King Sized Beds and Happy Trails (Beds Series) (8 page)

“Not really.”

She laughs again, and puts my hat back on. “Come on. I’ll help you back to the cabin. Mr. Miller said the buses go down every half hour, so one should be leaving soon.”

“Don’t you want to stay here and make googly eyes at lover boy?” I nod toward the douc
he, who’s standing by the lifts, tapping his foot like an impatient turd.

She socks my shoulder, but it’s not as hard as she usually does it. “I’m not going to leave my best friend alone. Especially the guy who made it possible for me to even be here.” She pushes me up to a sitting position and helps take off my skis.

There’s nothing more pathetic than hobbling back to the bus using Lex as a support beam. On the other hand, she smells so good, I’m not sure I care.

She’s also laughing. Shaking her head and laughing.

“What?”

“It’s nothing.”

“Liar.”

We get to the bus
, and I drop the bloody remains of the snowball Lex shoved in my face. I dab my top lip to make sure the bleeding has stopped.

No one else is on the bus. Why would they be? We’ve been here two seconds
, and I’ve already hurt myself bad enough Lex thinks we’ve got to head back. Not that I’m complaining. It’s just me and her now.

She’s still laughing.

“What is so funny?” I say, nudging her with my elbow.

Her eyes flick to mine
, and she busts out again. “I’m sorry, Ry. I don’t mean to laugh it’s just, you’re not bad at
any
thing. Basketball, swim team, guitar lessons, tennis… you’ve been so good at it, and I totally suck. It’s just weird seeing you fall on your face when I rocked that hill.”

I toss my hands up in the air and smile. “Thanks. That makes me feel so much better.”

She pulls off her hat and gloves, her hair making static pops as it flies in my face. “Well, I think it’s good for you. No one should be perfect at everything.”

My eyebrows go up. “You think I’m perfect?”

“Oh no. I’m not going to throw a bunch of compliments at you. That will make all my bragging rights in this moment less significant.”

Forgetting I’m not supposed to be touching her, I wrap my arm around her shoulders as the bus driver starts the engine.

“Then I challenge you to a game of poker when we get back.”

She snuggles into my chest
, and my whole body starts sparking.

“You’re on.”

Stupid ass. There’s no other explanation for it. Ryan was trying to be all big brother
ly and look where it got him. Face down in the snow. He’s lucky the sight of blood doesn’t make me all squirmy like most girls.

Not that I can be pissed at him.
It was kind of cute actually. Besides whooping his butt in poker is always a guaranteed good time.

We get back to our room
, and I strut in with confidence. The forest green comforter adorned with black bears is wadded up in a ball in the middle of the bed, a reminder of our morning. No wonder Kaylee thought more was going on.

He points at me and nods in my direction.
“What’s that about?” he asks as he plops down on the bed and pushes the wadded comforter under his head.

I
toss my hair over my shoulder. “Just getting my victory walk on.”

He rolls his dark eyes then settles them back on me.
“We haven’t even started playing.”

“I know.”
I flutter my eyelashes in the innocent way that comes across more cocky than sweet. When I look back at him, he stretches his arms up over his head, his shirt rises, revealing his happy trail.

I never really paid attention to it before
, and now it seems I can’t go a day without it making an appearance.

“So let me guess. You’re psychic now?”

I remove my eyes from the flash of hair and skin and cock my lip into an off-centered grin. “Don’t need to be, considering you can’t even win a game of
Go Fish
.”

“Those are fighting words.
” He sits up on the bed, rolls up his sleeves, only able to get them to his biceps before the material won’t budge another inch, then tilts his head down, eyes up and looks at me through long dark lashes. “Get the cards.”

“Where are they?”

“I thought you had them.”

“Oh sure. Hold on let me pull them out of my back pocket.” I reach behind me and pull my hand back out. “Empty. I’m no
t Nate.”

Ryan snaps his finger and points at me.
“That’s it. I bet Nate has a deck of cards.”

“Yeah
, too bad he and every other person are on the slopes.” A light bulb clicks in my head and a mischievous smile tugs at my lips.

“Oh
God, what are you thinking?” His hand reaches to the back of his neck and starts rubbing. Perfect. He’s nervous about what I have in mind. And he should be. We’re going to get those cards, and I have the perfect plan.

***

“Hell no!” Ryan stands, hands in pocket, eyes dark with refusal.

“Oh come on.” I blink repeatedly
, then hit him with the ultimate secret weapon. I stick out my pouty lip, drop my head in sadness and let my eyes droop until the lashes half cover my eyes.

“No.” He do
es everything in his power to avoid eye contact with me.

I lift my head slowly and with as much dramatics as possible I sigh and let my shoulders slump. His eyes meet mine, dark to dark
, and the scar above his eye twitches. A constant reminder of something I’ve tried so hard to push to the back of my mind. I take my eyes from the scar, and focus on his eyes.

“Fine!”

My hands come together, and I jump up and down unable to control my excitement.

Ryan shakes his head
, eyes in mid-roll. “Stop.”

“Why?”
My teeth slide over my lip, but not even they can stop the smile from forming.

His poker face is no match for my smile. He lets out a short laugh, shakes his head again and points to the corner. “Just go.” I jump up and kiss his cheek
before heading for my position.

It’s like Mission Impossible without the all black outfits. Oh we totally should have donned all black. How badass would that have been?

Ryan takes his position, arm poised on the desk, muscles flexing underneath his shirt, charming smile turned up to its full potential. He starts talking to the girl behind the lobby desk.

She’s young, our age, maybe a little older. Probably on winter break like us. She’s all blond and blue eyes, tall and lanky. Totally not Ryan’s type though.
Not that I have much to compare it to. He hasn’t dated anyone in over a year. And Tiff the stiff wasn’t his type either. Seriously, the girl was pulled tighter than a facelift.

He rests his chin on his hand and looks at her through his long lashes just as he did to me earlier, but this time he has a sideways smile cocked in her direction. Eyes narrowed, causing the skin above the bridge of his nose to wrinkle in that way that makes him look all…all Ryany.

The girl runs her fingers through her hair, eyes fluttering like she’s having a seizure. She lets her hand fall from the strand and trails it down the front of her shirt, pulling any attention to her heaving boobs.

Oh no
, she did not just do that! It’s the ultimate slut move. Ryan better not fall for it.

His hand slides behind his back
, and he waves me on. Good boy. Too bad for her he’s only playing the game, and she’s just a piece he’s moving around the board so I can jump in and win. Even if he is only doing it for me. Ry would never play a girl like that. But he can never resist the pouty lip and innocent stare.

I look around, wait for the coast to be clear
, and make my way to the keys hanging behind Blondie. I pretend to look at the stack of brochures featuring all the town has to offer.

Oo
h ice fishing! I pick the brochure up and open the glossy pages. How fun! I turn to Ryan, hold it up and point while the blond leans her head on her hands and looks up into his eyes.

H
is eyes widen slightly and his scar really twitches. Okay okay. I put the brochure back where it came from and wait for him to give me the signal.

His hand reaches up
, and behind the girl, he waves to me then settles his hand on her cheek and tucks a strand of her hair behind her ear. Seriously, Ry? Ugh! Poor girl has no clue.

I move fast, grabbing for the keys and sliding them into my pocket before his hand is even off her hair.
Time to abort. I run over to the counter, grab Ryan’s arm and pull. Hard. He practically trips over his boots as I tuck his arm under mine.

“Back off
. He’s mine,” I say to the bug-eyed blond and drag Ryan out the door before he has a chance to utter a goodbye.

“What in the hell was that about?” Ryan asks when I release the death grip on his arm and give him a quick smack to the shoulder. “I did what you told me to do.”

“I told you to flirt with the girl, not have sex with her with your eyes!”

“What can I say
? I’m that good.” He nods, lip curled up in the corner, eyebrows raised so arrogantly they’re practically in his hairline.

I throw my arms up. “Ugh! You’re impossible.”

“You got the key didn’t you?”

I reach into my pocket and let the single key hang from the black keychain with Kaylee and Nate’s room number. Ryan moves toward me, chests only inches apart, juniper and sandalwood assault my nostrils
, and I close my eyes for a quick moment to take it in. The boy does smell good. I have to give him that.

His hand wraps around my monkey mittens. My eyes open and settle on his, the copper that I only noticed this morning takes center stage and sparkles in the early winter sun.

“I’ll take those,” he says, and before I have a second to react he takes off. Oh hell no. I run after him, propelling myself farther with each step on the snow-packed ground.

Snow
flakes start to fall just as Ryan’s foot gets stuck in a snow mound. I don’t stop. I take a running leap and fly through the air and smack into his back. I wrap my legs around his waist and pull our weight backwards until we are both head down in the snow.

The key falls from his hand
, and this time I don’t hesitate. I dive at it, covering it with my body. The impact freed his foot and just as quickly as I’m covering the key he’s on top of me, arms reaching under me.

“
It’s mine!” I scream and laugh as his cold hands slide under my coat and start tickling my sides. Not fair! He’s a dirty fighter.

Laughs erupt
from deep in my stomach. “Okay, okay! You can have it. I roll over and let him take the key.

Snow
flakes sprinkle his hair, and one falls on his nose. I lean into him and reach my hand out. His eyes narrow in on me, and like a portal to his mind, I can see the battle going on. He doesn’t trust me. Not that I blame him. I never call truce.

“You have a snowflake,” I say and wipe it off his nose. The
cautious tension in his shoulders lessens, and his body leans toward me, hand instantly reaching for his nervous ticker. “How’s your nose?” I ask and let my hand run across his jaw line, stopping at his chin. I push it up so I can get a better look. No black and blues, no visible cuts. He drops his hand from his neck.

“Better. The snowball helped.”

“Just what I wanted to hear.” I pull my arm out from behind me, smile and push a handful of snow into his face. Taken by shock, his fingers go to his nose, and I grab the key out of his hand.

“Oh no you don’t!” He jumps up, still blinded by snow and runs
toward me. I run in circles, trying to disorient him further.

I bend down and grab another handful of snow, pack it and throw. He ducks and the snowball misses him
, so I reach for more snow. Not to be outdone, Ryan scoops up two handfuls and launches them in my direction.

Dodging snowballs and water balloons from him for years
, my reflexes are pretty good. I jump to the right then to the left, both balls fly past me and smack the window of Kaylee and Nate’s room.

I freeze, eyes glued to that window.
Whether I’m the one with the key or not, I am
not
going in there. There was a tarantula size spider in the tub, and I bet it’s hiding in the rafters just waiting for a cute girl like me to walk in. I’m already too close to the room.

A snowball smacks me in the face
, and I drop to my knees. Ice cold pain shoots through my nose and tears prick my eyes. My head falls into my monkey mittens.

“
Shit, Lex. I’m so sorry.” Ryan comes skidding across the snow and falls to his knees. Both his hands settle on either side of my face, and he tilts me up. I keep my eyes closed, afraid if I open them, tears will pour over. “Hey, look at me.”

I shake my head and bite my lip, trying to divert the pain from my nose.
Warmth spreads through me as Ryan’s lips press against my forehead.

“I am so sorry. I thought you were looking.”

“Spiders,” I mutter.

“Huh?” I open an eye,
and the mix of confusion and concern tugs at the corners of his brown irises makes me smile.

“I almost forgot.”

I open the other eye, and when I see his hand reach for the back of his neck, I point toward Kaylee and Nate’s door.

A flash of understanding c
rosses his features, and I shrug.

“No spiders will get you. That’s why you keep me around. Remember? I’m your official spider protector.”

The tears dry on my cheeks replaced by cold snowflakes. “But you were all the way over there.”

“I’m here now.
” His arm wraps around me, and I fall into his chest. “Give me the key. I’ll go find the cards.” I pull my monkey mitten off and reach into my pocket, pulling out the key. He holds his hand out, and I drop it. “You okay?”

I nod and let my lips curl at the corners. “It’s just a little snow.”

“You’re a tough chick
, Alexis Boggs.”

Hearing my full name roll of his tongue jolts my stomach
, and I have no idea why. I ignore it and say, “I try.”

“Now stay here while I go battle the giant spider from hell.”

“Be careful, it has fangs. I saw them.”

“Not just any spider a vampire spider. Got it. Wish me luck.”

“Luck.” I watch Ryan walk away, back straight, strong arms swinging at his sides, confidence evident in his strut. No wonder the girl was fawning all over him.

A
fter a turn of the key, he disappears into the room. I fall back into the snow, and for the first time since we arrived, I take it all in. The bright blue skies, white mountains, log cabins, the paradise I was hoping for.

I sit up and see Sandy running, blond hair trailing behind her. She spots me
, and I expect her to roll her eyes and keep going, but instead she storms over, fists pushing into her sides.

“You!” she yells as she closes in on me
with her chipped nail polished finger pointed at my face.

What did I do now? I wasn’t even anywhere near her. One of these days I’m going to figure out why she hates me so much.

“I hope you’re happy.” Makeup streaked tears cover her cheeks.