Page 32 of A Rancher's Bride
Somehow they made it to the end of the meal, transitioning to the next thing without him making a single decision as well.
That whole out-of-control business—yeah, still in play.
“The food filled the holes, but now I need a chance to wash those travel hours off me.” Jack glanced at Diane, mischief in his eyes. “Ready to join me?”
“Hmm, now that you mention it, the trip was rather exhausting.” Diane slipped her hand into Jack’s before turning to Kelli. “Don’t worry. I promise we’ll behave and not make you uncomfortable while we’re sharing space.”
Jack and Diane were obviously very into each other. But the questions and the conversation had stayed low-key and generic throughout the meal. Out of all the people they could’ve ended up having to room with, Jack was as solid as they came.
“You guys go enjoy some privacy,” Kelli suggested. “Luke and I are taking a walk. We need to stretch our legs a little.”
“This is supposed to be a holiday from your chores,” Diane reminded her, “but we’ll get time to chat later. Enjoy your exploration and the snow, and I will enjoy checking out the shower facilities with my man.”
The smile stayed firmly on Kelli’s face until Jack and Diane had vanished in the distance, then she grabbed Luke by the hand and tugged him straight toward a set of exterior doors.
Once outside, she released him, marching across a wide expanse lined with spruce trees wrapped in twinkling white lights. The landscape nearby was a mess of gardens and what would be grassy areas in late summer, now covered by a beautiful blanket of pristine white.
“Slow up,” Luke ordered.
“Too public for my purposes.”
That sounded ominous. He went for distraction. “Lunch went well.”
They’d reached an area set up as a skating rink. To one side, ice walls rose vertically to create a windbreak. Kelli stepped behind it and he followed.
It wasn’t just one wall, it was three, set up in a rectangle to form a fantasy garden, with ice statues on carved pedestals around the perimeter. The effect was stunning as the final rays of the day shone over the nearby mountain and lit up the western ice wall. Small alcoves were tucked along the east side, with fuzzy blankets draped on the seating areas.
In the middle of the space was a heater, somewhere to warm hands and toes—
—then he couldn’t see anymore because Kelli had grabbed hold of his face and turned him determinedly toward her.
“We need to talk.”
There was fire in her eyes again, and considering the tightrope line he’d put himself on with this whole disastrous event in the first place, Luke hesitated to jump to any kind of assumption regarding what she wanted to talk about. “Okay.”
“We’re sharing a room.” She swallowed hard.
Before she could speak again, Luke hurried to reassure her. “I’m sorry, but I was doing my best to figure out a way to give you space, and then Jack showed up, and one thing just kind of led to another—”
Instead of getting all indignant and flashing him righteous fire, she rolled her eyes. “Two ears, one mouth. Shut up and listen.”
“Listening.” Although he had thought apologizing was the more important thing.
She pushed him backward, and he was forced to move or fall over. His feet hit the edge of a seat and he tumbled back into an alcove. A little more privacy was probably a good thing, though, as another couple wandered into the space, arm in arm.
Kelli stepped closer, that determined expression of hers that he knew far too well back in place. “We are no longer having the discussion we had on the road while headed here. Got that? We agreed this is about us— You as just Luke, and me as just Kelli. Both of us adults who represent Silver Stone. Correct?”
“That’s right.” A huge sense of relief raced through him. She was being so amazing in spite of his foolishness.
“Adults. Who are not related in any shape or form, which means there is no problem with us sharing a room.”
Tension was building inside far too quickly. He was on a damn emotional roller coaster between one second and the next. He hurried to reassure her. “Nothing will happen, though. Just because we have to share a room—”
“What if I want something to happen?” She lowered her voice and leaned in as she spoke, her face inches away from his. Eyes fixed forward so there was no way he could ignore how serious she was.
Only his brain was a jumble, and nothing seemed to be firing in order. “Wha…what?”
Her gaze dropped to his lips, drifting over his body before rising back to meet his eyes again boldly. “I’m giving you a green light, Luke. Hell, I’m telling you if something doesn’t happen between us I’m going to be disappointed. But just like you should’ve talked to me and not tossed thatsignificant otherat me last-minute, I’ve realized I can’t storm in and demand we jump into bed.”
