LITMIR.BIZ

       Chapter 1

      Snowfall—check. Festive music playing on speakers in all the outdoor common areas—check. Ornate and glittery Christmas decorations both inside and out—final check.

      Remy Colton stood on the sidewalk of downtown Roaring Springs, Colorado, and surveyed the merry atmosphere. As director of public relations for The Chateau, the premier luxury destination also known as a little piece of France, Remy couldn’t have asked for more perfect holiday weather. With both his family’s ski resorts—The Lodge up on Pine Peak and The Chateau, here in the Roaring Springs valley—booked to capacity for the two weeks leading up to Christmas, any snow was always welcome. And they were definitely getting a lot of the beautiful white stuff.

      Remy liked to keep busy during the holidays, especially since he’d never really gotten into the holiday spirit. That was never a problem, even though the PR department pretty much shut down until after the New Year. The Chateau attracted a wealthy clientele—sometimes celebrities—and those patrons could be quite demanding. He never minded pitching in, especially on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day, so his employees could spend the holiday with their families.

      As for himself, out of necessity, he always made sure to spend a few hours with his own extended family at the elaborate holiday dinner his uncle Russ and aunt Mara hosted at Colton Manor, the 35-million-dollar showpiece of a home they’d constructed up on a hill. While he enjoyed visiting with his cousins and their significant others, he usually hightailed it back to The Chateau as quickly as he could. As far as he could tell, no one ever noticed or minded. If there was one thing his father, Whit, understood, it was the concept that work came before anything else. Clearly, it had never occurred to Whit that Remy might be lonely.

      Pushing away the unsettling thought, he forced himself to focus once again on the positives. Nothing like a great snowfall to make the guests happy.

      “Excuse me?” A feminine voice, both sultry and with a faintly northeastern accent. Before he could react, she tapped him on the shoulder.

      He turned and eyed a tall, blue-eyed woman wearing top-of-the-line ski gear. Not only was she athletic, but she was also strikingly beautiful. He felt a jolt the instant he met her gaze. Probably one of the guests, though he had no idea how he could have possibly missed noticing her. “Yes, can I help you?”

      “I asked at the front desk and they sent me out to talk to you. I’m looking for Seth Harris. I believe he’s the hotel manager. I’ve already been up to The Lodge, but they said he wasn’t working today.”

      Seth. His gut clenched. What had his brother done now?

      Normally he would have directed her to the gondola that ran between The Lodge and The Chateau. But she was correct. Seth was off today. Remy caught himself staring and rapidly checked himself. Something about her eyes…

      Whoever she might be, she wasn’t his brother’s usual type. Seth’s taste usually ran to leggy, busty blondes.

      Since Remy knew better than to let this woman—whoever she was—drop in on Seth unannounced, he simply shrugged. “I believe he’ll be working tomorrow, so I’d suggest you check back at The Lodge then.”

      Instead of nodding and thanking him, she didn’t budge. “I’ve been told you’re his brother. I really need to talk to him.”

      Remy made a mental note to find out which employee had seen fit to give out such personal information. “Are you a friend of his, Ms….?”

      “Fisher,” she stated. “Vanessa Fisher. And I’m not sure if Seth still considers me a friend or not. We were recently engaged, though we’re not any longer.”

      Engaged? This was the woman Seth had wanted to marry? She looked nothing like the shy woman the rest of his family had described. This woman was tall, true. And she did have dark, silky hair. What everyone else must have forgotten to mention was that she was beautiful. Stunning, punch-in-the-gut gorgeous. Her dark blue eyes studied him.

      Years of practice had taught Remy how to hide his shock. Nothing Seth did should have surprised him, but when he’d learned his baby brother had gotten engaged, shock hadn’t even begun to describe how he’d felt. Sure, Seth had mentioned dating someone named Vanessa. He’d made several trips down to Boulder to visit her. But first he’d gotten engaged and then, in typical Seth fashion, the engagement had been broken off.

      Which meant now Remy was actually meeting his brother’s former fiancée for the first time.

      “Remy Colton,” he said automatically, removing his glove and holding out his hand.

      She tilted her head before doing the same and slipped her fingers into his. Touching her sent a pleasurable jolt through him, though she appeared completely unaffected. “Remy,” she mused. “Interesting name.”

      Entranced by her smile, he froze. But then the rest of what Vanessa Fisher had said dawned on him. It sounded like Seth had dumped her. Which meant what?

      He started to ask, but his befuddled thoughts must have shown on his face because she shook her head before he even got the words out.

      “It’s not like that.” She touched him again, this time on his jacket arm. Remy normally wasn’t a touchy-feely kind of person, but for whatever reason he didn’t mind her touch. “I’m the one that broke things off,” she continued. “Seth and I haven’t spoken since.”

      Cocking his head, he considered her. He’d never once in his life envied his younger brother, but for the first time, he did. Something about this woman knocked him off his feet. While he knew none of this was his damn business, he asked, anyway. “And you’re now here because…?”

      She met his gaze directly. “That’s personal. Now can you tell me where to find Seth or not?”

      Since he was meeting Seth a few doors down in the trendy faux-Western bar called The Saloon, he shrugged. Hopefully, his brother wouldn’t kill him when he walked in with this woman. “Come with me.”

      They walked along the snowy sidewalks, mingling in with the happy tourists. This time of year, everyone in Roaring Springs seemed to be in a celebratory mood. They came, they skied, they shopped and ate and drank. Since the townspeople earned seventy-five percent of their income in the winter, the locals were grateful for the crowds.

      When they reached The Saloon, the line that had formed spilled out onto the sidewalk. Despite this, those waiting laughed

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