Tall, Dark And Daring

Mitch had nearly reached the door when he paused at the dresser to examine a sheaf of papers she’d left there. “Can I take your Mogul Ryders file to occupy myself until you come downstairs?”

He scooped up her papers and began leafing through them.

“Could you wait with that? I’ll only be five minutes.”

Engrossed in the file, he barely acknowledged her. “See you then,” he mumbled, folder in hand. He shuffled to the door as he read, seemingly oblivious to Tessa’s protest that her notes were still too rough for his review.

At last the outer door finally closed.

Frustrated he’d absconded with her work, but very happy to have escaped the temptation of his presence, Tessa breathed a sigh of relief.

That was close.

Much too close.

How was she ever going to stay out of Mitch’s bed when she’d found herself naked with him inside their first twenty-four hours together?

She headed to her suitcase to choose her most conservative suit for their business dinner. After the close encounter in her bed, she needed a no-nonsense armor to ward off any stray charm he might fling her way.

Because no matter how appealing Mitch might be, Tessa had no intention of failing in her dare. She’d conquered the bunny hop, by God. She could darn well keep her hands off an overgrown playboy for one week.

MITCH WATCHED Tessa storm into the lobby about fifteen minutes after he left her room. He’d had just enough time to read over the file she had told him not to touch.

He could tell by the gray tweed suit and the all-business French twist of her hair that she was mad. The stern set to her jaw and the pursed lips reinforced the impression. But he could not compel himself to regret filching her file on Mogul Ryders. The marketing plan she’d sketched out for his enterprise was ingenious.

He handed over the sheaf of papers as a peace offering. “You’re brilliant.”

“You’re a thief.” She snatched it out of his hand and tucked it under one arm.

So much for charming her. “Sorry, Tessa. You hadn’t even closed the folder. Once it caught my attention, I could hardly put it down.”

“You shouldn’t have been in my room to start with,” she grumbled.

He would bet she had no idea how the damp hair curling in sexy waves around her neck defeated the rest of her uptight hairdo.

“I suppose you would have been happier if I’d let you go deaf? C’mon, Tessa.” He nodded toward the front doors, eager to pick that sharp brain of hers. “Let’s have some trout and start this evening all over again. You can wow me with your plans.”

Thankfully, she seemed to forget her annoyance once they got outside. Tessa was like a kid in the snow. She held out her hand to catch the snowflakes and tilted her nose in the air to let them fall on her cheeks. She even forgave him enough to take his arm as they crossed the slippery parking lot. She’d traded in her heels for black leather boots that hugged her calves.

He tried not to think about the legs inside the leather. He needed to focus on learning everything he could from her about promoting his company. This venture embodied all his hopes for the future. He couldn’t afford to foul up another career since his professional snowboarding days had run amok.

She seemed more relaxed while discussing business over dinner, although Mitch questioned his wisdom at bringing her for a walk down memory lane at MacRae’s. The café had an outdoor service window that accessed the ice pond. He and Tessa had once skated up for cocoa before heading back to his place….

And he really shouldn’t think about that now. He grilled her about marketing in an effort to distract himself. When he was thoroughly satisfied she knew exactly how to handle his account, he paid the check and ushered her outside.

“It’s no wonder you’re at the top of your field, Tessa,” he remarked as they stepped into the crisp night air. “I can’t believe you put all those plans together in a few hours.”

Another inch of snow had fallen in the time they’d eaten dinner. Mitch knew he shouldn’t court temptation by keeping company with her any longer, but she eyed the frozen pond and the skaters with open longing. He could empathize. Lake Placid in the winter seemed like a Christmas card come to life.

He nodded toward the bench near MacRae’s skate-through window. “Want to watch?”

Shades of the adventurous Tessa flashed in her wide grin. “Sure. Cocoa’s on me.”

As she paid for the steaming beverages, strains from the restaurant’s lone guitar player drifted through the skate-up window to serenade them.

“Don’t be too impressed with my work, by the way,” she remarked as they seated themselves on the rough-hewn plank that served for a bench.

He blew on his cocoa and watched the steam curl into dancing white wisps in the cold air. “You’re being modest.”

She shook her head. “Hardly. I had the office fax me a lot of the contact names and the links for the Web site we’ll make for you.” She shrugged, as if compiling fifty pages worth of resources had been no big deal. “We’ll hit your target audience with an interactive, flashy site. Between that and the other ideas, we’ll get a broad range of exposure.”

He believed her. And felt relieved for the first time in months. He’d been so worried about taking his company to a new level that he hadn’t been able to really relax in ages. But somehow Tessa’s conviction rubbed off on him. With her by his side, he could make his new venture a success. It had been easy to buy the Hearthside, which had been a well-run business to start. The self-sufficient hotel would never give him the same degree of satisfaction as getting his snowboard business off the ground.

“So why did you leave Tahoe?” she asked between delicate sips of hot chocolate.

He stared at the tiny rim of foam on her top lip. Eight years ago he could have leaned over and licked it off. He wondered what she would do if he tried it now. “Too young. Too full of X Games wannabes.”

She licked her lip, sending shockwaves of primal hunger right through him.

“You mean too many youthful Mitch Ryders.”

The guitar player inside launched into “Bad Moon Rising.” Mitch knew half the kids in Tahoe would think Credence Clearwater Revival was an environmental movement. “I was never that young.”

Tessa snorted.

“I take it you disagree?”

“You used to be pretty wild.”

The key words being used to be, Mitch thought with disgust. Since his accident, he hadn’t even hit the top of Whiteface. He still spent some time showing the local kids the tricks and twists that had once put him at the top of his game, but he’d never have the edge that he used to. Fortunately, he had a new game to conquer, a new field to dominate. The business world.

And as long as he had Tessa to help him, he would be on top in no time.

He groaned at the image. On top.

He definitely didn’t need to think about how much Tessa liked being on top.

Tessa watched Mitch stare at the stars and wondered what he was thinking. He didn’t seem to want to talk about the past, but Tessa didn’t want to leave their winter wonderland just yet.

While she was thinking of a way to linger, a boy broke free from the skating pack and careened toward them.

“Look out!” he shouted, his face contorting into a theatrical version of fear.

“Hey, Joey,” Mitch called. “No pratfalls over my guest.”

Seconds before slamming into their bench, the boy regained control, gliding to a stop beside Mitch.

“Pretty good, huh?” The kid tried to play it cool, but he looked at Mitch with undisguised hero worship in his eyes.