Page 13 of A Season of Second Chances
"You're not lost," he says quietly. "You're right here."
And suddenly, the space between us is both too large and too small. His eyes drop to my mouth, then back up to meet my gaze. Those eyes of his darken, and I feel the arousal between my thighs.
"Winter..."
"Tell me to stop," he whispers, leaning closer. "Tell me this is a bad idea, and I will."
But I don't tell him to stop. Instead, I close the distance between us, pressing my lips to his.
The kiss is gentle but urgent, and when his hand comes up to cup my face, I melt into it. When we finally pull apart, both breathless, he rests his forehead against mine.
"I've been wanting to do that since the moment I saw you on the side of the road," he admits, his warm breath fanning against my face.
"Me too," I whisper back.
And for the first time in ten years, I feel like maybe, just maybe, I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be.
Eight
Winter
The kiss gets out of control way too fast. Especially right here in the middle of the lodge. There hasn't been a ton of foot traffic, but that doesn't mean someone won't come down, or maybe Alana will need something. Pulling away form her, I clear my throat. "We shouldn't do this here."
She groans, burying her face in my chest. "You're right, although everyone is stuck here, it's still a place of business. By the way, do you have any idea how much longer this storm will be going? I can't get anything except for my text messages to load."
My chest tightens. Does this mean she's ready to leave, or she's worried about being here longer than needed? I'm getting that familiar feeling for abandonment again, but I push it away. "It should end tomorrow night, but there's a ton of cleanup that needs to be done. You'll probably be able to leave the day after Christmas."
I watch to see if she's excited by that prospect, but she seems to play it cool. She smiles, and it reaches her eyes, I make fucking sure. "I'm excited to spend Christmas with you and Alana. There might not be any gifts for either of you, but I'll be glad to be with you all."
This is everything I've wanted. So many times while I've been building Cedar Lodge up, I've wanted to see what Joy would think of it. "Neither one of us care about gifts. We don't see my parents, and obviously her other pair of grandparents aren't in her life. We spend the holiday here, and we love the company. What do you normally do for the holiday?" I ask her, wanting to know how she lives her life.
She smiles sadly. "I'm usually by myself. Sometimes a coworker invites me to do something with their family, or I volunteer. I've never had any kind of tradition or anything. Not since I moved out from my parents house, and even then you know we didn't have anything we had to do."
That all sounds so lonely to me. "Then we're happy to have you here with us."
She leans into me, and I wrap my arms around her, holding her close. The fire crackles beside us, and outside the snow continues to fall, but in here it's warm. Like maybe we're in our own little snow globe, protected from the world.
"Do you want to go outside?" I ask, the words coming out before I've really thought them through. "I know it's cold, but there's a covered porch out back with a fire pit. We could be alone. Talk without worrying about who might walk in."
She pulls back to look at me, her eyes searching mine. "I'd like that."
"Yeah?"
"Yeah." She grins. "Let me grab my coat, gloves, and hat."
Ten minutes later, we're both bundled up in winter gear, and I'm leading her through the lodge to the back porch. It's one of my favorite spots, especially in the winter. The porch is covered and enclosed on three sides, with a large stone fire pit in the center surrounded by comfortable outdoor furniture.
"This is beautiful," Joy says as I flip the switch to start the fire pit. The flames jump to life, immediately throwing off heat. It won't be enough to keep us completely warm, but it'll keep us from freezing.
"I added it last year. Thought guests might enjoy it, but mostly I come out here when I need to think." I settle onto one of the cushioned chairs and pat the seat next to me. "Come sit."
She does, close enough that our shoulders touch even through our thick coats. For a while, we just sit in comfortable silence, watching the flames dance and the snow fall beyond the covered area.
"Can I ask you something?" Joy finally says, her voice quiet.
"Anything," I say, desperately wanting to know what's going on in her head.
"Are you happy? With your life, I mean. With what you've built here?"
