She nodded. ‘But I sound like I’m whining, and I hate whiners. You have to play the cards you are dealt and simply get on with it. But, now and again, I’d like to be at the top of the list of priorities, Cole. Just once.’
He stared at her lovely profile and his heart rate kicked up just a little. She’d done so much for so many people and she was beating herself up for some very normal feelings. She was, bar none, one of the strongest people he’d ever met. He could juggle numbers, make billion-dollar decisions without turning a hair and fly down steep ski-slopes but, if two half-siblings dropped into his life, he wouldn’t know what to do with them or how to raise them.
And he was thirty-six, not in his early twenties. She’d have his respect for ever for doing the hard stuff. And, yeah, she was occasionally allowed to feel resentful and jealous. He was just surprised she didn’t feel those emotions more often.
He watched as she pushed her hands into her hair and twisted the curls, making some sort of messy bun on the top of her head which she secured with the hair band she wore on her wrist.
She sighed and looked out at the snow. ‘Despite wanting to be here with you, on our own, I’m still very tempted to take you up on that offer to give the kids a helicopter ride, to allow them to play in the snow. It would be a dream come true for them, and they’d remember it for the rest of their lives.’
He forced a grimace. ‘I might’ve got a bit carried away with that offer, sweetheart. I don’t think the helicopters would be able to fly when there’s a chance the weather will close in.’
It wasn’t a complete lie. The reports said that another system was moving in and more snow was expected.
‘Are you just saying that to make me feel better?’ Lex asked, looking suspicious.
Of course he was. He’d do anything, say anything, pay anything to take the misery out of her eyes. ‘No.’
She smiled at him, sliding her hand up and down his chest. ‘Liar. But thank you.’ Lex settled back down and they both stared out of the window, enjoying the snow-covered slopes, the stillness of the morning punctuated by the low hum of the generator. This lounge, and the deck outside, was a great place to sit and watch the skiers while enjoying a cup ofglühweinor whisky-laced hot chocolate.
Cole gestured to the ski-slope to their left. ‘I’m going to tromp down there shortly. I can’t come to a ski resort I own—or temporarily own—and not ski. There’s a rental shop within the office buildings. I’ll find all the equipment I need there.’
‘You’re going to have to figure out how to get the ski lift working or else it’s going to be a long, wet hike up that hill,’ Lex told him, smiling.
‘I’ll figure it out,’ Cole told her. ‘When I’m done, maybe I can teach you how to ski.’
Lex sent him a look full of humour-coated desire. ‘I could think of something I’d much rather do with you than learn to snowboard.’
‘That’s so incredibly tempting.’
Cole ducked his head to kiss her but pulled back at the last second. They’d had two intense conversations—one last night, one a minute ago—and they needed some distance, a little bit of space. This was getting too deep, too fast, and it pushed him out of his comfort zone.
‘If I kiss you properly, I’ll be tempted to take you upstairs instead of hitting the slopes.’
Lex sat up and he could feel her pulling back as her many shields came up. ‘I’m sorry I dumped on you. I know that wasn’t part of our no-strings fling.’
He frowned, puzzled by her statement. He’d opened up to her, had exposed himself, and he didn’t feel the need to apologise. Why did she? ‘We can be friends as well as lovers, Lex.’
She wrinkled her nose and shrugged. ‘I guess.’ But she didn’t look convinced. He felt the need to reassure her. ‘There isn’t a rule book we need to follow.’
She patted his chest and climbed off his lap. ‘It would be so much easier if we did,’ she quietly said before pulling up a smile. ‘I’m going to have a nap while you play in the snow.’
His eyes sparked with interest and Lex smiled, her good humour restored by the interest she saw in his eyes.
He wanted her, she wanted him...nothing more, nothing less.
It was one sentence and the only rule they needed to follow.
Who needed a book?
Cole came to a controlled stop at the bottom of the run and placed his hands on his thighs, pulling in deep breaths of icy air. He turned and looked up the slope, called, according to the map in the shop, Charlie’s Run, and nodded, satisfied. His thigh muscles burned from the three treks he’d made up the ski-slope through the snow carrying his board but flying down the slope was always worth it.
Cole bent down to release his feet from the snowboard and wondered who Charlie was and why the name popped up all over the resort. The small pub with a deck overlooking the ski-slopes was called Charlie’s, this run was called after Charlie and the subsidiary company of Thorpe Industries that owned this ski resort was called Charlie On The Mountain. A stupid name for a company but, obviously, one that had held some significance for Grenville.
Was Charlie the name of a lover, an old friend, a dog his dad had loved? Because he had no insight into his father’s life, and had never met the people who were important to him, he didn’t know.
But he could ask. Cole pulled his phone out of a zippered pocket in his ski-jacket and opened up his email application, banging out a quick message to Sam’s lawyer.
Who is Charlie? Why is everything at the ski resort Grenville owned named after him? Can you ask Sam and get back to me?