Unexpectedly Hers(18)

“We both know the end of my probation won’t make everyone in town forget how I plowed into Grey when I got behind the wheel after happy hour.”

“Grey forgave you. The town will follow his lead. Be patient.” She hoped she was right. Then again, many “good Christian people” like her own mother could be quick to cast judgment, and slow to forgive. It’d already been almost nine months, and some people still looked down their noses at Andy. If her link to Steep and Deep got out, she’d end up like Hester Prynne.

Wyatt clomped down the stairs, decked out in his snowboard apparel. While they’d been talking, the film crew had collected in the lobby. A black helmet hid Wyatt’s gorgeous curls. The blue, white, and black design of his Burton jacket looked almost like ocean waves splashing across his chest and shoulders. His backpack hung on one shoulder. He carried his board under one arm, and what looked like orthopedic braces in the other.

“What’s that stuff?” Emma quietly asked, nodding at the odd gear in Wyatt’s hand.

“Spinal protection pads and impact shorts.” Andy narrowed his gaze. “Guess he’s still debating whether to put those on. Uncomfortable stuff, so I get why he’d put it off until necessary.”

Emma’s brain had stuttered on the words “spinal protection.” How silly she’d been to lecture him about danger as if he hadn’t already known. Seeing that gear drove home Ryder’s concerns.

Of all the people on the planet, why had it been Wyatt who’d rented the inn this month? Not that she wouldn’t care about other people’s health and safety, but why did it have to be Wyatt?

The sinking feeling that karma had come ’round to kick her butt for writing erotica was weighing her down. Payback for being excited about having been a little naughty. For wanting something more than her quiet, sometimes lonely, life in Sterling Canyon.

Contrary to everything she’d been taught, she’d unleashed the little devil in her soul. Now she wondered who would pay the price for her deceit?

“What’s wrong, Em?” Andy slung his arm around her shoulders. “You look upset.”

“Nothing. It’s just dawning on me how dangerous Wyatt’s job is.”

Andy shrugged. “Trip and Grey go out in the backcountry all the time. Granted, they don’t have to push the jumps and tricks like Wyatt will need to, but that guy knows what he’s doing. Chillax.”

Emma rolled her eyes and elbowed Andy’s ribs. Chillax?

She crossed to the group, carrying Wyatt’s lunch and snacks, hoping for a truce. “Give me your backpack, Wyatt. I’ve got your lunch here. There’s a cooler in the kitchen for the crew.”

“I’ll grab it,” Andy called out.

Wyatt handed her his backpack. His demeanor had cooled considerably since she’d last seen him in the kitchen. This persona must be his so-called game face.

“Where’s Ryder?” Mari asked, sounding annoyed.

“He’s not coming.” Wyatt didn’t look at anyone. Before Mari could comment or question, he ordered, “Let’s head out.”

Andy returned with the cooler and enthusiastically helped Wyatt carry those pads. Whatever he said to Wyatt caused him to smile, for which Emma felt both grateful and envious. Maybe Ryder couldn’t give his brother the confidence boost he needed, but Andy would send Wyatt off feeling optimistic.

Emma closed the front door behind them to keep out the cold. Ryder then appeared, sunglasses on and cane in hand, and approached her. Together they watched the team file into the van and drive off.

“Are you okay?” Emma asked, her heart squeezing with empathy.

“He’s doing this for me. For money to help me.”

Ah. Not so ego driven, then.

Ryder continued, “He thinks this will all make me happy, like before. But I never asked for this.”

Neither spoke as Andy came back inside and disappeared. Emma noted the strain around Ryder’s mouth. Wyatt was right about one thing: Emma didn’t know Ryder or his moods. And if he had been part of the planning for this whole project, maybe he did want to be involved. Maybe today’s attitude had more to do with jitters or being wiped out from a long trip than a true change of heart.

“Seeing as he has decided to do it, maybe the best thing you could do for him now is get behind his effort.” Emma set a hand on his shoulder.

Ryder’s forehead wrinkled, and then he pressed it against the glass. Turning his head, he plastered his cheek to the window and peered up at the sky. “All this snow. He’s not used to that. Slopestyle courses are p-perfectly groomed. Known.”