“I got it. Stay there,” she said, leaving her coffee cup on the table. “Oh, you made cookies? Well, you might be grumpy, but you’re a hungry grump. Smells delicious. Cookies, seriously? You really did stock these cabins well. Save from the honey and cinnamon that is.”
I made faces to her retreating back as she spoke, mocking her. So, what if I was a grouch? It was early. Most of America couldn’t function without two cups of coffee.
Her butt did look good as she leaned over to take out the cookies.
“Here you go.”
“Thanks.” I took the plate from her, and our fingers touched, yanking me back to last night when we were holding each other’s hands. How could I have forgotten that? The tips of my fingers tingled, and I saw the ways her brows pinched together, causing a sharp crease between her eyes. She felt it too.
She sat on the other end of the couch and munched on her biscuit. It seemed she was also ignoring what was between us. It was old feelings from high school that were left unresolved. They could rest easy now. They were resolved. Or maybe dissolved was the right term? They were dissolved because nothing like last night was ever going to happen again. I’d make sure of it.
“Sucks about the car and the ski−lift,” she said from my right.
My head fell to the cushion behind as I cursed, “Damn it, I forgot. How could I have forgotten that?” So many things had happened in such a short amount of time that I couldn’t even think straight. Maybe I needed to push the opening back, but I’d already pushed it back once, if I did it again, it would look bad, but with all the things needed to be done, it had to be a possibility.
Or maybe stop daydreaming about Melinda’s ass, and you’d find more time in your day to get things done.
But it was such a solid−−−
Nope. It didn't matter.
“I’m going to call someone when we get back to the lodge to fix the ski−lift. As for the car, maybe I’ll just get a snowmobile. Later on. It might be easier. For now, I’ll walk a couple of miles to a place with reception and call for someone to come fetch us.”
“It's not that early. Someone should be awake to come to get us, right?” she asked, licking the butter off her fingers. I was hypnotized. As she sucked them between those red lips that I’d dreamed of more than once last night. “Plus, I need to get back and check on my dog. He needs food. I feel terrible for being gone so long.”
“When did you buy a dog?”
“I didn’t. It showed up at my doorstep,” she shrugged. “He was cold. I wasn’t. I let him in.”
Damn her kind−hearted nature.
“I did a gala in New York with real−diamond waterfall curtains. That gala was amazing, but I want to top it. I have to get back to charge my phone to call people. A few acquaintances from New York will help.”
I noticed how she wrinkled her nose at the end. Was she judging me for not having enough money to be more helpful? After what we talked about last night, about where I was from and what happened with my dad, I thought she’d be better than that. I’d made something out of myself, and what had she done? She lived off daddy’s money, or well, she’d worked for him, and didn’t have to worry about a thing in life. It’s not like she couldn’t get that job back. Plus, she was born with contacts.
Well, I had a business to run and a brother to get through rehab. Life wasn’t easy for me. Ignoring her story about how much she did in New York. The more Melinda spoke, the more I wanted to get out of here. Not only were my emotions confusing while around her, but when she talked about New York and the money and the prestige, it only made me feel worse. Like I wasn't doing right by my resort by not having a lot of wealth.
"When we get back, I want to place some more orders for flowers and some art sculptures for the big launch next week. Are you excited? Time does fly by, doesn't it?"
“More orders? I thought you did that last week.”
“I did. They would have arrived early this morning, so I hope the staff remembers what I wanted the place to look like.”
“So that is why you want to get back so fast? You’re anxious to see it.” While she was a walking accident, I respected her work ethics. She was good at what she did. Her father trained her well. She was rich, but she worked hard for the money she earned now, and maybe that rubbed me the wrong way a little too.
It wasn’t her fault she was born into an empire, and I was born on the wrong side of the tracks, but here we were, our paths crossing and our differences clashing, and I couldn’t help but wonder when everything would implode. People like us didn’t associate with one another.
“I’ll head out now and call someone. Stay warm.”
And I did. I walked two miles in one direction, then two miles back again, and met the jet-ski just as it arrived. I nodded at the driver—a guy from the ski-jetting rental place. Well, they rented out all sorts of snow gear. I opened the door and hollered at Melinda, who was still sitting on the couch.
“Our ride’s here. We need to go.
“Don’t I need to do some tidying up first? I mean, I brought in some more wood for the fire, but I haven’t done the dishes yet.”
“No, just leave everything, I’ll have one of the housekeepers come and clean it. They need to replace the coffee, cookie dough, wine, and what have you too.”
She stepped away from the coffee mug and walked toward me, her shoes clicking against the hardwood and her hips swaying in a way that mesmerized me. I quickly turned around and started chatting with our driver.
