Page 30 of Craving You

“I’ve got it all under control. No worries.”

As much as he hated to leave her like this, he knew the sooner he got his work done, the sooner he could relax and get on with the day and all its possibilities.

Chapter Five

“So, there I was, in front of a class of twenty, with a massive leg cramp! I was twisted up like a pretzel and it took three people to help me untwist! I was mortified!” They were talking about their most embarrassing moments, and this was definitely her top one.

They were walking along one of the many paths at Summit Ridge. The sun was shining, the temperature was a bit cool, and she was thoroughly enjoying herself—not that she was surprised. Max Calloway was charming and funny and he never ran out of things to talk about.

“Now it’s your turn,” she prompted.

“Hmm…most embarrassing moment,” he began. “That would have to be the time I was on a softball league and tried to slide into home plate and ended up about three feet short.” Laughing, he shook his head. “I really thought I had enough momentum, but I barely slid two feet and ended up costing our team the winning run. The guys never let me live that down.”

“Oh no! Do you still play?”

“No. Once I had to start spending more time here in Sweetbriar Ridge for my dad, I just couldn’t commit. Not that anyone was overly upset about it,” he murmured, playfully nudging her shoulder with his. “I miss it though.”

“So why not start up a league here?” she suggested. “No one has to know about your…your um…”

“Short slide?”

Laughing, she nodded. “Sure. Why not? No one has to know about your short slide. And with all the new businesses here, I’ll bet there are lots of people who would love to play.”

“Do you play?”

Another laugh. “Me? Uh…no. Sports are definitely not my forte. I can dance—ballet, tap, jazz, you name it—but I cannot catch a ball to save my life. Probably because I flinch when something is being thrown at my face.”

“That can definitely be an issue with sports. Although it’s not really being thrown at your face.”

“It feels like it,” she told him. “Okay, so what are we going on now?”

“You’re not afraid of heights, are you?”

“Nope! I’m a roller coaster girl.” Then she glanced around. “But I don’t see what we’re going on that is high.”

“It’s an Alpine slide. Very fast and it goes down the mountain. When we hit the bottom, there’s a path to the ski lift that will take us on an aerial tour of the entire resort.”

“Oh, wow! That sounds amazing! Where’s the line?” Looking around excitedly, Hailey jumped when Max took her hand in his. He did that a lot—touched her—and while it startled her this time, she genuinely enjoyed it. Clearly he was a toucher, and she found it incredibly attractive.

Just like everything else about him.

Earlier, when he suggested packing an overnight bag, she almost said yes. After all, it wasn’t like they hadn’t slept together. Plus, she was already pregnant, so it wasn’t like she could get knocked up twice.

But she didn’t want to seem overly anxious.

And that’s why she sneaked a bag into the backseat of Max’s car before he came back down to meet her.

Pushing sexy thoughts aside, Hailey forced herself to focus on the here and now. They were having a great time. Max had driven her all around town before heading up to the resort. She saw where he went to school and all the places that were part of his life growing up in Sweetbriar Ridge. He’d even shown her places that he knew her cousins were a part of—even though she was familiar with most of them. They’d enjoyed lunch at the café inside the resort—which was very yummy—but she had to admit, the larger restaurant looked very inviting too. Hopefully, they’d stay and have dinner here as well after they were done exploring all the amenities.

But first, the Alpine slide!

Since it was a weekday, there weren’t many people around. They walked right up to the platform and were immediately at the front. They couldn’t ride together, but Hailey was okay with it because the ride down was completely exhilarating! The view, the speed, the wind in her hair…she hadn’t felt this much pure joy since…

Billie’s wedding and her weekend with Max.

Why was she fighting it? Why was she trying to pretend that she didn’t want him? That she wasn’t wildly attracted to him?

She hit the bottom of the slide first and by the time she was off of her toboggan, Max was coming to a stop. Turning, she looked at him and her heart ached. His hair was all windblown and he was smiling, and when he looked at her, a million butterflies took flight in her belly. He stood and slowly sauntered her way, and all she wanted to do was walk up to him and kiss him senseless.

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