“Sorry, I’m a mess in these stupid boots,” she said.
“Do you have any other boots?” he asked.
They reached the sport utility but he didn’t open her door. Yet.
“No.” She looked away. “I found everything warm I could at the thrift store. I was lucky because I found this coat and rain jacket I thought I could use for skiing. They didn’t have any other boots my size.”
At the thrift store? She’d found a rain jacket, this dressy white coat, and the high-heeled boots to dress warm for a ski trip to Colorado in a California thrift store? There was no way she’d survive a day on the slopes with some jacket. Did she even have ski pants, gloves, a face mask, high-quality under layers designed to trap the heat of her body yet not make her a sweaty mess, and wool socks?
“Oh. Okay,” was all he said in a dubious tone, but his mind spun. Their lost and found was always overflowing. They washed the items and then stored them so when a guest forgot something or lost a glove they could usually find what they needed. They had a few lines of ski gear in the rental shop to buy but he didn’t think Ayla would appreciate him buying her new gear.
“I’ll be fine.” She tilted her chin up.
Man he liked her toughness.
She turned and put her hand on the car door, lifting the handle. Jace swung it open and helped her in. He liked any opportunity to touch her as much as he liked her toughness.
Staring up at him, she smiled softly, all traces of sass gone. “Thank you,” she said in a breathless tone that he thought was a good sign for him.
He lingered, maybe a little longer than he should have. She didn’t tell him to go get in the driver’s seat or that he was overstepping bounds again, but he wasn’t about to push his luck. He stepped back and shut the door. He strode around to the driver’s seat. Climbing in, he started the car and immediately she put her hands up to the heat vents.
“Still warm,” she chirped.
Jace backed the car up and looked over, realizing she didn’t have any kind of gloves on. He only wore gloves when he was working outside or skiing but most women he knew, especially women from somewhere warm would need at least a thin pair of gloves any time they stepped outside in weather like this. “Do you have gloves for skiing?”
She looked out the window instead of looking at him. “I, um … couldn’t find any ski gloves. I have some running gloves.”
“Well, we can’t have that.” He drove slowly toward the main road. She looked over at him. “I’ll have some warm gear brought to you. We have lots of lost and found. People leave stuff like you can’t believe, so we launder it and we now have a room stuffed full of snow gear. You can keep it as a souvenir or leave it when you head home.” He didn’t want her to head home, ever, but that was a completely different irrational conversation they’d most likely never have.
“Oh, Jace, are you serious?” She clapped her hands together and she was back to that adorable woman he had first met.
“Serious as death.” He smiled, but for some reason his silly quip wiped the smile right off her face and the light right out of her blue eyes.
She turned forward again, stiff and obviously uncomfortable.
Jace’s mind spun in the quiet of the car. They went down the main road toward town. It was almost dinner time and there was never much traffic in Summit Valley so it was quiet, peaceful, and a beautiful view of their sweeping gorgeous valley. The inside of his vehicle was not peaceful.
Neither of them said anything. Luckily it was only five minutes to the small neighborhood adjacent to the small strip of “downtown” Summit Valley where Klein and Alivia had built several rental homes. He pulled into the home’s driveway and he was afraid she’d jump right out, and possibly slip and fall on those silly boots again.
Instead she turned to him and her blue eyes were so bright and beguiling he felt his jaw go slack. “Ayla …” He had no defenses up with her around. How could he?
She gave him a quavering smile and said, “I actually love the way you say my name.”
He smiled back. That was a score for him. “I love saying it.” The moment was good and he let it stretch for a few beats then said, “Ayla … have you lost someone close to you?”
She studied him then finally gave a small nod. “I did.”
“I’m sorry about my stupid line.” No wonder she was hurting. She’d lost someone and she’d obviously been mistreated and tricked by different men. And he’d thought his heartbreak and betrayal was hard to get over.
“No,” she said. “I should’ve just laughed. For some reason it feels more raw right now than it has for a while.” She looked him over as if he were the reason that her pain was more raw. He didn’t like that. He wanted to help her not hurt her.
“You should see the look in your eyes,” she said, actually smiling. “It isn’t your fault it’s hurting more.” She studied him then said, “Has anybody ever told you, you have very soulful eyes?”
He chuckled. “Never heard that one before.”
“Well you do. Very expressive, very deep, I could get lost in …” Her own eyes widened and her door was open and she was out of the car before he could stop her or tell her how expressive her gorgeous blue eyes were. How he wanted to take a chance on her like he hadn’t taken with anyone in eleven years.
He sprang out of his door and hurried around to help her to the front porch. She didn’t say anything. Was she embarrassed or simply thinking they were moving too fast? They were moving far too fast. He should be terrified. He wasn’t.