His eyes dipped to her lips and then slowly traveled over her face. Hope rose in her, but when he spoke, his line was almost as bad as hers. “Yeah, you probably should,” he agreed. “I’ll take you back to your room.”
Dumb, dumb. He wasn’t acting correctly at all. Yet she was the stupid one who’d suggested she should go. This failed scene was all on her. Why weren’t there editors and revisions in real life?
They walked stiffly through his gorgeous home and toward the garage where he’d parked his sport utility. He got her door and gave her a very forced smile. All the hopes she’d had for how this night would end had evaporated. She only had two more nights here. Would she break through Gavin’s appealing hard shell, or would she go back to Arizona with some memories and some great writing fodder, but a failed, tragic romance?
He got in the car, pulled out of the garage, and said nothing.
“What kind of car is this?” she asked.
“A Lexus LS 460.”
“Oh. It’s nice. I think I’ve used this model in some of my books, but details like that don’t lodge in my memory. I just research them quick, write notes in that book’s file so I don’t forget, and then, poof! They’re gone from my mind.” Her smile was probably as forced as the one he’d given her earlier.
Gavin stared at her as they stopped and waited for the gate to swing open. “That makes no sense.”
“What?”
He pulled through the gate, and thankfully, he was no longer staring perceptively at her. “You guessed my cologne and told me the details and ‘notes in the scent’ like a paid advertisement. Yet you can’t remember what car you use in a certain book?”
She laughed. “My brother says it’s freaky how my mind works.”
“I wouldn’t say freaky. I think you’re pretty brilliant.”
“Well, thank you.” This was going marginally better. At least they were talking and weren’t so stiff. “So is this your dream car?” she asked.
“Yeah. I’ve always wanted one. What about you? What’s your dream car?”
She started laughing. “Couldn’t tell you.”
“No? You have no car that you’d love to have?”
“Never thought about it. A car’s a car.”
“Seriously?” They pulled into a parking stall at the lodge, and he turned to look at her. “What do you drive?”
“A Honda Civic.”
“Hmm. Practical, gas efficient. Doesn’t fit you at all.”
“Really?” She angled toward him, liking this conversation and hoping they were warming back up to the level of comfort and interest they’d had earlier in the day. “What would fit me?”
He studied her, really studied her, and it warmed her clear through, better than any heater. “I think …” He drawled out the words and moistened his lips.
Kari quivered with anticipation. Would he tell her exactly what car fit her and then finally, finally kiss her?
“A Honda Civic. Practical, efficient.” He kept a straight face, but he had a teasing glint in his eyes.
Kari pushed at his shoulder. “Ah! Rude!”
He chuckled. “Okay, okay, let me try again.”
“I love your laugh,” she said.
He shifted, maybe a little uncomfortable by her praise, but he didn’t lose his glorious smile.
“Okay, so what vehicle fits me?” she challenged him. “And if you say a minivan, I’m going to dunk you in the cold plunge pool.”
“You don’t have the keys to the spa.”
“I’m sure Austin would sneak them for me.”
“You’re probably right.” He pursed his lips. “Okay. I think a Maserati GranTurismo.”
She thought she should be flattered. She knew Maseratis were expensive at least. “What exactly does a Maserati GranTurismo look like?” She arched an eyebrow, hoping he’d rise to the bait.
“Sleek and beautiful,” he said in a voice that had her trembling. “You’d probably have to upgrade to the MC edition to find one in the same deep blue that matches your eyes.”
Kari swallowed hard. Gavin’s lines were as beautiful as they were uncharacteristic for him to say or for her to hear in real life. He gave her a meaningful look, and then he opened his door and walked around to get hers.
They walked through the parking lot and the lobby without saying anything. Gavin greeted the front desk girl by name. That was just another thing that impressed her about him: he made his employees feel important by knowing all of their names.
They got in the elevator and she asked, “Is it tough to keep everything straight?”
“Everything?”
“All your employees, all the different things you do for the resort?”
“Sometimes,” he admitted. “I have to know how to run a ski resort, a hotel, a restaurant, a spa, and a small store with the ski and bike shop. I love it, though.”
“I’m glad.”
“Thanks.”
The elevator arrived at her floor, and her nerves started ramping up again. So he hadn’t wanted to kiss her at his beautiful house, but what did that really mean? Maybe he was just being careful, keeping boundaries. His family were religious; they prayed at meals and had pictures of the Savior in their homes. She thought that was pretty great.
Yet what if he didn’t want to kiss her at all? She couldn’t force him … or could she?
They reached her door, and Gavin shifted from foot to foot. He looked a little bit uncomfortable again, like he wasn’t inclined to kiss her. She could literally feel her time running out and knew if he truly was the closed-off, broody hero, the heroine had to take some initiative, be extra adorable or persuasive to make him fall.
“Thanks for a fun day,” he said, and started to pivot.
What did she do? What did she say? She had nothing, nothing to keep him here. “Thank you,” she murmured.
He gave her an almost sad quarter-smile and started back down the hall.
He was almost to the elevator when she felt the words rip from her throat, “Will I see you tomorrow?”
Gavin turned back and stared at her. He was the perfect broody hero with those dark, almost hooded eyes, that handsome, manly face, and the tough body that screamed, I will protect any heroine and have her longing for my touch. Yet she wasn’t sure that she was the heroine to break through his tough veneer. He must have some tragic past that she needed to get to the bottom of. That would only happen if she had more time. Gavin obviously needed to trust, needed to know that his heroine wouldn’t leave him, and she was leaving Monday.
“Were you planning on skiing?” he asked.
“Yes,” she nodded vigorously, but then a worried thought occurred to her. “I mean, if you and Austin were planning on skiing, then I’d be planning on skiing.” Now she sounded like a desperate, needy woman. That would never do for someone like Gavin. He might want to protect, but he also needed a strong woman.
Yet his almost-full smile came out, slow but incredible. She leaned against the doorframe for support. “Austin and I would love to ski with you,” he said.
Anticipation of more time with him rose in her. She wanted to run down the hallway and hug him tight. Instead, she asked, “Nine in the lobby?”
“Sure.” He tilted up his chin to her. His smile was confident but still a little guarded. “See you tomorrow.” Then he pushed through the door to the stairs and disappeared.
“See you,” she whispered, putting a hand to her heart. She’d always known she wanted a more serious hero to balance out her impulsive nature, but she’d never planned on the likes of that man. Rushing back into her room, she grabbed her computer. Ideas for an incredible scene flowed through her mind. Yet in her fictional world, the heroine actually got her kiss.
Chapter Ten
Kari spent two of the best days of her life with Austin and Gavin. On Saturday, they skied until her legs were shaky, and they ate lunch and dinner together. Then, after the spa was closed, they took Austin with them to play in all the therapy poo
ls. Austin made it a lot of fun, but there weren’t any chances for intimate moments—well, none beyond her nonstop fantasies about how Gavin would finally kiss her, and a few smoldering looks he gave her.
Both brothers walked her up to her room that night. She was falling hard for the oldest Strong brother, but she knew she’d already given her heart to the youngest. At twenty-six, it was a little odd to want to be a surrogate mother to a ten-year-old, but she was having a lot of fantasies about being a permanent feature in Gavin’s life and helping him raise Austin. Yet Gavin hadn’t suggested anything serious with her.
On Sunday, they invited her to church. She loved everything from the picturesque church to the kind people who told her how beautiful she was and how they’d never seen Gavin with a woman before. Gavin’s skin darkened so perfectly, but he didn’t say anything about it. At least she had no doubt that he wasn’t a player. Yet she had to somehow get to the bottom of his broodiness and lack of dating. It wasn’t exactly mainstream to only focus on work and raising your little brother, never seeking a woman in your life. In her opinion, everybody needed romance in their life.
Sunday afternoon, they had dinner with his parents and then went on a hike to ice-skate again. Austin tried to teach her hockey. She’d fallen so hard swinging the stupid stick, and missing the puck completely, that she was afraid she’d broken her tailbone. Luckily, the pain lessened, so she’d probably just have a good bruise.
As they walked home from the lake, Austin was holding her hand, while Gavin trailed behind them, carrying the skates and hockey gear. “Gav said you have to go home tomorrow?” The little guy looked up at her with those deep brown eyes as if her departure would break his heart.
“Yeah. I fly out at noon.”
Austin’s lower lip stuck out. He kicked at a pinecone that had fallen on the snow-packed trail. Gavin had explained that they had to snowshoe on it when they got heavy snowfall, but then he and Austin would pack at least this two-mile stretch down so well they could hike easily to the lake. “Everybody always has to leave me,” Austin said.
Kari glanced over her shoulder at Gavin, hoping for some help. His deep brown eyes looked almost like Austin’s, as if the thought of her leaving was going to rip him apart.
She stopped in the middle of the trail and put her arms around the little man. “I wish I didn’t have to leave so soon, but I’ve loved being here with you.” She glanced up at Gavin as she said it, hoping he got the message. They’d had a lot of fun these past few days, but they hadn’t had any deep conversations that would lead her to believe he was going to share his tragic past with her or ask her to come back.
“I’m not leaving you, Austin,” Gavin said in a strong, determined voice.
Austin leaned back, and she released him from the hug. He gave his brother a forced smile. “I know, bro. You’d never leave me, and Mama, she wouldn’t leave me. But everybody else always has to go somewhere. I know Heath and Hazel and Jed and Cassie are going to live in Park City mostly, and Stetson’s at school, and Trey and Ella are always traveling. At least Nick is coming back.” His voice lowered and he said, “I heard Mama talking on the phone to Auntie Annie, and she said Papa is dying.”
Gavin dropped to his knees in front of Austin, grabbed him, and pulled him in for a fierce hug. Kari found her eyes pricking with emotion as she watched the two of them together. They were made to be together, but for some reason she didn’t feel like an outsider, or like the author writing the story. She felt like she might be a key player in this story.
“Papa’s health isn’t great,” Gavin affirmed, “but he’s not dying anytime soon.” Gavin swallowed and glanced up at Kari before saying, “I’m never going to leave you, bud, and Kari …” He licked his lips, stood, and stared at her. “Maybe someday Kari would come back.”
“Come back?” Kari’s heart slammed against her chest. Coming back for a visit, or to set up residence here? She could write anywhere. Her parents wouldn’t be thrilled, but maybe there was a room for semi-permanent rent at the lodge just waiting for her to occupy it. She hadn’t seen any condos around the small town in the valley.
Gavin lifted a shoulder.
“Yes!” Austin cheered. “Come back soon, Kari.”
“For sure.” Her spirits fell. Gavin hoped she’d come back, but he hadn’t issued a specific invite. She could always just book another long weekend or even a week at the lodge, but she wanted him to issue the invite and leave no doubt that he wanted her here. He hadn’t shattered her ideas of being together, just tamped them down.
She gave Austin what she hoped was a reassuring smile. It wasn’t Gavin’s fault that she was racing way ahead of the relationship. It was what she did. In her fictional world, characters could fall in love in a matter of hours and live happily ever after. She had to remind herself that wasn’t the case in the real world. Sometimes it was easier to live in her head.
Yet as Gavin took her hand and Austin walked in front of them, chattering and skipping and seeming restored from his worries over the promise of Kari coming back, she thought real people were pretty great, maybe even better than her characters.
Chapter Eleven
Gavin, Austin, and Kari drove into Vail for dinner at a nice restaurant Sunday night. When they returned, it was almost ten. Kari feared that Gavin would just take her back to the lodge, but he drove to his little valley instead and told Austin, “Mama wanted to come over and sing to you.”
Austin grinned and told Kari, “My mama tries to sing and pray with me on the school nights that we don’t read. Then I have good dreams and do good at school.”
“Your mama is the best,” Kari said. She remembered her own mom singing to her and she missed that closeness, but as an adult, she didn’t need it like this little man would.
“Can we come say goodbye in the morning?” Austin asked as Gavin parked next to his house.
“I have to leave at seven to drive to the airport, turn in my rental car, be early for my flight and all of that.” She hated that this time had slipped through her fingers so quickly. She’d never had so much fun and felt so alive. Who knew real people were this amazing? She wanted to convince herself that if she got out more, she’d find someone just like Gavin closer to home, but she knew she was lying. The draw she felt to Gavin was unique, and nobody else would have a little Austin to make every activity include that extra sparkle. Yet she hadn’t really spent time alone with Gavin. Maybe he didn’t want her to get too close. Was it just his natural guarded personality? Was he hiding something? Or was he not that interested in her?
“We wake up at six to work out,” Austin said. “We’ll run over quick.” He hopped out of the car and yelled, “Bye!”
Gavin waited until the front door opened and Mama waved to them with a broad smile on her face. Austin plowed into her, and Kari watched them hug as Gavin backed up and turned around.
Silence descended, and the air was thick with anticipation. Gavin wanted her alone, right? Was it simply to say goodbye, or to give her the kiss she’d been dreaming of since she’d met him three days ago?
Without speaking, they drove out of his family’s valley and over to the lodge. Gavin rushed around to get her door and she thanked him, barely noticing the cold air as hope stirred within her. He gave her half a smile but didn’t touch her as they walked down the sidewalk, up the steps, and into the lobby. There, they both greeted Julie, a smiley redhead she’d met a few times now, who was manning the front desk.
As they walked to the elevator, she shrugged out of her coat and put it over her arm. “Hot,” she murmured. She could claim she was getting used to the weather, but she knew it was the effect Gavin had on her that was heating her up, and the hope that she’d get a kiss and didn’t want the coat in the way.
Gavin lifted his eyebrows but didn’t say anything.
They got into the elevator and reached for the button at the same time. Their fingers brushed, and Kari gave an embarrassed giggle and then let him push the button. They bo
th faced forward, but she kept darting sidelong glances at him. He noticed and gave her an embarrassed half grin that was both endearing and a little concerning. Did he want to be with her or not? Why would he arrange to drop Austin off first if he didn’t?
She took a deep breath and told herself, You’ve got this. Get some confidence, girl.
The elevator door opened, and they walked slowly down the hallway. There was a lump in her throat, but she didn’t want to clear it, because that would be awkward. She just kept trying to discreetly swallow her nervousness, moisten her lips, and hope it wasn’t completely obvious how inexperienced she was at any real relations with the opposite sex. She wanted to kiss him, she wanted to stay with him, but she had no clue how to make either happen.
They reached her door, and he glanced at her. “Thanks for being with us today,” he said.
“Of course. Thanks for making my vacation amazing.”
He smiled slightly at that, but he didn’t tug her in and kiss her like she’d been dreaming of every night. Dang it. What was she going to do to get him to kiss her? “I guess we’ll see you in the morning.” He frowned. “Is that okay? Austin will be okay if you’re going to be … busy.”
“No, that’s great. I want to say goodbye to the little man.”
Earlier today, Gavin had mentioned her coming back, but now he said nothing of the sort as he gave her a manly chin lift and started to pivot. No!
“I need some help,” she threw out into the air, desperate to prolong their time together and make something happen. She prayed Gavin would snatch up the words and do something with them.
“Help?” He turned back to her.
Her mind scrambled. Help? Help with what? An idea sparked in her mind from one of her online writing groups. One of the ladies had been teasing about making her husband act out her kissing scenes, saying how fun it was to tease with him and then walk away. Yes. Perfect idea. She wouldn’t walk away, but how to ask him to do it?
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