“Oh,” he said simply, then took a long pull from his beer. “Well, shit.”
“What?”
“Nothing. Just my baby sister cleans up nice, doesn’t she?”
There was something in his tone that suggested this wasn’t entirely a casual observation. I had the distinct feeling I was being tested somehow, though I wasn’t sure what the right answer was supposed to be.
“She looks lovely,” I said carefully, trying to strike a balance between acknowledging the obvious and not sounding like I was ready to devour her on the spot.
Which I absolutely was.
Brom nodded slowly, still watching me with those sharp eyes that missed nothing. “She does. And she’s been working her ass off to make tonight special for everyone.”
The subtext was clear. Don’t mess with her.
I respected that. If I had a sister who looked like Sylvie, I’d probably be just as protective. Hell, I was protective of my brothers’ wives, and they could all take care of themselves just fine.
She got closer. Her hair had been gently curled and styled to fall like silk over one shoulder, pinned back on one side to show off her profile. The front of her dress was low cut enough to makemy heart race and my mouth go dry. There was a tiny hint of cleavage. Not a lot but enough.
I felt like a complete simpleton when I stepped forward and offered her my hand to help her up the steps, as if she couldn’t navigate a few stairs on her own. But she took my hand anyway.
“Thank you,” she said with a soft smile.
I had to resist the overwhelming urge to wrap an arm around her waist and pull her close.
Other men were arriving for the party. Lodge guests and locals judging by the way Brom greeted them. I caught more than a few of them checking her out as they passed. I couldn’t blame them for looking. Sylvie was breathtaking tonight, the kind of woman who commanded attention without even trying.
But she was mine. Back the fuck off.
I had the strongest urge to kiss her. Claim her. Make it known that she was off limits.
The thought hit me with a force that had me stepping back. The intensity of my possessiveness shocked the hell out of me. I had no business thinking that way about Sylvie. We’d known each other for what, three days? And I was here under completely false pretenses, planning to destroy everything she cared about.
And yet, Ididthink of her as mine. The feeling was irrational and dangerous and completely inappropriate, but there it was.
Brom was saying something about how Sylvie and I had done a good job with the tree decorating yesterday. I barely heard him. There was suddenly a beehive in my head. All kinds of buzzing and humming that drowned out everything except her.
“The place looks incredible,” Brom said, gesturing at the twinkling lights that transformed the lodge into something magical. “Even Mom says so, and she doesn’t have many good things to say about anything these days.”
I turned to Sylvie, trying not to let my gaze linger on how incredible her legs looked in those black nylons and knee-high boots. “Your brother’s giving us rave reviews.”
“We make a good team,” she said.
The simple statement made something warm unfurl in my chest. I couldn’t answer so I simply nodded.
“Come on, guys,” Emmy said. “I’m freezing my ass off.”
We headed inside together. I shrugged out of my coat and hung it on one of the coat racks near the door. I could go up and put it in my room, but fuck that. I was not leaving Sylvie alone with the circling sharks. They were all looking at her. I wanted to poke their damn eyes out.
Brom stayed back to talk with some people he knew. Emmy was immediately pulled away. And I was left with Sylvie.
“You look beautiful,” I said.
She beamed up at me. “Thank you. You look very handsome.”
I had gone with black slacks and a gray cashmere sweater. “Thank you.”
We grabbed glasses of wine from the bar that had been set up in the corner and began mingling with the other guests. The crowd was exactly what I’d expected, lodge guests, local families, people who clearly knew each other well and were genuinely happy to be celebrating together.
