Page 32 of Tempted To Be Mine

“Absolutely.”

“I don’t even know how to build a snowman.”

“Neither do I. We’ll figure it out together.”

She sighed, long and dramatic, but I could see the smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. “Fine. But if I freeze to death out there, I’m haunting you forever.”

“Deal.”

We bundled up like we were preparing for an arctic expedition. Lucy added a second scarf to her ensemble and shoved the bear spray into her pocket. I didn’t comment on it. Whatever made her feel safe.

The spot I’d picked was just off one of the cleared paths, close enough to the lodge that we could retreat if things got too cold but far enough that we had some privacy to look like fools. The snow here was pristine.

“Okay,” Lucy said, her breath fogging the air. “How do we start?”

“I think you make a ball? And then roll it around until it gets bigger?”

“You think?”

“I told you I’ve never done this before. I did a bit of Googling but it wasn’t much help.”

“You Googled how to make a snowman?”

“Yes.”

We both crouched down and started gathering snow, packing it together with our gloved hands. The first attempt fell apart immediately. The second held together better, a lumpy sphere about the size of a softball.

“Now we roll it,” I said.

We rolled. The snowball picked up more snow as it moved, growing larger with each rotation. By the time we’d made a full circuit around our little clearing, it was the size of a basketball. Then a beach ball. Then something that required both of us pushing to move.

“This is actually working,” Lucy said, sounding genuinely surprised.

“See? We’re naturals at this.”

We made two more balls. Stacking them was the hard part. We both grunted with effort as we lifted it onto the base. The head was easier, small enough that Lucy could manage it on her own while I steadied the middle.

“It’s crooked,” she observed, stepping back to survey our work.

She was right. Our snowman listed slightly to the left, like it had been out drinking the night before.

“It has character,” I said.

Lucy laughed. I realized I hadn’t heard that sound in a while. Genuine joy.

“We need a face,” she said. “And arms. Do we have anything?”

I patted my pockets and came up empty. “Hold on. I’ll raid the lodge.”

I jogged back to the main building, my lungs burning with the cold air. I sweet-talked one of the kitchen staff into giving me a carrot. I grabbed two more coffees while I was at it. We’d earned them.

When I got back, Lucy had found two branches and was attempting to jam them into the snowman’s sides. She looked up as I approached, her cheeks pink from the cold, her ridiculous beanie slightly askew.

“Reinforcements,” I announced, holding up my haul.

We worked together on the finishing touches. Lucy pressed pebbles in for eyes. I positioned the carrot nose. She took off her scarf and wrapped it around its neck, adjusting it until it hung just right. I stepped back to admire our handiwork.

“It’s perfect,” I declared.