Page 47 of Moonlit Colorado

“I had my best night of sleep in ages in that cushy bed, and you keep feeding me. You’ll spoil me if you’re not careful.”

“You deserve to be spoiled.”

Grace’s cheeks turned pink. She sipped her coffee.

“If you’re not busy,” I said, “I was hoping you would join me for a tour of the resort this morning. I’d like your advice.”

“I thought you wanted me to be your guide to Silver Ridge.”

“I do. That includes providing a local’s perspective on the resort. I’ll make it worth your while.”

“I’d say you’re already doing that.” She took a bite of flaky croissant.

I expected Grace to put up more of a fight about the tour of the resort, because she fought me over just about everything. But she was being surprisingly compliant this morning.

So within an hour, we were tucked into a chairlift and riding toward the mid-mountain lodge, which was halfway to the highest point of the resort.

Grace sat with her spine rigid, eyes fixed uphill.

“Do you ski?” I asked. “Snowboard?”

“Never learned. These ski runs weren’t here when I was growing up, but even if there had been anything close by, we couldn’t have afforded it.”

“Do you want to learn?”

“It’s not high on my priorities. I kind of, um, don’t love heights.”

The wind chose that moment to pick up, causing the lift to rock slightly. Grace cursed and grabbed me with both hands, one fisting my long-sleeved shirt and the other on my thigh.

I put my arm around her, tucking her in closer. “The resort has offered ski school for kids in past years, but do you think families would be interested in a discounted program for locals?” I was partly trying to keep her mind off the drop below us, but I genuinely wanted to know. Skiing was an expensive sport, and I wanted the kids of Silver Ridge to be able to learn if they were interested.

“I think so.” Grace’s grip on my shirt eased. “You could host day camps in the summers, too.”

“I like that.”

She shifted so she could look up at me. “I also had some ideas for fundraisers the resort could host for the schools.”

I squeezed her shoulder. “Tell me.”

Grace shared her ideas as we walked around the mid-mountain lodge, then headed back toward the hotel, taking the hiking trail down the mountainside. It was a perfect day for it. Those aspens we’d seen from my window were now surrounding us with fall colors and picturesque showers of leaves every time the wind shifted.

But the best part was Grace herself. She kept talking, so all I had to do was listen. And admire her.

Damn, she was gorgeous.

She stopped to sip from her water bottle. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Just thinking about how beautiful you are.”

She rolled her eyes.

“What?” I asked. “It’s the truth.”Ashford’s sister, I reminded myself.Off limits.

The rational parts of my brain knew those facts, but the rest of me wasn’t listening.

I officially had a thing for Grace O’Neal. It was a problem.

We resumed our hike. It was a gentle descent, following switchbacks that curved back and forth.

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