both eyed the gold chest with distrust.
“Look, Mimi, we still have a ways to go down the hill. Let’s set it down and I’ll go get the car.” He blinked snow from his eyelashes and stumbled. His foot caught on a raised tree root and he lost his balance. He slid, yelping and trying to gain control.
His feet flew out from under him and the hope chest crashed down on his legs. Mimi toppled, too, landing on her stomach across the hope chest. Her arms cycled out by her sides as she struggled not to dive into the snow, and one fist smacked his eye. She rolled away and plopped into the cushiony snow beside him, anyway, and the latch to the chest suddenly sprang open.
It took them both a moment to realize what had happened. Seth pushed the chest aside to the ground. Mimi jumped up, shivering from the cold. The snow had dampened her dress, causing the silky material to cling to her voluptuous body. The damp bodice accentuated the fullness of her breasts, and the neckline dipped precariously off her shoulder, giving him a glimpse of luscious cleavage and creamy skin.
He stood and slapped the snow off his suit, dragging his gaze from her tempting body. He absolutely could not allow himself to be attracted to Mimi Hartwell. She was his ex-fiancée’s sister, for heaven’s sake. Plus, she was definitely the wrong type of woman for him. Mimi stared at him, and he noticed that the corner of the chest had ripped a hole in the crotch of his pants. He plastered his hands over his nearly visible privates and froze.
They both jerked their eyes from each other and spoke at the same time. “I’ll go get the car.”
“Go get the car.”
He clutched the front of his pants together with his hands and hauled himself down the hill, praying Mimi hadn’t noticed his burgeoning arousal.
MIMI GAPED AT SETH’S departing back, shocked to see he’d been turned on by her klutzy moves. The man must miss Hannah terribly and be completely desperate. Of course, he was a man, and his physical reaction had probably been simply that, a male reaction, not real attraction, or the man wouldn’t be running down the icy drive as if a hungry lion was chomping at his heels.
She shivered. Her feet were wet and starting to get cold inside the dress shoes. The top of the chest stood open, the contents fairly begging to be examined. Curiosity won over her fear of superstition, and she peeked inside. Hannah’s life had gone berserk the day she’d opened her hope chest.
What in the world had her grandmother put inside hers?
Chapter Two
Had Grammy Rose also given her an heirloom ring to wear so she would dream about her future husband?
Impossible. She was never getting married.
Mimi laughed and ran her finger over the hope chest’s velvety grape-colored lining. On top of the lavender tissue paper lay a pale pink envelope, but she heard Seth’s car coming, so she stuffed the letter in her purse, deciding to read it as they drove.
Seth parked the Lexus and climbed out, snow dotting his thick hair and glistening on his bronzed skin. He’d buttoned his suit coat to hide the tear in his pants. Mimi stifled a giggle.
“What’s inside?” Seth asked.
“I’m afraid to look.”
“Don’t be silly. Nothing in there could possibly affect your future.”
Mimi bit down on her lip. Seth lifted the tissue paper and her stomach flip-flopped. A beautiful bouquet lay in the center of the hope chest.
Two wedding bouquets in one day—not a good sign.
“Grammy Rose carried this bouquet when she married Gramps. I saw a picture of it in her photo album.”
“See, nothing so strange about that.”
Right. Nothing earth-shattering happened. No knight in shining armor appeared. Just dull Seth Broadhurst in a gray Lexus.
Mimi pushed aside the remaining tissue, her gaze resting on a blue-and-white baby quilt, a rocking-horse design appliquéed on the front. An antique silver baby rattle lay beside it.
“Now I know Grammy’s confused,” Mimi said with a nervous giggle. “I’m certainly not mommy material.”
“Anyone can see that.”
Mimi narrowed her eyes. “What does that mean?”
“Nothing.” Seth shifted onto his other foot. “Just that I can’t see you having kids.”
“Well, I can’t see you having them, either.”
Seth arched a brow. “And why is that?”
“You’d probably psychoanalyze them to death.”
“I would not.”
“So you want children?” Mimi asked.
“That’s not what I meant.”
“Then what did you mean?”
“Forget it.” Seth glanced up at the dark clouds. “Hurry up and see what else is in there so we can get going.”
Mimi nodded, still stinging from his comment about her and motherhood. “Look, Grammy included her recipe book.”
“I guess she thought you could use it at the coffee shop.”
“I’m not going to work there forever,” Mimi said, slightly defensive. “I’m trying out for a part in that soap opera that’s going to be filmed in Atlanta called Scandalous. They need a belly dancer.” Mimi turned around and shook her body, snowflakes splashing her cheeks.
THE IMAGE OF Mimi Hartwell in a harem costume was sexy and titillating. Not at all an appropriate way for Seth to be thinking about Hannah’s sister.
He quickly squelched it. Mimi was a bona fide wannabe actress who probably changed boyfriends more often than he changed socks. Besides, the storm was getting worse and they needed to move.
Mimi slammed the chest shut. “Let’s put it in the car and get going.”
Grateful to be pulled back into reality, Seth helped her lift the hope chest and situate it in his trunk. Mimi rushed to the passenger side and climbed in, shivering and damp. He jumped in and turned on the heater, wishing he’d invested in snow tires.
Mimi adjusted the radio to a soft-rock station and began to hum softly, her voice melodious and rich, her hands fidgeting with an envelope in her hand. He turned his attention to his driving, the wind swirling snow through the wooded area around them, the road already growing slick. Tree limbs bowed with the weight of the snow, and a bitter wind wheezed through the trees, occasionally cracking thin branches and flinging them into the road. He dodged the branches and braked, shifting to low gear as he wound down the mountain.
“This weather’s making me nervous,” Mimi finally said. “I can hardly see the road.”
Seth was uneasy, too. “Now that it’s dark, it’s only going to get worse.”
“You
