Someone's strong hands reached out and caught me, pulling me back.
"Whoa. Shit. That was close. You okay?" He released me and I turned and let out a long sigh.
"Yes. Thank you so much. I haven't skied in forever. Now, I remember why."
My eyes moved across his handsome face and butterflies resurrected deep inside of me, the moment almost a little too much for my practical mind.
He was clean shaven, but his chestnut hair was a little disheveled and cheeks were red like he'd been out there all day. His warm brown eyes moved around my face and the sexy smile that lifted his lip caused my heart to skip a beat.
"Here, let's take this one up together. If you fall from the lift, you're going to have more trouble than snow in your pretty blonde hair." He laughed and reached for me.
I moved back a little, but gave him a smile. "I'm good, but thank you. I really appreciate you saving me."
"Really? You sure?" He lifted an eyebrow as if shocked that a woman would refuse him. He had playboy written all over him in ten different colors.
No thanks.
"Yeah, but have a great day." I moved to the lift and took the older man's hand who was helping people get on.
"Good thing old Finn was there to save you. That might have been ugly." The guy laughed and helped me onto the lift.
Finn called from below, his hands over his mouth and his eyes full of promise. "That's not fair; you have my name and I don't have yours."
"Just call me baby." I laughed at the look on his face. I'd known a lot of playboys in my day, and when they didn't remember your name, you just became baby, or honey, or sugar.
Dime a dozen.
Chapter 6
Finn
I was just being kind by reaching out and saving the clumsy girl in front of me, not thinking anything of it. It was my first day off in weeks and hitting the slopes was all I could think about. Not being with a woman for a week had left me grouchy and depressed, but a promise was a promise.
What I hadn't expected was the falling woman to steal my breath when she turned around.
Her blonde hair was long and hung in wavy lengths just above her perky breasts. Sun-kissed skin and sea-green eyes with long eyelashes and incredibly kissable lips – she was everything I enjoyed physically about a woman. Probably dumb as dirt, but I'd leave shortly after the sex so we wouldn’t have to talk much.
I swallowed hard and offered to ride to the top with her as my heart beat against the inside of my chest in a way it hadn't before. It had to be withdrawals. Twelve years of holding a different woman every night became a nasty habit after a while. I was addicted to being wanted like some guys were to the bottle.
It's just a girl. Slow your roll. No women for twenty-five days.
When she refused my offer, it was a slap to the face. There had been very few women in my past who hadn't jumped at the chance to do something with me. It was shocking and refreshing. It caused a fire to ignite inside of me. She would be a challenge, if nothing else.
She got on the lift as Jerry, the old man who owned the thing, gave the girl my name. He winked at me and I rewarded him with a smirk, calling out to her and asking for her name in return.
When she'd called herself baby, I knew I was in for a treat. She was either a player herself or had guys like me figured out. Either way, I wanted to know.
I jumped on the platform and got on the next lift as Jerry chuckled. "Good luck, son. She's not interested."
"I'm glad she's not." I wrapped one arm around myself and waved as she looked back at me. She might not think she was interested, but she was. If not, I'd subtly force it to happen.
It seemed like forever by the time we made it to the top and she was quick to hop off and move toward the bunny slopes. A chuckle left me at the thought of her learning to ski and I realized that I had to tread lightly. My usual attack wouldn't work on this girl, at all. She had a man or had been broken by one. Either way, her unwillingness to give me the time of day meant something was up.
"Couldn't be me." I shrugged and internally rolled my eyes. When the fuck had I gotten so cocky?
I dropped off the lift and moved toward her, calling out with my hands around my mouth. "Baby. Wait up."
Several people from the bunny slope line turned and smiled like we were a cute couple and she was leaving my ass in the snow. She turned and put her hands on her hips, narrowing her eyes, and making my cock twitch at the dominance in her gaze.