Page 334 of A Merry Mountain Christmas

I’m fine!she sent back.I SERIOUSLY don’t want to think about what you two are up to, but I don’t want to hear from you until tomorrow, young man!

Next he sent a group text to Georgie and Adalia, telling them that Lee was hanging out with him for the night and he’d explain everything tomorrow.

Lee slept the entire way to Maisie’s house, but he woke up when Jack roused him, then stumbled upstairs to a spare bedroom Maisie directed him to over Einstein’s barking.

“Is that a coyote?” he asked sleepily as Jack helped him into bed. Maisie came in a few minutes later, equipped with a glass of water and some aspirin—along with a small bucket—and they made sure he knew where to find the bathroom.

Then she linked her hand with Jack’s and led him to her room, shutting the door behind them. They stood in silence in the middle of her room, the soft light of the bedside lamp spilling around them.

His mind skipped back to that lingering moment between River and Maisie earlier, like a broken record, but he knew he was being foolish. She was here with him now, staring at him with desire. She wouldn’t want him like this if she had a thing for River.

“I like what you did with the place,” Jack said, gesturing to the bed.

She grinned and reached for the button on her blouse. “Wait until you feel how comfortable the mattress is.”

He turned serious. “Maisie, I’m sorry how tonight turned out.”

“It’s not over yet.” She pulled her shirt over her head.

His gaze landed on her lace-covered breasts, and he instantly hardened. Earlier he’d been consumed by passion, but now he was consumed with something deeper he couldn’t name.

They made love slowly, and he looked deep into her eyes as he entered her, wanting to take in every part of her. She seemed to sense the shift, gently cupping his face as though he were something to be treasured. Afterward, she lay in his arms, her head on his chest, and he thought,I could get used to this.

Lee wasslow to wake up the next morning, and when he stumbled downstairs at around nine-thirty, his hair stuck up like a porcupine’s quills, only at odd angles.

“Coffee?” he groaned.

Jack and Maisie sat on the sofa, sides pressed together, with their own steaming cups. Einstein was curled up against Jack’s right side—much to Maisie’s amazement—and Chaco was lying on his lap. Both dogs lifted their heads to study Lee, Einstein releasing a growl in his throat that had Maisie putting her hand on his collar.

She flicked a direct gaze up to Jack, and he restrained a groan as he gathered Chaco in his arms and got to his feet, setting the little dog on the sofa next to Maisie before he followed his brother into the kitchen. He poured Lee a cup of coffee, using the biggest mug in the cabinet, and sat him down at the table.

Showtime.

“You need more aspirin?” Jack asked, refilling his own cup and putting off the inevitable for a few moments. He and Maisie had discussed how to handle this while lying in bed this morning. There was no perfect time to do it, and while Jackwould have preferred to wait until Lee’s head wasn’t pounding, he didn’t want Lee to go back to his cheating girlfriend—or their father—without the full knowledge of what was going on.

“No,” Lee said, shaking his head, then wincing. “Mamie left a bottle on the nightstand.”

“Maisie,” Jack said, taking a seat opposite him. Einstein sauntered in and spun around in a circle next to Jack’s chair before plopping on the floor at his feet. He gave Lee a glare, as if to warn him not to mess with Jack.

Lee winced again. “Sorry. Most of last night is fuzzy.”

“What do you remember?”

“I remember going to a few breweries. I remember a guy marked up to look like a goat. There was someone who looked like my friend Tripp if he’d turned into a raisin. I remember dancing—oh God!—and then I threw up on some poor woman.” He looked up at Jack in dismay. “Tell me most of that didn’t happen.”

“I wasn’t there for much of it, so I don’t know what happened before I showed up. Unfortunately, everything you just listed is true.”

Lee covered his face with his hand and groaned. “I don’t do this type of thing. Likeever.”

“Maybe that’s why you went so hardcore,” Jack said, unable to stop himself from grinning. “It was about time you let down your hair.” He gestured to Lee’s bedhead and made a face. “So to speak.”

Lee reached up to the top of his head and felt his hair, then rolled his eyes. Which brought on another groan.

“Lee,” Jack said, his stomach tight with anxiety. This could go one of two ways—the first, Lee could refuse to believe him, evidence be damned, and leave in a fury, possibly punching him on his way out. Or he might accept the situation as it was without argument. Unfortunately, Jack didn’t know him well enough toguess which scenario was more likely. He’d considered calling Addy and letting her know what he and Maisie had discovered, but Dottie had asked him and Maisie to be there last night, not Jack and his sisters, and that had to mean something.

Lee’s face lifted, and the lost look in his eyes almost stopped Jack from continuing.

Almost.

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