Tyler’s eyes glittered as he looked at the steep gradient that lay beneath their feet. “Does it look like you’re holding me back?”
“I might slow you down.”
“Are we still talking about the skiing here?” His voice rough, he reached out and zipped her jacket to the neck. “Because if we’re talking about other things, I’d rather you said it straight-out. I’m not good at digging for meaning behind what people are saying. If a man’s got something to say, I prefer he just says it. That goes for women, too, by the way. Not that I’ve ever met one that does it, except maybe Brenna, and she doesn’t count.”
“Having me here must be difficult for you.”
One minute she was standing there drowning in her own insecurities, the next she was being hugged by her dad, and he held her so tightly it was the best feeling in the world.
“Having you here is easy. Having you here is the best thing that’s happened for a long time.” His voice was thickened. “Not having you here was difficult for me. Maybe we should talk about that sometime when we’re not both about to get frostbite.”
The burn in her throat was back, but this time it was mingled with relief and a happiness she hadn’t known existed.
Not having you here was difficult for me.
“I won’t be a nuisance—” The words were muffled by his jacket. “I won’t stop you doing anything or hold you back. You can just live your life and ignore the fact I’m here. I’m okay with that. Whatever rules you make I’ll stick to them, I promise. Just don’t send me to boarding school.”
“Boarding school? Who the hell ever mentioned boarding school?”
“Mom. She said that’s where I’d go when you’d had enough of living with me.” She felt his arms tighten around her.
“That’s not going to happen, Jess. I’ll live my life, that’s true enough, but that life’s got you in it now. You’ll go to school in the village like the three of us did, and as for rules, I’ve only got the one—” Tyler gave her a squeeze and then released her and glided smoothly to the top of the slope. “Next time you’re planning on locking your bedroom door and sneaking out the window, tell me where you’re going so I can come, too. Now let’s nail this. And if you fall, don’t take me with you.”
CHAPTER TEN
KAYLA LAY ON her face, inhaling snow for what felt like the fortieth time that morning, and heard a whooshing sound as Jackson arrived by her side.
“That was better.”
Better?
She lifted her head. Spat out snow. “Which bit was better? The bit where I turned into a windmill or the bit where I hit the ground with my face?”
He hauled her to her feet in an easy movement. “Your weight was wrong. You leaned back. It’s a natural response to a slope but you have to have the weight forward in your boot. Want to try again?”
“Why not? I think there might be a centimeter of my body that isn’t bruised, and if I’m going to be black-and-blue I’d prefer to be black-and-blue all over. I like a uniform look. Matching black eyes is bang on trend, haven’t you heard?”
He wasn’t even bothering to hide the smile. “You need to trust your skis.”
“I only met them a few hours ago. I never trust anyone on such a short acquaintance.”
“Your ski is designed to turn.” He skied down ahead of her and then paused and called up to her. “Try it again.”
She tried not to think about the fact he made it look easy. “Fine, but make sure you send Brett the bill for medical expenses.”
“If you break anything, my brother Sean will fix you for free.”
Baring her teeth at him in a mock smile, Kayla let her skis run across the slope and then transferred her weight as he’d taught her.
“Put pressure on the big toe edge.” The instruction came from in front of her, and she realized that Jackson was skiing backward.
“Has anyone ever told you you’re a flash bastard, Jackson O’Neil?”
The cold nipped at her cheeks. Her skis ran smoothly over the snow. In that fleeting moment, Kayla realized she was enjoying herself.
“Okay, this is fun—” The moment she said it her ski hit a bump and she lost her balance and would have crashed down again, but this time Jackson caught her. He locked his arm around her waist and steadied them both as she slammed into him.
Breathless, Kayla clung to the front of his jacket, wondering why it was that so many activities ended up with her cemented to his body. “Don’t drop me.”