Unexpected Gifts: (The Steamy Version) (A Castle Mountain Lodge Romance Series Book 1) (5 page)

Her quiet acceptance of her situation drew him, but he knew there was more to it. Colin couldn’t remember the last time he’d met a woman as interesting as Andi. She was a mystery, one that he was looking forward to unraveling. He watched her for a minute while she sipped at her drink. When she looked up again, there was a thin line of whipped cream over her mouth.

“Well, Andi. So far, I know that you don’t think much of Christmas,” he said and leaned forward in his chair. “I also know that I plan to change that, because now that you’ve run into me, you’re no longer going to be alone for the holidays.” He reached out with his finger and with a gentle touch, wiped the cream off her lip.

It was a bold move, something he wouldn’t normally do. But he also wasn’t normally faced with such an unusual circumstance. Instinct told him bold was necessary; the intensity and heat behind Andi’s gaze told him he was right.

CHAPTER FIVE

December 23

The morning dawned bright and clear. Andi stretched in her bed, rolled over and looked out the large picture window. The view was magnificent. The snow from the night before blanketed the trees, sparkling like gemstones in the morning sun.

Andi could have just lay there wrapped in her down comforter all morning, and was contemplating how to get a cup of coffee without actually moving, when there was a knock at the door.

“Good morning.” Colin’s voice came from the other side. “Are you awake?”

“I am. You can come in.”

The door opened a crack. “I don’t want to bug you.”

“You kind of already did,” Andi said with a smile. She hauled herself up to a sitting position and let her blankets fall. A moment too late, she realized she was wearing her faded Bugs Bunny t-shirt, her sleepwear of choice since Blaine left.

Colin moved slowly, like he was unsure if he should even be in her bedroom. His sandy hair was still damp, and he smelled fresh, yet musky in that way men did when they had just stepped out of the shower. He held a mug of coffee in his hand.

“I wasn’t sure how you took it, so I guessed,” he said before handing it to her.

Andi wrapped her hands around the mug and inhaled the rich aroma deeply. “Am I still dreaming?”

“Why do you say that?”

“I think you read my mind.” She took a tentative sip. “Sugar,” she said. “No cream.” She looked at Colin, who was grinning like he’d just won the lottery.

“Like I said, I guessed. Did I get it right?”

Andi took another sip and said, “Close. I like it a little sweeter. But really close, thank you.”

What were the odds he knew how she liked her coffee? Andi didn’t think Blaine had known how she took it, and they’d shared more than one cup together in the past.

Banishing thoughts of her ex, she said to Colin, “I was just laying here thinking how much I’d love a coffee while I enjoyed the view and then you showed up. Are you a mind reader?”

Colin laughed and gestured to the corner of the bed. “May I?” he asked.

When she nodded, he sat down opposite from where she lay. It was a king-sized bed, and he was quite far away, but his proximity sent shivers through her body.

“This is weird, isn’t it?” Colin said.

“Being here in this villa with my ex’s friend? Or the fact that you’re sitting on my bed while I’m wearing the lamest pajamas ever?”

“Both, I guess.” He laughed. “And I like your pajamas, but I must admit, I’m a closet Bugs Bunny fan.”

Andi smiled. “It’s not weird. At least not anymore,” she said and meant it.

Of course, she did still think the circumstances of their accommodations were less than normal. And the fact that she was going to spend the holiday season with a guy she just met was also not typical. And she was going to stay. She’d decided last night that even if the roads were cleared, she’d stay. There was nothing waiting for her at home and after talking over drinks and dinner well into the wee hours the night before, she felt okay with it all. Better than okay. She liked the idea. And she liked Colin. He was genuinely funny and kind. He made her laugh over stories of his childhood growing up in Sparwood, a small town in the mountains, and told her all about how he’d spent the last few years working and traveling in the Caribbean, installing alarm systems for his own company, which explained his amazing tan in the middle of winter. It also explained how he could afford an entire villa to himself. The one subject they’d both avoided was Blaine. And that was okay with her.

“Well, I’m glad,” he said, bringing her back to their conversation. “Because I have plans for today. That is, assuming you don’t have anything else to do.”

“Turns out my calendar is totally open.”

“Good,” Colin said. “Because I’ve been thinking about what you said last night. About not liking Christmas.”

The smile faded from her face.

“It’s not that I don’t like Christmas,” she said warily.

“You said it was for kids. But over the next few days, I plan to show you that Christmas can be just as much fun, if not more so, for adults too.”

“I don’t know.”

“You said yourself you had nothing to do today,” Colin said with a grin. “So get ready. We need to leave in an hour.”

Before she could think of a valid argument, her cell phone rang. Taking the opportunity she grabbed it off the nightstand and glanced at the caller ID. “It’s my mom,” she said to Colin. “I should take it.”

“I’ll wait outside,” he said and stood up. “Remember, one hour.”

“Don’t count on it,” she said, but he was already gone.

Andi sighed and clicked on her phone.

“Hi, Mom.”

“Andi.” Her mother’s voice came on the line. The connection crackled and there was an echo. She must have found a pay phone somewhere. “Merry Christmas, sweetie.”

“Thanks. Where are you?”

“We’re in the cutest little town on the coast of Costa Rica. Just here for the day, though. The ship sails at five.”

“It sounds lovely,” Andi said. “And hot.”

“I just wanted to see how you’re holding up today. It’s Blaine’s party tonight, isn’t it?”

Leave it to her mom to remember the details. Of course last year, she’d attended the party as well. After all, they’d all been practically family.

“I guess it is today,” Andi said. She’d managed to put it out of her head.

“It’ll be okay, sweetie. I promise. At least you’ll be with your father and his new family for Christmas.” Andi couldn’t bring herself to tell her mother the truth. There was no point in having her worry about her during the holidays. “Make sure you give those adorable boys a hug for me. Whatever I have to say about their dad, they are sweet kids.”

“Yes they are,” Andi agreed.

For the next few minutes, she half listened while her mom described the villages they’d visited and the snorkeling trip Val had talked her into. Andi looked around her room, at the snowy scenery outside and her thoughts drifted to Colin.

What was the harm? she thought. Why not spend the day with him? It’s not like she had anything else to do. Besides, it would beat sitting in her room with the overwhelming sensation of loneliness pressing down on her.

“Mom,” Andi interrupted her mother’s description of the beach. “I’m sorry but I have to run.”

“No trouble, sweetie. You have a merry Christmas and I’ll give you a call as soon as we get home.”

“Thanks, Mom. I love you and hugs to Val, too.”

As soon as she hung up, Andi got up and stood, facing her large, empty bed. There really was nothing left to lose.

CHAPTER SIX

Walking down the path, Andi tried to figure out where Colin was taking her. If she was being honest with herself, she did enjoy the mystery, even if it was centered around Christmas.

“I hope I’m dressed okay,” she said. Not knowing what he had planned for her, Andi had dressed simply in jeans and a long-sleeved shirt, and grabbed a thick wool sweater to layer with. Her hair was tucked under a cap and she wore matching gloves.

He glanced in her direction as they walked and his eyes traveled over her. “You look fantastic,” he said.

She smiled at the compliment. “But, am I dressed appropriately for what we’re doing?” She tried again to get him to tell her.

“Nice try,” he said. “I told you, you’re just going to have to wait and see.”

She sighed, trying to pretend that not knowing bothered her, but secretly she liked it. Andi couldn’t remember a man ever taking charge and planning a whole day for her. She might even have thought it romantic in another situation.

“I missed the snow,” Colin said, changing the subject. “It’s funny, snow isn’t something you think you’re going to miss, but I did. It’s beautiful.”

“It is,” she said. She looked at him out of the corner of her eye. “But I bet being surrounded by sand and sun was a pretty good consolation prize.”

“It was at first.” He kicked at a snowdrift as they walked.

“How long were you there?”

“Five years,” he said. “Everywhere from the British Virgin Islands to St. Lucia. I got around.”

“And no girlfriend in any of those places?”

“Nope,” he said. “None. I told you, relationships aren’t my thing.” He kept his voice casual, but she noticed the frown.

“How come I don’t believe you?”

He stopped then and looked at her. “You really want to know?” She instinctively pulled back at the shift of tone in his voice. His warm smile had vanished.

She swallowed hard and answered, “Yes. I do.”

For a moment, she didn’t think he would tell her and then he said, “I was engaged to be married once. I loved her. That was, until she got pregnant with some other guy’s child.”

She reached for him but he pulled back. “That’s an awful story.”

“Well, like I said before, relationships are more trouble than they’re worth.”

“Tell me about it,” she muttered.

“Are you going to tell me about Blaine?”

She wasn’t surprised that he’d finally asked. If anything, she was impressed that it took him so long to ask her. “There’s nothing to tell,” she said. “It didn’t work out. End of story.”

“That’s it?” Colin looked at her, his eyes searching for something.

“That’s it,” she said.

His gaze grew more intense. It held her and for a moment, Andi forgot they were supposed to be on their way to a fun day of distraction.

Breaking away from his stare, she did her best to keep her voice light, and she asked, “Now, don’t you have something you’re supposed to show me?”

Playing along, Colin didn’t miss a beat. “Oh, I can think of a few things I’d like to—“

Andi cut him off by giving him a playful shove.

She must have pushed him harder than she thought, because Colin stumbled off the path, put his foot down deep in the drift and tripped up to his knees in snow.

He looked up at her, his face a mask of seriousness.

“Oh, I’m sorry,” she said quickly and reached to give him a hand. “I didn’t mean to—“

He took hold of her hand and yanked her off the path and into the snow with him.

“Oops,” he said with a laugh. “I didn’t mean to do that.”

Andi landed on her stomach and just barely missed having a face full of snow. She could hear Colin laughing behind her, so once she got over the shock of being flung into the cold, she quickly pulled her hands toward her, scooping up as much snow as possible in the process. Before he had a chance to react, she rolled to her back and flung the snow up into his face.

His laughter stopped. She watched from her position while he wiped his face. “So,” he said slowly. “That’s the way you want to play.”

Like a little boy, his face split into a grin and Andi knew if she didn’t move quickly, there would be trouble. She pushed herself to her feet as best she could in the deep snow and started running and stumbling through the trees. “Give me a head start,” she called behind her.

“You think so?” Colin laughed, and the deep sound filled the forest around her, making her laugh too.

The snow was deep, past her knees, which made running difficult. Her heart raced from the excitement of the chase. She was just about to turn and check on Colin’s proximity when a solid thud hit her from behind.

Andi closed her eyes and braced herself for the impact to follow. But instead of shoving her face first into the snow, Colin’s arms wrapped around her waist, cradling her. Together they fell to the ground, lying side by side.

“Got you,” he said.

She opened her eyes to find his face only inches away from hers. “Yes, you did.”

“No fair,” she said when she had some control. “Your legs are way longer than mine.”

“That’s not my fault,” he said. “It was a valiant attempt at escape, though.”

His breath smelled like cinnamon and coffee. Andi’s stomach flipped when he moved closer to her in the snow and put his hand on her hip. Even through the layers of wool, his touch burned her, lighting something inside.

“Colin,” she started to say, “I—“

“You’re going to be soaked soon,” he said abruptly. In the next instant, his hand was gone and he was jumping up, pulling her out of the snow. “I’m sorry,” he said. “I should have thought about it. Are you cold?”

Andi busied herself with brushing snow from her body because it was easier than looking him in the eye. Had he been about to kiss her?

“I’m fine,” she said. “Honestly.” Andi looked up. “Besides,” she said. “Next time, you’re going down.”

He laughed and took Andi’s hand, leading her out of the snowdrift and back to the path. “We’ll see. But for now, let’s get started on the festive fun.”

For a while, they walked without speaking. It was a comfortable silence and he held on to her hand. Andi tried not to think about the almost kiss that wasn’t. The last thing she needed in her life was a man, especially this one. Eva would tell her she was being crazy, and she absolutely needed a man, at least for a night or two. But Eva was like that. Andi wasn’t. Her relationships were long-term. Before Blaine, there had only been one other serious boyfriend and a series of dates that didn’t lead anywhere. She liked commitment, and she wasn’t ready for that. Besides, Colin had made it quite clear that he had no room for relationships either.