Troping Through the Snow by Alexa Riley

“Noel,” my mom warns.

“What? I don’t like her. She went after Mayor North even after she knew he was married!” I hiss. “So yes, she’s a real jerkface.”

“Jerkface?” My mom laughs. I’m not calling her a bitch because sometimes a bitch is pretty cool. She’s not cool. In fact, after what she did, she is very uncool in my book.

“She and Mark could open a law firm together,” I suggest. Aren’t most lawyers a bit jerky? I don’t know, but they are in books and in movies.

“Let’s see how tonight goes, sweetheart.” Mom kisses me on my cheek before she goes, and I grab my phone and text Snow.

Me: Send help! My mom is trying to set me up.

Snow: On a date? Tell her no.

I love how direct Snow can be. I wish I was, but I always lean on the side of not wanting to hurt someone’s feelings.

Me: I can’t. It’s her best friend's son, and she invited them over for dinner.

Snow: Who is he?

Me: Let me see if I can find him on social media.

I quickly go to Candy’s Facebook and find a family picture and send it over.

Snow: He’s not your type

Me: Because he’s not a bear? LOL.

Snow: Is his name Kyle or Brad?

I burst into laughter, and the two people still lingering before close up glance my way. I mouth an I’m sorry.

Me: Mark

Snow: Same thing.

Another giggle escapes me.

Me: I grew up with him. It’s been a while since I’ve seen him. He might have changed from what I remember.

Snow: Are you saying you might be interested?

Me: No! I mean he’s going to be a lawyer soon.

Snow: What’s wrong with lawyers?

Me: I don’t know. It doesn’t sound like what my love story would be.

Snow: What do you think it would be?

Me: I really don’t know.

That’s what scares me. Why has no one piqued my interest? I love romance, but I’ve never tried to have one of my own. Have I set the bar too high in my mind? Maybe I think that I’ll be knocked over by love one day and I don’t want to believe love at first sight isn’t real. Or maybe I’m not living in reality.

Snow: I don’t think you should toss someone away because they’re a lawyer.

She might be right. I think I still have a bad taste in my mouth from Donna and what she tried to pull between Joy and Mayor North.

Joy is one of the sweetest people in the world, and I adore her. We have become fast friends since she moved to town months ago. I had a feeling Mayor North and Joy would be a thing. She’d moved to Troping to be his secretary, and Joy’s favorite books were office romances.

Me: Are you saying I should give Mark a chance?

I’m only teasing her.

Snow: NO!





CHAPTER 4





GABRIEL





“Business…” The woman at the front desk takes a moment to look at my hand and see there’s no wedding ring on my finger. “Or pleasure?”

“Privacy,” I clip and pass her my credit card. Her bright mood dims a little as she completes the transaction and hands me the key to my room.

The inn is nice, even if it’s a little crowded. I should have known in a town like Troping the holidays would be busy, but this is next level. It’s like Buddy the Elf shot a load of Christmas cheer over every available surface. I wouldn’t call myself a scrooge, but this place makes me look like the Grinch's evil twin.

“There’s a hot cocoa bar in the lounge in ten minutes if you’d like to join in for the sing-along,” the receptionist chirps, and I just stare at her blankly. “Or not.” She passes me a map of the town that I’m pretty sure has glitter on it. “Tomorrow there’s a cookie crawl happening downtown. You can go to any of the starred locations for free treats and to see the decorations.”

“Was a bar crawl too spicy?” I ask, and when she looks at me in confusion, I sigh and take the map.

I mumble my thanks as I wade through the crowd and then wait entirely too long for the elevator. Once I finally get to my room, I drop my bags and look out the window at the view below. I asked for the best room, and as much as I want to hate this little town, I’m impressed. The ski slopes go on for miles, and the surrounding mountains are incredible. Now that I’m closed off away from the candy cane lickers, the quiet is peaceful. I can see why someone might want to live here.

Enough of this crap. I check my phone and see what Noel is doing. The thing I got from her was a text saying she’s about to have dinner. I grind my back teeth as I think about what she told me earlier and how she thought a lawyer wasn’t her love story. Why do I even care? What the hell am I so mad about?

Deciding that I need this day to end sooner rather than later, I grab the bottle off the mini bar along with a glass. Walking into the bedroom, I give myself a heavy pour and kick my shoes off. I place the bottle on the nightstand and kill the amber liquid in one gulp. Without missing a beat, I pour another and then unbutton my shirt. By the time I climb into bed wearing only my boxer briefs, I’m further down this bottle than sensible. But hey, what about this trip is sensible?

The sun is long gone, and it’s been hours since Noel last texted me, but I can’t sleep. Maybe if I just see a few words from her, it will settle my racing mind and I’ll be able to pass out. When I see the phone in my hand sway a little, I know for certain this is a bad idea. Oh well.