Page 5 of Forbidden Love

He had no such qualms about being close to me. He wanted to work with me and seemed to have no issues with it.

It was a good reminder that he was the older guy just playing around, and I was the stupid, naïve girl who thought it could be something else. I wouldn’t make the same mistake again.

I’d meet with him because I was intrigued by his and his brother’s ideas. I wanted to help female athletes, but I didn’t have the capital to start a nonprofit.

I’d already discussed the possibility with my oldest brother, Oliver, and he’d advised against attempting anything bigger than what I’d accomplished tonight.

But if the Fletchers had some money to throw behind the project, I might be persuaded to give them a chance. The only thing was, I wasn’t sure if I’d be staying in town. I loved Telluride and the resort; I just never thought there was a place for me here.

“Ms. Wilde, do you have a minute?” Mayor Todd Jenkins asked.

“Of course.” He wasn’t married, and I’d heard rumors that women flirted with him.

“I love what you’re doing here tonight. The city’s happy to support you in any way we can.”

I gave him my full attention. “I’d love some help with identifying kids who’d benefit from the program, and I have a few more ideas for how I can expand it to something that could benefit the town.”

He winked at me and smiled. “I love discussing ways to help the community. How about we schedule dinner soon so we can talk about the ways I can help you?”

I noticed he’d said I instead of we or the city. It might have been a slip of his tongue, but I didn’t think so. As a politician, I’m sure he was used to watching every word that came out of his mouth and every gesture he made. “I’d love that.”

He moved in close, touching my arm as he leaned in to say into my ear, “I’m looking forward to it.”

I wasn’t in the market to date anyone, but it felt good to be desired. Especially when my presence had no effect on Tyler.

I lifted my gaze, meeting Tyler’s irritated one over Todd’s shoulder. My lips tipped up at Todd’s comment. I briefly touched his arm in response, then moved toward the bathroom. I needed a moment away from everyone.

I took my time in the bathroom, knowing as soon as I went back out there, I’d need to be on in a way I never had to be in Paris. Here, everyone knew me as the little sister, the one who tried to keep up with her brothers but never did. I wasn’t as fast on the slopes as Xander or as good at doing flips on a snowboard as Killian, not as smart as Oliver or as business-savvy as Eli. In fact, I never excelled at any one thing. The only thing that ever set me apart in the Wilde family was that I was a girl.

When we were younger, my parents were busy running the ski resort, so I was left alone a lot. When I was older, they let me have friends over, which was always a blast at the lodge, but I never felt like I was enough by myself. As teens, my friends wanted my brothers, and I was a means to get to them.

When I finally opened the bathroom door to leave, Tyler stood leaning against the wall across from me.

“You need the ladies’ room?” I quipped as I attempted to move past him. I was a successful, confident woman; I shouldn’t feel anything when I was near Tyler.

His fingers encircled my wrist, stopping my forward motion. “You okay?”

“Of course.”

“I saw you talking to Todd Jenkins.”

“The mayor?” I asked to buy time, my heart thumping wildly in my chest because his hand still gripped my wrist loosely.

Todd nodded tightly.

“We were talking about raising money for needy kids. He’s going to help me identify which kids could benefit from assistance.”

“I don’t think that’s all he wanted,” Tyler murmured softly, his voice vibrating in my chest at a frequency seemingly only I could feel.

I tipped my head to the side. “What does it matter if he wanted more?”

“It shouldn’t.” He tugged my wrist so that I moved closer to him. I felt like an insect trapped in a spider’s web, and I was transfixed by the web he was weaving.

“But it does.” My entire body was vibrating with need as he held my wrist, and I stood within inches of the tempting warmth of his body. I arched a brow. “Is there something you need, Tyler?”

His nostrils flared, and he shifted on his feet so that he was no longer leaning casually against the wall but stood straight. “How long are you sticking around?”

“I’m not sure.” There was this heat when he was near me, a chemistry I don’t remember from when we were kids. I crushed on him and had this hero worship for him since he carried me down the mountain. Even though we messed around when I was eighteen, I hadn’t remembered this energy between us. It felt combustible. If one of us lit a match, we’d explode.

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