he met this “lost” man who’d caught his sister’s eye, he would be very careful with any promises regarding him.
She frowned. Stared at him for all of three seconds before coming to a conclusion. Giving up the pretense of leaving, she stalked toward the office. “Dang it all! I guess you’re stuck with me for a few hours. I...ah...forgot to place those orders last week. Better do so now.”
“Slacking during our busy season, really?” he asked, playing along with the appropriate amount of sarcasm. “Wow, sis. That doesn’t sound like you. You’re normally so...efficient and organized. Something must have been on your mind? Or...someone?”
“Bite me,” she growled seconds before disappearing into the office.
“And typically more eloquent,” he called out loudly.
Her response was a resounding slam of the office door. Cole glanced at the pad of paper with Gavin Daugherty’s name written on it. If the man didn’t come around today, Cole would grab a coffee at the Beanery and quiz Lola. She knew everyone.
And then, he’d see if he had cause to be concerned or not.
* * *
Rachel stared longingly at the skiers traveling up the mountain on chairlifts and even more longingly at those she could spy zipping back down. Andrew had been true to his word—his phone call had been quick, and breakfast had been pleasant. They’d relaxed, chatted about this and that, and a full hour-and-a-half had gone by without his phone ringing once.
Unfortunately, Cole had nailed it when he’d offered to take Andrew to the bunny slope. As fit and athletic as Andrew was, he simply was not a natural skier. It didn’t make any sense. He loved sports, went on a white-water rafting trip every summer with some of his friends, spent almost as much time in the gym as he did at work and enjoyed running.
Skiing, however, was not progressing well.
“Okay,” she said after they’d sidestepped to the top of the gentle slope for the—oh, tenth or so time. “Try to remember to keep your head up, so you can see where you’re going. Keep your skis parallel with each other, and don’t be afraid to use your poles for balance.”
“I understand the basics, Rachel,” Andrew said, frustration evident in his demeanor and his voice. “I just don’t seem to be able to put that understanding to practical use.”
“What, exactly, are you having problems with?”
“I would have to say...skiing.”
She almost laughed. With Cole, she would’ve. But Andrew rarely joked. “Perhaps we should stick with flat ground for a while,” Rachel said, trying to remember the long, long ago day she’d first learned to ski. Her father had taught her. It happened to be one of her better memories. “You can practice sliding backward and forward, get a better feel of how the skis respond without going downhill. We probably should’ve started with that.”
She would’ve, for sure, if she hadn’t been under the impression that Andrew had already learned the basics. As it was, the thought hadn’t occurred to her.
Cole's Christmas Wish Page 9
