Winter's Embrace (9 page)

“Stone, please.”

“I’m getting there, don’t worry.”

“I mean now, don’t tease me. Get your pants off and
make love to me.”

Stone laughed. “What do you think I’ve been doing?”

“Well do it faster, you’re making me crazy!”

Stone shucked his pants and lowered himself on top of
her. Winter’s beautiful, green eyes and long, blonde hair struck him. He'd
dreamt of this moment. Kissing her deeply, he entered her. It was everything he
remembered and more. Winter met him thrust for thrust as though she couldn’t
get enough of him.

Stiffening, she cried out and it was enough to send
him over the edge. God, it felt good. Finally, she was his.

He started to take her into his arms when his cell
phone rang. Groaning, he rolled off the bed, found his jeans on the floor, and
pulled his phone out of the pocket. He answered it looking at
Winter’s
luminous eyes, hoping the call wasn’t important. It
was Colt.

“What happened?”

“Rachael wants her mama. Apparently, she was sliding
down the porch banister, thinking that the snow would catch her like a cloud.
Instead it was iced over.”

Winter jumped up and grabbed her clothes. “Is she all
right?”

“Nothing a little TLC from you
couldn’t cure.”

Chapter Eight

“If I remember correctly, you had fun the last time we
did it.” Stone enjoyed watching her face turn all shades of red as he shuffled
the cards. “Strip poker is a great game and I’m pretty sure you won and got to
see a pretty big prize.”

“I don’t remember it being such a
big
prize.” Winter quickly looked away.

“Oh really?
I
know they say if you’ve seen one you’ve seen them all, but I don’t believe in
my case it’s true.” Stone bit his bottom lip to keep from laughing. She was fun
to tease.

“True?”

“If you’ve seen one you’ve seen them all.”

Winter took a deep breath and slowly let it out. She
no longer looked embarrassed. Instead, she appeared upset. Her hand started to
tremble and she quickly removed it from the table.

“Oh hell,
Winter
, I’m sorry.”
Stone’s heart wrenched when her face turned pale. “You’ve only seen mine.”

“I’ve seen plenty.” She glanced everywhere, but at
him. Even the floor was more interesting than he was. Stone felt sick to his
stomach. He also felt sad, guilty, yet strangely elated she’d been celibate.

Finally, she lifted her head and stared at him with
wide eyes full of grief and he didn’t feel so elated anymore. “I—I’m, Oh hell,
Winter
, I’m sorry. I don’t understand why you didn’t. It’s
not as if making love means anything.”

Gasping, she quickly grabbed the cards. “I do remember
another game we used to play. Do you remember fifty-two pick up?” Throwing the
cards into the air, she let them shower down everywhere.

He’d done it again. How had it gone from a bit of
teasing to hurting her? She ran up the stairs, to pack her things no doubt.
He’d known she’d be moving out, but he had hoped for a few more days.

“Mama said you wanted me to play a game with you,”
Rachael said, coming in with her eyes glowing.

“We have to pick up all the cards. It’s called
fifty-two pick up.”

“Fifty-two?”

“That’s the number of cards you should have at the
end.”

Rachael smiled brightly and picked up a card.
“One, two, three, four.
How many?”

“Fifty-two.”

“Oh.
One, two, three, four.”

Stone stopped listening, he was a fool. He loved
Winter
and all he’d brought her was pain. Making love
doesn’t mean anything. How could he have said such a thing after last night?

“What comes after
twentyteen
?”

Stone smiled. His daughter had a knack for making his
anger dissipate. “You know what? Mama was the best counter in the whole school.
How about you gather all the cards, and take them up to her room, and count for
her?”

Rachael jumped up and down. She quickly gathered the
cards, holding them tightly to her chest as she rushed out of the room.

Stone stared out the front window, wondering what to
do next. He heard Rachael upstairs asking what comes after
twentyteen
,
and he smiled again. He had a lot of making up to do. It was sad to realize
that
Winter
had been alone for so long. No wonder she
didn’t trust him.

* * * *

Winter gazed into the mirror, horrified by her puffy
eyes. Another sleepless night spent. Somehow, she needed to save Christmas for
Rachael. Her heart wasn’t in it, but she refused to disappoint her little girl.

Just thinking about Rachael soothed her heart and she
had to admit that being called Mama was
a dream come
true, but she’d always pictured herself with a loving husband and a handful of
kids. Her heart dropped. She’d have to forget the loving husband part.

She wet a cloth with cold water and held it to her
face. Rachael didn’t deserve to see her red eyes. That sweet girl had done
nothing. The more she thought about, it the angrier she became.

The door slowly opened and she was tempted to close it
in Stone’s face. “Why aren’t there any locks around here?” She folded her arms
in front of her chest and tried to rein in her temper. “Never mind, it’s not as
if you ever knock anyway.”

“Are you leaving today?” Stone appeared strangely
unsure of himself. He looked weary, as though he hadn’t gotten much sleep
either.

“I should.” Winter glanced away from him. She felt
herself softening, but he didn’t deserve nice. “I’m staying until after
Christmas.”

“Great.”

“Don’t even say another word. I’m staying because of
Rachael. She deserves to have a wonderful Christmas and if I can give that to
her, I will. It has nothing to do with you. You lied, and manipulated my life
so you could have a housekeeper with benefits. Why? I still don’t know.”

“
Winter
, look at me,” he
pleaded, his voice full of regret.

“Stone, making love doesn’t mean anything. You said so
yourself. I’m behind the times I guess. I didn‘t know. I never expected being
with a man would be taken so lightly.”

“I think there’s been some misunderstanding,
sweetheart.”

Turning her head, she stared him down. Her heart had
been ripped out and he still called her sweetheart? “The only way we’ll get
through the holidays is if you don’t look at me and, preferably, not talk to
me. I’m not your sweetheart. I’m not your anything. I love your daughter and I
refuse to allow our dislike of each other to interfere.”

Stone reached out and took her shoulders in his big
hands. “Dislike? Damn it,
Winter
, how can I finally
make you see how much you mean to me?”

Winter shrugged his hands off and scooted around him.
Standing at the doorway, she shook her head. “Don’t worry, you made it loud and
clear. I’m just a sucker and I can’t believe I let you bulldoze your way into
my life and ruin it. I really thought I was smarter than that, but I guess
not.”

“A slip of the tongue and you throw us away?”

“I want to finish decorating the house today. Will you
have time to help?”

Stone sighed. “I will make the time for you and for
Rachael.”

Winter walked away feeling shaken. She wanted to
believe him with her whole heart, but unfortunately, her heart was no longer
whole.

* * * *

Stone watched the colors of the Christmas tree lights
wash over
Winter
. He wanted to strip her bare and see
her luscious body bathed in red, green, yellow and blue. The desire to make
love to her again grew to unfed hunger. His body responded painfully, but he
couldn’t turn away.

All day he’d been watching her laugh and
have
fun with Rachael. She filled the house with Christmas
cheer. They decorated the house and even made cookies.

“Would you like a glass of wine? I bought your
favorite chardonnay.”

Winter turned from the tree and met his gaze. She
looked uncertain, but she nodded and turned back toward the tree. Stone understood,
at least he thought he understood. Truthfully, he didn’t know what was going on
anymore.

Since they made love, she’d changed and closed herself
off from him. Why wouldn’t she just believe that he didn’t mean what he said
before? He went to so much trouble to find her and bring her home. Hell, he
even went to Alaska to get her.

Stone poured the wine into a glass, grabbed a beer for
himself, and crossed the big room to where
Winter
stood. “You did a fine job decorating.” He handed her the wine.

Their fingers touched and she gasped quietly. Her
glance flew to his. “Thank you.”

To keep from laughing, Stone bit his bottom lip. He
felt the tingle from their touch, too. “You made Rachael happy and I can’t
begin to tell you how much I appreciate it.”

Winter sipped her wine, eyeing him the whole time. “No
problem. I love that little girl, I told you.”

“What about me? Do you think you could love me?” Stone
held his breath. He shouldn’t have asked. He knew what she’d say and it would
ruin their evening.

Winter put her glass down on the big coffee table and
walked to the front window. She looked lovely with her hair falling down her
back, and her jeans stretched across her delectable bottom.

After Stone put his beer down, he closed the distance
between them. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have asked.” He put his arms around her
and pulled her back against him. Her stiffness finally gave way and when she
leaned back, he kissed the side of her neck, making her tremble.

“I don’t know what to say.”

“Winter, I’m sorry about what I said. Making love to
you is everything. I don’t know, somewhere along the way I’ve become jaded
between my marriage and the few women I’ve dated. I’ve dreamt about you for
years and I’ve missed you heart and soul. I guess I thought if I could just get
you here, you’d fall in love with me again, and we’d live as a family.
A happy family.”

“Don't you think I’ve had my own hopes and dreams,
Stone? Something happened when you called me that day. Something broke inside
of
me,
and God help me I haven’t been able to fix it.
I pathetically waited for you. I just told myself I was afraid of getting hurt
again, but it shames me to say that I waited for you.”

“Aw, honey, if I could I go back and redo everything.”

Winter turned in his arms and her eyes were wide and
glassy. “There would not be Rachael if you went back and had a redo.”

“Yes, there would. Rachael’s not mine.” Stone caressed
her soft cheek, but
Winter
pulled away. The shock on
her face scared him. He should have been honest with her from the start.

She stepped backwards again shaking her head the whole
time. “She has your eyes.”

“Let’s sit down, it’s a long story. I’ll make some
coffee and be right back.” His heart dropped at the confusion on her face.
“Please stay and hear me out.”

* * * *

Another lie or simply something he conveniently forgot
to tell her? He didn’t respect her enough to be straightforward. There were
more untruths piling up and the pile was getting way too high. All thought left
her brain and she was numb. She didn’t owe it to him to hear him out. Hell, she
didn’t owe him a damn thing. He was a low down, lying skunk, and she’d had
enough.

Winter put her foot on the first step and stopped.
Maybe she didn’t owe him anything, but there was a very special little girl
upstairs that needed her. Rachael had his unusual gray eyes. Didn’t he realize
that? Maybe Clare told him that out of spite, but surely he must have seen the
resemblance.

“Winter?”

Could she even believe anything he had to say? He had
no credibility with her but it concerned Rachael. Weariness draped over her and
the weight of his lies fell heavy on her. She tried to conjure up anger, but
she was too drained. The need to know about Rachael won out. She nodded briefly
and sat down in a chair, not on the sofa. She didn’t want him near her.

Stone put a mug of coffee on the table in front of
her. He appeared doubtful and a part of her enjoyed watching him squirm for a
change. He took the seat opposite her and sighed, his Adam’s apple bobbed up
and down. He ran his fingers through his hair, and then his whole hand over his
face. Finally, he stared at her with the same eyes his daughter had.

“I’m waiting.”

“I know. I’m just trying to figure out where to
start.”

“I’d say start with Rachael’s birth but I have a
feeling that the story goes back further than that.” She clasped her shaking
hands in front of her.
“How about at the beginning when you
called me, and broke it off with me?
That should be a good starting
place. You never did tell me why. Now I just feel stupid. I should have made
you explain it to me before I came out here.”

“I’m as sorry as can be.”

“Fine, get on with it.”

“Fine?”

“Don’t pretend that you’re sorry. Just spill it and
then maybe I can get on with my life.” She wrapped her arms around her middle
to keep from flying apart.

Stone’s piercing stare made her uncomfortable, but she
was not about to back down.

“It started that first year of college. I loved you. I
really did, still do.” Stone reached for his coffee and took a long gulp.
Slowly, he put the mug back on the table. It appeared as though he was trying
to gather his thoughts.

“I was invited to a fraternity party about the sixth
week of college. We all went, we wanted to live the college life, drinking and
having fun. I’ve been over it a million times in my head and I still can’t
figure it out.”