Page 48 of High Seduction
She mock-pouted. “But I want to go skiing.”
His laughter eased over her as he put another muffin on her plate. “Eat. Make sex noises. I’m enjoying this very much.”
They exchanged smiles, then Erin sighed, deep relaxation sinking in.
“I needed this. Hey, anything I need to know about our host?” Erin asked.
“Matt?” Tim considered for a moment. “He’s probably younger than you’re expecting. The heart attack I mentioned was caused by a preexisting defect he didn’t know about, not age or abuse. Old money. The rest of his family still lives in Alberta. I’ve gone backpacking with him as well as gambling.”
“Nice. So he’s not just all this.” Erin gestured to the formal decor festooning the walls.
The place was a touch on the gaudy side for Tim’s tastes. “I have a feeling someone else decorated this, not Matt. But we can ask him later. He’s a straight shooter. As impressive as the house and the location are, you don’t have to mind your manners around him. He’s just a guy.”
“A guy with money.”
Tim grinned. “Lots of money.”
They eventually made their way to the walk-out basement, Jason guiding them into the room before abandoning them. “Matt will be here in a moment.”
Tim opened a set of storage doors and whistled. “Hot damn, he’s got snowboards as well.”
A new voice broke in. “Of course. Knew you’d be joining me someday.”
Erin faced the entrance and was surprised all over again. The man who walked through the door was not only a lot younger than she’d have expected if not for Tim’s earlier warning, Matt was drop-dead gorgeous. If Tim had the scruffy, dark scoundrel looks she loved, Matt was an angel with dirty eyes. Blond hair long enough it stood upright as if he’d been dragging his hands through it, silvery grey eyes that took in the room quickly. He was in his late thirties, or early forties at the latest, his well-cut ski clothing covering a trim body.
This holiday got better and better all the time. Erin had no objections to having lovely eye candy to enjoy.
Tim stopped his exploration of the room and strode toward his friend. “If you didn’t hide in the bush, you’d get more visitors.”
“This way only the good ones stop by,” Matt offered. He thumped Tim on the shoulder. Then he pulled back and examined Erin with a growing smile. “And now the good gets even better. Tim, why did you let me waste time talking to you when there’s a goddess in my house?”
Tim slipped his arm around Erin’s waist. “Erin, this is my good friend Matt. Matt, meet Erin Tate. She’s the chopper pilot for the SAR team I’m with.”
Matt’s brows rose as he took her hand in his, the heat of his fingers rolling up her arm in an alarming manner. “Pilot. Well, now. Beautifulandtalented. Welcome, Erin. I hope you enjoy your stay.”
“You’ve been very generous letting us drop in out of the blue. Thank you.”
He tossed his hands in the air. “Not like I don’t have the room to put you up, right?”
She smiled. “It is rather spacious.”
His eyes sparkled briefly before he turned toward the storage cupboards. “Let’s get our gear and hit the slopes. We’ve got perfect conditions, and I don’t want to waste a moment.”
***
A fountain of snow flew skyward before slowly settling to the ground, not nearly disguising the deep hole Tim had made when he fell.
Matt’s laughter rang out, bouncing back from the hillside to dance around them. Erin grinned as well once Tim’s sheepish smile appeared over the edge.
He pulled himself to vertical. “Laugh it up. You now have the marker to beat for the best fall of the day.”
“We don’t try to one-up disasters,” Erin mocked.
“Sure we do,” Matt interrupted. “During drinks, after the skiing is over.”
Erin waited for Tim to extract himself, taking the time to look over the terrain with a rising sense of satisfaction and wonder. Tall trees displayed snow-capped limbs against the pale-blue sky. Around them endless powder lay undisturbed except for the traces of trails to the north where they’d done a run earlier. Not a single soul but for the three of them, with Jason waiting at the bottom to run them up the mountain again when they were done. “You’ve got a piece of heaven here, Matt. Absolutely amazing.”
“I figured it was worth the cost.” Matt leaned on his ski poles as Tim joined them, doing the weird hop-hop motion his snowboard forced upon him. “After Tim here saved my life, it didn’t seem right to spend the rest of it in an office fighting tooth and nail just to make more money.”
