Mills and Boon Christmas Joy Collection. Liz Fielding

didn’t know exactly when you were getting back from your honeymoon today,” Lindsey said. “I’ve missed our breakfasts, too. Too much time alone with myself and my thoughts.”

      “Like what?” Elizabeth asked as she led the way down the hall to where a coffee service was set up.

      “Nothing. Just some crazy decisions I made on New Year’s Eve,” she said as she made herself a cup of coffee. No way was she going to elaborate on what had gone down with Carter. But it was nice to have her friend back, so maybe for a little while she didn’t have to keep thinking about it.

      “How was your honeymoon?”

      “Fab. The Lars Usten Resort in the Caribbean was really nice. And it was a change of pace to be a guest and not have to always be watching for things that might go wrong.”

      Lindsey laughed. Elizabeth looked polished from head to toe, like someone who had everything all together. Even when she was going through the ups and downs of falling in love with Bradley she’d still done it with panache.

      Something that Lindsey never felt she had.

      “That’s great.”

      “Are you okay?” Elizabeth asked, her brow in concern. “You don’t seem yourself today.”

      Lindsey nodded. “Just nervous about this meeting. I know what the event is supposed to be but I’ve never been on a committee before.”

      “You’ll do fine. It’s nothing like skiing sixty miles per hour.”

      Lindsey gave Elizabeth the smile she was sure her friend was looking for. But she knew that skiing wasn’t easy, and this meeting wouldn’t be, either. Of course, she could contribute and she’d do whatever she had to to make the charity ski event a success.

      The event had been proposed by Carter and had taken a lot of the resort owners in the area by surprise. The last time he had proposed something it had been to allow snowboarders on the runs in the valley; something that had gone against the resort owners’ policies. He’d won them over, and now skiers and snowboarders were welcome on the mountain, but he hadn’t exactly endeared himself to the owners with that move.

      So the charity event, which would bring world-class athletes and young kids interested in winter sports together, had initially caught the higher-ups off guard. Lindsey smiled to herself at the thought of how shocked the owners had been to see their old nemesis in a different light.

      Not unlike the way she was. Carter had changed, and he’d sort of changed her. She missed having him around, but wouldn’t admit it to herself or to anyone else. She figured if she had a few restless nights plagued with dreams of making love on her kitchen table with Carter, that was the price she had to pay for peace of mind.

      “Hello, ladies,” he said, walking up to her and Elizabeth. Seeming to appear from out of nowhere.

      She took a sip of her coffee and burned her tongue. He looked good. Polished in that roguish way of his. Elizabeth and he were chatting, but all she could do was watch him and acknowledge to herself that her dream-induced fantasies fell far short of the real man. She missed him.

      No denying that.

      “Well, Linds, how’s the skiing going?” he asked after Elizabeth excused herself to greet some of the other committee members.

      “Great,” she said. No use telling him she still hadn’t made it up the mountain. That was her personal struggle. “How long are you here for?”

      “For the next six months.”

      Her eyes widened. “What? Why that long?”

      “This charity event is my number one priority right now,” he said. “And I told you I was going to get you back on skis. I can’t do that from California, now, can I?”

      “I think you’ve done enough. Feel free to go back to Cali.”

      He leaned in close to her and the spicy scent of his aftershave wrapped around her, reminding her of how strong the scent had been when she’d rested her head on his shoulder after making love.

      “I promise you I haven’t done nearly enough.”

       9

      CARTER SAT ACROSS from Lindsey in the meeting. He was excited for the event and when he’d originally come up with the idea had known it was going to be a hard sell. Truth was, he’d never really played up to the resort owners in Park City, Utah, and the surrounding valley. They had sort of always looked down on snowboarders, but he wasn’t Houston Shaw’s son for nothing, and had learned from his father that turning adversaries into business partners made for some interesting and profitable ventures.

      But this wasn’t about profit. This was about bringing snowboarding and skiing to kids who couldn’t afford it otherwise. Giving them the chance to have what he’d always had. To be honest, he hadn’t realized how much of a financial struggle competing at the world-class level could be, since he’d had the benefit of his father’s money.

      Lindsey understood that. She spoke eloquently on the fact that it wasn’t just inner-city kids or those at the lowest economic level who needed help, but also middle-class families who were getting by—as her family had when her talent had been spotted.

      “I think we’re all on board now,” Lars Usten, the namesake and owner of the resort, said. “We just need to figure out what the event will look like.”

      “I see it as a three-or four-day event,” Carter told them. “Starting on a Thursday with events for the kids who’ve maybe signed up through our program to have lessons.”

      “What program?” Elizabeth asked. “Is this something new to the agenda?”

      “Yes,” Carter said. He passed around some folders that outlined his idea. “Since we’re not doing the event until the fall, I propose we start getting local kids involved in training sessions now. I’d like to see each of your resorts offer up your facilities, and maybe we can have teams to compete against each other.”

      Everyone had opened the folder and was skimming the contents. He had done a lot of work.

      “Bradley Hunt of FreshSno is donating the gear for the kids, and Thunderbolt, my energy drink sponsor, will give the kids the clothing they need,” he said finally. “Ski pants, jackets and a T-shirt. All I really need now is your resorts and time on the slopes.”

      “That’s great, but who’s going to teach the kids? We all have full-time jobs,” Lindsey reminded him. “Not everyone is a man of leisure like you.”

      “Well, I’m going to teach snowboarding. It’s what I’m good at and, as you’ve pointed out, I do have the time. I’m sure there must be a few former world champs who wouldn’t mind teaching the next generation.”

      “I didn’t say I minded,” Lindsey said, bristling at his insinuation. “Of course I’ll do it on my days off. These will just have to be needs based and when I’m not teaching the kids from the resort.”

      “Good. So now we’ve got Alpine skiing and snowboarding,” Carter replied.

      “I’ve got an idea,” Bradley said. “Watching you two square off... What if we put together two teams, captained by each of you, to raise funds? Anyone who follows winter sports knows that you are adversaries—the Ice Queen versus the Bad Boy.” He smiled broadly. “It’s classic and fun. We can have people from the committee and other resort staff members on the teams as well as the kids. What do you think?”

      Carter liked it. It was an innovative idea and would give him a chance to spend more time with Lindsey. A legitimate reason that she wouldn’t be able to back out of. “Sure. I think it’s got some merit. Plus, it’s for charity. I want to see it be a success.”

      Lindsey glared at him from across the table. He wasn’t