Our touch lingered, sending warmth through my body despite the way our breath came out in vapor clouds in the coldness.
Van looked down at our hands and back to me. “Let me help you with your things and then we can pull your car into the garage. The weather forecast has more snow and plummeting temperatures coming overnight.”
“Can they plummet more?” I asked, lifting my face to the falling snow, allowing the large flakes to land on my cheeks and eyelashes. The scene was so peaceful that I turned to Van. “I don’t mind the snow or cold as long as I’m not stranded on the side of the road.”
Am I concerned about Skylar’s drive back to Chicago?
Does it make me a bad person that I’m not?
I didn’t know the answer. I only knew I wanted to look forward and not backward.
Van laughed. “You took longer than I anticipated. I was beginning to get worried that I’d need to go searching for you.”
“I made it.”
He pulled me against him. “I would, Julia. I’d search the world for you. Now that I found you, I’d never allow you to be stranded again.”
For a moment, I basked in his gaze, allowing the thrill of his touch to flow through me. Feeling his toned body against mine, I finally asked, “Is this part of the employee-and-employer agreement?”
“It’s after-hours.”
My gaze was glued to the way the golden flecks in his eyes glistened beneath the floodlights. “Maybe we should define this further. For example, here is work and” —I smiled— “how far away is the cabin?”
“A couple of miles,” he said, releasing me. “First things first, your things.”
An hour later, Van and I were seated at his kitchen table, eating dinner paired with a bottle of red wine. A fire roared in the large living-room fireplace and beyond the windows, the forecast snow was falling.
Van had explained how a woman he’s known most of his life came once a week and cooked his meals. All he had to do was warm them up when he came home.
“This is delicious,” I said, taking another bite of the chicken fettuccine Alfredo.
“Better than coffee and nectarines.”
“The coffee was warm and those nectarines were fantastic. I was a little leery of the soup.”
Van grinned. “The cans weren’t that old. I like staying out at the cabin when I want to get away from everything. I keep the soup there for when my decision is impulsive. There’s no cell service and being out there gives me a break.”
Inhaling, I leaned back and lifted my face to the ceiling high above. “That’s what being here is for me.”
“I hate to tell you, but you do have cell service here and internet.”
“I also have this nice button on the side of my phone that turns it off.”
“Hmm. Maybe I should try that.”
“You should. It’s liberating.” I took another sip of the wine. “I had a visitor in Ashland.”
Van’s expression changed as his chiseled jaw clenched. “A visitor?”
“Skylar was at the hotel.”
“Had you told him where you were staying?”
I shook my head.
“Did you tell your parents or your assistant?”
“I didn’t, but I suppose Leigh could look at the credit card account and figure it out.”
“She’s your assistant.”
He hadn’t asked, but I nodded.
“You came face-to-face with your ex” —he emphasized the syllable— “-fiancé and yet you’re here with me.”
“Seeing him didn’t make me want to go back to him. I’m not ready to be with anyone. For the first time, I want to find out who I am, who I can be without the past, and most importantly” —I lifted the wine glass and smiled— “who I am when I’m with you.”
“You’re magnificent, that’s who you are.”
Warmth filled my cheeks at his comment. Taking another sip of wine, I sighed. “I like this. It’s not too sweet or too dry.”
As we finished our meal, Van stood, taking the plates to the sink. For a moment, I sat and watched. My father was a modern-day man in his thoughts and actions, yet my parents had a live-in cook and maid. I’d never seen my father, or Skylar for that matter, scrape a plate and put it in a dishwasher.
“I can help,” I volunteered.
“I’m almost done.” Van turned toward me, his gaze warming me from the inside. “I told you that I’m not used to giving tours of my home. I’m also not used to having a beautiful woman here. If you want to go up to your suite, I understand. If you’re open to figuring out what after-hours means, I’d say we take the remaining wine out to the living room and talk.”
I looked down at my dress pants and blouse. I’d left the heels in the suite. “I feel overdressed.”
“You’re stunning.” He tugged on his flannel shirt. “Of course, I’d be willing to share.”
It was unbelievable how much I wanted that. I wanted to strip down to my bra and panties and settle in wearing Van’s shirt. I imagined the soft material and the scent of Van’s cologne. The thoughts alone beaded my nipples.
“I’d like to talk.”
“I’d like to do more than talk.”
Van
Lifting the bottle of wine, I knew that I was losing my battle with myself. The restraint I’d exercised throughout the day disappeared with the sunlight. Much like the wolves that came and went from my property, I had my prey in my sights and any self-control I’d forced myself to exhibit waned with each passing second. My hunger was growing to the point of starvation, and it wasn’t food that I sought.
Julia walked beyond the sofa and fireplace to the windows and stared out toward the bay. “I can’t describe how I feel right now.” She spun toward me. “It’s new.”
I could stare at her for hours. Julia carried herself in a way that exhibited confidence and need at the same time. The dichotomy was fascinating. Her openness and honesty were inviting. It wasn’t simply her beauty and her youth; Julia had a presence that lured me toward her.
“Tell me.”
She shrugged. “It’s consuming, you know, as they talk about in books. I didn’t think the kind of attraction that they described was real. I’ve never been attracted to someone so much that everything else in life pales in importance.”
Her admission made me smile. “You described it well.” After setting the bottle of wine on the table between the sofa and fireplace, I took a step toward her. “I can describe what I see.” I scanned from Julia’s painted toenails to her beautiful yellow hair, no longer contained in a twist as it had been earlier in the day. Now it flowed over her slender shoulders creating a wavy veil.
Her lips parted and closed.
“You’re stunning, Julia. There’s no denying that. If Butler didn’t tell you that a thousand times a day, he didn’t truly see what a rare gift he wasted. The thing is, as gorgeous as you are, your beauty isn’t your greatest asset. When I see you and I’m near you, I sense your energy, your vitality, and your genuineness. Those are rare qualities.