Capítulo 13: Chapter 13
Jocelyn nodded. "I'm ready if you are."
"Great!" Caden's muscles bulged under his jacket with the simple gesture of shoving his hands into his pockets.
She walked beside him to his car, noticing that he was at least six inches taller than her. "So, when did you get to be so tall?" she teased.
Caden smiled, opening the passenger door for her. "I guess it was the great Navy food."
Jocelyn laughed. "Yeah. I'd bet." Then she slid into his Corvette.
Caden chuckled as he closed her door. A moment later, he slid into the driver's seat. "Where would you like to go? Cedar Ridge or Snowflake Mountain?"
Jocelyn shrugged, her heart racing along with the engine. Since she had never skied before, she had no idea which one was the best. "It doesn't matter to me. Where would you like to go?"
Caden threw the car into drive. "Snowflake Mountain was always a bit too kitschy to me. How about Cedar Ridge?" He raised an eyebrow as he looked over at her, completely unaware of the effect he had on her.
"Sounds good." Jocelyn smiled, watching the snow-covered evergreens pass by outside the window. "Why did you call it that?"
"What?" Caden glanced over at her.
"Kitschy."
Caden chuckled. "Growing up here in Christmas Cove, everything became too touristy for me."
Jocelyn nodded. "So, how do you feel now that you're back?"
"I guess I'm seeing it through new eyes. It doesn't seem as commercial to me as it once did." Caden laughed. "I guess you could say that it's growing on me."
"Did you miss it while you were away?"
Caden tilted his head. "Not until recently." He chuckled. "I guess I'm getting nostalgic in my old age."
Jocelyn laughed. "You are definitely not old."
He raised an eyebrow as he looked at her, causing her heart to stop. "Oh no?"
She laughed. "Stop that. You're going to get me into trouble, mister."
Caden chuckled. "Trouble is my middle name."
"Yeah right." Jocelyn rolled her eyes and turned her attention out the window. Although she knew he was teasing her like he always had, it was different now and could lead to a broken heart. Hers.
They rode a while in silence as Caden turned the car expertly around corners and roads that led up into the mountains. She looked across the landscape and everything was covered in snow, sparkling in the sun. A white, shimmering blanket covering the earth. Evergreens dotted the landscape, along with bare cedar and oak trees and other varieties.
"I could never grow tired of this," Jocelyn stated, enjoying the scenery. But she enjoyed being with Caden even more.
Caden looked over at her. "It's beautiful."
His gaze was so intense that she had to look away. For a moment, she thought he was talking about her. But then again, it was probably just wishful thinking.
"Don't do that."
"What?" Her heart pounded, a drum filling her ears, so loud she was surprised Caden couldn't hear it.
"Turn away from me like that." Sincerity filled his eyes.
Before she could respond, he turned down the long drive leading to Cedar Ridge. How could she respond to that?
A few minutes later, Caden pulled the car into the ticket booth, collected a ticket, and then parked in the vast parking lot, which was nearly full.
"Well, it looks like a lot of other people had the idea to go skiing today, too," Caden observed. "Wait here."
Before she could reply, he was already out of the car, opened her door, and held his hand out to her. Jocelyn laughed. "You didn't have to do that."
"I'm a gentleman, if nothing else."
She laughed as she took his hand. "That you are."
Once she was out of the car and Caden had locked it up, he shoved his hands into his jacket pockets. "So, do you come here often?"
She shook her head. "No, not in a while."
"So, when was the last time you were here?" A devilish smile appeared on his lips as they walked toward the stairs, leading to the ski lodge.
Jocelyn laughed. "Oh no!"
"Tell me."
"Well, the last time I was here, I was with a date."
Caden chuckled. "Oh? With whom?"
Jocelyn shrugged. "Kyle. His father owns this lodge."
"Not Kyle Masterson."
Jocelyn laughed. "The one and the same."
"Man! When I left, he was just a kid."
"Well, now he's the general manager of the lodge and expected to take over one day when his father retires." She liked Kyle's father. He was a nice man. Much different from his son.
"So, are you still seeing him?"
She raised an eyebrow. "Why do you want to know?"
He lifted his shoulders. "Just curious." He chuckled. "It seems strange thinking of you dating."
Jocelyn's heart sank, realizing that he still thought of her as a kid. "I'm twenty-one now. Not a kid anymore."
Caden nodded. "Oh, I can see that."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
He laughed. "Oh no you don't!"
She laughed. It had always been easy with Caden. A bit too easy. Her whole life, he was the only man to make her feel that way, or to make her feel anything, for that matter.
"So, are you still seeing him?" Caden raised his eyebrows expectantly.
"You're not going to let this go, are you?"
"Nope!" He popped the p.
She was about to hedge the question again, enjoying his reaction a bit too much, but she thought better of it. "No, I'm not seeing anyone."
"Why not?"
Jocelyn looked up at him, her eyebrows raising almost into her hairline. "What do you mean?"
Caden shrugged. "I mean, you're beautiful, attractive, nice- I'm surprised someone hasn't swept you off your feet by now."
She didn't tell him that she had already been swept off her feet long ago. Yes; he was definitely going to be trouble for her. "I guess I just never met the right man," she lied. She had definitely met the right man, but he had always been taken.
Presentes
-- Presente
recebido Status de energia semanal
-- Ranking de
Poder 
-- Pedra de
Poder