“I was working on budgets and forecasts. Not my favorite occupation for two in the morning. And now I want to forget about work.”
She didn’t want to forget about work. It was vitally important to her that she didn’t forget about work or she’d start thinking about him and the chemistry. And that kiss. Oh, God, that kiss.
He was a client and she wasn’t used to blurring the lines.
“Tell me about growing up at Snow Crystal.”
“I’d rather talk about you.”
“I’m boring.”
“Most people who work hard, play hard.” He sat back as Tally removed their plates. “You don’t seem to be one of those.”
“I have fun doing what I do. My clients are beneficiaries of that.”
“I can think of at least ten minutes earlier today when you weren’t thinking about work.”
That moment had been simmering between them all day.
“What happened earlier was a mistake, Jackson.”
“You think so?” His gaze flicked to hers. “Generally I know when I’m making a mistake. Coming back here sometimes feels like one. Working at 2:00 a.m. always feels like one. Kissing you, didn’t.”
Desperate, she latched on to the one part of the conversation that wasn’t personal. “Why does it feel like a mistake to have come back?”
“I’m not going to let you do that. I’m not going to let you shift this conversation.” His gaze was locked on hers. He didn’t look away. Not even when Tally delivered the main course to the table—rack of lamb served with baby vegetables and crushed herbed potatoes. “Tell me why you were willing to work over Christmas.”
“You heard Brett—I feast on difficult. Except right now I’d rather be feasting on this. Élise is a fabulous chef.” Kayla focused on the food on her plate, wondering why being close to him made her nervous. “I’m not going to be able to move tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow I’m giving you a ski lesson. You will have sweated off the calories by lunchtime. So you don’t see your folks during the holidays?”
He wasn’t going to let it drop.
Kayla put her fork down, leaving her food untouched. “What was it you said today in the forest? Something about preferring it straight? I’m going to give it to you straight, Jackson. This may come as a shock given that your home seems to be a sanctuary for decorations and a breeding colony for gingerbread Santas, but not everyone is addicted to Christmas. Some of us don’t like the holidays too much. In fact—” she hesitated and then decided it was time to be honest “—I hate it. It’s my least favorite time of year. I was willing to work over Christmas because it seemed like the perfect escape. Does that answer your question?”
CHAPTER NINE
IT DIDN’T BEGIN to answer his question, but that was probably because he had a bunch of them.
“You came here to escape Christmas?”
“I thought it might be easier.” She picked up her knife and fork and sliced through the lamb. “I thought I had more chance of avoiding festivities here than I did there. You promised me a secluded log cabin. It sounded appealing.”
“And then you found out my family makes a big fuss of Christmas.”
“Mmm.” She chewed. “That came as a bit of a shock, but I’m over it now.”
“Why do you hate this time of year?”
“It’s frustrating trying to get anything done. Publications run on a skeleton staff, opportunities for coverage go down, people in the office walk round wearing ridiculous bits of tinsel in their hair—”
“That tells me why Christmas is inconvenient. It doesn’t tell me why you hate it.”
A few seconds passed.
“It just isn’t a happy time of year for me.” She said it quietly and he felt something tug inside him.
In the flickering candlelight he could see the thickness of her lashes and the smooth curve of her cheek. In her black dress, she looked younger. More vulnerable. Less like the killer PR expert and more like a woman. And he knew, deep in his gut, that there was some much deeper, darker reason for her dislike of Christmas than the inconvenience of the holiday season.
He remembered how pale she’d looked decorating the Christmas tree. She’d seemed as fragile as the frosted silver decoration she’d held in her hand.
“I’ll try to make sure you’re not subjected to too much Christmas during your stay.”
“Oh—” she smiled, back to being her detached, professional self “—it’s really not that much of a big deal.”
It was obviously a huge deal. He heard it in her voice and saw it in the way she held herself.