Total pages in book: 71
Estimated words: 70551 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 353(@200wpm)___ 282(@250wpm)___ 235(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 70551 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 353(@200wpm)___ 282(@250wpm)___ 235(@300wpm)
“Worth the trip for sure,” Natalie says and walks over to me. Jenna is standing next to me, unable to speak.
It’s actually kind of cute.
“I’m Natalie Williams,” she says with a smile, holding out her hand for mine. “And I’ve heard so many great things about you from Luke.”
“Christian Wolfe,” I reply with a smile and then introduce the woman I’ve become way too used to having next to me. “This is Jenna Hull, the owner of Snow Wolf Cottages where I’ve been staying. Jenna, this is Luke and Natalie Williams.”
“Hi,” Jenna says and shakes their hands. “It’s cold out here this afternoon. Let’s get you both inside and settled.”
She glances up at me, the nerves still apparent in her expressive blue eyes, but her body language is confident as she leads us all into the middle tree house.
“This is absolutely amazing,” Natalie says and pulls out her camera from her oversized handbag. “I hope you don’t mind me taking photos. I’m a photographer, and this is just screaming at my inner artist.”
“Of course, not,” Jenna says with a smile. “I’m so happy that you like it. But wait until you see the best part.”
I wait downstairs as she leads them both upstairs.
“Look at that turret!” Natalie exclaims. I can hear the shutter on her camera clicking. “Jenna, I’ll be happy to send you copies of my photos, if you like.”
“I would love that,” Jenna replies as they come back downstairs. “So, that’s the whole place. It’s not huge, but it’s cozy.”
“It’s perfect,” Luke assures her. “We appreciate you squeezing us in.”
“It’s my pleasure,” she says. “You’ll be able to watch the skiers during the day, as that’s one of the ski runs. At night, the whole place is lit up, and you can see the lights in town from the village.”
“I love how everything is decorated for Christmas,” Natalie says, and I’m immediately reminded that I’ll be leaving in just a couple of weeks. I’m scheduled to fly out on the 23rd so I can spend the holidays with my family before I start filming Luke’s project.
Time is moving too damn fast.
“Is there anything specific you’d like to do while you’re here that I can help with?” Jenna asks.
“Yes,” Natalie immediately replies. “I’m going to need a spa, and I think it would be fun to have dinner one night with you and Christian and any of your close friends.”
Jenna’s eyes immediately find mine in surprise.
“Don’t worry,” Natalie says, reaching out to hold Jenna’s hand. “Christian didn’t say anything, but I can see by the way you look at each other that you’ve got something going on. I think it’s awesome.”
“We came to see the resort, the town, and to spend some time with Christian,” Luke adds, and I can only sit back and watch the interaction with fascination. Jenna is taking it all in stride as if they’re just a normal couple of guests, and a part of me that I didn’t even know was anxious lets go.
“I can certainly arrange for a spa day for you, Natalie. And I’m quite sure we can pull together a dinner on Friday.” She looks at me for confirmation, and I nod, smiling at her.
Jesus, she’s beautiful. Smart.
And kind.
Luke wraps his arm around his wife’s shoulders and buries his lips in her hair. Whatever he says makes her blush.
Natalie is a beautiful woman. With long, dark hair and green eyes, she’s quite stunning. And right now, she’s looking at Luke as if he hung the moon.
“Get him away from the kids for a bit, and he can’t keep his hands off me,” she says with a laugh.
“How many kids do you have?” Jenna asks.
“Four,” Luke replies, and Jenna’s eyes widen in surprise.
“Sounds like he can’t keep his hands off of you when the kids are around, either,” Jenna says with a laugh. “I love that. My parents were the same way. There are three of us, and they never had any qualms about being affectionate with each other around us.”
“Our kids won’t be strangers to affection,” Luke agrees. “Christian, when can you and I meet to talk business?”
“I have a ski lesson tomorrow morning, and then I’m free,” I reply. “Would you like to join me for the lesson?”
“I’d love to,” he says immediately, his face lighting up in anticipation. “I ski quite well, actually.”
“Oh, great,” Natalie says, her voice dry. “Please don’t break anything.”
“You need to have more faith in me, baby,” he says, and Natalie simply laughs.
“I have all the faith in the world, but I don’t need my husband to break an arm. I need you.”
“I think that’s our cue to leave,” Jenna says with a laugh. “If you need anything, my cell number is in the book on the table, along with the Wi-Fi info.”
“Thank you, Jenna,” Natalie says. “This is truly a treat.”