Page 19 of The Last Resort
Rachel had a sudden horrid flashback of hungover mornings from her college days, and she shuddered. Picking up the bag of muffins she started down the street. “Let’s put some distance between us and the underage drinkers.”
The street was busy. Tourists from the main hotels were jostling with the locals in the search for somewhere good to eat. The cafes and restaurants were doing a brisk trade. Rachel sipped at her takeout coffee, content to go anywhere just as long as it was with Matthew.
They stopped outside a realtors office and looked in the window. There were posters of houses for sale and lease, displayed in the foyer. Rachel pressed her face to the glass. “How much do you think a rental would cost me here in town? I should look for somewhere to live.”
Matthew came and stood alongside her. He peered in the window. “That one has three bedrooms. It’s a bargain at one hundred and fifty thousand a month.”
Rachel’s jaw dropped. “You’re kidding! I had no idea Aspen was that pricey.” There went her plans for moving out of Kellie and Dan’s house and finding her own place.
“Yeah, it’s not a cheap town.” Matthew pointed to several other listings of houses which were for sale. “Do you notice how many of them have POA on them, not a price? That’s because if you have to ask you can’t afford it.”
Price on application. The trick that fashion magazines used when they didn’t want to show the price of a designer garment. And Aspen was a fashionable town.
“I’ve looked at property prices here in Aspen, and you don’t get much of a house for under twenty million dollars. The nicer properties go for well over fifty million. But then again New York isn’t exactly bargain city,” said Matthew.
Rachel’s appetite disappeared, along with her plans to find a nice affordable rental.
“Fifty million. Who has that sort of cash kicking around?”
Matthew fell silent for a moment. “Lots of hard working business people have that sort of wealth. If they want to invest in property, then good luck to them.”
She knew money, but fifty million for a house was well beyond her experience. “Can you imagine what it must be like having enough money to buy whatever house you wanted in Aspen?”
The property market might be beyond her means, but she could still dream. Rachel pointed to a listing for a seven bedroom home located in town. “We could rent that one, its only one hundred and eighty thousand a month. I’m sure I have most of that in spare change down the back of the couch. You can make up any difference, can’t you?”
“I’ll check my wallet. But do we really need seven bedrooms? How many kids are you planning on us having, Rachel?”
She laughed lightly at his joke, but her heart had stirred at the mention of having a family. Children had always been in her plans, but life had thrown her a serious curveball this past year. As Rachel downed the last of her coffee she searched for a change of conversation.
“Pipedreams hey. The best people like us can hope for is to get our regular booth back at theManhattan Escapeetomorrow morning.”
Matthew nervously cleared his throat. “I’m going to have to take a raincheck on our breakfasts for the next couple of days. I’m flying back to New York early tomorrow morning for a business meeting. I should be back late Tuesday. I’m really sorry Rachel.”
Him heading home for a couple of days shouldn’t bother her, but Rachel was genuinely surprised by how disappointedshe was at hearing of Matthew’s travel plans. They were friends, but in her mind, he washerfriend. She didn’t like the idea that Matthew might have a life outside of their little breakfast cocoon.
Their gazes met in the reflection from the realtor’s window, and he gave her a soft smile. He was only going to be away for a couple of days, but she missed him already.
If you have to go, you have to go.
When she turned her head to look at him in person, he was still smiling. “Two days will be a long time, without you Rachel. I’m going to be counting down the hours until I see you again on Wednesday.”
Rachel’s pulse quickened as Matthew leaned closer and brushed a kiss on her lips. Her eyes fluttered closed. The kiss was tender, and all too brief, but there was no mistaking the effect it had on her. At his touch a wave of warmth and desire coursed through her body. She wanted him.
In the middle of a crowded street on an overcast Sunday morning, Matthew Jones kissed Rachel Little, and it rocked her world. “You make sure you come back to me on Wednesday,” she whispered.
“I will.” And he kissed her again.
CHAPTER NINE
Monday morning
Rachel was careful with where she put her feet as she climbed out of the car. She hadn’t bothered with the grip chains for the soles of her boots, figuring it would be too dangerous to attempt to drive with them. It was only a short walk from out the front and up the stairs of the ski lodge. “I think I can manage that without injuring myself,” she muttered under her breath.
Her bruises and cuts were healing well, and she was no longer limping every time she got up.
I hope that’s the last time I have that sort of accident.
She raised her head, staring up at the grand ski lodge. “You are a beautiful, old girl. And I am going to do everything in my power to save you.”
