specialist subject? “You’re supposed to be at family night.”
“All the more reason to have a drink. A meeting followed by an evening of O’Neil family togetherness is too much for any man.”
He took it for granted, the closeness of his family, the fact that they were always there in the background supporting each other.
He’d never known anything different.
“If we go to the bar, you’ll be accosted by guests.”
“Which is why we’re going to drink the beer from your fridge. I promise to replenish it tomorrow.”
“My fridge?” Her heart bumped a little harder. “You want to come back to my lodge?”
“Why not? You do have beer?” He slipped his arm around her shoulders, and she was conscious of the weight of his arm, of the power of his body as it brushed against hers.
His touch was casual.
The way she was feeling was anything but. It would have been safer for her pulse rate and her blood pressure if she pulled away, but that would have raised questions she didn’t want to answer, so she decided her cardiovascular system was going to have to take the hit.
“Jess has talent,” she croaked. “You’re too busy to ski with her all the time, so I was thinking that maybe she should join the under-14 class. I’m focusing on mountain free-skiing, bumps, gate training, gate drills and freeski skills. We’ll mix up the fun with the work. She might enjoy it, and it would be good for building confidence. What do you think?”
“I think she’ll be bored out of her mind. That’s fine for most of the kids, but not Jess. She needs to be stretched.”
“Are you saying my lessons are boring?”
“No. You’re a gifted teacher, but Jess is different. She has something.”
“She’s her father’s daughter.”
Tyler gave a grim smile. “Which is probably why Janet kicked her out.”
They’d reached the steps to her lodge. A single light glowed in the window. “I agree she needs to be stretched, but if you’re going to make the most of that something, it’s important to get the basics right. To focus on style.”
“Style is irrelevant. Speed is what’s important.”
Brenna rolled her eyes and delved for her keys. It was an argument they’d had more times than she could count. “Good style comes before speed.”
“Nothing comes before speed. You want to be the fastest, not the prettiest.” He tugged her hat down over her eyes. Then he stooped and scooped up a handful of snow from the steps and she backed away, her keys still in her hand.
“Don’t you dare! Tyler O’Neil if you so much as—crap.” She ducked too late as snow hit her on the chest and exploded into her face. “I am soaking!”
“You shouldn’t have unzipped your jacket.”
“I hate you, you know that, don’t you?”
“No, you don’t. You love me, really.” He was smiling as he scooped up more snow, but this time she was quicker, and the snow in her hand hit him full in the face.
She did love him. That was the problem.
She really loved him, but there was no way she was going to let him know that.
She made the most of her temporary advantage and let herself into the lodge, reasoning that even Tyler wouldn’t dare throw snow indoors.
The lodges were the pride of Snow Crystal. Set in the forest and overlooking the lake, each one felt private and intimate, but Forest was her favorite. “I’d forgotten what good aim you have. I have snow blindness.” Still laughing, Tyler wiped snow out of his eyes, tugged off his boots and coat and left them by the door.
“You’re neat and tidy all of a sudden.”
“I’m trying to set a good example. I’m working on being a responsible parent. It’s exhausting.” He sprawled on one of the sofas, his powerful frame dominating even this large, spacious room. The fabric of his jeans clung to hard, muscular thighs, a legacy of years of downhill skiing.
Brenna pulled off her hat and hung up her coat. It was only when she noticed Tyler taking a leisurely look at her body that she realized her soaked, roll-neck sweater was clinging to her breasts.
Alternatively freezing and then burning, she turned away, but it was impossible to ignore his presence or the fact they were alone.
It felt strangely intimate. The lodge was at the far end of the lake, wrapped by the forest that showed itself as dark shapes through acres of glass.
The only other property partially visible through the trees was his.
If she knelt on her bed high on the sleeping shelf, she could just glimpse his bedroom.
Trying not to think about his bedroom, she pulled open the fridge and took out two beers. She opened them both and handed him one.
“I’ll be back in a second. Thanks to you, I need to change my sweater.”
His gaze collided with hers briefly, and then she backed away and took refuge in the bedroom.
When had he ever looked at her before?
She pulled on a dry sweater, took a deep breath and rejoined him in the living room.
“About that thing you were asking me—”
“What thing?”
She curled up in the chair opposite him. “Sex. Jess.”
“Are you blushing?” His eyes narrowed on her face. “You’re cute when you’re embarrassed, do you know that?”
“You’re never cute. You’re a pain in the ass the whole time.”
“I love it when you talk dirty to me.” He winked at her. “Go on. How do I deal with it?”
“Honestly? I think you should wait for her to bring it up. I would have died of embarrassment if my parents had tried to talk to me about sex.”
“What if she doesn’t like to ask? What if she turns around in a few years and tells me she’s pregnant?”
“I think you need to chill.” Brenna sipped her beer. “Make sure she knows she can talk to you about anything. Create an atmosphere where she is comfortable to say whatever she wants.”
“Judging from the conversation earlier, I think we’ve already got that atmosphere. Can you believe she was actually trying to fix me up?”
Brenna almost choked on her beer. “Who with?”
Christy. It had to be Christy with the smooth blond hair. Or maybe pretty, bubbly Poppy, who worked closely with Élise in the restaurant.
