Ross gave a short laugh. “Sounds crazy when you put it that way, doesn’t it? The short answer is that Jenna looked for a job for a long time back home, and didn’t find anything. This was a big step up for her.”
“And the long version?”
He dragged his fingers through his hair. “The long version? Honestly? Jenna and I both screwed up—big—when we were kids. We got pregnant too young and married too young. Somewhere down deep we’ve both been looking for a fresh start. This was the first chance we’d had to start over and be somewhere no one knew us.”
He’d had no idea it would feel so good to admit it. Say it out loud. Somehow the desire that had made him feel slightly guilty when he talked about it with his family sounded reasonable when he explained it to Kelsey. “My family is great, but as far as they’re concerned, I’m still the same guy I was back in high school, and Jenna’s the same girl. They can’t see that we’ve changed. My brother Brit thinks I’m some kind of playboy, with a different woman every night.”
Kelsey laughed. “Wow—a playboy? He doesn’t know you at all, does he?”
He found it unexpectedly comforting to hear her, of all people, say that so lightly and easily. The absurdity of it struck him and he chuckled. “He’s just jealous because I got to take Jenna to the prom and he didn’t.”
“Surely he has to see how successful you’ve been, and what a good dad you are.”
“I could be the richest man in the world, but he’ll always be my older brother.” The wine was starting to go to his head a little, a dim buzz beginning in the back of his brain, and Kelsey’s body was calling to him with the power of a siren’s song. Before he knew it, he had moved from his spot by the counter and was behind Kelsey, his hands on her shoulders. Gently, he rubbed the tight muscles he found there. “Jesus, how bad have the kids been this week?”
“It’s not the kids. I’ve been running a lot lately with the backpack.” She gave a soft moan of pleasure. “That feels amazing.”
“Patented move,” he said, trailing his hand around the neckline of her shirt.
“Maybe you are a playboy.”
She leaned into his touch in a way that made his groin tighten.
“When you’re around, I wish I were.”
“You know, I’m not sure I’ve ever inspired a man that way before.”
He could hear a rueful laugh in her voice, and realized at that moment how little he still knew about her. “So now you know all about my family—what about yours? I don’t even know—do you have any siblings? Are your parents here in Colorado?”
“My dad’s here. He’s all I’ve got, really. I never knew my grandparents. My mom had a falling-out with her parents when she decided she wanted to be a climber, and my dad’s folks are in Arizona. We never see them.”
“Your mom was a climber? I had no idea.”
“Yeah.” Her voice lost some of the warmth it had held, and he immediately regretted the question. “That’s how she met my dad. They did Everest together the year before I was born.”
“And after you were born?”
“They kept climbing.” She turned away and took a deliberate drink. “We moved to Colorado when I was thirteen. She died a few months later.”
“I’m sorry,” he said, the words feeling hopelessly inadequate.
Kelsey shrugged. “It was a long time ago. Anyway, Boulder’s really perfect for climbers because you get accustomed to the altitude. And there’s perfect biking and training runs. I can’t imagine being anywhere else.” She held out her empty glass. “Any chance I can get a refill?”
She was obviously closing the door to further conversation so he didn’t push. Instead, he took her glass from her hand and set it on the counter, and then pulled her to standing. Quietly, he stared into her eyes. For the first time, he realized they weren’t just uniformly brown, but were flecked with amber.
Her eyelashes were tipped with gold.
“You are unlike anyone I’ve ever known,” he said.
“Ditto,” she replied.
“Thank goodness we know this isn’t going anywhere. Because we’re clearly from different worlds.”
“Clearly.”
He sighed, felt the knot holding him back unravel, and leaned forward to kiss her.
Chapter Ten
In Kelsey’s experience, kissing had always been a fairly ho-hum part of the sexual routine. At best, it served as a precursor for the more pleasurable things that came later. At worst, it involved some awkward head movements and a little more saliva than was entirely comfortable.