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“I think he should. I’ll tell him that.”
“Okay. Klein is going to text me the coordinates and we can forward them on to Bryan. I know I’ve been close to the cave before. Papa Delta set up an impenetrable fog that disoriented people and kept them from the cave. I’ve seen the fog out mountain biking and cross-country skiing. I steered clear of it, but never thought too much about it. You see a lot of weird weather patterns exploring the mountains. Anyway, Klein wants us to tell Bryan that there was a cave, but they removed the gold and put it in a bank after their Papa died and then they blew the cave so nobody would bother them any longer.”
“That’s smart. So he can go search if he wants, but he’ll find nothing.”
Jace nodded.
“Then I guess he’ll have to figure out his gambling debacle and debts some other way. Hopefully the FBI will help him, put him in protective custody.” She twisted her hands together and muttered, “And I’ll have to find a new job.”
That was a selfish thought in the light of Bryan’s nightmare, but he’d created his own mess and she’d have to deal with the aftermath.
Just like when Tim had died.
Her stomach rolled. Bryan had her social security number, birth date, and account numbers to deposit her checks. What if he set her up like Tim did? Credit cards in her name? Withdrawing from the retirement account he’d supposedly set up for her? Planting incriminating evidence to make it look like she was the criminal in case the IRS or FBI came knocking?
Her head hurt thinking about it. On Tuesday, she would pull her credit report and do a search through all of her accounts just to make sure. There was nothing she could do right now but pray she was stressing for no reason and try to keep Bryan from getting himself killed.
“I am ninety-nine-point-nine percent sure there’s a job opening at a ski resort near here.” Jace eased a little closer and despite the heaviness of Bryan’s situation, he had a slight smile on his face.
“What kind of job?” Was he serious? She could only imagine such an impossible and appealing solution to her losing everything she’d worked so hard for with Bryan’s agency.
If only she could stay here, work with Jace, love him, learn to ski in this picturesque valley, have him convince her with his words, devotion, and lips that she could trust him and that she could be everything to this rock star of a man.
But dreams like that didn’t come true. Not for her.
“An event coordinator and marketing expert.”
“You just made that up.”
Was he trying to make her feel better or charm her into kissing him again? She’d happily kiss him, but trusting him completely was a different matter.
“I’m not. We’ve been looking for two part-time people because we thought we could maybe find a young mom or a college student, but we could easily make it a full-time position. I think you’d be incredible at both.”
Before she could formulate a response or even muddle through what she was thinking, he wrapped both of his hands around hers. Warm tingles spread through her.
“There’s also an opening as Jace Jardine’s girlfriend,” he said softly, tentatively, as if afraid she’d reject him. “A job that hasn’t accepted applicants in ten years.”
His dark gaze smoldered with a desire for her that she felt clear through. She was the only woman he’d wanted to be his girlfriend in ten years? He had been damaged by Iluminada, and he seemed to trust Ayla. If only she could throw her lack of trust and her responsibilities away.
“It’s a twenty-four-hour job, but there are a lot of benefits.” He leaned closer, his warm scent and soulful brown eyes capturing her. “Free ski lessons, free hugs, free lift tickets, free kissing, a deep discount at the ski shop and the Summit Lodge restaurant …”
“Only a deep discount?”
“Have to cover my base cost.”
She laughed. What she wanted to do was throw her arms around his neck and scream yes to both offers. Her natural impetuousness and her desire to be in Jace’s life begged her to.
Sadly, she had to slow down and be rational about this. He hadn’t said what the pay would be, and she couldn’t give up on being debt free, paying for her grandmother’s care, or being there for her parents. She couldn’t even imagine telling them she was moving to Colorado and deserting them. Shayna’s death had taken years off their lives.
She hated to do it, but she heard herself say, “I can’t tell you how tempting both offers are … but I can’t leave my parents or my grandma.”
Her parents would be truly alone and her grandma always told her Ayla’s visits several times a week were the highlights of her life. How could she desert them?
His eyes flashed a deep disappointment and hurt. He’d put himself out there with his sweet offers, and she’d rejected him.
How could she explain?
She didn’t want to hurt him or leave him. She wanted to trust him, kiss him, and never leave his side.
