Colton's Rescue Mission

“Have you skied Pine Peak yet?” Seth asked. “I like it a lot better than Sunlight. It’s got some great black-diamond runs. Of course, I’m prejudiced since I live and work here.”

She thought of her skis, still strapped to the roof of her car. “Not yet. I was hoping to do that while I was up here.” Taking a sip of her wine, she shrugged. “Maybe another time.”

“How about tomorrow?” He grinned at her over the rim of his beer mug. “It’s best first thing in the morning, right when the lift opens. I like to go before work. Come with me?”

“I’m tempted,” she admitted. “But like I said, there’s not an available room in this town. Believe me, I’ve checked.”

“I told you, you can stay with me.” He held up a hand as she started to protest. “I have a guest room. You can stay there. Completely platonic. Please, I insist. There’s nothing I’d like better than skiing with you again.”

Maybe because she really, really wanted to ski Pine Peak, or perhaps because she felt like she owed him at least that much, she found herself acquiescing. “Just for one night.”

“Sure.” He raised his nearly empty mug. “I’ll have another to celebrate.”

Her stomach growled, reminding her that she hadn’t eaten since breakfast. “How about some dinner instead?”

Remy had just climbed into bed and shut off the lights when his cell phone rang, startling him. Sitting up, he glanced at the digital clock on his nightstand—eleven thirty. Damn it. A call at this time of night was never a good thing.

“Hello?”

“Remy, this is Liam Kastor. Did I wake you?”

Instantly alert, Remy explained he’d been awake. Since Liam was a detective with the Roaring Springs Police Department, he suspected this call involved something his younger brother had done. It certainly wouldn’t be the first time.

“It’s Seth,” Liam continued, confirming Remy’s suspicions. “We got a call earlier from The Saloon. The bartender, Gary, said Seth had been there drinking all evening and got belligerent when they cut him off. I headed down there to check it out, but by the time I arrived, he was gone.”

“Driving?” Remy asked, horrified.

“No, thank goodness. His car is still parked in the lot. Either someone gave him a ride or he left on foot. Since it’s snowing pretty heavily outside, I sent out a couple of patrols looking for him. Being drunk out in freezing temperatures is never a good combination. There’s no sign of him, at least downtown.”

Remy swore. “I’ll go look for him. Thank you for calling me.”

After ending the call, he immediately dialed his brother’s cell. After several rings, it went to voicemail. Remy left a quick, terse message asking Seth to call him.

Now he had no other option than to go out and search.

He threw on warm clothes, then snagged his coat and gloves and headed out into the frigid cold. In the time since he’d been home, several inches of perfect powder had accumulated. The plow would be by in the morning, but this kind of snow was easy to drive on.

He retraced the route Seth might have walked if he’d decided to head home to his condo from The Saloon. Since it was only a few blocks, it was definitely doable, at least when sober.

When Remy reached the trendy apartment building without seeing any trace of his brother, he parked and considered what to do next. First, he punched redial, hoping against hope that Seth would pick up. When he got voicemail again, he sighed and shut off his engine.

Inside, he rode the elevator up to the third floor and trudged down the hall until he reached Seth’s condo. Glancing at his watch and seeing that it was nearly midnight, he winced but rang the doorbell, anyway. While dealing with a drunk Seth was never pleasant, he had to make sure his brother had made it home safely.

When nothing happened, he pressed the doorbell again and again and again. Sooner or later that kind of noise would get through to even a passed-out drunk.

Sure enough, a moment later the door opened a crack. But, instead of Seth, a tousle-haired Vanessa peeked out at him. The sight of her sleepy, sexy blue eyes hit him like a punch in the stomach.

When the implications of her presence registered, he felt like a fool. Swallowing hard, he nodded at her. “Is Seth home?”

Covering her mouth while she yawned, she opened the door a bit wider and stepped aside so he could enter. She wore flannel pajamas in a plaid holiday pattern with some sort of fuzzy slippers. Somehow, she managed to look both cute and alluring at the same time.

“Is Seth here?” he asked again, reminding himself to focus.

“I’m not sure.” Brushing her hair back from her face, she lifted one shoulder in a delicate shrug. “He was earlier. We had dinner and then came back here so I could get settled. He wanted to go back out but I was tired, so I went to bed. In the guest bedroom,” she said pointedly. “Anyway, I’ve been asleep. At least until you started ringing the doorbell over and over.”

“My apologies.” He thought about explaining and decided against it. Surely, she knew what kind of trouble her former fiancé could get himself into. “I’m just going to check on him,” he said. “Make sure he’s okay.”

“Knock yourself out.” She wandered into the kitchen, still yawning.

Seth’s bedroom door was closed. Remy knocked—three sharp raps of his knuckles on the wood. No answer. Reluctantly, he turned the knob and squinted into the dark room, hoping he could make out whether or not Seth occupied the bed.

No such luck. Bracing himself, he flicked on the light switch.

An annoyed groan came from Seth, sprawled out, fully dressed, on the bed. “Turn that the hell off.”

Instead of complying, Remy eyed his baby brother, trying to judge how drunk Seth might be. Deciding it didn’t matter—he’d learned long ago how pointless it was trying to talk to someone while they were inebriated—he turned out the light and backed out of the room.

“Is he all right?” Vanessa asked, her fingers curled around a tall glass of ice water.

Remy grimaced. “I think so. I’m sorry to have disturbed you. I’ll come back and talk to Seth in the morning.”

She regarded him, her gaze steady. “He and I are supposed to go ski Pine Peak in the morning before he goes to work. You might want to call him instead.”

Again, the stab of envy. Though Remy wasn’t a skier of Seth’s caliber, he enjoyed a few runs up on the slopes as often as he could, time permitting. Though knowing his brother, he doubted Seth would feel much like skiing tomorrow. He’d be way too hungover.

Saying none of this, he nodded. “Thanks. I’ll keep that in mind. Again, I apologize for waking you.”

She waved him away with a sleepy smile. “No worries. I guess I’ll be seeing you around.”

Damn, he hoped so. And once more, that odd combination of guilt and longing assailed him. Swallowing hard, he gave her a quick nod and left.

All the way home, he called himself every kind of fool. He’d just met the woman, for Pete’s sake. And while he could definitely understand the lure of physical attraction, he wasn’t the kind of man who’d even consider making a move on his brother’s lady, no matter how irresistible he found her.

His brother’s lady. The notion made him shake his head. Seth never stuck with anyone very long, never mind proposed marriage. Despite the fact that Remy helped his brother any way he could, Seth constantly seemed to be barely treading water. Maybe resuming his relationship with Vanessa would be the thing Seth needed to completely turn his life around.

Remy definitely hoped so. But he couldn’t help but think there was something…off in all of this. For one thing, the reconciliation between Seth and Vanessa sure had happened quickly. Especially since she claimed she’d broken off the engagement. Yet they’d had one dinner and Seth had immediately installed her in his condo. Strange. But none of his business.

Except for the insane pull of attraction he felt toward the woman who was once his almost-sister-in-law.

Chapter 2 (#uc9757e0a-4a05-5e6b-8282-fdb443afea6b)

Back home, Remy shed his clothes and once again climbed in between his sheets, then pulled his comforter up to his chin. He couldn’t shake the image of Vanessa in the soft flannel pajamas, wondering what it would be like to slip his hand under them and caress her warm skin. Guilt immediately followed that thought, because he knew he didn’t have the right.

Despite thinking he wouldn’t, he managed to drift off to sleep. When he opened his eyes again, he saw his alarm was due to go off in five minutes. He shut it off and pushed himself up.

Thirty minutes later, showered and dressed, he drank his black coffee and nuked instant oatmeal for breakfast. When he’d finished eating, he checked his watch. He had a morning meeting with a new advertising firm from Denver, so he wouldn’t have time to stop by Seth’s.

As he drove to work, he couldn’t help but wonder if his brother had felt well enough to ski. He found himself wondering if Vanessa would go by herself, anyway, and wished he had time to head up to Pine Peak.