Page 26 of Cold and Bitter Snow

That’s Switzerland for you.

“They say it’ll be good for business but she can’t leave soon enough, as far as I’m concerned,” Laurent said.

Siena sat back at her desk to work. At least, she hadn’t thought of Conor for at least ten minutes.

Chapter 9

Conor

The hours between Monday night and Tuesday morning crawled by.

Amongst the slope maintenance staff Conor was known for his focus. He could trawl more miles more reliably than any of the other snow groomers because nothing could take his mind away from the job.

Except for Siena Blake, it appears.

He couldn’t stop thinking about her. Or rather, about the way he’d treated her the previous night.

They’d had amazing sex—probably the most sensational sex he’d ever had, unless he’d completely forgotten what sex felt like with other partners.

And then he’d fallen asleep—in somebody else’s room—with his arms around her.

For the first time in forever, it wasn’t a nightmare that had woken him up in the middle of the night, but rather Siena’s warm butt as she’d snuggled closer to him. In that instant between sleep and wakefulness he’d held her closer to his body and felt … happy.

The unexpected feeling jarred him awake. He’d felt the onset of a panic attack the likes of which he hadn’t felt in years. He hadn’t come to Switzerland to be happy. Happiness was the one thing he didn’t deserve.

He’d gotten dressed as quickly and quietly as he could and put on his boots. He hadn’t been able to resist looking at Siena again as she slept. She looked so beautiful and peaceful, it made him want to get closer to her, even as he knew he should be running in the opposite direction to protect her.

To stop himself from crawling back into bed with her he’d hastily left the room and run almost all the way back to his apartment.

It was only later that he realized he should have woken Siena up to tell her he was leaving, or at least left her a note. He’d worried about it all day, until his shift had started, and then all night while he trawled the snow. But he still didn’t know how to fix it.

You’re not a teenager. Go and see her.

It seemed like the obvious answer but he wasn’t sure she’d want to see him.

He was just leaving the maintenance garage after his shift when he heard Luc’s voice behind him. Conor turned around to see the younger man wheel himself towards the door.

“Conor! Are you going for a run today, or heading back home?”

“Hey Luc,” Conor said. “I’m going back into town.”

“Going skiing with your lady again?”

Conor looked down. He didn’t want to lie to his friend, but he also couldn’t bring himself to tell him the whole story.

“I don’t think so. I kind of … fucked up,” he said.

Luc looked at him with his kind, blue eyes. “I’m sorry to hear that. Whatever it is, I’m sure it can be fixed. Maybe you should go talk to her about it.”

“Yeah, maybe.”

“You seem to carry enough weight on your shoulders as it is,” Luc remarked quietly. “Come with me, I’ll get you down faster than the gondola lift.”

Most snow groomers used the lift to get to and from the maintenance garage, but Luc always came in a snowmobile that’d been especially outfitted for his use.

Conor watched Luc transfer himself from his chair to the snowmobile using only his arms. The movement required serious upper body strength but Luc made it look easy. Conor knew better than to offer his friend any help. Next, Luc reached back and folded his portable chair, securing it to the back of the snowmobile.

“Hop on,” Luc said. “Unless you’re afraid?”