Forever wasn’t an option.

“Ally? Would it be so terrible?”

She sounded a little down, and a horrible thought occurred to Ally. “You’re not sick or anything, right? It’s just your hip and ankle-”

“No, I’m not secretly dying and trying to prepare you, if that’s what you’re asking. I’m going to live to a ripe old age. I’d just like to do that with some family around, that’s all.”

“But…why me? I know the family is small, but there’s my sisters and my parents-”

“Your sisters would never enjoy it here, they’re far too spoiled for this life, though I do have hopes that’ll change one of these days.”

“It already has,” Ally said grimly, thinking about how she’d told them just that morning, again, that they needed to work more hours to help pay for their own tuition. “They’re going to grow up, whether they like it or not.”

“Glad to hear it. And as for your parents, delightful as they are, they’re just not interested in Wyoming, and I can’t blame them for that. Look, honey…all I’m asking is for you to think about it.”

As if she’d be able to do anything else. But fun as this may be, Wyoming wasn’t her home.

“Oh, and if you want to jump Chance’s bones while you’re at it, that’s fine with me, too.”

Ally pulled the phone from her ear and stared at it in shock. “Lucy!”

With a loud cackle, she disconnected and Ally was left staring at the receiver, Lucy’s laughter still ringing in her ears, and the words “jump Chance’s bones” echoing in her brain.

It embarrassed her to admit just how much she’d thought about doing exactly that.

5

THE NEXT MORNING WAS cool and drizzly. Despite the weather, Chance decided to go ahead with the chair evacuation training he’d planned.

It meant everyone was going to be cold and wet for the next few hours, but in his opinion, this was a good thing. If he could have, he’d have trained everyone in a full-blown blizzard in order to simulate the worst possible conditions, but he’d settle for what he could get.

The faux evacuation was routine, performed throughout the year, and because he expected everyone on his staff to have hands-on training, all staff members participated.

He’d long ago learned the key to his success as a manager. Make it fun. Make it an adventure. Never let on that what they were doing was work, and hard work at that.

So he grinned in spite of the rain running down his neck, and rubbed his hands together. “Who’s up for a ten-mile run to warm up?”

Everyone groaned.

“Good, everyone then.”

More groans, and he laughed. “See? Chair evacuation training is a piece of cake.”

“We’re going to get hit by lightning,” Jo grumbled, stuffing her wild red hair beneath a beanie knit cap.

“Nah, you’re too ornery for that.”

“There’s a ton of paperwork to be done.”

He flicked the tassel on her silly cap. “It’s barely raining, and there’s no lightning in sight. Besides, you hate paperwork.”

“Oh yeah.”

They all gathered beneath the operating ski lift, staring up at it as the rain came down.

“I don’t hate paperwork at the moment,” Jo decided.

Chance nudged her forward. “Guess who’s first?”

“And to think I told Ally what a charming boss you were.”

“I am charming.” Not that Ally would agree, which of course was how he wanted it.

He’d dreamed about her, which had really fried him. He’d dreamed about how she would have tasted if he’d given into temptation, if he’d hauled her in his arms beneath that moonlit night and kissed them both to hot oblivion. “Let’s get cracking,” he barked, furious at himself for letting her get to him.

“Ever thought about becoming an officer in the army?” Brian asked, huddled beneath the steel lift with the rest of the staff. “You’d be good at it.”

“Yeah, right. Military.” That’s the life his older brothers had chosen, not him. He ran his own life, always. “And why are you here? I thought you already worked your hours for the week.”

“I did.”

The kid’s light cotton clothing was inappropriate for this weather, and he was already soaked to the bone, dammit. “So if you already worked,” Chance said as patiently as he could. “Why are you getting wet for no reason?”

Brian muttered something beneath his breath and lifted a negligent shoulder.

“Speak up, would you?”

“He said he wants to make ski patrol.”

Ally stepped into the clearing. She was bundled from head to toe today, which amused him. She looked…amazing, which didn’t amuse him. She wore sleek black leggings tucked into boots. Her parka was nipped in at the waist, and her hood completely covered her hair, and nearly her entire face, so that all he could see of her were her eyes. They matched the stormy sky. “Well, at least you’ve got your own jacket,” he noted.

“I try not to make the same mistake twice in a row.” She met his gaze evenly, which surprised him. So did the dare he found glowing there. “Brian wants to be a part of this.”

He started shaking his head before she even finished her sentence. “He’s too young for ski patrol.”

“Yes, but the training would be good experience.”

“Hey, I’m already experienced.” Brian straightened with a show of bravado that completely belied the uncertainty in his eyes, and the definite expectation of being rejected.

Damn, but something twisted inside Chance at that. No kid should look like that, no matter how irritating he was. “You want in when you’re old enough, then you’re in. If you’re not in any trouble.”

“I won’t be.”

“Whatever you say, Slick. But you have to be able to pass the Emergency Medical Technician course and keep up on the slopes.”

Brian had gone utterly still. “I can do that,” he said very seriously.

Chance was sure he would, or die trying. Still, he had to admit, it was nice to see that something meant so much to the kid that he’d forgotten to scowl. Everyone needed something to be passionate about, and being busy as hell just might keep him out of jail. “Then I guess you can consider this pretraining. Do you ever dress right?”

Brian looked down at himself. “This is all I have.”

Ah hell. Why him? “Run up to the office and grab one of my rain gear sets.”

Ally shot him a look of bright hope and affection, and deepening his scowl, Chance turned away from her. They spent the next half hour setting up the mock exercise. All but two of them would get on the running lift, then the two left on the ground would put the evacuation into effect. They’d take turns with that role, removing everyone off the lift, until each of them had the procedure down.

Through the set up, Ally remained on site, standing there in the rain. Chance ignored her. He went through the different possible scenarios with the staff, then spent some time demonstrating what to do in each of those instances.

And still Ally stayed.

And still he ignored her.

They were all drenched by the time the majority of them got onto the lifts for the first “rescue,” including his new, and temporary, boss. Water ran off her rain gear in little rivulets. Her eyes were wide and clear and bright. Excited. She smiled at him, her long, long lashes spiked with rain, and something deep inside him tightened. Ached.

It pissed him off. She was too damn…bright. Happy. Vulnerable. And it made him feel vulnerable, too. He hated that. “What are you still doing here?” he asked in his most intimidating, go-away voice.

She smiled sweetly. “Same thing you are.”

“No.”

“No?” She tipped her head as if she didn’t understand the word.

“Look…” He put his hands on his hips and gave her his scariest go-away look to match the voice. “Do you even know how to ski?”

“Well…no.” She sent him that little smile again.

He kept his gaze on hers so he wouldn’t think about kissing that little smile right off of her mouth. “So there’s little chance you’ll ever actually be on ski patrol.”

“I want to learn this.”

He sighed and remembered the phone call he’d gotten from Lucy just the night before. Are you making her have fun? She’s not had enough of that, Chance.

Obviously Lucy didn’t know what a pain in the-

“Please?” Ally asked, her eyes warm and hopeful, her mouth so full and kissable he ached.

“Oh, get on the damn lift.”

She shot him a megawatt smile. “Thanks.”

“You can thank me if you live.”

Tim, one of their lift operators, slowed the lift down to a crawl. Ally moved toward it, her smile looking a bit brittle now as she stared at the moving chair.

“Get on.”

“Okay.” But she didn’t move, only licked her lips and fisted her hands at her side.

“What the hell is the matter now?”

“Um…nothing.”

Uh-huh. And he was the Tooth Fairy. She was petrified, anyone could see that. He could have told her she didn’t have to do this, but she’d pushed the issue and now she’d damn well train with the rest of them, even though not all managers, and certainly few actual resort owners, spent time in training anymore.

Finally she stepped in front of the chair, water running down the new parka that hid her every curve. Didn’t seem to matter, since Chance could still picture them perfectly.

Ally craned her neck and looked upward at the moving chairs. Then she spent a moment getting ready, facing away from the approaching lift, yet looking at it over her shoulder. The correct position, except for the trepidation in her gaze.

“Uh-oh,” Jo murmured to Chance, echoing his thoughts exactly.

When the chair hit the back of Ally’s knees, she let out a little squeal that clearly translated her terror.

“Looks like this rescue might become a real one,” Brian said, watching Ally clutch at the steel support on the chair and nearly miss.