Page 46

Twenty minutes later, I found myself standing in front of a row of snowmobiles, regretting my decision to cave to the peer pressure.

The machines were bigger than I’d expected. They looked fast. I did not want fast. Sebastian was already straddling one, going through some kind of pre-ride checklist. Bernadette had claimed another doing the same thing.

The third snowmobile sat waiting. Our snowmobile. The one Jeremy would be driving while I clung to him for dear life.

“Okay,” Sebastian said, waving Jeremy over. “Let me show you the basics.”

I watched as Sebastian walked Jeremy through the controls. Throttle, brake, steering. How to lean into turns. What to do if the machine started to tip. Jeremy nodded along, asking questions. I rarely saw him so focused outside of photoshoots.

He picked it up quickly, as he did with most physical activities. Within ten minutes, he was doing slow loops around the clearing, getting a feel for the machine. He looked comfortable. Confident. Like he’d been doing this his whole life. I both hated and loved his confidence. The confidence meant he wasn’t going to dump me in the snow. But it also meant he might be too confident and that was how accidents happened.

“Ready?” he asked, pulling up beside me.

No. Absolutely not. “Sure.”

I climbed onto the back of the snowmobile. There wasn’t much to hold on to except Jeremy himself. I wrapped my arms around his waist, feeling the solid warmth of him even through all our layers.

“Hold tight,” he said over his shoulder. “Here we go.”

The machine lurched forward. I squeezed my arms tighter, pressing myself against his back. The cold air bit at my cheeks as we picked up speed. I had on goggles, Bernadette’s requirement, but the cold air still made my eyes water. Jeremy followed Sebastian and Bernadette onto a trail that wound through the trees.

At first, all I could think about was the danger. Every bump made my heart race. Every turn had me convinced we were about to flip over and die in a frozen ditch. I kept my eyes squeezed shut, my face pressed against Jeremy’s back, my arms locked around him like a vise.

But nothing bad happened. The trail was smooth, well maintained. Jeremy drove carefully, keeping a safe distance from the others. He took the turns at a reasonable speed. Gradually, my death grip began to relax. My eyes opened.

The forest around us was stunning. It was a clear blue sky above, making the snow look even brighter. I was thankful for the tinted goggles or I’d be blind. The air was crisp, but once I got used to it, it was invigorating instead of painful.

It was genuinely beautiful.

That was when I recognized my situation. I felt like a koala wrapped around Jeremy. His strong body between my legs. As my fear faded, other sensations began to take its place.

The vibration rumbled beneath me. Through him and against my body. My hands opened, spreading across his flat stomach. I noted the subtle flex of his core as he steered us around curves.

Oh no.

I tried to focus on the scenery. The trees. The snow. Anything except the growing awareness of how good Jeremy felt pressed against me.

It didn’t work.

The snowmobile hummed beneath us. The constant vibration sent spirals of pleasure through my body. My pulse quickened. Heat bloomed in places that had nothing to do with thermal underwear. I shifted slightly, trying to create some distance, but there was nowhere to go. The seat kept us pressed together.

This was not happening. I was not getting turned on by a snowmobile ride with my client.

But my body had other ideas. Every jostle of the machine and slight movement Jeremy made sent little sparks of sensation through me. I was hyper-aware of everywhere we touched. His back against my chest. My nipples were hard and it had nothing to do with the cold. Thank God for the layers because I did not want him to feel them scraping against his back.

I closed my eyes and tried to think about spreadsheets. Contracts. The January schedule I still needed to finalize. Anything boring and work-related that might cool down whatever was happening in my body.

It didn’t help. The vibrations continued. Jeremy’s hard body didn’t get soft. The inappropriate thoughts continued.

By the time we reached our destination, I was a mess. Flushed, breathless, and desperately hoping no one would notice.

The location was gorgeous. Another frozen lake, this one smaller than the one near the lodge, surrounded by dense forest. An old cabin sat near the water’s edge, weathered wood and a sagging roof that somehow looked picturesque rather than decrepit. I could see why they’d chosen it for the shoot. It was the perfect backdrop for the kind of rugged elegance Blackwell Couture was going for.

I climbed off the snowmobile on shaky legs, grateful for the cold air on my heated skin. Jeremy cut the engine and dismounted, stretching his arms over his head with a satisfied grin.

“That was amazing,” he said. “Did you see that view coming down the ridge? Incredible.”

“Yeah.” My voice came out slightly strangled. “Incredible.”