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“So you know everyone from the front desk to the popular ski instructor?”
“Popular ski instructor?” Kayleigh asked.
“I hit the slopes, which is where I met Wilder,” Hudson said. “Do you know him?”
Kayleigh laughed. “You could say that perhaps I know him the best of all employees here.”
“Oh. Boyfriend?” Hudson wouldn’t have been surprised, though the match of resort manager and ski instructor seemed a bit lopsided.
Kayleigh grimaced. “No. Nope. Never.”
“Why? He seemed like a really nice guy.”
“Oh, he is,” she agreed readily enough. “And I’ll be sure to let our parents know that you think so.”
“Parents?”
“Yep. Wilder is my little brother. Well, one of them.”
“Your brother?”
“Yes. I have six brothers, but Wilder is the only one that works here.”
“Sixbrothers?” Hudson couldn’t even imagine.
“Six brothers and three sisters.”
“You have a big family.”
“That is true.”
“Your mom must have enjoyed being pregnant to give birth to that many kids.”
“Oh, we’re a mix of biological and adopted.”
“And do you all live around here?”
“Most of us do. Right now, there are three who are off at college or working on their careers away from Serenity.”
Hudson had no idea what it would be like to be part of such a large family. And though he’d planned to keep the lunch to business, he couldn’t curb his curiosity about Kayleigh. “Where do you fall in the lineup?”
“I’m the third of the ten.”
“Do any of your sisters work here at the resort?” He didn’t know anything about the job market in the area around the resort, but he knew a lot of people were employed by Remington.
“No. My parents own a medical clinic in Serenity, and three of my siblings work there. One of my brothers is a doctor. The other manages the business side of things, and one of my sisters is a nurse. Another sister is a teacher.”
“Did Wilder start out here as a ski instructor?”
Kayleigh had relaxed with the conversation turning from the purpose of his trip to her family. He hadn’t necessarily thought she was tense, but definitely reserved. Now, however, her smile came more easily, and it was completely different from the smile she’d given him when they’d first met.
“No. Like me, he started out bussing tables in the restaurants, then he moved over to work in the ski shop. He’s always loved skiing and was good at it, so eventually he began to work on the slopes.”
Their server returned with their food, setting Kayleigh’s in front of her, then Hudson’s in front of him. The serving size of his steak sandwich was very generous, and he was suddenly starving.
Even Kayleigh’s salad looked more substantial than he’d thought it would be. She moved her napkin from the tabletop to her lap, then took him completely off-guard when she bowed her head for a moment before focusing on her salad.
“Are you religious?” Hudson asked. Normally, he wouldn’t have asked, but if she was going to play it out in front of him, he was going to address it.
