Page 67 of Season's Schemings
She shakes her head with a laugh. “Fine. I don’t care what Adam thinks anymore or what he says about me. And let me tell you, that is the most freeing thing to happen to me in a very long time. So thank you. You have helped me see that, Mr. Hockey Man.”
“You’re welcome,” I say. With every day that I grow closer to Maddie—get to know all the little details about her that make her who she is—the more I hope that this feels as real to her as it does to me.
Scratch that, the more Iknowthat this feels as real to her as it does to me.
I smile as I spot her tea still on the sideboard, going cold. “Oh. I went out and bought you some peppermint tea…”
She throws her arms around me in a hug. “Has anyone ever told you that you’re the most thoughtful person ever?”
I lean into her embrace, pulling her closer and breathing in the vanilla scent of her hair. “You did. Yesterday.”
“Well, I’m saying it again.” She’s all happy and giddy when she pulls away. “I’m so glad you’re here, Seb.”
“Me too, Maddie.”
Because somehow, things have shifted and changed. Somehow, since I drunkenly proposed to this incredible, hilarious, minorly insane and totally beautiful woman, she’s become one of the most important people in my life. And somehow, in the space of a few days here at the cabin, I know that this marriage is the realest thing to ever happen to me.
Me too.
25
MADDIE
Okay, so. I would have never, ever said that I was the type of girl to be turned on by macho manliness. Or male dominance. Or violence.
I dated a pastry artist for over a decade, for goodness sakes.
But then, I went and married a hockey player.
Andho-ly, I am still tingling hours after the confrontation as I replay Seb’s huge, hulking form filling the kitchen doorway. The way his big hand tightened on the frame like he was trying to rip off a chunk of it as he assessed the scene in front of him, then wasted no time throwing down for me with Adam.
The man looked like he was out for blood, and I’m not gonna lie, it was quite possibly the sexiest thing I’ve ever seen in my life.
Actually, second sexiest thing. First place goes to the way he looked at me after we kissed in the hot tub.
Or the way he stroked my hair last night and kissed the side of my forehead before I drifted off to sleep.
In any case, one thing’s for sure: I’ve got it bad for Sebastian Slater.
“Eeek!” I shriek as I—completely lost in thought and certainly not looking where I’m going—step onto an icy patch on the snow-covered hiking trail and almost go flying into a dense patch of frozen pine trees and pokey bushes.
Seb, who’s walking right behind me, has me steadied and upright in moments. So quickly, in fact, that I can’t work out if my erratic heartbeat is from my almost-plunge to the ground, or the woodsy, masculine scent coming off his warm, flannel-clad body.
Jax turns and takes in the pair of us with disinterest. “Watch your step.”
“You watch your step!”
“Sick burn. Really got me there, Mads.”
I kick snow at him. My brother’s just bugging me ‘coz he doesn’t believe in romance (ergo, he’s all aloney lonely on our little winter hike today), while I have a knight in flannel to save me from falling on my butt.
“It’s becoming more and more evident that you two can’t possibly be blood related.” Seb points towards Jax—dressed in a sporty (read: mildly insane) waterproof, windproof, everything-proof winter parka and hiking boots with crampons on the bottom—and then, at me—wearing a very cute, very thin pair of slate-gray leggings, ankle boots, and a sweet button-up peacoat whose designer clearly cared more about fashion than warmth.
Meanwhile, Seb is somehow a mix of the two of us, wearing a thick, flannel jacket-shirt with lumberjack vibes, dark jeans, and proper winter boots. Plus, he’s wearing his beanie again—which he ADORABLY refers to as a “tuque” in his native language of Canadian—and he looks good enough to eat.
Jax chuckles. “Well, if I can give you one piece of advice to survive being married to my sister, it’s to never, ever take the woman camping.”
“I sense a story here.” Seb smiles as we step off the snowy path and into a clearing.