My Favorite Souvenir(8)

The only problem would be getting there in this blizzard.

I was waiting for her in the lobby when Maddie exited the elevators. Damn, she was beautiful. Wild red hair and a dusting of freckles over her nose. She wore a white knit hat that matched her white puffer jacket. She looked like a living snow angel. Despite the obvious pain she’d experienced lately, her whole face still it up when she smiled. Yeah, there were definitely way worse situations to be stuck in. I wasn’t minding this at all.

My adventure partner had her camera strapped around her neck inside a leather case. She looked like she’d put some lipstick on. This girl was gorgeous without a drop of makeup, but the fact that she’d done that made me wonder if she was trying to impress me. She hadn’t given me any inkling that she was interested. I was sort of sick for even thinking about it since she was fresh off getting her heart broken. Technically, she was supposed to be on her honeymoon. That was so fucked up. I’d had a little rage brewing inside me ever since she’d told me what her ex pulled—definitely a weird reaction to have on behalf of someone I barely knew.

When she was right in front of me, I could also smell that she’d added some perfume.

“You look nice.”

“Thanks.” Her fair skin turned pink. “So, what’s this all about?”

“You’ll see. Wouldn’t be an adventure if I told you, now would it?”

“Oh boy. What am I getting myself into?”

“You’ll be fine. I’d never let anything happen to my sister.” I winked.

The first thing I needed to figure out was how the hell we were going to get from point A to point B.

“Stay here for a minute, okay? I’m gonna try to arrange for a ride.”

“Good luck with that.”

“Questioning my ability to work my magic, eh? Are you forgetting how we got our rooms in the first place?”

She laughed as I walked backwards, flashing her a cocky grin and wriggling my brows. Too bad I nearly crashed my ass into a moving luggage cart.

Her lack of confidence only made me more determined to make this ride happen.

I walked over to the concierge to see if there was any chance in hell he could help. “I’m looking for a ride out of here and back in a few hours. I was wondering if you could help me.”

Without even looking up from his desk, he said, “Driving conditions are very poor, sir. It’s not advisable to be out on the road, even if I were able to arrange that.”

“Let me ask again.” I took out my wallet and slammed down a fifty-dollar bill. “Can you help me with a ride to Parkside Resort and back in about three hours?”

He took the fifty. “Give me a minute to see what I can do.”

The concierge made a few calls while I waited at the desk. I looked back over at Maddie, who was nervously bopping her legs up and down. She smiled when she noticed me watching her. That smile was worth way more than fifty bucks.

The concierge hung up the phone. “Good news. I was able to find a driver with a Toyota 4Runner who can take you to where you need to go.”

“Sweet. Thanks, man.”

A few minutes later, the black SUV pulled up in front of the hotel. We exited out the revolving doors and got in the backseat. A large man sat behind the wheel.

“Thanks a lot for doing this,” I said to him, blowing hot air into my cold hands. I promptly grabbed my gloves out of my pockets and put them on.

The guy turned to look at us. “They don’t call me Crazy Abe for nothing. Makes no sense how people can grow up around here and get freaked out over snow.”

“My thoughts exactly.”

“You headed to Parkside Resort?”

“Yes.”

She looked at me. “We’re going to a ski resort?”

“Maybe.”

“Wow. Okay. It’s funny, here I was thinking I was going to leave Vail without really enjoying the snow. But…are they even open?”

“Don’t worry. I got connections.”

My aunt and uncle owned Parkside, and I had a key to the gondola. Hopefully my plans would work out.

It soon became apparent that Crazy Abe had earned his name. The guy was driving way too fast, considering the road conditions.

It probably shouldn’t have surprised me, then, when he drove right into an embankment.

“Shit!” Maddie screamed.

“Are you okay?” It took me a few seconds to realize I’d thrown out a protective arm and my hand had landed across her chest. Even through her coat, I could feel the softness of her breasts.

“Yeah,” she breathed out. “I’m fine.”

“Sorry about that!” Abe yelled.

The wheels on the SUV kept turning to no avail as he pushed on the gas. We were officially stuck. Without hesitating, I got out of the car and began to push from the back, trying to help Abe get us moving.

It was clear more manpower was going to be needed, though.

I walked over to the driver’s side window. “You mind helping me move this thing? She can get behind the wheel and press on the gas while you work with me.”

He shook his head. “Sorry, no can do.”

“What do you mean?”

“I got a bad back. Can’t risk straining it. I’ll end up in the hospital.”

This dude was gonna end up in the hospital for another reason if he didn’t get his ass out here and help me.