A Christmas To Remember…

Ski-lodge manager Elisabeth is the quiet Donnelly twin—sedate, mature, responsible. It wasn’t like her to fall in love with ski patroller Justin Cade, famous for his killer smile, blue eyes and way with women. But it was just like him to dump her when things began to get serious.

Now he’s suddenly back in her life, and the timing couldn’t be worse. Elisabeth has plans to marry a successful businessman, and with Christmas around the corner, she wants to make the holidays special for her adopted young goddaughter. Falling for Justin all over again would definitely not be the sensible thing to do. But maybe, for once in her life, Elisabeth should follow her heart instead of her head.

Justin instinctively pulled her against him to avoid the collision.

The instant her body touched his, his mind went blank, heat silencing his intended reprimand to the hooligans. Elisabeth’s sharp intake of breath was audible and, from his view over her shoulder, did mesmerizing things for her cleavage.

She craned her head to look up at him. “Thanks.” The word ended on a near whisper as their gazes locked. She was right there, so close, in his arms the way she’d been hundreds of times before. The urge to kiss her was so natural.…

“Justin?” Her voice was a squeak of uncertainty, jarring him from lust-addled memories.

He immediately dropped his hands to his sides, hoping he looked more innocent than he felt. “Just wanted to make sure you didn’t get hurt.”

A hollow chuckle escaped her. “Ironic, coming from you.”

He flinched. “Guess I deserved that.”

He took a step back, trying to repress the desire he’d felt, trying to repress memories of how exquisitely responsive she’d always been to his kisses.

“I should go,” she stammered.

Dear Reader,

When I wrote my first Colorado Cades book (Her Secret, His Baby), I knew I couldn’t wait for the chance to give the heroine’s brother Justin his own story.

Search-and-rescue patroller Justin Cade is many things—an excellent skier, a terrific big brother and an incorrigible charmer. But, after losing both his parents young, the one thing he doesn’t do well is commitment. Seemingly carefree Justin refuses to get close and risk more pain, a lesson Elisabeth Donnelly learned all too well.

Now that Elisabeth has custody of her orphaned goddaughter, it’s more important than ever to make smart decisions for the future. No more pining over blue-eyed heartbreakers! She’s engaged to marry a man who is in many ways Justin’s opposite. So why are fate and several meddlesome siblings determined to throw her and Justin together?

When her goddaughter goes missing in a blizzard, Elisabeth relies on Justin for help. But can she rely on him emotionally? Luckily, Christmas is the season of miracles.…

If you enjoy Justin and Elisabeth’s story, be sure to follow me on Twitter or like me on Facebook for updates on the next book in the Colorado Cades trilogy.

Happy holidays,

Tanya

Second Chance Christmas

Tanya Michaels

www.millsandboon.co.uk

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

New York Times bestselling author and three-time RITA® Award nominee Tanya Michaels writes about what she knows—community, family and lasting love! Her books, praised for their poignancy and humor, have received honors such as a Booksellers’ Best Bet Award, a Maggie Award of Excellence and multiple readers’ choice awards. She was also a 2010 RT Book Reviews nominee for Career Achievement in Category Romance. Tanya is an active member of Romance Writers of America and a frequent public speaker, presenting workshops to educate and encourage aspiring writers. She lives outside Atlanta with her very supportive husband, two highly imaginative children and a household of quirky pets, including a cat who thinks she’s a dog and a bichon frise who thinks she’s the center of the universe.

For Sally Kilpatrick—my gratitude goes beyond words. Fully expressing my thanks may require interpretative dance and puppetry.

Contents

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Excerpt

Chapter One

Justin Cade’s specialty was women. While his colleagues on rescue patrol could attest he was a remarkably skilled skier, it was his expertise with females that made him infamous throughout Cielo Peak, Colorado. He may have set a town record with the number of women he’d dated, but he also used his powers for good. When a neighbor had been hell-bent on running over her unfaithful husband, it was Justin who’d charmed her into relinquishing her car keys. Over the summer, when his sister, Arden, had been in the clutches of pregnancy mood swings, it was Justin who’d had the most success calming her.

So when he heard an outraged female shriek, “Justin Cade, you heartless ass!” across the sporting goods shop, he wasn’t too worried. His first reaction was gratitude that she’d momentarily drowned out the incessant Christmas music. Retailers had barely waited for Halloween to pass before bombarding shoppers with holiday tunes. There were still two weeks before Christmas, but Justin had hit his limit on fa-la-las and rum-pa-pum-pums.

Preparing to face his accuser, he turned from the shelf of ski wax, a conciliatory smile in place. It faltered when he caught a glimpse of red hair. Elisabeth? Conflicting feelings swirled through him, and his pulse had already accelerated in the split second it took him to realize his mistake. It wasn’t Elisabeth Donnelly. Stupid to think it might have been—she was far too poised to shout across a store.

No, it was her twin sister, Evangeline, better known as Lina, barreling toward him. What did I do to rile her? When it came to the Donnellys, he’d tried to keep a low profile since breaking up with Elisabeth five months ago.

Lina skipped the traditional “hello” in favor of threatening him. “If I weren’t a foot shorter than you, I’d tear you limb from limb. It’s kismet, running into you after what I learned this morning. The universe wants you to know this is your fault.”

He ducked his head in agreement. “You’re probably right. Unfortunately, my sins are so numerous, I’m not sure which one you mean.”

“Elisabeth.” Her voice was ice. “You remember her, don’t you?”

Vividly.

The Donnelly twins, though they shared the same height and build, were not identical. Impulsive Lina, with her strawberry-blond ponytail, was cute. Elisabeth was striking. Her hair was a deeper red, cut in a silky bob that perfectly framed her features and moss-green eyes. Because Lina was more outspoken, people considered her the more fiery of the two. Anyone foolish enough to believe that had never kissed Elisabeth. She’d been like live flame in his arms.

He cleared his throat. “What about your sister? Is she okay?”

“No, she’s lost her ever-loving mind! She told us over brunch that she and Kaylee...” Lina trailed off, blinking furiously. “They’re leaving Cielo Peak. And I blame you.”

Leaving? But Elisabeth had spent her entire life here. She helped run the family-owned Donnelly Ski Lodge. Her father had been grooming her to take over since she was a teenager. And Justin couldn’t imagine her uprooting Kaylee Truitt. He’d only met Elisabeth’s goddaughter a handful of times, but even he understood how traumatic the past year had been for the little girl.

“Are you sure they’re leaving?” he asked. “Maybe you mis—”

“Would I be this upset if I wasn’t sure?”

He still didn’t see what this had to do with him, but he reluctantly empathized with her agitation. Justin’s own sister was preparing to move away, and he hadn’t seen his older brother in over a month. Soon, Justin would be alone.

Shaking off that melancholy thought, he refocused on Lina. “I know you’ll miss her. The two of you have always been close, but—”

“Spare me the faux sensitivity! I don’t want sympathy from someone who acts like people are disposable. You have a different woman on your arm every week.”

“Be that as it may,” he countered in a low, tight voice, “I know a little something about losing family.” He hadn’t meant to say anything so personal. This damn season was getting to him. If time healed all wounds, why wasn’t December ever any easier?

“I’m sorry. I forgot about your sister-in-law’s crash.” Lina’s pale cheeks flushed with shame. “And your parents—”

“Died a long time ago. No need to dredge it up now.” He couldn’t. He couldn’t stand in the middle of the store and discuss his mom and dad with a casual acquaintance while some ridiculous song about wanting a hippopotamus for Christmas played overhead. With effort, he relaxed his clenched jaw. “If you’ll excuse me, I’m going to make my purchase and forget this charming encounter ever took place.”

He grabbed a container of ski wax and moved to pass her.

She touched his arm. “Elisabeth is about to make the biggest mistake of her life.”

What did Lina expect him to do? Justin could barely be trusted to handle his own life. He shrugged. “Maybe she needs a temporary change of pace. It doesn’t have to be a permanent, forever-and-ever decision.”

“Actually...we aren’t just talking about a change of scenery. It’s way worse. Being on the rebound from you made my normally brilliant sister stupid.”

Not possible. Elisabeth was the sharpest person he knew. She had a mind like a computer.

“After you broke her heart,” Lina continued, “she met a software developer from Albuquerque. Justin, she’s getting married.”

* * *

AM I DOING THIS WRONG? It was a question Elisabeth Donnelly had begun asking herself daily since becoming guardian to her six-year-old goddaughter. Despite the months that had passed, there were still moments she couldn’t believe she was a parent, couldn’t believe that her friend and former college roommate, Michelle, was gone.

Right now, Kaylee was staring back across the kitchen table with brown eyes that were exactly like her late mother’s. From her curly dark hair to her freckles, the kindergartener was a mini-Michelle. Similarities between mother and daughter weren’t just physical, either. They had being orphaned in common. Former foster child Michelle Truitt had gone to college on a state scholarship and had no known relatives. She’d been a single mom. Elisabeth couldn’t predict how Kaylee would feel about having a father figure for the first time in her life.

“You understand everything I’m telling you?” Elisabeth asked cautiously. Earlier that Sunday, while Kaylee had gone with a classmate to a holiday puppet show, Elisabeth had taken the opportunity to tell her parents and sister about her engagement. Their reactions had been immediate and dramatic. In comparison, Kaylee’s unblinking expression revealed nothing.

The little girl nodded. “You’re marrying Mr. Steven. We’re all gonna live together.”

“Right. But you don’t have to say ‘mister,’ honey. You can just say Steven, like you do Elisabeth.” At the funeral, her heart had squeezed into a painful knot when Kaylee asked between sobs, “Do I hafta call you Mommy now?” Elisabeth had blurted no so quickly she’d worried about making the child feel unwanted. To soften the refusal, she’d clarified that it was Kaylee’s choice.

Choices. Since August, it felt as if Elisabeth had been constantly second-guessing hers. While she’d never been as brashly confident as her sister, the former prom queen, Elisabeth had been sure of herself in other, less outspoken ways. That steady self-assurance had been shaken by the one-two punch of the man she loved dumping her and being thrust a few weeks later into parenthood. Now there was a small person in her life who was wholly dependent on her, who would be impacted by every decision Elisabeth made.

Then I’d better make the right ones. “Do you like Steven?” she prompted.

Kaylee’s only answer was a barely perceptible shrug of her slim shoulders.

Oh, dear. “The two of you seemed to have fun at the zoo yesterday.”

The girl didn’t do anything so radical as smile, but her gaze brightened fractionally. “Monkeys are funny.” Then she shoved an entire cookie into her mouth. Was that her way of ending the conversation?

Sighing, Elisabeth told herself that Steven and Kaylee would have plenty of time to bond. At least they’d met now. Since nearly all of Elisabeth and Steven’s relationship had been long-distance, she’d refused to answer his proposal until he’d spent a couple of days with Kaylee. Elisabeth had pulled Kaylee from school early on Thursday and taken her to Albuquerque. By the time they’d arrived back home this morning, Elisabeth was officially engaged.

She’d wanted her parents and sister to hear the announcement first so they had time to work through their—misgivings—surprise and could help bolster Kaylee’s enthusiasm. That plan might not work as well as she’d hoped. Lina had looked downright betrayed by Elisabeth’s news, but surely she would remain positive in front of Kaylee? Over the past four months, Lina had proven herself a natural-born aunt.

An aunt who’s about to be nine hundred miles from her niece. Elisabeth and Steven wanted to get married before his upcoming promotion took him to California. Moving to neutral ground together, as a family, would give them the perfect fresh start. He’d suggested that after he got settled into his new job, they could take Kaylee to Disneyland.

Elisabeth debated whether mention of Disney would perk up the little girl, but decided to keep that as an ace in her sleeve. “Are you all done with the cookies Chef made you?” A surprising bond had formed between Kaylee and the lodge’s award-winning Chef Bates. Just that morning he’d delivered a small box of jelly-frosted spice cookies.

Kaylee nodded solemnly. “Can I go play?”

“Yes, but I’m here if you want to talk. About anything,” she encouraged. “Even monkeys.”

Her goddaughter silently slid from her chair and darted for freedom—only to retrace her steps and grab one last cookie before disappearing around the corner. Elisabeth didn’t have the heart to call her back and remind her to take a napkin. After moving from Denver to Cielo Peak earlier in the year and finally beginning to adapt, poor Kaylee was about to be shifted again. She’d earned the right to scatter a few crumbs through Elisabeth’s loft apartment.

Cookies and monkeys—I can do this. She’d made a promise to Michelle. Whatever it took, Elisabeth would raise a happy, well-adjusted daughter. But she was indescribably grateful that she would be married soon and wouldn’t have to do it alone.

Chapter Two

While tourists usually congregated in the surrounding resort bars, Cielo Peak locals favored Peak’s Pints. Especially on Tuesday nights, when pitchers of beer were only a dollar. Elisabeth scanned the crowded tavern for a free table. At least she had plenty of illumination for her search. The usual neon signs were supplemented by Christmas lights strewn all around the interior.

Her attention snagged on the cheerfully crooked Christmas tree next to the jukebox. Between extra hours during the lodge’s busy holiday season and her weekend trip to New Mexico, she hadn’t put up a tree yet. Would decorating one be fun for Kaylee, or would it simply remind the girl that she was facing her first Christmas without her mother?

“Hey!” Lina elbowed her in the side. “We’re here to celebrate, not stand in the doorway all night.”

“I’m looking for a place to sit. It’s packed. You see anything, Nic?”

Boutique owner Nicole Lewis had the best vantage point. While the Donnelly twins barely topped five foot three, Nicole was almost six feet tall. With her natural grace and high cheekbones, she looked more like someone who modeled clothes on a runway than someone who sold them.

“Back corner, follow me.” Wasting no time, Nicole strode in that direction.

They all hurried, hoping to secure the spot before anyone else took it, but they hadn’t gone far when a man rose from his chair to hug Lina. Lifelong experience had taught Elisabeth that her twin would probably pause to say hi to a half dozen more people along the way. Elisabeth continued on without her.

Shrugging out of her coat, she slid into the booth across from Nicole. Although her friend had only moved here four years ago, Elisabeth often felt as if they’d known each other their whole lives. “I know I said this over the phone already, but that’s not the same as face-to-face. Thank you for agreeing to be my maid of honor. The wedding plans are moving fast, and I really appreciate the help.”

“I’m flattered you asked me. But surprised you didn’t pick Lina.”

“Well, she’ll be a bridesmaid, of course. I know I can count on you. You have good attention to detail. Lina...” Elisabeth chose her words carefully. “...favors spontaneity.”

“Says the woman who shocked us all with her engagement,” Nicole teased.

“I admit the timing might seem sudden, but with Steven relocating to California in six weeks, taking this step now is logical.”

“I think you’ve said ‘logical’ ten times since you called me about the engagement.” Nicole propped her chin on her fist. “Know what I haven’t heard you say? Romantic. Passionate.”

Elisabeth grimaced. “I’ve had my share of passion.”

“You mean Justin Cade?” Even Nicole, the most loyal of friends, sounded a bit breathless when she mentioned Mr. Tall, Dark and Temporary. Where Justin was concerned, women easily lost their breath. And their good sense. And often their clothes.

“Right. That guy.”

“I never expected you to get over him so soon. Not to poke at emotional wounds, but you seemed destroyed when the two of you broke up over the summer.”

“I don’t like to dwell on that.” The memory of herself as fragile and weepy embarrassed her. She was a strong, intelligent woman, someone who was supposed to be a role model for Kaylee. “It’s been plenty of time to get over a guy—even one who thinks he’s God’s gift to women.”

Nicole looked unconvinced. “We’re talking about more than simple recovery after an ex. In less than six months, you healed your heartbreak, fell for someone else and decided to get married.”

“Steven and I have spent a lot of hours Skyping. You know how upset I was when Michelle died, and he was such an incredible listener. We’ve gotten to know each other, discussed our goals for the future. We’re not rushing into this blindly.” Since most of their relationship had been conducted long-distance, they’d skipped banal courting activities such as sitting through two-hour movies without speaking or dancing at clubs where they couldn’t hear each other over the music. Their time had been brief but effectively utilized. It was like the industrial-strength laundry detergent used by the lodge’s housekeeping staff—one didn’t need as much because it was so concentrated. “Why waste time when we both know what we want?”

“If you’re happy, then I’m thrilled for you. Truly. But I’ll miss you like crazy.”

Elisabeth blinked, feeling a burn in her throat that she hoped didn’t make it to her eyes. “Me, too.” Unlike her life-of-the-party sister who had a seemingly endless stream of casual buddies, Elisabeth’s friendships were generally limited to one or two people she trusted implicitly. How long would it take her to build new relationships?

They were interrupted by the waitress, who took their order for a pitcher and an appetizer sampler.

“If Lina doesn’t get here soon,” Elisabeth said, “I’m eating her share of the food.” She glanced back in the direction where she’d last seen her sister, then stiffened when she saw a familiar foursome of men.

“Something wrong?” Nicole followed her gaze until she, too, spotted Justin. “Oh. Speak of the devil.”

“In this case, literally.” Elisabeth scouted for the waitress—that cold beer couldn’t get here soon enough. “No matter. It’s a small town. Run-ins are inevitable in Cielo Peak.”

“But not in California.”

“What’s that sup—”

“Sorry I took so long,” Lina burbled, handing her purse and jacket to Nicole to add to the pile next to her. “Did I miss anything?”

“No,” Elisabeth said firmly. “I was just about to tell Nicole that I can’t wait for you both to meet Steven. He gets in Thursday night.”

He was spending a long weekend with her family before leaving to have Christmas with his folks. It would probably be the last holiday they each spent with their respective families.

“Looking forward to it,” Nicole said. She widened her smile to near-manic proportions, no doubt to make up for Lina’s marked silence.

Elisabeth was getting frustrated by her family’s lack of support. She knew this move wasn’t quite what they wanted for her, but these were the same people who had hinted she should settle down and have beautiful babies with Justin Cade. Clearly their judgment was flawed. Justin was never going to settle down. Instead of pining for the wickedly charming ski patroller with his piercing aquamarine eyes, Elisabeth had met a successful man with no commitment phobias.

“Definite progress,” she muttered.

“What about progress?” Lina asked.

Heat flooded Elisabeth’s face. She hadn’t meant to voice her thoughts, but she seized the moment anyway. “I’m making progress,” she said proudly. “My taste in men demonstrates personal growth. Steven is several evolutionary steps above my last boyfriend.”

When it looked as if Lina might protest, Nicole interjected, “We’re behind you one hundred percent. If your heart tells you Steven’s The One, then I’m sure you’re right.”

Elisabeth gave her friend a grateful smile even as she secretly rejected the sentiment. Follow her heart? No. She’d merrily tripped down that path before, smacking into an abrupt dead end. This time she was trusting her intellect.

Hadn’t her parents and teachers told her for years that her keen mind was her strongest asset? Smart people learned from their mistakes, and that’s precisely what Justin had been. A colossal mistake.

* * *

JUSTIN WAS NOT, by nature, maudlin or introspective—he preferred adjectives like fun and uncomplicated. But this year’s annual December gloom seemed even worse than in past years. Joining a few of his off duty search-and-rescue colleagues for a pitcher of beer might be just what he needed.

It looked like standing room only tonight. Apparently, a few teenagers had hoped that, in the chaos, they could slip in with fake IDs. Shaking his head, Justin watched as they were escorted to the back room, where the owner would call their parents. Dumb kids. They should have gone one county over where they wouldn’t have been recognized, the way he’d done at nineteen.

Trey Grainger, the oldest in Justin’s party, was shaking his head for other reasons. “How can anyone stand the volume in here? The noise is shattering my brain cells.”

Justin was glad for the buzz of boisterous conversation. If there was Christmas music playing, it was obliterated by the decibel level.

Chris Hyatt smirked at Trey. “If you don’t like the volume, you should have left your hearing aid in the truck with your cane. Problem solved.”

Trey was only forty, but Hyatt, all of twenty-three, constantly needled him about his age. Trey’s habitual response was to sock the rookie in the shoulder. Hard.

Tonight, Nate Washington responded before Trey could. He smacked Hyatt on the side of his blond head. “Don’t you know to respect your elders, son?” His eyes twinkled as he added, “How would you like it if some whippersnapper talked to your grandpa the way you do to Grainger?”

“Hey!” Trey objected. “I’m not anyone’s grandfather, and you damn well know it.”

Justin ignored the familiar banter while he searched for a place to sit. His group caught the gaze of Mr. Merriweather, a man who’d injured himself on a ski trail last winter. Nate and Trey had given him on-the-spot medical attention. Mr. Merriweather waved the patrollers over to the U-shaped booth he shared with his wife and another couple.

Mr. Merriweather rose from the booth. “We were just leaving. I insist you boys take our seats.” He pulled a dollar from his wallet. “Have a round on me.”

Nate thanked the man and reminded him to always ski with protective gear and well-maintained equipment. All four patrollers sat, with Justin and Trey on the ends. Justin was glancing around for a waitress when his gaze landed unerringly on Elisabeth Donnelly. She was seated with her back to him, but her posture tensed as if she could feel him watching.

He quickly looked away, suddenly wishing he’d gone straight home tonight.

Since when are you a wuss? He ran into ex-girlfriends in Cielo Peak on a daily basis. Every encounter was different—with some women, he was on good enough terms for a friendly hug; with a few, he kept his distance. But the chance sightings never unsettled him.

Thankfully, the three men he was with resumed their harmless bickering. Justin joined in, harassing Washington about how long it had been since his last date. By the time their beer arrived, Justin’s mood had improved.

Grainger kicked his foot under the table. “That leggy brunette at the end of the bar keeps eyeing you.” He sounded wistful.

Justin grinned. “I’m sure you were her first choice until she spotted your wedding ring. From way over there.”

The older man made a rude noise.

Justin didn’t try to make his glance covert. Instead, he simply turned and found the woman in question—a brunette in an off-the-shoulder sweater and a pair of skinny jeans, spinning her barstool in slow half circles. He smiled at her, and she fluttered her fingers in an encouraging wave.

Chris Hyatt was craning his neck, trying to get a look. “Anyone you know?”

“Nope. Never seen her before,” Justin said. “Which means she’s probably visiting and the polite thing to do would be to ask how she’s enjoying her stay. Or maybe she’s moved here, in which case I should welcome our newest citizen.” Either way, as a lifelong resident of Cielo Peak, it was practically his civic duty to go over there. Yet he remained where he was.

She’s not a redhead.

It was an insane thought. He’d always admired women of many different physical attributes, personalities and professions. He didn’t have a “type.” But his gaze strayed back to the corner where Elisabeth sat. The neon sign on the wall above her cast an otherworldly glow on her coppery hair. He toyed with the idea of taking the bull by the horns and marching to her table, just to prove to himself that he could. If it was true she’d gotten engaged, he could buy her table a bottle of whatever passed for champagne here.

He was mulling over the merits of this idea when Hyatt announced in an unsubtle stage whisper, “Incoming hottie.”

The brunette? Justin swiveled in his seat, then sighed heavily. Lina. What had he done to deserve being accosted by her twice in one week? He stood, putting some distance between him and his buddies, potentially shameless eavesdroppers.

With her hair in loose curls over the shoulder of her knit dress, it was understandable that some men found her attractive. But all Justin felt when he looked at her was mild exasperation and confusion about why people called her the pretty Donnelly.

He kept his voice low. “Come to yell at me some more?”

She wasn’t scowling tonight. Instead, she leaned into him, beaming as though he’d invented chocolate. “Do you know what I’ve realized? In the entire time we’ve known each other, I don’t think you’ve ever asked me to dance.” She put her hand on his arm and batted her lashes.

He was tempted to ask how many of the one-dollar pitchers she’d enjoyed. But her gaze was alert and stony, belying the flirtatious tone of her voice.

“So how about it?” she purred. “Dance with me?”

As different as the Donnelly twins were, he knew they were as loyal to each other as he was to his own siblings. There was absolutely no way Lina would hit on her sister’s ex-boyfriend, especially not right in front of Elisabeth. So what was going on?

Curiosity more than anything else prompted him to agree. “One dance.”

The music was mostly masked by the cacophony of a packed bar, but buried beneath the ambient noise was a discernible bass line. He let her lead the way onto the floor, rolling his eyes when she tottered in a pair of high heels that were ridiculous for December. “You’re going to sprain an ankle in those,” he predicted.

“Nonsense. They’re new. I’ll be fine once they’re broken in.” She shimmied and wriggled to the beat. “Besides, they make my legs look fabulous.” Pausing expectantly, she gave him a chance to agree, but he was unwilling to engage in the pseudo-flirting.

He retreated a step. “What are you up to?”

She sighed. “When I saw you at the ski shop, I’d just found out about Elisabeth’s engagement and my emotions got the best of me.”

“So you wanted to apologize?”

“Hell, no. Dancing with you serves a two-fold purpose. Elisabeth recently claimed she didn’t give a rodent’s butt who you date, and I’m challenging that assertion. Let’s see if my dancing with you bothers her.”

“It’s bothering me,” he muttered.

“Also, I never got around to what I actually meant to ask you on Sunday. I want you to talk to her.”

“What?” He froze, abandoning even the halfhearted attempt at dancing. “Bad idea. She doesn’t want advice from me.”

“She doesn’t want advice from anyone. I think she’s trying to prove something about having control of her life and making savvy decisions but, Justin, I know my sister. She’ll regret this. Steven gets here Thursday night—that’s her fiancé.”

The word scraped across his nerves like the sharp, unexpected sting of a paper cut.

“Promise me you’ll talk to her before he arrives?” Lina cajoled. “It’s a long shot, but maybe if you seem sorry you ended things—”

“I’m not. And I won’t lie to her.” Justin was not a great boyfriend. But he was, at the very least, honest with the women in his life.

“Then just ask her if she’s happy. She’s had years of practice managing me and our parents, and she keeps deflecting us. Maybe if you’re the one who confronts her, you’ll catch her off guard enough to make her think about it. Call her, and I’ll never bother you again.”

“I’m telling you, she won’t listen to anything I say.”

“Maybe, maybe not. How will you know if you don’t try? I don’t think you’re prepared for how focused I am when I want something.” She put her hands on her hips. “This is my hometown, too, Justin. We could run into each other a lot in the next few weeks.”

He really, really should have gone straight home tonight. “Your parents are decent people. Do they know you’re out threatening the populace?”

“Not the populace, slick, just you. Think I’m an unstable pain in the ass now? Wait until the person who’s always been the steadying influence in my life moves to California.”

That far away? The information thudded to the pit of his stomach. “I’ll call her before Thursday night.” Even if Elisabeth hung up on him, he would have fulfilled his end of the bargain. “But the next time you spot me in a public place, Miss Donnelly? Forget you know me.”

* * *

SINCE NONE OF the patrollers had seen their waitress in half an hour, Justin volunteered to go to the bar for a couple of waters and a coffee for Grainger. Trying to get through the crowd gave him some appreciation for what salmon had to endure to swim upstream. For the most part, all he could do was move when the crush of people around him did and try not to knock anyone over whenever movement halted—not that there was enough room for someone to actually fall in this throng.

The teeming mass thinned out slightly near the restrooms as some reached their destination, but others entered the fray, trying to return to their tables. He found himself face-to-face, body to body, with Elisabeth. Recognition burned through him, the visceral acknowledgment of this woman as his lover.

Ex-lover.

Very ex. But his five senses didn’t register the change of status. Her dress reminded him of a trench coat, buttoned down the front and belted with a knotted sash. He wanted to tug it, to unwrap her. Unlike her sister’s crazy five-inch heels, Elisabeth wore a pair of leather boots that disappeared beneath the hem of her dress. It suddenly seemed urgent to find out how high up those boots went.

Aware that her startled expression was blossoming into one of disapproval, he tried not to picture her wearing nothing but the boots.

Color climbed in her cheeks. “You’re in my way.”

“Or you’re in mine,” he countered with a grin. “Depends on how you look at it.”

She huffed out a frustrated breath and angled her body sideways, wiggling so that she had room to pass between him and the wall to his left.

Follow the beautiful redhead or continue his trip to the bar? He changed direction before he even finished the thought. The bar could wait. “I don’t know if you saw me on the dance floor with Lina—” who’d certainly been doing her part to sell the spectacle “—but nothing happened between us.”

“That’s why you’re stalking me?” Elisabeth cast a quelling glance over her shoulder. “To clarify a meaningless dance with my mule-headed sister? Because I was deeply concerned about your publicly seducing her in the span of a three-minute song. Thank God you’ve cleared up the matter or I never would’ve been able to sleep tonight.”

Her waspish sarcasm was invigorating. Everyone thought of Elisabeth Donnelly as levelheaded and reserved. It was a perverse point of pride that he could ruffle her feathers.

Now that they were farther from both the bar and the restrooms, there was more open space around them. He took advantage of the opportunity, gently steering her toward a recessed indentation in the wall. It was the kind of alcove that had probably housed a pay phone in the days before everyone carried a cell.

She swatted his hand away from her shoulder. “I have friends waiting for me.” The light caught the diamond ring she wore.

“It’s true, then.” Seeing the proof of her engagement was different than hearing about it from Lina. Something unpleasant rippled through him, like the chills he’d experienced last time he had the flu. “You’re getting married.”

She met his gaze, her expression challenging. “Yes, I am.”

“And moving away?”

“Not that it’s any of your business, but yes. Heading to California, trading snowboards for surfboards.” Her words had a rehearsed quality, as if she’d made the same crack to others. Her pinched expression didn’t reveal any eagerness for the relocation.

“How’s Kaylee feel about it?” he asked softly. Justin knew what it was like to lose a parent. He couldn’t imagine how much worse it would have been for him as a kid if his aunt had uprooted him and his siblings, removing them from the warm support of the community.

Fury sparked in Elisabeth’s eyes. “Don’t you dare ask about her like some concerned friend or kindly uncle. You made it pretty clear you don’t give a damn about either of us, or about anyone else but yourself.”

The unexpected words wounded him. She couldn’t really believe that, could she? “Now wait a—”

But she’d already twisted away and was merging back into the press of happily tipsy patrons. Justin’s instincts screamed at him to follow, to plead his case, but the rational part of him knew it was smarter to let her go.

Letting her go had always been the right choice.

Chapter Three

Wednesday was a busy day on the mountain. Justin had reported for work at seven-thirty in the morning, starting with a rundown on the day’s weather conditions and post assignments. Shortly after tourists began hitting the slopes, a skier had broken her wrist. Justin took her by toboggan to get medical attention. After an early lunch, he assisted with some training and taught a CPR class. The entire day felt like one fast-paced blur of activity, and before he knew it, he was in his SUV headed to Arden’s for dinner.

His sister, like his ex-girlfriend, was also engaged to be married. Soon Arden would become Mrs. Garrett Frost. Garrett spent as much time in Cielo Peak as he could, but his family’s ranch a couple of hours to the east required his attention. Whenever Garrett couldn’t be in town, Justin made it a point to check in on Arden and two-month-old Hope. Plus, Arden was a terrific cook. It was no hardship to exchange the occasional night of his bachelor lifestyle for one of her home-cooked meals and the chance to cuddle his niece.

As much as Justin loved baby Hope, the day she’d been born had been one of the scariest of his life. Arden and Garrett had been temporarily estranged, and the cowboy hadn’t been anywhere near Cielo Peak when Arden went into premature labor. Justin had been with her at the hospital while doctors explained the complications and dangers she faced. He’d been terrified he was about to lose another loved one.

When he was ten, his mom had died the week after Thanksgiving; his father passed away a few years later. Justin and Arden had been raised in part by an elderly aunt but mostly by their older brother, Colin. The Cade siblings had banded together in a tight family unit, which had expanded when Colin married. Tragedy lashed out at them again when a car accident took Colin’s wife and toddler son. If anything had happened to Arden...

But she was fine, Justin reminded himself. His niece was a healthy, beautiful baby, and his sister was ecstatic about her February wedding. She made frequent jokes about how she and Garrett had approached their relationship backward, but Justin privately doubted she’d change a thing that had brought them to this point. She’d never been happier.

When he turned onto Arden’s street, Justin’s mouth fell open in disbelief. Her entire house was outlined in twinkling white lights. The trees in the yard were adorned with red and green bulbs that blinked in a frenetic pattern. A spotlight shone on an inflatable polar bear that seemed nearly as tall as Justin’s six-foot-two height. A moving train circled the bear. Justin practically needed sunglasses to park in the driveway.

Since Arden was expecting him and he never knew when the baby might be asleep, he let himself in without knocking. “It’s me,” he called softly. He followed the mouthwatering smell of roast beef and the rhythmic sound of a mechanized baby swing to the kitchen.

Hope was safely harnessed into the reclining swing, watching the mobile of brightly colored animals above her head. Her eyelids were beginning to droop, though. She had the Cade eyes, the same deep blue-green that Justin and his siblings shared. Her hair was black like her father’s, a much darker shade than Arden’s or Justin’s brown hair.

Justin dropped a quick kiss on his sister’s forehead, then jerked his thumb toward the front of the house. “Don’t you think your cowboy got a little carried away? It’s like the freaking Vegas Strip out there.”

“Isn’t it great?” Arden beamed at him. “I admit, we probably went overboard, but...this is Hope’s first Christmas. We want to make it special.”

And special was synonymous with able to see the house from space? He bit back the reminder that Hope was only two months old and wouldn’t even remember the seizure-inducing light show when she was older. Why allow his bah-humbug tendencies to ruin other people’s joy?

Arden’s smile faded, and her voice took on an audible ache. “Speaking of Christmas...our brother is dodging me.”

“Left him a message a couple of weeks ago. He didn’t return my call, either,” Justin commiserated.

She banged a wooden spoon down next to the stove. “Thanksgiving was bad enough! Colin didn’t come to town, and you took the holiday shift at the ambulance station.”

“I didn’t mind,” he assured her. “I would’ve been in the way here. You and Garrett were still adjusting to the baby, and you needed the bonding time with your future in-laws.”

She wasn’t mollified. “No one’s Thanksgiving should be limited to a couple of turkey slices on nutritionally bankrupt white bread! You only got away with it because in November, I was exhausted and recovering from the C-section. I was in no condition to pitch a fit. But I swear, if you and Colin aren’t both here for Christmas, I will throw an unholy tantrum the likes of which you’ve never seen. It’s more than Hope’s first Christmas. It’s my last one as a Cade. As much as I can’t wait to marry Garrett, moving to the ranch will change things.”

“It’s not your last anything.” He hugged her. “You’ll always be a Cade.”

“Will you try to talk to Colin? For me?”

Justin stifled a sigh. She was asking him—the guy who wanted to rip December off the calendar and skip straight into the New Year—to be her ambassador for a big family celebration? “All right. I’ll get him here even if I have to track him down and toss him into the trunk of my SUV.”

“Thank you.” With that settled, she handed him a platter of roasted carrots and potatoes to carry to the table.

Throughout the meal, they chatted about their jobs. Arden, a professional photographer, regaled him with anecdotes of her afternoon trying to take a four-generation family portrait.

“There were twenty-eight of them! They wouldn’t fit in my studio, and it’s too cold to shoot outside. We got to use the Cielo Peak performance hall because the family makes annual contributions and one of the sisters plays in the jazz ensemble. The great-grandfather nodded off twice while I was trying to arrange everyone. Between trying to keep him awake and trying to keep the toddler from fussing, it was the most challenging job I’ve had since the Cavanaugh wedding where the bride wanted a picture with her biological parents—a divorced couple who hadn’t set foot in the same room in seventeen years.”

That led into a discussion of Arden’s own wedding plans, and Justin was happy to listen as he polished off the last of his roast beef. Or, at least, half listen. He would take a bullet for his sister, but he wasn’t cut out for conversations about the color of pew-bows. So it took him by surprise when conversation halted, his sister peering at him as if awaiting a reply.

He stalled brilliantly. “Um...”

“You men can talk trivial sports statistics until the cows come home, but can’t sit through five minutes of wedding updates! I asked if you thought you might bring a date to the ceremony. While it’s customary to allow guests a plus-one, it’s not like you’re dating—”

“Untrue. I date all the time.”

She rolled her eyes. “My point exactly. You don’t have a girlfriend, and God knows Colin will come alone. Assuming he even attends.”

The doubt in her tone was wrenching. “Hey, he wouldn’t miss this for the world. He agreed to walk you down the aisle.”

“I know. But...sometimes it feels like we’ve lost him. I wonder if we should have tried harder to keep him here instead of letting him roam the countryside, doing odd jobs on ranches. This will sound stupid, but I worry that if he drifts too far out of orbit, he won’t be able to find his way home.”

Justin stood, clearing plates from the table. Would it be cruel to point out that Colin had lost his wife and child and probably needed distance from Arden, who now had her own child and was about to become a wife? No matter how sincerely Colin wanted his sister’s happiness, her bliss couldn’t be easy to be around.

After a moment, she joined him at the sink, her earlier sadness replaced with an air of determination that never boded well. She smiled. “Speaking of your abysmal dating habits—”

“We weren’t. We were discussing our drifter brother and how we should save him from himself. Let’s explore that further.”

She ignored him. “Christmas is a special time.”

It was eerie how much she sounded like their mother. Arden had only been four when their mom got sick. Did she remember that Christmas had been Rebecca Cade’s favorite time of year? Did Arden recall any of the traditions that had faded once their mom was gone? For a second, the kitchen around him seemed filled with the aroma of spicy sausage balls and the sharp sweetness of lemon bars. He recalled the music of his mom’s laugh after she routinely tried—and failed—to hit the high note in “O Holy Night.”

“It’s a time,” Arden continued, “of reconnection. Even if you haven’t spoken to someone in months, you can send them a card.”

He narrowed his eyes. “Why do I think you mean ‘someone’ specific?”

“You never should have let her go.” Arden’s voice was soft, but the reproving note echoed all around him. “As I’ve said many times before, you and Elisabeth were great together.”

“You have a point. Not about us being great, but about you saying it many, many times. Give it a rest, will you?”

“Colin has gone God knows where, so I can’t help him. Maybe I still have a shot at getting you to fix your messes before I move to the ranch. I know we joke about your love life, but breaking up with Elisabeth Donnelly was the stupidest thing you’ve ever done.”

It hadn’t been stupidity. It had been self-preservation. But he couldn’t explain to his happily engaged sister the claustrophobia he’d experienced during dinners with the Donnellys or the clawing panic as Elisabeth watched her friend Michelle succumb to the same disease that had taken his mother. His growing attachment to Elisabeth and her family had been uncomfortable enough, but then Kaylee had started visiting during some of her mom’s hospital stays...

He cleared his throat, shoving the memories aside. “You don’t have to worry about Elisabeth Donnelly. She’s found some businessman. You can bet they have more in common than she and I ever did.”

If Elisabeth decided to enter the corporate world, she was bright enough to fast-track herself to a fancy corner office and well-dressed minions. Meanwhile, Justin worked three different jobs in the course of a year to compensate for the off-season and lived in a rented house. His ambitions were about conquering black diamond trails, not making money or building a legacy.

“She has a boyfriend?” Arden frowned. “It’s a small town, and I haven’t seen her with anyone. Maybe it’s not serious.”

“Serious enough that he proposed and she said yes.”

“What?”

He leaned against the counter, his pose relaxed. It was important that Arden saw how unbothered he was by Elisabeth’s engagement. “They have a long-distance relationship—even longer distance than you and the cowboy. I ran into Lina on Sunday, and she filled me in on the details.” He omitted the part about how Lina thought the engagement was a mistake and blamed Justin for her sister’s rash decision.

“Oh.” Arden’s forehead furrowed into pensive lines. “I was so sure you and she...”

“Sis, I’m glad you found true love, but that doesn’t give you magical insight into everyone else’s personal lives.” No matter how fervently she insisted he and Elisabeth belonged together, stubbornness did not equal truth. “No more unsolicited opinions, okay?”

She snorted. “Yeah, that’s gonna happen.”

As she brewed coffee to go with the chocolate-caramel brownies that were cooling, Arden brightened. “I always liked Elisabeth, but talking to her got weird after you broke up. Now that she’s over you, I should call and compare notes on wedding gown shopping.”

He made a noncommittal sound.

“And I have to keep reminding myself that Garrett fell into my life when I least expected it. Just because I was wrong about you and Elisabeth doesn’t mean you’re doomed to be alone.” She poked him in the shoulder. “The right girl for you is out there.”

God, I hope not. Because he’d rather ski blindfolded down the side of a mountain than meet her.

* * *

NINE O’CLOCK FOUND Justin sitting on his black leather couch, eyeing his cell phone as if it were a prairie rattlesnake. Earlier in the evening, he’d ignored a text from Lina asking if he’d made the promised call to her sister yet. She’d followed it up with another text reading, “You don’t want to be on my bad side. I’m the evil twin.”

He could dismiss Lina if she were his only motivating factor for contacting Elisabeth. But even though he’d told Arden that Elisabeth had happily moved on, he hadn’t seen evidence of that happiness last night. If she were over Justin and in love with someone else, shouldn’t she have been more philosophical about their breakup, less prickly? And, as hard as he’d tried, he couldn’t shake the memory of Kaylee’s wide brown eyes, far too solemn for a child that age. Justin, is my momma gonna die?

In his mind, he saw Kaylee’s face but it was four-year-old Arden’s voice he heard all over again. He hadn’t been able to help Kaylee Truitt cope with the loss of her mother. Was there still a chance that he could do something useful for the kid? Elisabeth would resent the hell out of his questioning her decision, but since she seemed to hate him anyway, what did he have to lose?

Decision made, he picked up his phone and scrolled through the contact list. But he couldn’t find Elisabeth or the Donnelly Ski Lodge, which puzzled him. He rarely bothered to update contact information and kept every number entered, including one for a take-out restaurant that had gone out of business two years ago and another simply marked G. Had he deleted Elisabeth?

The week after he’d left her—and simultaneously left his job—was hazy in recollection.

During the spring, Justin had worked at her family’s lodge as a hiking guide. The Donnellys had been inescapable, woven into all corners of his life. Elisabeth’s mother had made a huge fuss over his birthday. Mr. Donnelly, outnumbered by the women in his family, constantly expressed gratitude that he finally had an ally. It was disorienting. Fathers in Cielo Peak had always preferred Justin stay away from their daughters.

Had the Donnellys been quick to extend their approval to the new man in Elisabeth’s life, or had they learned their lesson?

Justin reached for the phone book on the bottom ledge of his coffee table. As he dialed her number, he wondered if she’d even pick up when she saw who was calling.

Surprisingly, she did. “Hello?”

“Hey. It’s Justin.” Now what? He kicked his feet up onto the table, searching for the words that would make her agree to see him. The Cade charm was more effective in person—not that it had done much good last night. “Our conversation in the bar has been bothering me. If you’re leaving Cielo Peak, that’s not the way I want to end things between us.”

“Justin, things between us ended long before last night.”

Their relationship had ended when she told him she loved him and he’d told her goodbye. He’d wanted to apologize for the way it had happened dozens of times. But how could he when he knew that, under the same circumstances, he’d make the same decision again?

He stifled thoughts of the bittersweet past. “I should have offered my congratulations. How about I buy you lunch tomorrow?”

“To congratulate me on my engagement?” Her tone was heavy with skepticism.

“That, and to give us a chance to talk.”

“What are we doing now?”

Hell if I know. But before he could come up with a better answer than “please meet me, or I’ll need a restraining order against your sister,” she inexplicably agreed.

“Actually,” Elisabeth said, “I do have something I want to speak with you about.”

“Really?” He couldn’t imagine what. Despite Lina’s crazy predictions, he doubted his opinions would carry any weight with Elisabeth. Not anymore.

“If you don’t mind an early lunch,” she said, “I can make a little time in my schedule. Eleven-thirty? At the lodge?”

“Your family’s lodge?” He’d managed to avoid setting foot inside since they’d stopped dating.

“Is that a problem?”

“No.” But it gave her a whopping home-field advantage. “Meet you at the front desk.” The words rolled off his tongue from force of habit. How many times had he said that exact phrase during the months when they’d worked together? Some of his most unforgettable romantic encounters had started with her smiling from the other side of that reception desk. An avalanche of memories threatened to bury him.

“R-right, front desk.” For the first time since answering her phone, she sounded hesitant. “See you then.”

* * *

IT WAS DIFFICULT for Justin to fall asleep Wednesday night—his head was too full of female voices. Lina’s, dripping accusation; Arden’s, predicting that love was lying in wait for him around some dark corner; Elisabeth’s, vibrating with the hint of unshed tears when he’d told her they should stop seeing each other. And in the background of his cluttered thoughts, his mom’s voice lingered, singing off-key Christmas carols.

After a restless night of fragmented dreams, he gave up and climbed out of bed Thursday morning an hour before his alarm clock would have blared. With the extra time, maybe he could stop at the Cielo Café bakery counter, pick up a few dozen bagels and muffins for the patrol team. But once he got behind the wheel of his SUV, he found himself driving in the wrong direction. Ten minutes later, he parked at the cemetery, not quite sure what he was doing there.

It had been a long time since he’d visited. Colin refused to come here, and Arden had been so busy with the pregnancy and the new baby.

Jamming his gloved hands in the pockets of his coat, Justin crunched across the layer of snow frosting the walkway. There was a stark beauty in how the rising sun illuminated the headstones. Parts of the cemetery were still in shadow, but other patches, beginning to catch the dawn, shone brilliantly. He tried to appreciate the sight rather than think about how row after row symbolized people who had once been loved and were now gone.

A grandfather he’d never known had purchased family plots here, but Justin had no intention of being buried. He’d told Arden that when the time came, he wanted to be cremated, his ashes scattered on the wind. She’d made morbid jokes. “So even after you die, you refuse to settle down? Sounds about right.”

As he reached his parents’ joint marker, he suddenly felt sheepish, as if he’d tracked mud into his mother’s clean kitchen. “I should have brought flowers.” Something seasonal, like poinsettias. “I know you loved Christmas, Mom, but it hasn’t been the same since you died.”

That first year, his father had been too devastated to remember the holiday. If it weren’t for the gentle interference of their aunts, the Cade children wouldn’t have had anything to unwrap Christmas morning. Then they lost their dad, too. Throughout Justin’s adolescence, they’d occasionally accepted invitations to join well-meaning families in the community, but it was awkward, being the gloomy thundercloud that hung over someone else’s festivities. They got in the habit of staying home, where Colin microwaved dinner and the two brothers taught Arden how to play cards. That’s what the holiday season had become for Justin—rubbery lasagna and explaining blackjack to his sister.

Now, he survived November to January by hoping for good ski conditions and ignoring the hectic whirl of shopping, decorating and televised specials.

His mind slipped to the Donnellys. While he’d never been inside their house around Christmas, he imagined it was thoroughly decorated. After all, Mrs. Donnelly had gone to great efforts simply for his birthday—streamers and humorous miniposters, balloons on the mailbox and an elaborate home-cooked meal. They were a close-knit family who liked to celebrate together.

Yet Elisabeth was choosing to move away. Brushing his hand over the smooth, cold edge of his parents’ gravestone, he couldn’t help but wonder, did she have any idea what she was giving up?

Chapter Four

Elisabeth finished drying her hands and consulted her watch. 11:28 a.m. She should hurry back out to the lobby and—

No. No hurrying. She wasn’t some sixteen-year-old eager to see her boyfriend. She was a grown woman who was doing Justin a favor by meeting him. Frankly, her schedule was already full. The lodge was doing brisk holiday business, and Steven was arriving tonight. She’d shuffled several tasks to squeeze in this lunch. It might do Justin some good to wait a few minutes.

Taking her time, she pulled her brush and lipstick out of her purse, but then stopped. She might not want to rush on Justin Cade’s behalf, but she wasn’t about to primp for him, either. He was not the reason she’d dressed that morning in formfitting black jeans and a gold sweater that was both festive and complemented her coloring. No, if she’d put any extra care into her appearance, it was for her fiancé.

She pushed open the door to the ladies’ room and made her way through the evergreen-scented lobby. In addition to the fourteen-foot tree the staff had helped decorate, Elisabeth and her father had hung a dozen wreaths throughout the main building. Currently, her dad was working a shift as ski lift operator, and she hoped he’d stay out of the main building while Justin was here. For a month after the breakup, Graham Donnelly had threatened daily to “give that bounder a piece of my mind.”

Elisabeth had also gently maneuvered her mother, Patti, into leaving the premises. The school system’s two-week winter break kicked off today with an early release for students. Patti was picking up Kaylee from school and taking her to lunch. As difficult as the past few months had been for Kaylee, the one bright spot had been watching a girl who’d never had an extended family blossom under the attention of doting grandparents and a conspiratorial aunt.

Thoughts of Kaylee’s lunch plans scattered when Elisabeth locked eyes with her own lunch date. Justin leaned against the corner of the reception desk. Though his body language was relaxed, he had that intense, hyperalert gaze that had so often caused her stomach to flutter. Of all her reasons to be angry with him, that gaze topped the list.

Elisabeth wasn’t naive—she’d heard rumors about Justin before dating him. But since she didn’t let gossip make her decisions for her, she’d gone out with him, prepared to make up her own mind. In spite of his flirtatious, skirt-chasing reputation, he’d never looked at another female when he was with Elisabeth. He’d smiled absently when a cute waitress fawned over him without ever taking his eyes off his date.

When he’d unceremoniously dumped her, he’d reminded her, “I told you I wasn’t looking for anything serious. I didn’t lie.” But he had. Not verbally, but with his actions. He’d made her feel adored and singularly special.

While she and Kaylee were in New Mexico visiting Steven, he’d apologized for being preoccupied with the software update his company was about to release. Frankly, Elisabeth found it a relief to be with someone who didn’t constantly make her feel like the center of his universe. The heady euphoria wasn’t worth the harsh disillusionment.

She didn’t realize how reluctant her steps had become until Justin gave up waiting on her and met her halfway, moving with that unconscious swagger of his. Damn it. Even the way the man walked was irritating.

He took her hand between both of his. “Beth. You look great.” There was a raspy quality to his deep voice that always made his words sound more intimate than they should.

“Elisabeth,” she corrected, withdrawing her hand. “No one calls me Beth.” She wasn’t the type of person who inspired nicknames. As a child, she’d been shy and serious—the worrier on the sidelines who did her best to keep her reckless twin out of trouble. As an adult, Elisabeth only revealed her fun-loving side to a select few. She commanded a sizable staff and sometimes had to deal with difficult guests. People needed to take her seriously.

She ignored the undignified memory of shrieking with laughter as Justin tickled her one morning. Justin didn’t do “serious.” At least, not in his personal life.

“I asked the restaurant manager to have a table ready.” She was proud of her casual tone. No reason to get emotional about this. “I can spare about half an hour.”

He nodded. “Same here. Lead the way.”

In the evenings, a hostess seated diners, but during the slower day shifts while many guests were on the slopes, restaurant manager Javier Ortiz did double duty. Javier, a slim man with salt-and-pepper hair, had started as a busboy when Elisabeth was in sixth grade. When he saw her with Justin, he did an almost comical double take.

“Señor Cade. It has been a long time.” He cut his dark eyes toward Elisabeth, as if seeking guidance on whether he should be happy to see Justin. Whatever Javier glimpsed in her posture or face led him to instruct, “This way, Señor” in a clipped tone he never would have used with a guest.

After they were seated, Justin shook his head with a self-deprecating smile. “I think it’s safe to say I’m no longer on Javier’s Christmas card list.” He tapped his napkin-wrapped silverware. “In fact, I kind of got the feeling he might come at me with one of these knives.”

She unrolled her own cloth napkin and studied the butter knife. “If it makes you feel better, I doubt these would do much damage.” She paused a beat. “But I suppose he could always grab one from the kitchen.”

“He wouldn’t be the first to ambush me this week. Do you know your sister recently threatened to tear me limb from limb?”

“Lina?” It was a dumb response—she had only one sister. One highly confusing and increasingly erratic sister. When Elisabeth had announced her engagement, Lina seemed to take the news as a personal affront. Next she’d overcompensated by acting as if they were teenage BFFs who should be together or be texting every waking second. Finally, and most bizarrely, Lina had thrown herself at Justin on the dance floor with all the subtlety of a brick.

Then again, a case could be made for throwing bricks at Justin.

While Elisabeth momentarily indulged in that fantasy, he’d begun speaking again. “Lina and I saw each other at the sporting goods shop. She was pretty angry, ranting at me that your engagement is...might be emotional fallout from... There’s no way to say this without sounding like a deluded egomaniac.”

“You’ve never let that stop you before,” she said sweetly.

“Does your moving away have anything to do with me?”

The question shocked her into silence. Is that what he thought? Justin and Lina considered Elisabeth so pathetic she’d let an ex-boyfriend run her out of town?

She kept her voice calm and low. One might even say detached. “You stopped having influence on my life the day you broke up with me.” Well, later that same week, anyway. There may have been a weepy, seventy-two hour period of hoping he’d come to his senses that she didn’t like to recall.

“Good.” He gave her a relieved smile. “Glad to hear it. Please be sure to tell your sister.”

“Oh, trust me, she’ll be getting an earful.” Elisabeth would already be headed up to the third floor for a sisterly chat if Lina weren’t with a client right now. It had been Lina’s idea to offer some limited day-spa services, which helped them generate income even after the snows melted for the year. Her hot stone massages were proving to be a big hit.

Instead of a waitress, Javier himself came to the table for their orders. “Your usual salad, Señorita Donnelly?” He waited for her nod, then glowered at Justin. “And what do you want?”

It was an excellent question, in Elisabeth’s opinion. What on earth did Justin want? Even if Lina’s crazy suspicion had been true and Elisabeth was rebounding, why would he care? He’d walked away from Elisabeth—and by extension, Kaylee—without a backward glance. Was he feeling some sort of belated guilt? Maybe it was one of those Dickensian situations, where he’d been visited by three ghosts who’d made it clear what a cad he was.

None of that was her problem. She had Steven and a bright, sensible future awaiting her.

Once Javier had gone, Justin leaned forward, his eyes earnest. “Obviously, Lina has some of her wires crossed, but just because she was wrong about your reasons for going to California doesn’t mean she’s wrong about everything. She’s afraid you might regret this move, and she could be right. You’ve never been so far from your family.”

After this week, she wasn’t sure California was far enough from her meddling sister. Maybe I should ask Steven more about his company’s European offices.

“And you’ve got Kaylee to consider,” he added.

Despite her constant self-reassurance that she would not let Justin get to her, her temper flared. “You think I don’t know that? You think that’s not on my mind when I fall asleep at night and still there when I wake up in the morning? Raising a daughter is a massive responsibility. She needs structure in her life and as much security as I can possibly give her, which is why I’m lucky to have met a man like Steven Miller.”

“I wasn’t implying that you take your responsibilities lightly.” Justin held up his hands in a placating gesture. “But, since you’ve never actually been away from your family, you might not understand how hard it will be. On both of you. Wait, his last name is Miller? Like The Steve Miller Band?”

Before she could respond, a child’s excited squeal interrupted. “Justin!”

Elisabeth whipped her head around, dismay pooling inside her. Oh, no. She’s not supposed to be here. Kaylee, showing more enthusiasm than she’d exhibited for anything since the monkeys at the Albuquerque Zoo, was hurtling toward them, joy lighting her small face.

Trailing behind was Elisabeth’s mother. At fifty-four, Patti Donnelly’s red hair was faded and her figure was slightly plumper than in her younger years, but she was as lively as when she’d taught her girls how to hokeypokey on roller skates two decades ago. Her round, cherubic face, which usually made her look younger than her age, was crinkled in agitation. Although she didn’t question Elisabeth outright on Justin’s presence, her raised eyebrows spoke volumes.

“I haven’t seen you in forever and ever,” Kaylee declared, scrambling into Justin’s lap.

When the little girl had first met him, he’d earned her eternal affection with humorous impressions of every major character on SpongeBob SquarePants. Kaylee still asked when he’d come visit her but, mercifully, those requests had become less frequent. The last thing Elisabeth wanted was for the child to get attached to him all over again. She needed to explain that this lunch was for adult conversation.

“Kaylee—”

“Elisabeth, dear, might I have a word with you?” her mom interjected. “Lodge business. Should only take a moment.”

Lodge business, huh? Elisabeth suspected that was code for maternal interrogation. Nonetheless she followed her mother to an unoccupied corner of the dining room. “I thought you and Kaylee were having lunch in town,” she said pointedly.

“I told her she could pick any place she wanted, but you know how much she adores Chef Bates.”

Elisabeth would never forget the first night she and Kaylee had arrived home after the funeral in Denver. Worrying that Kaylee had barely eaten in days, Elisabeth had been anxious to get some food into her. But the kid-friendly suggestions she’d offered—everything from grilled cheese to chocolate cake—had reminded Kaylee of things her mother used to cook. The girl had dissolved into body-wracking sobs. In a fit of desperation, Elisabeth had pulled out a container of leftover black ink risotto that she’d brought home from a fancy event at the lodge.

Kaylee had been intrigued enough to try a bite. Even though she hadn’t immediately loved it, she wanted to know what else Elisabeth had in her fridge that came from Chef Bates. The six-year-old plowed through some lobster ravioli, then fell into an exhausted sleep on Elisabeth’s sofa. After that, finding exotic foods for her to try had become a coping mechanism for them. There would be no chicken nuggets like her mom used to serve for lunch or chocolate chip pancakes that Michelle cooked on her birthday. Luckily, lots of meals were exotic to a young child who’d never been outside of Colorado.

Patti’s hazel eyes narrowed. “Maybe I would have done a better job of keeping her away from Justin if I’d known he was going to be on the premises. Why on earth is he here?”

Because your other daughter is a lunatic. “We just had a few things to discuss. You know his sister, Arden, is a photographer? I’d like to do an engagement photo with Steven while he’s here this weekend. We might even hire her for the wedding.”

“You want your ex-boyfriend’s sister to take your wedding pictures?”

“Possibly. But I figured the courteous approach was to ask him first. So you see, our having lunch together isn’t noteworthy. I would have preferred keeping Kaylee away, though. Once the shock of losing Michelle started to wear off, she was crushed to realize Justin wouldn’t be part of our lives. I don’t want her to suffer that disappointment again.”

Patti reached out and smoothed a strand of Elisabeth’s hair. “I know exactly how you feel. I’ve...never seen you so lost over a boy as you were when he walked away.”

Boy? Elisabeth stole a glance back at their table. Justin Cade—thirty years old, sexy as sin and the best skier she’d ever met in her life—was no boy.

“I don’t want him to hurt you again,” Patti insisted. “Are you sure you’re all right with his being here? Say the word, and I’ll have Javier throw him out on his ass.”

Elisabeth covered her mouth with her hand to smother a giggle. “That won’t be necessary, Mom. All I need you to do is pry Kaylee away from him. Don’t worry, Justin can’t hurt me.”

Dating him had been like a cruel vaccine. He’d done so much damage the first time around that now she was immune.

* * *

JUSTIN HAD ALWAYS been fond of Kaylee Truitt. Yet he couldn’t help wishing that Elisabeth and her mother would finish their discussion and rescue him. The pixie-faced girl with her corkscrew curls and glittery purple sweatshirt looked harmless, but she had an uncanny knack for mixing the trivial and the tragic, always finding the cracks in his armor.

She’d gone from telling him why the orange crayon at school was better than the blue one to demanding to know why he hadn’t come over to play since she’d moved to Cielo Peak. Feeling like slime, he’d stammered something about being busy and recently becoming an uncle, relieved when she moved on to asking if he’d ever eaten squid and if he knew the difference between squid and octopus.

Then she looked him square in the eye and asked, “Do you think Santa can do anything to bring my mom back?”

His lungs burned with the sudden difficulty of breathing, and his arms squeezed around her in a quick, reflexive hug. “No. I’m sorry, kiddo, but not even the big guy from the North Pole can help you with this one.” He was jolted through time to that first December without his mom. That year, he’d been ashamed of every toy he’d ever asked for—none of them mattered. He would’ve given up toys and video games and candy for the rest of his life to have her back.

“I’m sorry about your mother.” He touched his forehead to Kaylee’s. “Mine’s gone, too, and I miss her. But your mom knew that Beth—Elisabeth—is going to take really good care of you. And that Elisabeth loves you. Just remember you’re not alone, okay?”

The damp sparkle in her eyes was like a punch in the stomach. Don’t cry, kid. He didn’t think he could take it.

He began babbling, trying to stave off her tears. “It’s not just Elisabeth who loves you but her whole family. Her parents, the employees here at the lodge, your crazy aunt Lina. And I hear your family’s going to get bigger soon, when Elisabeth gets married. I bet you’ll have a really pretty dress to wear to the ceremony.”

Kaylee wrinkled her nose. “She’s marrying Steven. He doesn’t like me.”

“What? That can’t be true.” He pulled back to study her expression and gauge her sincerity.

“We stayed at his house, but he didn’t want to play with me. He worked on his computer the whole time. He wouldn’t even stop to watch SpongeBob.”

“Maybe he likes you just fine, but he doesn’t like SpongeBob.” What the heck was taking Elisabeth so long? He wasn’t qualified as a family counselor. “Try other cartoons. Give him some, er, Bugs Bunny DVDs for Christmas.” Did kids still know who Bugs Bunny was?

“Christmas presents go under the tree. We don’t have a tree.” Her tone vibrated with anxiety, and her lower lip trembled. “Does that mean I don’t get any presents?”

“Hey, no worries. You’ll have presents,” he assured her. “There’s plenty of time to get a tree. I haven’t picked mine out, either.” No point in telling her that he never bothered with one.

“Picked what out?” Elisabeth asked suspiciously as if he might be plotting with a six-year-old behind her back. He was so relieved by her return that he wasn’t even offended.

“Christmas trees,” Kaylee answered. “Can we get one today? Justin can go with us!”

“Actually, kiddo, I have to get back to work.” He tried to sound chagrined instead of eager to be rid of her. “Trails to groom, conditions to check, people to save.”

A waitress arrived with plates of food, and Kaylee groaned that she was staaarving. Did that mean the little girl and Elisabeth’s mother would be joining them? If so, the already strained level of awkwardness for this lunch date was about to rocket to mythic proportions.

Patti, who seemed even less happy to see him than the hostile restaurant manager, held out a hand to her granddaughter. “How about we visit Chef Bates and see what he can whip up for you?”

That brightened Kaylee’s expression. She lowered herself from Justin’s lap but paused to pin Elisabeth with an impatient glare. “When are we gonna get a tree?”

“How about tomorrow? I have to work until at least three, but we could go after that. And since Steven gets here tonight, he can come with us. Won’t that be nice?”

Kaylee grimaced.

“Let’s get you some food,” Patti intervened. “Being hungry makes us cranky.”

Justin watched them go, then turned back to Elisabeth. “She doesn’t seem too enthusiastic about a new stepfather.”

Emotion flared in her clear green eyes. She looked as if she wanted to argue or tell him to mind his own business, but her composure won out. “It will be an adjustment,” she admitted calmly. “We’ll get through it together. That’s what families do.”

Her statement struck a chord with him. How would he and Arden and Colin have coped without each other? And how would Justin manage when both his siblings were gone? An unfamiliar sensation speared him, and it took a moment to identify the pang as loneliness. Ridiculous. Between buddies and beautiful women, Justin was never alone.

He poked at his food. “You mentioned last night that you had something to discuss?”

She nodded. “With Steven in town this weekend, we have a small window of opportunity for engagement pictures. And I was wondering...would it be weird for you if I hired Arden? I was thinking she might be a good candidate for the wedding if she’s not already booked that weekend.”

“She’s a great candidate,” he said loyally. “Her work is terrific.”

“So it won’t bother you at all?” she prodded.

“Why should it?”

Her lips compressed into a thin line. “Right. Silly of me to think it might.” She set down her fork. “I know I said you could have thirty minutes, but Mom alerted me to a guest problem that needs to be addressed. Since we’ve concluded our business here...”

“Don’t let me keep you.” He stood, reaching for his wallet. “I should get going, too.” His obligation to Lina was fulfilled. He’d given Elisabeth his unsolicited opinion on raising a child, and now he wanted to get out of here before the tension between them got any worse. Or Kaylee had a chance to ask him any more difficult questions like why he wasn’t her friend anymore.

Elisabeth shook her head when he pulled cash out of his billfold. “You don’t have to pay for this.”

Oh, but he already was. He followed her back to the lobby, trying not to notice the flattering way her jeans hugged her butt. In the past five months, he’d almost forgotten how fascinated he’d been with her composed nature, how he delighted in the challenge of getting her to open up to him. She was so cool and calm that every time she revealed an emotion—whether anger or laughter or something more vulnerable—had been like a victory. It had become addictive, helping her cultivate her responsive side and knowing he was one of the lucky few to glimpse it.

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