Where would I stay?
Levi:
Job comes with room at my family mountain chalet and a decent paycheck.
Sterling:
Damn. Hard offer to pass up.
Levi:
I knew you’d cave. Pack your shit. I’ll meet you at the bottom of Bluff Mountain.
“It’s been way toolong since I last saw you, man.” Levi’s voice cuts through the hum of the engine as we wind up the narrow, snow-dusted roads of Bluff Mountain. Pine trees crowd the edges of the road, heavy with white, the peaks looming like shadows against a gray sky. He shoots me a quick grin. “What’s it been, like three years? Why the hell haven’t you visited?”
I lean my head against the passenger seat, eyes tracing the lines of the road before I turn to look at him. “Time flies when you’re having fun,” I say, flashing him a sheepish grin.
He barks out a laugh, the sound bouncing off the enclosed space of the truck. “Fun, huh? Let me guess—does that fun involve a girl?”
I shrug, shifting back to stare at the road ahead. “I don’t really dopermanentanymore. If anything, the fun involves girls, plural. With a capital S.”
Levi throws his head back and laughs, smacking my shoulder before shaking his head, grinning wide. “Such a ladies’ man. Haven’t changed a damn bit.” He sobers, if only slightly, his voice softening. “But seriously—I’m glad you’re back. Even if it’s just for a month.”
“Yeah.” I grunt, the sound more appreciative than it probably seems.
We round the last bend, tires crunching over the icy driveway, and his family chalet comes into view. I let out a low whistle. The place rises like a mountain itself, all stone and glass, with floor-to-ceiling windows reflecting the twilight. In the threeyears I’ve been away, I’d nearly forgotten just how loaded the Harts are, but being here now makes it impossible to ignore. This isn’t a chalet; it’s a damn castle.
“The infamous Hart Chalet,” I mutter, eyes drinking in the sprawling deck and the peaked roofs. “Tell me you’re staying here with me?”
Levi kills the engine and hops out without answering, which is my first red flag. I climb out too, rounding the truck to meet him at the back. He fiddles with the latch, too focused on avoiding my eyes.
I let out a heavy sigh as I grab my duffel and snowboard once he gets the door open. “Spit it out, Levi. What’s going on?”
“I’m not staying here with you,” he says, finally meeting my gaze.
“Oh?” My brow quirks up, suspicion prickling. “So I’m staying here alone?”
He cringes, rubbing the back of his neck. “Not exactly.”
My frown deepens. “What do you me?—”
“Levi Carter Hart!”
The voice slices through the quiet mountain air, feminine, and far too familiar. I freeze while every muscle in my body locks tight as if the sound alone has claws.
Levi’s guilty look is confirmation enough, but I barely register it because my heart is already climbing into my throat, pounding so hard I can feel it in my teeth.
Slowly and reluctantly, I turn toward the voice and there she is.
Maisy Hart.
Levi’s little sister, and my ex-girlfriend.
The real reason I haven’t set foot in Bluewater Bluffs in three years.
TWO
MAISY
