But as she’d awakened over and over again in the middle of the night from yet another sexy dream about Noah, her skin sensitive and overheated as her sheets brushed over it, she’d found herself wondering why she’d ever compared Rob to Noah.
Sure, she hadn’t really known Noah apart from the warmth of his arms around her. And his strength and his ability to hold her steady even as she’d sent them tumbling together down the mountain. And his concern for a complete stranger when Colbie had bit the dust avoiding a small child in the snow. And his patience and encouragement in teaching her to ski.
But hadn’t she known for far longer than she’d wanted to admit to herself that Rob wasn’t going to be her forever? And hadn’t she simply stayed with him out of the fear of being alone? Yes, it had hurt when she’d caught him cheating, but how much of it had been her heart that hurt...and how much of it had been the fact that he’d stung her pride with his callous behavior?
Suddenly, she wished she could rewind to that day on the slopes. She wished she could have been brave enough to accept more than an offer to learn to ski from a sinfully gorgeous man, whose strong and steady heartbeat she could still feel against her cheek in her dreams.
"Why didn’t I get his number, at least?"
Mia carefully tucked the tissue-wrapped French lingerie into her purse. "You should call Rafe. I’ll bet he could help you find the guy."
Colbie started laughing, then stopped when she realized her friend was serious. "You really think I should hire a private investigator to find a guy I spent a few hours with in Lake Tahoe?"
"Look," Mia said, looking as serious as she ever got, "I heard all that stuff you said about not wanting to be distracted by a guy right now, but you and I both know that your store is going to do really well whether or not you’re dating someone. I think the real reason you blew off what sounded like a super-hot, super-great guy was because your ex made you lose faith in all men, rather than just him." Mia’s expression turned fierce. "Rob didn’t deserve you while you were dating, and he sure as heck doesn’t deserve to ruin your next relationship, too."
Mia pulled her cell phone out of her purse, scrolled through the numbers in her contacts, and put it to her ear. Before Colbie could tackle her friend and make her drop the phone, she was saying, "Hey, Rafe, Colbie needs to talk to you about something really important."
She had no choice but to take the phone Mia shoved into her hand. "Hi, Rafe."
"Colbie, it’s been too long." She knew he was grinning, just from the sound of his voice. "How are things?"
Every one of Mia’s brothers was good-looking and charming, but she’d always felt the most comfortable with Rafe. Which was a good thing, considering the very embarrassing favor Mia wanted her to ask of him.
"Mia’s helping me get my new store ready to open tomorrow morning."
Okay, she told herself as she answered his questions about the store, even if Rafe did find Noah, it didn’t mean she had to marry him. She could just ask him on a date and then, depending on how that went, they could see if it made sense to go on another one. Really, there was no need to be so nervous about seeing him again. It wasn’t like he was going to declare his undying love to her, or anything.
Besides, given that Mia would never let her hear the end of it if she didn’t bite the bullet—she knew her friend was only trying to look out for her, even if her methods were a bit unorthodox—Colbie took a breath and barreled ahead.
"The thing is, Rafe, I was wondering if you could help me find someone."
* * *
An hour later…
Mia was surprised to find her brother waiting in her real estate office when she got back from helping Colbie a short while later. Not, of course, that any of the Sullivan Realty staff minded keeping Rafe entertained in her absence. Fortunately, her brother knew she’d kill him if he so much as looked at any of her employees the wrong way. As far as she was concerned every woman in Seattle was fair game except for the six women who worked for her.
"I’m glad you’re here," she told him when he finally extricated himself from her staff and closed her office door behind him. She handed him a color printout she’d been saving for him. "I found the perfect summer cabin for you."
"I don’t need a summer cabin," he told her, but when he looked at the picture of the cabin and started reading, she smiled and sat back in her chair to watch him. As kids, their parents used to rent a cabin on a lake in the Cascades every summer. All of them had a good time swimming and fishing and hiking, but Rafe had loved it more than any of them.