Rhonda Nelson - Jingle Spells

Taryn made small talk about changes in the tech industry since they’d been in school together. Cole participated in the discussion, but his mind wasn’t on it. She could always tell those things. He was thinking about whether he was capable of a fling.

Poor man. He wasn’t the kind who had sex with a woman for the hell of it. Even in college, they hadn’t taken that step until they’d established a solid friendship. The thought of a short-lived affair would stick in his craw.

She didn’t intend for it to be the least bit short. If all went according to plan, this affair would last for the rest of their lives. But she couldn’t tell him that and tip her hand. She had to mislead him, which was heartbreakingly easy to do.

After she’d accomplished her goal, she would never lie to him again. She’d been touched by his willingness tonight to believe what she told him, even when it had been something as illogical as putting out the cat eighteen stories up. His trusting nature would serve her well in the days ahead, but in the long run, a man like Cole should never be lied to. That was taking unfair advantage of an endearing trait.

Toward the end of the meal, he smothered a yawn.

She glanced over at him. “You’re tired, aren’t you?”

“A little.”

“Then take a nap.”

His dark eyebrows rose. “Now who’s the bossy one?”

“Just don’t think you have to entertain me. If you’re sleepy, recline your seat and rest up.” She fought the urge not to smile. Little did he know she had ulterior motives for wanting him well-rested when they arrived in Gingerbread.

“Nah, I’m fine.”

“If you say so. But I’m going to read for a while.” She dug in her messenger bag and pulled out her tablet. Moments later, she glanced up from the screen. He was out. For all she knew, he’d been up all night worrying about her invasion of his database.

She couldn’t help feeling remorseful about what she’d put him through, but apparently it had been for a worthy cause. He’d been pining for her as much as she’d been pining for him. She returned to the screen, but it wasn’t nearly as interesting as the man beside her. Turning off the tablet, she leaned her head against her seatback and watched him sleep.

She used to do that all the time in college. Maybe his habits had changed, but at that time he’d required eight to ten hours a night, while she could get by on five. When she’d wake up in his bed and he’d still be dead to the world, she’d lie there and study his features—the high cheekbones, the elegant nose, the square jaw.

Sometimes she’d sketch that face. Tucking her tablet back in her bag, she took out the small sketchbook she carried with her, along with her favorite pencil. Although she’d never taken an art class and had no desire to study the subject, she sketched because it relaxed her.

After Cole had left MIT so abruptly, she’d ripped up every sketch she’d made of him. Then she’d regretted destroying them, because they’d captured him in a way photographs never had. Now she could create some more.

She became so lost in her work that she was surprised when the pilot announced they were landing. The flight attendant sat down and buckled up, which put her out of earshot.

Cole blinked and lifted his head. Then he glanced at the sketchbook in her lap. His gaze met hers. “You’re still drawing?”

“Yep.”

“You used to have a whole bunch like that. Well, I looked younger in them. In this version I notice a few extra lines here and there.”

“Gives you character.”

“Sure, it does.” He chuckled. “Whatever happened to the other ones?”

“I tore them up.”

He flinched. “Don’t blame you.” He lowered his voice. “That was a bonehead way to leave, but I had no choice.”

“So I gather.”

Regret darkened his green eyes. “That idea you had? It won’t work.”

She wasn’t about to let him wiggle out of her trap. “I was twenty when I ripped up those sketches. I’m not that same girl. I’ve toughened up.”

He smiled. “Maybe I haven’t.”

“Well, I can’t speak for you. But personally, I think it would be a crime to waste the opportunity.” She tapped the eraser end of her pencil against her lower lip, hoping to draw his attention there.

It worked. He watched as she caressed her lip with the eraser. “I’m worried...” He stopped to clear his throat. “I’m worried about fallout.”

“Are you?” She nibbled on the eraser. “We never had that problem before. Everything stayed where it was supposed to.”

He launched into such a violent coughing fit that the flight attendant called back to ask if he needed water. “I’m fine,” he said in a strangled voice. “No worries.”

“Here.” Taryn took out the complimentary bottle of water she’d been offered during the limo ride to the airport and thrust it into his hand. “Drink.”

He nodded and gulped some water. Then he sank back against his seat. “You need to warn me before you say something like that.”

“That would take all the fun out of it.”

He handed her the bottle with a grin. “Honest to God, Taryn. There’s no one quite like you.”

“I am somewhat of a special snowflake.”

His eyes probed hers. “Can you promise me you won’t melt?”

“Absolutely.”

His voice dropped even lower. “Because you tempt me more than I can say.”

“Back atcha. Oh, and I’ve been told that someone booked me into a room with a feather bed and a woodburning fireplace.”

“Is that right?” His tone was casual but his expression was not. “How thoughtful.”

“So what happens after we land?”

“I left my car at the airport, so I’ll drive us to Gingerbread and...drop you off at the inn.”

She didn’t think it would go that way. “Will I need to check in?”

“Not tonight. I didn’t want to disturb Mrs. Gustafson at this late hour, so I asked her for the front door key and your room key. You’ll sign the register in the morning. You’re on the second floor. You can go straight to bed.”

She lowered her lashes. “That sounds lovely.”

“Doesn’t it, though?”

“I’ll need some help with my bag.”

“I bet you will. I suppose you’d like me to bring it up for you?”

She lifted her lashes. “Oh, yes, please. All the way up.”

“Good Lord.” He sucked in a breath. “What have I gotten myself into?”

“Nothing, yet. But I’m hoping before too long, you’ll remedy that.”

“ Taryn. ”

“If you keep feeding me these great lines, how can I resist?”

“The bigger question is, how can I resist?”

“You can’t, and you know it.” She smiled at him. “Surrender to the inevitable, Cole Evergreen.”

* * *

Cole was going to do exactly that. He’d been a sucker for her smart mouth back at MIT, and nothing had changed. She still delighted in taunting him, and he wanted her more with every saucy word that passed her sweet lips. Luckily he found a twenty-four-hour drugstore on the way back to Gingerbread.

Because he had to concentrate on his driving instead of thinking about sex, especially on snowy roads, he resorted to a trick he and Taryn had come up with at MIT. Switching on the car radio, he found a station that played eighties tunes—the same music they’d memorized as kids. Then the two of them belted out the lyrics along with Duran Duran, a-ha and The Police all the way to Gingerbread.

Somewhere on that journey, as they laughed and sang together, he became twenty-two again, complete with reckless thoughts and powerful sex drive. When he’d first heedlessly plunged into a relationship with Taryn, she was the hottest, smartest female he’d ever met.