“I’m visiting from the East Coast. I thought Colorado would be a nice change. I work in mortgage banking. It’s a stressful job.” She shot him a pleasant smile.
“Have you been in the hot springs yet? They’re guaranteed to take away stress.”
“No.”
“Went skiing today?”
“I don’t ski,” she admitted reluctantly.
“We have lessons. I’d actually be more than happy to teach you myself,” he told her in a low, fuck-me voice that spoke of more than showing her a few skiing moves.
Lara shuddered as their gazes met and locked. Tate made it perfectly clear that he’d like to teach her more than basic skiing. A lot more.
I got what I wanted. Time to run. Literally.
“Thanks,” she said gratefully. “But I’m here to spend some time alone. I actually just broke up with a guy—a man who cheated on me. I’m kind of licking my wounds. I appreciate the offer, but I really do need some time to myself.” She hastily got to her feet and smoothed down her skirt. “Thanks for the chat.” She rifled through her small clutch purse to find her room key, and nodded at him politely and dismissively as she pulled it out and closed her bag. “Maybe I’ll see you around.” Or not…if I can help it.
Tate rose to his feet and swung the chair back into place. “Lara?”
She had started to walk away, but turned back. “Yes?”
He strolled up to her, took a lock of her hair between his fingers and stroked it for a moment before he leaned down slowly.
Lara’s breath caught as she inhaled the masculine scent of him. He smelled like fresh air, pine, and musky male, and he was intoxicating. He towered over her. Even though she was dressed in three-inch heels, she still felt defenseless with him this close to her, and she felt suddenly vulnerable in a way she never had before. Not afraid, but definitely exposed.
For a moment, she thought he was going to kiss her, but he didn’t. His lips came to rest next to her ear, and he told her in a husky voice, “Any man who would stray from your side doesn’t deserve a second thought.” He straightened and lightly grasped her chin and turned it upward so her eyes met his. “Don’t let any guy fuck with your head. He isn’t worth it.”
Lara fell into the smoky gray depths of his eyes for a moment, mesmerized. His statement had been emphatic, sincere, and had stirred her soul. It had actually been awhile since she’d had the cheating boyfriend, but he really had existed. She hadn’t trusted another guy since.
“I-I’ll try to remember that,” she stammered awkwardly, momentarily drowning in his heated gaze.
Get a grip, Bailey! Remember what you’re here for. Keep your eyes on the prize.
“You do that,” Tate answered in a raspy voice.
Lara pulled her eyes from his and backed away from Tate before she turned and hurried toward the elevator. Tate didn’t follow, but she could feel his stare track her movements as she got into the elevator—thankfully without tripping on her heels this time—and punched in her floor on the panel with more force than necessary. It took everything she had not to look up at him again as the elevator door whooshed closed.
Alone in the plush compartment, she leaned back against the wall and let out a shaky sigh of relief.
What in the hell just happened?
She had an objective, a purpose, and Tate Colter wasn’t part of that design. Having gotten what she wanted, Tate was of no further use to her. He was a man to now be avoided.
Marcus was her target, and she needed to make certain that all of her attention was focused on the eldest Colter sibling. She needed to wheedle her way into Marcus Colter’s affections.
The elevator pinged when it reached her floor, and she hurried to her room, escaping inside with her composure intact and her goal firmly back in focus again.
She actually just blew me off.
Tate’s dimple showed in his cheek as he grinned like an idiot, still standing in the spot where Lara had left him. It wasn’t often—okay, it was pretty much never—that any woman didn’t throw herself at him, even the married ones. And it had been way too long since he’d been interested.
She’s not married. Some idiot was stupid enough to let her get away.
It probably should have bothered him that she had basically snubbed him, but he was actually amused. Women didn’t rebuff him, especially when they knew exactly who he was. He was a single Colter male, a billionaire, and a reasonably attractive guy. He wasn’t accustomed to women running in the other direction rather than trying to get his attention.
He’d watched Lara for a while, enchanted when he’d seen her stumble out of the elevator because of her high heels—after he knew she wasn’t going to trip and hurt herself. She’d rallied quickly, and Tate noticed how she surveyed her surroundings alone. Lara wasn’t stupid, and Tate already sensed she was here for a reason other than just a vacation. She seemed very alert, almost too aware of her environment for a woman who was supposed to be on vacation.
There was a mystery to be solved with Lara from the East Coast, and strangely enough, he wanted to figure out exactly what she was doing here in the middle of nowhere.
She didn’t ski.
She wasn’t interested in the hot springs.
Yet, she’d picked Colorado for a vacation?
Was she really nursing a broken heart? Would Rocky Springs really be a place any woman would pick to do that? She didn’t seem intent on enjoying any of the resort amenities or activities.
Hell, he’d think a warmer climate or a more exciting vacation destination would be a better place to heal a wounded heart. Most people came to Colorado in the dead of winter for only one reason: winter sports. There was no other reason to put up with the brutal temperatures and the almost constant snowfall. If he didn’t love the high he got out of his winter sports, his family, and his home state so much, he’d probably be on a nice tropical island somewhere himself right now. Lara was alone and didn’t seem interested in the springs or winter sports, so what was she really doing here?
The do-me dress she’d worn made no sense either. It didn’t exactly invite solitude. But if she was trying to attract a man, why had she been so quick to get rid of him?
All it had taken was a split second of vulnerability he’d seen in her eyes that told him she was being truthful about the cheating boyfriend. But was that really why she was here now? She looked out of place, different from the usual lighthearted vacationers and skiers who were here this time of year. And he had gotten the impression that she was running away from something or someone.