The Mountain Man's Secret Twins(15)

Kenzie felt he was closing the door on his memories now. He clamped his mouth shut, his eyes growing gray and faraway.



“But you must have created more memories later?” Kenzie asked finally, trying to dig. “I couldn’t, since my parents divorced, but you—”



Bryce shook his head, turning his skates toward their base, where their things lay in the snow. “My parents? No. I haven’t talked to my parents in a long time,” he finally said.



Kenzie followed him toward the snow and collapsed upon the white fluff, still looking up at Bryce’s troubled face. Pressing her lips together, she searched for something else to bring up, something beyond the seemingly troubled past he wasn’t prepared to reveal. She brought her fingers around her ankles, noting how tender they felt.



“Skating is not for the faint of heart,” she said, flashing a grin.



Bryce released the crinkle between his eyebrows. He looked grateful that she’d dropped the topic of his parents and his memories. He began to unlace his shoelaces, his movements hurried. “You’re looking almost blue, Kenzie,” he said. “Let’s go sit by the fire. The clouds are coming over the moon, anyway. We’ll lose light fast.”



Kenzie untied her skates and slipped her feet into the frigid air, wiggling her toes beneath the wool. She donned her boots once more, her shoulders slumping with sudden fatigue. Her ankles and calves ached. She gave Bryce a cartoonish, needy look, and he grinned. “I know just what you’re up to.”



“I’m not up to anything,” Kenzie said. “I just know for a fact that I can’t get through that snow. So you can either leave me to die out here or you can carry me.” She winked, happy to be playful with him again.



Bryce strapped the ice skates around his neck, two hanging on either side of his chest. He lifted Kenzie easily, drawing her face close to his. He swiped his fingers through her hair. Gazing into his eyes, Kenzie tried to draw out the truth of his past. What had darkened him so much that he’d refused to leave his cabin in the woods for 12 years? Was he so stoic, so clamped shut, that she’d never learn the truth?



As they walked toward the truck, Kenzie felt her eyelids close. She leaned her head heavily against his shoulder, her chin bouncing slightly as she snoozed. With her head so close to his muscly chest, she could hear the strength of his heart booming beneath his ribcage. She’d never been so attracted to a man in her life.#p#分页标题#e#



Once they reached the truck, Bryce eased her into the passenger seat, attempting not to wake her. But her eyes snapped open quickly, taking in the sight of his reddened cheeks above his beard.



“We’ll get you home soon,” Bryce said, his voice soft. “Then you can rest.”



But with Bryce sitting beside her in the driver’s seat, easing the truck back up the mountain, Kenzie’s nose steamed with the smell of him. She sat tensely, unable to find words, listening to the crackly radio. It was after midnight now, and the local radio played only oldies. The DJ, a man named Marty, explained that a famous actor and singer from the ’40s had hidden out in their mountains for several years, attempting to hide from his many Hollywood scandals. A song, sung by that particular singer, began rasping from the speaker. Bryce chuckled.



“What?” Kenzie asked, glancing at him.



“It’s just all these legends this town has,” he said, shaking his head and turning the volume down. “They’re always talking about people who’ve lived here, or people who have died here, or people who have created famous pieces of art here,” he said, laughing. “But the only people I’ve ever known who have lived here are suckers who’ve gotten stuck here, or alcoholics, or people like me who just want to be left alone.”



“Sure, but who’s to say you aren’t the next famous writer, or guitarist, or artist from Vermont?” Kenzie teased.



Bryce shrugged. “I have better things to do with my time.”



“Oh, and what on earth could you possibly do that’s more important than writing the next great American novel?” Kenzie asked.



“Well, today at least, I’m busy flirting with a pretty girl. And tomorrow, who knows? Something always comes up.” He eyed her, causing her to blush. The tension between them increased dramatically, making the air thick. Kenzie was unable to speak. She crossed her legs tightly for the remainder of the drive, listening to the ’40s crooner and thinking about Bryce’s words. He’d acknowledged he was attracted to her. He’d pushed them over the line.