Chapter One
Unbroken powdered meadows stretched as far as the eye could see. Snow so pure and undisturbed it gave Sydney Boyle the impression she was alone, instead of perched upon one of the many winding trails within the Big Horn Mountains.
Straddling a stationary snowmobile, she pushed her goggles up to rest against her helmet. Nearly blinded by the bright sun reflecting off the ocean of white, she squinted until her eyes adjusted. She smiled beneath the ski mask protecting her face from the freezing temperatures.
How could anything be so perfect?
Majestic mountains stretched toward a crystal blue sky. The air smelled so clean and fresh, tinted lightly with the scent of pine. And then the silence. So serene that life itself seemed to stand still.
Yes. This was perfection.
No office. No computer. No clients or customers. Just her and…God—
The sudden roar of an engine shattered Sydney’s perfect moment, jerking her from the bewitching spell. Disappointment and irritation clashed as the noise grew louder and nearer. Glancing over her shoulder, she watched a rider top the hill. The snowmobile caught air, soaring high above the ground. For a moment, her heart skipped a beat. Then the heavy machine landed with a thud, grooving deep ruts in the pristine haven.
Sydney shook her head. She knew the interloper wasn’t her sister Cameron, or one of the three friends she had arrived with that afternoon. No. The rider oblivious to the peace he had disturbed would be Sean—her older and very arrogant brother, bane of her existence, and, unfortunately, her boss.
Sydney clenched her jaws, her gloved fingers tightening around the handlebars of her ride. The man was exasperating.
Sudden sorrow swept over her like the brisk breeze stirring the loose powder to rise and shift across the ground. She inhaled a shuddering breath. The sting in her eyes and chest wasn’t only from the cold. After Sean Duncan Senior had passed away last spring of heart failure, his only son had returned home from finishing his doctorate to take over the reins of their family’s publishing business in New Jersey.
Sean made several sharp turns testing his new machine, or maybe he was showing off, although surely not for her.
Something itchy crawled beneath her skin. More irritation? Why did she let him trouble her? Sydney pulled in a breath and exhaled, steadying herself.
Maybe it was time to quit—move on.
Emotion thickened in her throat with the thought of leaving the only stable life she had ever known. No. She would stay because she loved being an editor.
What a crock. Not that she didn’t adore being an editor, but Sydney remained because she loved the Duncans. They were family.
Abandoned at the age of two, she had been in and out of foster homes. At the age of twelve, Shay and Sean Duncan Senior had taken her in and raised her with their two children. They made her feel welcomed, wanted—a part of their family. Well, with the exception of Sean, and maybe that had been her fault. They hadn’t exactly started off on the right foot.
Just a girl flirting with her teens, Sydney had had an awful crush on Sean. Long, dark hair, broody, with a touch of bad boy, the seventeen-year-old had been the epitome of what every girl dreamed of. That was until he embarrassed her in front of three of his friends.
His exact words had been, “Get lost, squirt. I’m too old to hang around you.”
Later he had tried to apologize, but what was done was done. Sydney didn’t need anyone, especially a cocky boy. Thankfully, a year later he left for Harvard.
As he pulled to a stop beside her, his vehicle making a percolating sound, she glanced away. Old habits were hard to break.
“You’re still angry at me for rejecting your book?” His deep voice was muffled beneath his ski mask.
Slowly she turned to face him. Behind his shaded goggles she could only imagine his gray-blue eyes narrowed, or was he laughing at her this time?
Sydney raised her chin. “I’m a professional. It’s your right to veto a manuscript. You’re the boss.”
Honestly? The story needed work. Yet the author had something special in her voice that had called to Sydney. If only she hadn’t been so flustered with Sean during their meeting. She couldn’t find the right words to support her case. But his presence had always left her befuddled. It didn’t help that he was God’s gift to women. Tall, dark and far too handsome for his own good, Sean had women coming out of the woodwork.
Not that she cared one iota.
“Cameron’s snowmobile quit halfway up the mountain. The rest of the group is calling it a day.” Sean stared at her for longer than was comfortable. “You know you shouldn’t go off by yourself. What if that had been you?”
Was she two or twenty-two?
Sydney ground her teeth together. When would he stop treating her like a child? The last thing she needed was to be chastised, especially by him.