Unexpected Gifts: (The Steamy Version) (A Castle Mountain Lodge Romance Series Book 1) by Elena Aitken

husky. “I want you to stay.” He stroked a stray piece of hair off her cheek and looked into her eyes until she blinked and smiled.
    “I’d really like that,” she said.
    Colin slid over, making room for her to crawl under the covers next to him. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d ever spent the night with a woman and not had sex with her. Probably because it had never occurred before, let alone with a woman he was so attracted to.
    As soon as she tucked her head onto his shoulder, he knew that the night would be a torturous exercise in restraint. In an effort to distract himself, he laughed and said, “I guess men’s fantasies about women wearing sexy lingerie to sleep are just that, fantasies.” He stroked Andi’s shoulder, lifting her t-shirt away from her skin slightly.
    “You have a problem with my pajamas?”
    “Quite the contrary, actually.” He lifted his arm so she could snuggle closer to his chest. When his arm was wrapped securely around her, he added, “In fact, I’ve never seen sexier nightwear than what you have on right now.”
    She laughed, but he was serious. Seeing her so relaxed with him at that moment made the old t-shirt and fleece pants hotter than anything else he could have imagined.
    He pulled her close and inhaled her sweet scent. She smelled fresh, like the outdoors, and faintly of apples.
    “Colin?” She sounded exhausted; her voice was barely a whisper.
    “Yes?”
    “Thank you,” she said.
    “Andi, I couldn’t think of a better way to spend the night,” he said. The weight of her on his chest felt good and he realized he’d meant what he’d said. For the first time in a very long time, Colin felt content. He let his hand slide through her silky hair and kissed the top of her head. “Good night, Andi,” he said, but she was already asleep.

CHAPTER TEN

    December 24

    The sound of a phone ringing jarred Andi from her slumber. She rolled over and fumbled around the bedside table before remembering she wasn’t in her own room. Had she really spent the night next to Colin? The last thing she remembered before falling asleep was lying in his arms. Before going to his room, she’d crawled into her own empty bed, but the thought of spending the night alone hadn’t been an appealing one. Going to Colin felt natural, and he hadn’t turned her away.
    With her eyes still closed against the morning sun, Andi swept her arms to the other side of the bed. Nothing. Her eyes popped open. She was alone. Except for her cell phone, which was on Colin’s pillow. Still ringing.
    Andi let out a sigh, stretched her arms over her head one last time and reached for the phone.
    “Good morning, Eva.
    “I’ve been trying you for like half an hour. Do you have any idea how much work we have to do today?”
    Andi rolled over and looked out the window. The late December sun was just starting to peek over the mountains, sending red and orange rays across the landscape and through the pines. It was the most beautiful thing she could imagine seeing in the morning. Except of course, the sight of Colin, half-naked and wrapped in a towel, which she saw when she turned towards the bathroom door.
    “Andi, are you listening to me?” Eva’s voice came through the line and Andi realized that she in fact had not been listening.
    “Of course,” she said.
    Colin smiled and mouthed the words, “Good morning.”
    Like a love-struck teenager, she grinned wide and could feel a blush burn on her cheeks. It was ridiculous. It’s not like they had sex. But maybe that was it; sex wouldn’t have been anywhere nearly as personal as what they’d shared instead.
    “Thank you,” she mouthed back to him, pointing to her cell phone.
    He shrugged and turned her attention back to Eva. “I’m listening,” Andi said to Eva. “But we still need some sort of theme for the party. We might just need to go with a basic Christmas ho, ho, ho theme. You know, wreaths, holly, mistletoe, all that.”
    “No way.