“It’s a toss-up. Alpenglow Pizza, the Gallery Café, or Firehouse Café.”
“Is this a vote or something?” I asked, glancing between the brothers.
“Well, we like them all, and we can’t decide. Should we do rock, paper, scissors?” Cole asked.
“What doyouwant?” Asher asked, his gaze bouncing to me.
I thought about all of them. “I’ve been to the pizza place and Firehouse Café, but I haven’t been to the Gallery Café.”
“Well, it’s decided then.” Cole threw a hand up and let it fall to his thigh with a slap. “That’s where we’re going.”
I looked down at my outfit—fitted fleece leggings with hiking boots. “Can I wear this there? I mean, if it’s a gallery…”
Cole grinned. “It’s Alaska. You could go into a five-star restaurant here, and you’d get away with that.”
“You speak the truth,” I returned.
We tucked away our water bottles, shrugged into our packs, and started hiking back down. The brothers moved at a steady pace. They clearly knew this trail well, navigating around patches of rocky stretches and the occasional icy spots from the vestiges of rapidly melting snow.
When we reached the bottom, Cole glanced around. “Did you walk here?”
“Yeah. I’m just staying down the road,” I explained.
“Do you want to ride with us to the café, then?” he asked.
“Well, how far is it?”
“Eh, probably ten minutes. It’s in town, but it’s not right downtown,” Asher explained.
I’d already agreed before I saw their truck. The next thing I knew, I was wedged into the middle of a bench seat between Asher and Cole, with Cole driving. His thigh was pressed against mine, and I couldn’t stop my eyes from drifting to his hands—one loosely curled around the steering wheel, the other dangling over the top.
Sweet hell. I was having fantasies about his forearms and his strong, rough hands on me.
Chapter Four
COLE
An offer
Adele sat across from me at the small round table in the Gallery Café. Asher was looking at something on his phone, while I couldn’t keep my eyes off Adele. Holy hell, she was beautiful.
Her cheeks were flushed from being outside in the cold air and sunshine. Her green eyes were bright, and her auburn hair was pulled up in a ponytail with a few loose tendrils framing her face.
“I don’t understand the menu,” she said, glancing up at me.
“Oh, they have themes,” I explained, looking down at the menu. “Looks like it’s Mediterranean this week. They have staples that are always available too.”
“Oh, I love this!” she exclaimed.
“Ooh, Mediterranean week is one of my favorites,” Asher said, placing both palms flat on the table for emphasis after he put his phone down.
Adele blinked, her lips curling in a slow smile as she glanced from him to me. “Wow, you seem excited about this, Asher.”
“Good food makes me happy,” my younger brother replied simply.
Adele’s laugh was throaty, the sound sizzling straight down my spine and lighting up every nerve ending in my body.
“Good food makes me happy too,” she said after a beat.
