Sleigh Bells in the Snow

“The same Brenna who stuffed snow down your pants when you were ten. The same Brenna who runs our ski program.” Jackson watched as a snow bunting landed on a branch near the window. Through the trees the lake sparkled in the late-evening sunshine. If it had been a few degrees warmer he would have taken his beer onto the deck and watched the sun go down over the lake and mountains. He realized that the summer had passed and he’d had no time to sit and enjoy it.

Next year, he promised himself. Next year he’d slow down long enough to sit outside his own barn and breathe in the air.

“Well, hell—” Tyler sat down at the stone-topped island that formed the focus of the large kitchen, “did you and she—”

“What business is it of yours if we did?”

“So that means you did?”

Jackson turned with a frown. “Christ, Tyler—”

“I guess I just never saw you and Brenna together.” His brother looked so shaken Jackson took pity on him.

“We’re not together. There was no chemistry.”

“So if there was no chemistry, why the hell did you date?”

“Let’s just say our work conversations overran so we took it to the bar, and then we took it out to dinner a couple of times.”

“But you didn’t take it to bed?”

“You’re asking who I take to bed?”

“Just looking out for her, that’s all. She’s like a sister to me.”

Jackson wondered if his brother could really be so clueless about Brenna’s feelings. “Ty—”

“And then there’s the issue of working together. If you two are tiptoeing around each other, I need to know that.”

“There’s no tiptoeing.” He decided it wasn’t his business to say anything.

“For the record, I think Kayla Green would be perfect for you.”

“You haven’t met her.”

“She’s obviously clever and you think she’s hot.”

“She can’t ski.”

“So? No one can keep up with you on the ski slope anyway so you’re not exactly looking for company. But if it bothers you, get her skiing. Take her to the top of a steep slope and she’ll be so grateful when you rescue her, she’ll think you’re a hero and have sex with you. That one always works.” Tyler lifted his beer and drank.

“Are you serious?” Jackson shook his head. “On second thought, don’t answer that. As you pointed out, personal relationships with a colleague make things awkward. And it’s unprofessional.”

“To hell with professional, it’s Christmas. People do crazy things at Christmas.”

“Round here people don’t wait until Christmas, they do crazy things all the time.” Jackson leaned against the cabinet and nursed his beer while Tyler glanced around him.

“I like what you’ve done to this place.” He scanned the custom-made cabinets, relaxed now the conversation had moved away from Brenna.

“Glad someone approves. Gramps thinks I’ve wasted money.”

“Cheaper than the psychiatrist bills you would have been paying if you’d moved in with them. I’m thinking of doing something similar with the Lake House.”

“Good idea, especially now you have Jess with you. How’s that going?”

“I need a manual on how to handle women.”

“From what I’ve heard, you wrote that manual.”

“Not the teenage version.”

The atmosphere shifted and Jackson put his beer down. “Something wrong?” Light slanted through the windows, reflecting off shiny pans hanging from wooden beams. It occurred to him that so far he hadn’t cooked a single thing in those pans.

“Apart from the fact her mother had another baby and decided Jess was getting in the way of her new family and that this would be a good time to remember I exist?” Tyler’s voice hardened. “What the hell did I ever see in Janet Carpenter?”

“You were young. Shallow. She had an impressive rack.”

“There was that.” Tyler stared at the bottle in his hand. “And I was flattered. Older woman and all. I thought it was birthday and Christmas rolled into one when she got me in that barn. All I ever got from that encounter was trouble.”

Jackson watched as the snow bunting flew off over the lake. “You got Jess.”

“Yeah—” Tyler’s voice softened. “Yeah, I got her. And she’s the best. You should see her on skis. Great balance, no fear. And that worries me. She’ll ski down anything with a gradient.”

“You were the same.”

“Maybe I was, but that doesn’t stop me wishing she’d show caution. She’s lived most of her life in Chicago. She doesn’t know mountains.”

“If you’re worried, take her out with you.”

“And give Janet something to use against me? No way.”

“Hell, Ty, she virtually sent the kid away. She’s hardly in a position to challenge your parenting skills.”

“Maybe, but I’m not taking the risk. I’ve finally got her back and I’m not going to screw this up.”

Jackson knew his brother was still tormented by the fact he hadn’t been given custody in the first place. It had been a hideous, ugly time, and he was one of the few who knew the truth of it.

Maybe it wasn’t surprising Tyler hadn’t noticed how Brenna felt. He hadn’t just been hurt, he’d been scarred.

“Have you talked to Jess about it?”

“She won’t talk to me.” Tyler sounded tired. “I even tried asking her straight-out what’s wrong. First time in my life I’ve asked a woman if she wanted to talk about what was bothering her. I even stayed around long enough for her to answer.”

“And did she?”

“She gave me a look and told me I wouldn’t understand.” Tyler stared at the bottle in his hand. “Wasn’t going to argue with that one. Truth? I don’t think she wants to be here. She wants to be back with her mother.”

“She’s always loved being here.”