Hooked on the Game (The Sterling Shore Series #1) (12 page)

Chapter 12

Hot and Cold

My ass is cold, wet, and in pain.  I've spent more time on it than on the skis.  This is ridiculous.  I hate all these frigging pros right now.

I slap the ground again, landing straight on my ass... again, and the skis clank together and rattle once I
thud
against the snow.  My teeth are probably chattering, but I'm too numb to feel them.  Who chooses to vacation somewhere this miserable?  And who thought it would be fun to try and stand up on two slick sticks attached to your feet?

That fluffy white powder is more deceptive than my father on a con.  It looks soft and inviting, but it's a trick.  After you flop down numerous times, it eventually hurts.  Not to mention... It's.  So.  Cold!

With the beating I've endured today, I feel like the roof collapsed on me again before someone tossed me in a cooler for hours on end.

"You'll get the hang of it," Kade chuckles as he comes to help me up.  I swat him away, refusing to let him keep picking me up off the ground.

"I don't think so."

"Your brother said you're a genius; that you soak up information like a sponge.  You'll seriously get it."

"Compared to my stepbrother, I am a genius.  As for skiing, it's not information to soak up.  It's athletic, and I'm not coordinated.  It has nothing to do with intellect."

He snickers but smothers the sound with his hand when I shoot him a warning glare.  I start scrambling around, too far past the point of worrying how stupid I look out here.  I shuffle to my feet, and attempt to go again, but the second I get to the small hills of snow, I crash again, landing straight on my ass.  So terrible.

"Ow!" I screech when I try to stand, only to fall back to the ground and land awkwardly on my booted foot that is still strapped to the ski.

Kade's laughter flows again.  I refuse to look at his smug self gliding across the snow like the perfect prince he is.  Jackass.  He makes it impossible to not see is haughty grin when he comes to a perfectly executed, graceful stop beside me.

"I'm done.  I've been out here all day, and I'm still on the bunny slopes.  I'll never make it any higher before the week is up.  I vote for hot cocoa and a warm blanket."

I sniffle and wipe my nose that I'm afraid is running.  It's too cold to tell.  The wind bites at me, but Kade seems unfazed, as if he's from here instead of the warm air of
Sterling Shore.

"Oh, Raya.  Don't give up.  You're getting better," he lies, stifling his laugh.

"Kade, I'm going to have huge bruises on my ass as it is."

Roaring laughter comes from behind me, startling me.

"Damn, Kade!  What've you been doing to her precious ass to leave bruises?" Tag says, making my cheeks heat up and burn with humiliation.

Kade rolls his eyes, but he can't wipe the teasing grin from his face when he sees how utterly mortified I am.

"She likes it rough," Kade jokes, making me blush all the more.

Tag bursts out laughing with Kade as I start throwing snowballs from the ground, still unable to get up on my own.

"You're both jerks," I mumble, only fueling their laughter.

"Aw, don't be mad," Kade says, mocking me all the more with just his tone.  "Come on.  Let's head to the lodge and get you dried and warmed up."

He's not even wet.  Of course, I've been on the ground for most of the day, and he hasn't fallen once.

"You wasted the whole day trying to teach me to ski," I grumble, feeling like the worst guest ever.

Tag goes to help him when my knees try to buckle.  With one of them on either side of me, they slowly start leading me back, laughing in tiny spurts at my pathetic skills on snow.

I poke my lips out to exaggerate a pout, but Kade's laughter ceases instead of continuing like I expected.

"
Damn
, put those away, girl," Tag jokes.

Kade's eyes go to my lips as I pull them back in.  He reaches up with his hand to gently stroke my lips with his thumb, and my heartbeat quickens to the point I'm worried it'll explode.  Tag becomes a forgotten fixture on the snow as I shuffle closer to Kade, praying he's about to finally kiss me for real.

"Kade! Tag!" Wren yells, laughing loudly with Erica, his fiancée, attached.  "Let's head up."

Kade's hand falls from my face, and he lets out a ragged sigh before letting his eyes drift to Wren.

"Not right now.  Raya is cold and needs a change of clothes.  Not to mention, I'm starving."

Tag winks at a few passing girls who are skiing by us.  The girls smile and wave, giggling lightly to themselves as they pass by with expert strokes.

"I'll catch up with them later," Tag says with a grin.

"You can head on.  I've got Raya," Kade says while kneeling in front of me to start taking off my boots.

We're not close to the lodge, and it's going to be hard to walk in this snow.  He waves at a guy riding around on a snowmobile, and the guy doesn't hesitate to meet us, killing the engine the second he reaches us.

"Carry her up to the house for me," he says to the guy who nods compliantly.  Then Kade starts helping me up on the back of the snowmobile.

So I'm going to the house?

"Come meet me at the lodge when you have on dry clothes, and I'll have you something warm to drink ready and waiting," Kade says as he steps back.

"We'll come hang out with you for a few minutes," Erica says when they reach us.

I clutch onto the back of the guy's jacket as he roars the engine to life again.  My eyes go to Kade who offers me a small wink before I'm being whisked away.  It doesn't take us long to get there, and I see Kade and the others laughing together in the distance.

It feels right to be here with him, and no one has made me feel out of place.  I can do this.

Paul Colton has a house that can only be described as perfect, and it's a short walk from the lodge.  Fortunately, there are sidewalks that stay shoveled that take you to and from.

Margaret, Kade's mother, greets me at the door when I fumble with the key they told me to keep this week.

"Hey," she says softly as she steps aside to let me in.  "Where's Kade?"

"He's waiting at the lodge.  We both realized I have no Olympic potential in skiing."

She laughs, and for the first time since I got here, she seems to actually enjoy my presence.  As I head toward my bedroom, which is directly beside Mr. and Mrs. Colton's bedroom, she follows me.

"You like my son, don't you?" she asks with a knowing grin.

Shit.  Am I that obvious?

"Of course I do.  He's oddly enough the first friend I've had since I moved to Sterling Shore."

Her look softens, and she sighs out.  "That's not what I meant.  I think you know that, though."  I swallow hard as she continues.  "For what it's worth, I think you're the first friend he's ever had outside his family.  And Tag is family, too, before you mention him."

I laugh, but that's not true.

"He has tons of friends at school."

A sad smile graces her perfect lips.  "Not friends, Raya.  Those are people he keeps at arm's length.  You... he acts his age with you.  It's refreshing to see.  Even with the girls he's dated over the years, he seemed detached, as though he was watching life rather than living it.  I was starting to worry he'd always be that way, but with you... everything is different.  He's constantly smiling or looking for you.  He mentions you in random conversation, and he can't seem to stop touching you.  The change in him is so amazing.  My son adores you, and that says so much."

Tears glisten her eyes, and it's all I can do not to let them blur my vision as well.

"I know it doesn't mean much, but I adore him, too."

She laughs and sniffles at the same time when a couple of her tears fall.  "It means more than you realize, Raya.  Much more.  Now, get dressed and go meet him.  He'll come looking for you if you take too long."

I doubt that, but I'll let her have whatever she needs.  It's obvious she's confused about Kade.  I've seen him with people, and he's always the life of the party.  Maybe he just hides that from his family.

When she leaves, I struggle out of my wet clothes and put on dry, warm clothes.  The problem is... I don't think it's possible to warm my coldest spots any time soon.  I wore those wet clothes for so long that they made my skin damp.

When I walk out, Margaret is missing, but I hear light giggles and soft laughter coming from her bedroom.  A louder laugh tells me Mr. Colton is in there with her.  He must have just come in.  It's amazing how in love they are after all these years.

"So Raya's fitting in nicely then?" he asks, making me stop for a second.

"Yes.  You were right and I was wrong.  She's good for him.  I won't question your judgment again."

I swallow hard.  They're talking about me like I'm part of this family now, and Kade hasn't given me any sign that I'm ever going to be more than a friend.

"I knew it the second I saw her.  He was so worried at the hospital when he called me.  Kade never gets that worked up.  Then at the courtroom, he was pissed, probably worried he'd finally crack and show some emotion.  Do you know he called her doctor so much that the man threatened a harassment charge?  He was furious that there wasn't going to be a follow-up visit for her bruises."

I smile like a fool, and then creep out before listening in on any more.  It's a little too cool to be wearing leggings, but they look so good with this long shirt that shows off the best parts of my curves.  I'm not a stick, and I don't want to be.  I'm bringing curves back.

My black boots ride over the leggings, and the small heel and precious chain make them look girly chic.  The deep blue shirt fits the ensemble perfectly, and the warm, black leather jacket adds some style.

I might be colder than the others out here, but I'll look better, damn it.

When I walk into the lodge, Tag is the first face I see.  He walks over with his lazy smile and wandering eyes.

"
Damn
.  Someone's on a mission," he murmurs as he continues to rake his eyes over me.  "Are you not cold?"

Freezing.

"I think I'm too numb.  My ass might never thaw," I joke, lightening the mood.

I start looking around for Kade when I feel two large, warm hands pressed against my ass, and I chuckle when I realize it's Tag who has moved behind me.

"Shit.  You're right.  It needs intense therapy."  I can't help but laugh a little harder.

"Get your fucking hands off her," Kade growls as he walks up from out of nowhere and shoves Tag away.

Tag snickers and gives me a mischievous wink before heading over to a section of sofas where Wren, Erica, and Melanie - Wren's mother - are sitting.

"You have to be freezing in that," Kade says, pulling his lower lip between his teeth as he takes me in.

Damn.  Why did he have to do that?

"Um, not too much.  I didn't want to look like a marshmallow."

He lets a laugh free, and the small spell is broken.  He leads me to the others, just as Tag gets called away by a group of girls who've apparently been admiring him.  I hope they don't call Kade away.

"He won't be back until after Christmas," Mel says, just as we sit down.

"Who won't be back?" Kade asks as he pulls me closer to his side and wraps his arm around me.

The leather couch hasn't been touched by the heat of the fire, and damn it's cold.  My ass really isn't ever going to thaw.

"Billy.  He's with his friend Ash for the holidays.  I think he likes them a little better than us sometimes," she says with a sad smile.

"Ash?" Kade asks.

I've heard her mentioned before, hasn't he?  Does he just tune them out when they talk?

"Yeah, Bity's bestie," Wren jokes.  "I need a drink."

Kade frowns as Wren gets up, and he offers a cold glance to Erica for a second before giving his attention back to Melanie.

"She's really a sweet girl.  I love her like a daughter.  Billy's lucky to have that sort of friend," Melanie says.

Kade's arm tightens around my shoulder and he looks into my eyes as he says, "I can't blame him for needing a good friend."

A good friend.  That's what I am.  I knew it was foolish to expect more, but now I know it's the
Mount Everest I'll never climb.

I lean up just slightly as the waitresses on the far side stay too busy to notice us.

"I need something warm to drink," I mutter while standing up, planning to use my fake ID for the first time ever.

"I'll order it, Raya," he says, standing with me.  "I was just waiting on them to come to us."

"It's fine.  I'd like to go check out the bar anyhow while I'm up there."

"I thought you wanted cocoa," he says, bemused.

"I think I need something stronger," I grumble before walking away, feeling like an idiot.

Tag sidles up beside me when I reach the bar, seeming amused for some reason.  "Hitting the hard stuff early?" he asks, prodding.