Page 26 of The Christmas Lodge
Derek’s brow furrowed, thrown for a loop by her non-sequitur. “I’ve seen the movie. Does that count?”
“Because I’m feeling generous, I’ll say it does.” Lacy arched an eyebrow at him, a teasing smile curling her lips. “Remember when Elizabeth walks three miles to Netherfield? All Darcy notices is that her eyes are brightened by the exercise. My walk this morning was less than ten minutes, but I think I should still get the same kind of response.”
Derek was tempted, oh so tempted, to point out that she had just compared them to Darcy and Elizabeth—and evenheknew that they were one of literature’s major love stories—but he held his tongue. Instead, he decided to play along.
“Well, Miss Preston, allow me to tell you that your, uh… cheeks and nose have been brightened by the exercise…” He followed this up with a flourishing bow.
Lacy glared at him, her gloved hands on her hips. “Mycheeks?Mynose?” She rolled her eyes but couldn’t suppress a grin. “You’re hopeless. All right, let’s get this over with.”
“‘Get this over with’? Lacy, I’m hurt.” He surveyed her outfit, noting that even though she looked elegant and lovely in her expensive-looking cashmere sweater and skinny jeans tucked into knee-high leather boots, she was hardly dressed for dogsledding. “On a more serious note, we’re going to have to find you some winter gear.”
Lacy looked down. “I put on my most practical outfit—aside from my coveralls, that is.”
“You look really nice,” he promised, “but the sled kicks back a lot of snow, and it gets really cold out there.”
“Well, I don’t really have anything else…”
“Not to worry, I have snowsuits that folks can rent out when they come for lessons or pay for rides. Come on, let’s go find one that will fit you.”
Lacy hesitated. “So a lot of other people will have worn whichever snowsuit you give me?”
“I did fail to mention that I get the snowsuits washed. Does that ease your fears?”
“Very much.” Lacy gave a relieved sigh. “Okay, take me to your most fashionable snowsuit.”
Derek knew he had at least a few snowsuits in his rental section that would fit her, but he wasn’t about to tell her that. Instead, he told her to wait there and went to pick out the most garish suit he had in her size—a relic from the eighties most likely, judging from the brazenly neon greens and pinks it sported. He returned, carrying it like a prized trophy.
“Would this suit her highness? I assure you, Miss Preston, this is the height of winter fashion.”
Lacy’s jaw dropped at the sight of the hideous suit, then looked over at him. Seeming to read the devilish gleam in his eye, she drew herself up and smirked, silently meeting his challenge.
“Luckily for you, I make everything look good,” she said in a high-and-mighty tone, reaching out her hand for the suit.
Derek handed it over and Lacy began tugging the suit on, wobbling as she almost lost her balance. Derek shot forward and offered his arm so that she could steady herself, and she smiled by way of thanks. He tried not to notice how close they were to each other now, reminding himself that they would be even closer on the sled, but he was all-too-aware of the electricity shooting through his arm from her touch. Soon, she was suited up, looking both silly and utterly adorable in the neon snowsuit.
“Okay, safety first,” he said, stepping into his business mode for a moment. “To have a truly enjoyable ride, we have to go over some procedures first. Here’s what you can expect.”
Over the next five minutes, he showed Lacy the sled, how it worked, and how to stay safe while riding. She listened with concentration, nodding and asking intelligent questions as he showed her the ropes of dogsledding. After that, it was only a matter of pulling the sled out the back of the shop to the snowy backyard that fed up into the trails, where she waited while he harnessed up his best team. In no time at all, Lacy was stepping up onto the sled and he stepped up behind her, putting his arms around her. He caught a whiff of her shampoo, or perhaps a perfume, as he boarded the sled, and the clean, flowery scent made his knees a little weak for a moment.
You’re a professional. Get it together, he reminded himself, for what felt like the millionth time.
“Hold on tight, spider-monkey,” he joked.
Lacy twisted around in his arms to look up at him with an expression of disbelief. “Did you just quoteTwilightat me?”
Derek threw her a grin. “Just thought I would show you how well-read I am.” She tilted her head to the side, her eyes challenging him. “Okay, fine, I only saw the movie on that one too, and it was under duress.”
“It’s okay,” Lacy cooed, batting her eyelashes. “You can admit you love vampire movies for teens. I think it’s just the sweetest!”
Derek groaned. “I set myself up for that, didn’t I?”
“You sure did,” she agreed as she turned and held onto the handles. “Okay, Derek, mush!”
“Yes, ma’am,” he replied meekly.
With that, he gave the dogs their cue to go, and they sprang forward. Immediately, he was back in his element. With deft ease, he guided the dogs up an easy trail that would lead to a ridge on the mountain with an excellent view of the town below. Lacy yelped a little as the sled shot forward even though the pace was light, gripping the handles even harder and standing stiff as a board. He doubted she was even taking in the pine trees sliding past or the sun making the fresh snow sparkle.
“Are you all right?” he asked, not even having to raise his voice much, since he’d kept his team to a leisurely pace.
