Maybe This Christmas Read Free Page A

the Atlantic in Europe, the Alpine Ski World Cup was underway.
    He tightened his grip on the wheel, grateful that Jess was chattering away. Grateful for the distraction.
    “Uncle Jackson told me the snowmaking is going really well. Loads of runs are open. Do you think we might have a big fall of snow? Uncle Sean is here.” She talked nonstop as she stroked Luna. “I saw his car earlier. Gramps said he was here for the meeting, but I don’t get why. He’s a surgeon. He doesn’t get involved in running the business. Or is he going to be here to fix broken legs?”
    “Uncle Sean is working up a preconditioning program with Christy at the spa. They’re trying to reduce skiing injuries. It was Brenna’s idea.” Tyler slowed as they reached the main highway and turned toward the village. The snow was falling steadily, coating the windshield and the road ahead.
    “How come Brenna is the one in charge of the outdoor program when you’re the one with the gold medal?”
    “Because Uncle Jackson had already given her the job before I came home, and because I hate organization almost as much as I hate shopping and cooking. I’m only interested in the skiing part. And Brenna is a great teacher. She’s patient and kind, whereas I want to dump people in a snowdrift if they don’t get it right the first time.” He glanced briefly in his rearview mirror. “Are you going to sleep over with Grandma tonight?”
    “Do you want me to? Are you planning on having sex or something?”
    Tyler almost swerved into the ditch. “Jess—”
    “What? You said I could talk to you about anything.”
    He steadied the car. Focused on the road. “You can’t ask me if I’m planning on having sex.”
    “Why? I don’t want to get in the way, that’s all.”
    “You don’t get in the way.” He wondered why this conversation had to come up while he was driving in difficult conditions. “You never get in the way.”
    “Dad, I’m not stupid. You used to have a lot of sex. I know. I read about it on the internet. This one article said you could get a woman in bed faster than you could make it to the bottom of the slope in the downhill.”
    Feeling as if he’d been hit by another avalanche of awkward, Tyler slowed right down as he approached the village. Lights twinkled in store windows, and a large Christmas tree stood proudly at the end of Main Street. “You don’t want to believe everything you read on the internet.”
    “All I’m saying is, you don’t have to give up sex just because I’m living with you. You need to get out there again.”
    Speechless, he pulled into a parking space by the village store. “I’m not having this conversation with my thirteen-year-old daughter.”
    “I’m nearly fourteen. You need to keep up.”
    “Whatever. My sex life is off-limits.”
    “Did you ever have sex with Brenna? Was she one of the ones you had a relationship with?”
    How was it possible to sweat when the air temperature was below freezing? “That is personal, Jess.”
    “So you
did
have sex with her?”
    “No! I never had sex with Brenna.” Sex with Brenna was something he didn’t allow himself to think about. Ever. He didn’t think about those abs. He didn’t think about those legs. “And this conversation is over and done.”
    “Because it would be fine with me. I think she really likes you. Do you like her?”
    Realizing he’d just been given permission to have sex by his teenage daughter, Tyler raked his fingers through his hair. “Yeah, of course I do. I’ve known her since we were kids. We’ve hung around together for most of our lives. She’s a good friend.”
    And he wasn’t going to do anything to damage that. Nothing. Not a damn thing.
    He’d messed up every relationship he’d ever had. His friendship with Brenna was the one thing that was still intact, and he intended to keep it that way.
    Jess unclipped her seat belt. “I like Brenna. She’s not all gooey eyed about you like some women are. And she