He retrieved their coats and then pulled a couple of his thick scarves from the closet. He draped a white one over her head, covering her ears, and then he wound it around her neck. His scent clung to the soft cashmere caressing her cheeks.
He wrapped the black one around his neck, but left his head bare. Within moments they were back outside, their breath fogging the air. Snow had begun falling while they were inside. Big, fat flakes floated down, piling up on the grassy surfaces. With the temperature dropping it wouldn’t be long before it stuck to the sidewalks despite the diligent landscaping crew’s efforts to remove it.
She hadn’t brought gloves. Bad habit. She tended to forget. Before she could shove her hands into her pockets Gavin caught one and folded his long fingers around her palm. She jumped and tried to pull free.
“Easy. I just want to hold your hand.”
Holding hands. Something so basic and innocent. Something she’d once taken for granted and hadn’t bothered to do often enough with her husband. And now she was palm-to-palm with a virtual stranger, and the simple contact rocked her entire body. Gavin’s heat seeped into her, traveling up her arm and down her torso to pool in an area that had been dormant for a long time.
He led her along the sidewalks winding through the resort. Snowflakes sparkled in his brown hair like gold dust. Lights glimmered through the trees from the windows of the occupied lodges they passed, then streetlamps flickered on as the sun slipped behind the mountains in the distance.
“Why me, Gavin? You could have your pick of women.” She blurted the question that had been haunting her.
He briefly squeezed her hand, sending a pulse of energy through her. “Why not you? You’re beautiful, intelligent and your touch ignites me.”
His quick, decisive answer blew her away. She stumbled. He caught her elbow, keeping her upright. His eyes searched hers then his expression changed from concerned to challenging. “Are you up for a little fun?”
Adrenaline pulsed through her veins. “Maybe. What did you have in mind?”
“Come with me.” He walked a little farther down the sidewalk then ducked between a pair of tall cedars, tugging her along in the near-darkness to a better lit area. He broke into a jog. She hustled to keep up as he zigged and zagged through the trees. A few hundred yards later, he slowed to a halt in a well-lit clearing behind a shed that looked as if it might house landscaping equipment. Her quickened breaths fogged the air. He wasn’t breathing any faster, she noted. He released her, then knelt to open a door hidden in the foundation and pulled out a flat-bottomed wooden snow sled with a curled end.
He straightened with a huge, devilish, big-kid grin on his face that was so contagious she couldn’t help smiling back. “It’s still here. I wasn’t sure it would be after so many years.” He knocked on it in several places with his fist, the sound echoing off the buildings around them in the near-silence of the evening. “The wood is still solid.”
Flakes drifted down around them, heavier now than before. “You’re taking me sledding?”
He swept the dust off the surface. “Sure. Why not?”
It was a far cry from flipping her on her back and having his way with her, but as he said…why not? “I’ve never been sledding.”
His eyes narrowed. “It snows in Pennsylvania.”
“My parents weren’t the sledding type. And snow wasn’t common in the eastern part of North Carolina where Russell was stationed.”
“Russell? Your husband?”
Speaking his name in front of Gavin seemed…strange, but it had just slipped out. And it felt…okay. “Yes.”
“And you never sledded with your grandparents?”
“I was usually only here in the summers except for quick trips some Christmases with my parents. My father didn’t get along with Pop—his father—and he couldn’t wait to get out of here, so we didn’t stay long.”
“Then it’s time to make up for what you’ve missed.” He tucked the sled under one arm, draped the other across her shoulders and guided her through the darkness away from the lights of the resort and across the snow-covered slope. Their torsos and thighs bumped and nudged with each step, overloading her senses so much she barely noticed the cold.
“Watch your step. The ground is slick.”
“Where are we going?”
“Up the mountain a bit. This same path leads to the mine.” At the top of a slope he turned. “Climb on. Put your feet against the front.”
Nervous, she shifted in her boots. “How do you steer this thing?”
“By shifting your weight or dragging a hand. But let me worry about that.”
She reluctantly eased onto the flat surface. Gavin settled behind her with his strong legs flanking hers, his h*ps snug against her bottom, and his chest flush with her back, warming her in the rapidly dropping temperature. His arms encircled her and her breath hitched. He held the rope in his fists. “Ready?”
“Ummm.” Excitement and anxiety shimmied over her. “I guess so.”
His cheek pressed hers. He nudged her scarf aside until his lips brushed her ear. “You’re going to have to trust me, Sabrina. I won’t let anything bad happen to you.”
Trust seemed a lot to ask from someone he barely knew, but it was too late to back out now. “Let’s go.”
Eight
Sabrina had never looked more attractive than she did now, flat on her back with her cold-reddened nose and cheeks, excitement sparkling in her eyes and a huge smile on her face.
For about two seconds Gavin considered making love to her out here in the open in the powdery snow. But while instant gratification might be exciting and physically satisfying, it wouldn’t be comfortable for either of them. First, it was too damned cold, and second, security was bound to spot them out here in the milky moonlight.So he offered her a hand and tugged her to her feet instead of giving in to his body’s demands. Her fingers felt like ice in his and white clumps of snow caked the ends of her long hair as she turned to admire the snow angel she’d made in the deepening snow. Her third. But she’d been having such a good time he’d hated to interrupt.
“Your hands are frozen and your clothes are wet. Let’s get you back to the lodge to warm up.”
“Do we have to?”
Her enthusiasm acted as one hell of a payoff for his patience. “There’s no need to risk frostbite.”
“That was fun.” She grinned up at him. “Thank you.”
“For?”
“Teaching me to play in the snow.”
Her sincerity tightened his chest. As much as he’d hated his childhood, hers must have been worse. At least he and his brothers had had those stolen moments when they’d escaped their father. “You’re welcome. I’m glad I could share a few firsts with you.”
And he meant it. Her enthusiasm and excitement these past two hours had been contagious. From her squeals as they raced down the slope to her learning to make snowballs and snow angels, he’d found more enjoyment watching her have fun than he’d had in a long time. Meeting Sabrina almost made his year of exile worth it.
And then because he couldn’t resist, he bent to taste her smile. She met him halfway, going on tiptoe, leaning into his chest and wrapping her arms around his neck. Her lips and nose were cold, but her kiss was hot—hot enough to make his head steam and his groin heavy.
Their tongues sparred, their breaths blended. How could he possibly want a woman this badly when he’d already had sex once today? The hunger gripped him so tightly he reconsidered risking an embarrassing encounter with The Ridge’s security staff. His brothers would never let him live that down. But once he got Sabrina back to the lodge he could linger over her soft skin, her long legs, her—
Scratch that. He’d linger the second time. The first time was going to be fast. And hot. And hard. He pried his mouth from hers to suck air into his lungs. Chest bellowing, he grabbed her hand, snatched up the sled and towed her toward a warm bed.
“In a hurry?” she panted a few minutes later.
He slowed his steps. “I want you nak*d.”
She gasped and tripped. He caught her and kissed the O of her mouth, adding fuel to the fire in his gut. Her earlier reservations apparently forgotten, she clutched his jacket and held him close. But not close enough. The layers of down and assorted shirts and sweaters and wet denim blocked him from what he wanted.
He broke the kiss. “Let’s go.”
He avoided the paths that would take him past his siblings’ accommodations because he didn’t want to be waylaid. Sabrina hurried alongside him. His plan to get her to relax by taking a walk had succeeded beyond his wildest dreams. Now she seemed as eager to get back to the lodge as he was. And he was the one wound up. Embarrassingly so.
He said a silent thanks when his temporary home came into view. After propping the sled against the porch wall he wasted no time swiping the key card and shoving open the door. Warm air, carrying the scent of dinner, rushed through the portal to greet them. His stomach grumbled, but he had a more urgent appetite to satisfy before he could eat. He craved the taste of Sabrina. Her mouth. Her br**sts. The sweetness hidden within her dark curls.
“It feels good in here,” she said as she reached for her coat’s zipper.
“Over here.” Grasping her shoulders, he steered her to the fireplace. He pitched another log onto the flames then turned to face her. “We’ll leave our clothes by the fire to dry out.”
A moment of doubt flickered over her face, but he wasn’t going to lose ground now. He reached for her scarf, unwound it from her head, then dispensed with her coat. He draped each over a chair which he angled toward the flames, then shed his own gear. Her shirt, like his, was dry because of the outerwear but her jeans were wet from the melted snow.
“Sit.” He pointed to the raised hearth.
With a hiked eyebrow, Sabrina sank onto the stones. He removed her boots and socks, then massaged warmth back into her cold feet. “I kept you out too long. You’re cold.”
Her smile nearly blinded him. “No. Not too long. Tonight was perfect. I wouldn’t have wanted to miss a minute of it.” Then as his thumbs dug into her instep, she purred, “That feels good.”
He’d make her feel even better before the night was through. “Stand.”
“You like giving orders.” But she rose.
“Hazard of the job. Comes with being the one in charge.” He unbuttoned and unzipped her jeans, then peeled the soggy fabric over her hips. It bunched around her thighs. She wasn’t wearing panties—the reminder punched him hard in the solar plexus. She wasn’t wearing them because he’d spotted them on the tack room floor earlier and stuffed them into his coat pocket. “You’re missing something.”
He retrieved the plain white cotton bikinis from his coat and dropped them on the floor.
“You had them in your pocket all day?”
Her scandalized tone made him chuckle. “Yes.” And the knowledge had driven him wild. He hadn’t forgotten until the sight of her playing in the snow had overridden the idea.