Anita Bunkley - Suite Embrace

Skylar shrugged. “Guess I wanted to prove to myself that I really can do this job. However, I have to admit it was a pretty scary trip. Started snowing. Got dark on me. And when I finally got to Mark’s cabin, he acted all smug, as if what I’d done was no biggie. What’s up with him anyway? Where is he from? He has some kind of a funny accent.”

“Mark is biracial,” Deena replied. “His father is black and his mother, Virina Dagrun, is a well-known Norwegian model.”

“Was Mark born in Norway?”

“No, California, but when his parents divorced, his mother took him back to Norway to live.”

“So, that’s the reason for his accent,” Skylar murmured. “Well, he’s probably upset with me.”

“Why?”

“After I arrived with his delivery, I kind of fainted…passed out for a few seconds on his doorstep. Overwhelmed by the altitude, I guess. Anyway, I broke a bottle of schnapps and soaked my jeans. He took me inside and then had the nerve to try to tell me what my job was…and that was after he had flirted like crazy with me.”

Struggling to suppress a chuckle, Deena pressed her lips together, one hand to her mouth. “He flirted with you, and you’re upset?”

“Yeah, put me on his couch and was leaning over me, putting his lips real close to mine. Even felt my legs. Got all in my face and everything. It was really rude.”

Now, Deena laughed aloud. “Please! He was probably just making sure you were all right.”

“Hump. Working his Afro-European charm on me, you mean, as I’m sure he loves to do with all of your female guests.”

“He does generate a lot of attention,” Deena admitted.

“Well, I’m not one of his starstruck students like Goldie Lamar. I swear that woman has a major crush on Mark. When I called her to tell her I had the theater tickets for her party, all she wanted to do was rattle on and on about her fabulous ski lesson with Mark this morning and how gentle he had been with her.”

“Mark’s quite the star around here,” Deena said.

“He’s an employee, just like me, and he ought to remember that.”

“Lighten up, Skylar. You have to admit, he’s a hunk. Real easy to look at and a nice guy, too.”

“Rather exotic, I’d say,” Skylar said grudgingly.

“So what if he creates a stir among the guests. Nothing wrong with that. You may not know it but he has an international reputation as a very eligible bachelor, so you shouldn’t complain that he flirted with you. Wouldn’t it have been much worse if he had paid you no attention at all? Really, Skylar. You’re smart, attractive, single. Stop being so damn sensitive. Mark Jorgen could be quite a catch.”

“A catch? What makes you think I’m in the market for a man?”

“Oh? You’re not?”

“No!”

“Maybe you should be, ’cause I hope like hell you’re not holding out for a second chance with Lewis Monroe,” Deena said.

“Hell would freeze over before I’d give Lewis a second chance. But I’m not gonna lie. I loved Lewis and I know he hurt me, but it’s not that easy to forget and move on. I trusted him,” Skylar said in a small voice.

“He cheated on you.”

“I know…but you think I can just forget about our good times together and take up with a new man, like buying a new pair of shoes or a dress? I need time to get over Lewis, and an affair with a playboy ski instructor is not the way I plan to do it,” Skylar said.

“Okay, okay. I hear you,” Deena replied, backing off. “I was simply suggesting that you not judge Mark too harshly.”

“Fine. Anyway, back to Mark Jorgen, what’s with this special liquor…and his mom?” Skylar continued, asking the question in a way that she hoped sounded very innocent. Truth be told, she had lain awake for a long time last night thinking about Mark Jorgen and wanted all the details Deena could provide. Her intense desire to know more about this man, both angered and intrigued Skylar: she had never met a man quite like him and definitely didn’t want anyone, especially her sister, to suspect how strongly he had affected her.

“Oh, yeah. Virina Dagrun. Mark’s mother. As I said, she still lives in Europe. She was also a very good amateur skier when she was younger. Now, I believe she’s the spokesperson for some high-priced line of cosmetics.”

“Does she still ski?”

“No. She gave up her dream of turning professional when she left Norway and got into modeling. After her divorce, she returned to Norway, focused on Mark’s talent and became his trainer and agent,” Deena explained. “She got him to the Olympics, but somewhere along the way, their relationship turned rocky. I don’t know the details, but Mark did say that she didn’t want him to leave Europe to settle in the States, and she was not too happy that he decided to teach here at Scenic Ridge instead of a better-known, European ski resort.”

“Sounds like quite a mom,” Skylar coyly commented, hoping Deena would give up more. A man’s mother could be a powerful influence and a key to understanding him. It might be good to know just how important a role Mother Virina played in Mark’s life.

“Yeah, Virina is something else. She’s coming for her first visit soon—right in the middle of the Black Winter Sports Reunion—which is just around the corner,” Deena reminded Skylar. “It’s going to be a crazy, hectic time with a full hotel and the slopes as crowded as they’ve ever been. I hope you can handle it.”

“I’ll have to,” Skylar noted, flipping through the pages on her desk calendar. She stopped when she saw that Jean-Paul had not only penciled Virina’s name in on his calendar as arriving on January 29th, but had drawn four stars above it. “I assume Mrs. Dagrun…”

With a shake of her head, Deena stopped Skylar. “I spoke with her when she made her reservation—she prefers to be called Miss Dagrun. Her maiden name, so make a note of that.”

“Got it. And I assume she wants one of the corner rooms,” Skylar went on, making notes on her calendar. “Maybe on the second floor, facing east so she can watch the sunrise in the mornings?”

“No. The Vista View cabin. Already reserved. She made it clear that she didn’t want to stay in the main lodge. I know what she was thinking, after all, if Mark can have a private cabin, why shouldn’t she?”

With a laugh, Skylar nodded. “Right. I don’t know the woman, but I can imagine her saying something like that. But if she’s so picky, I’m surprised she isn’t staying in town at the Little Nell or the St. Regis,” Skylar noted. “I’m sure she could arrange for a car to bring her out here to visit her son whenever she wanted to see him.”

Hunching closer to the edge of Skylar’s desk, Deena crinkled her soft, brown eyes until they were half shut. “That would never do. She wants to be close to Mark. She told me so. I think she’s lonely. He must have been the center of her life.”

“But he’s a grown man!” Skylar commented.

“Thirty-eight to be exact.”

“And never been married, I assume?” Skylar prompted thinking that if Mark felt comfortable enough with Deena to discuss his relationship with his mother, maybe he’d shared information about his love life with her, too.

“Not as far as I know, but I’ve never asked him about his romantic past. Maybe you can get that out of him…if it’s important for you to know.”

With a scowl, Skylar shrugged, “I’m afraid I’m not that interested.”

“Doesn’t sound that way to me.”

“Oh, drop it, Deena, please.”

“Okay. But I wouldn’t be surprised if Miss Dagrun gives you a real workout when she gets here. But don’t let her rattle you, okay?”

“Afraid I might run off and join Jean-Paul at the Hyatt Regency in Utah?” Skylar joked.