Snowbound with the Santas (Forbidden Fantasies)

15. Archer

15

ARCHER

S he stands in front of me, the picture of gentle beauty, and yet there’s sadness in her eyes. A sadness from a deeply hidden secret. I know this because I see the same sadness in my own eyes every time I look in the mirror.

Rayne has a past. One she doesn’t need to share, but I know the shadows of trauma. I’m just not sure what it was exactly that triggered her during the conversation in the kitchen. Was it the decorations? Or her family?

“I’m fine,” Rayne replies. A well-practiced lie if I ever heard one.

“You’re not,” I say simply, keeping the pressure out of my words.

“I am. Really. I’m just… I don’t know, a lot happened today.”

“You saved my life.”

Rayne flaps one hand at me and shakes her head, shifting her weight from leg to leg as she stands there. “Hardly. It probably would have missed you. I think I overreacted.”

“Is that what you really think?” Her reflexes at the tower took me by surprise, but she did save my life. Seeing that shard of metal protrude from where I’d been standing not a second earlier had been chilling. She extended my time and I can’t repay that, not directly.

But I can help her. If she lets me.

“You’ve been in the mountains for years, right?” Rayne says with a small smile. “You had it all under control.”

“Your deflection is impressive.”

“I’m not deflecting.”

“Then tell me what’s wrong. I can help you.”

“Can you?” There’s a challenge in her eyes, and perhaps fear, too. Ever since she arrived, she’s played on my mind for various reasons, but my instinct tells me there’s something more serious at play here—something that creeps up every time we talk about reuniting her with her family. The call I made to the rescuers didn’t provide any serious information, so I’m certain she’s not a criminal.

But there’s something else.

“If you tell me, then I will try,” I say, stepping further into the room. Using one hand, I close the door behind me.

Rayne lifts her chin and her striking blue eyes lock onto me. When her rosy lips part, I hope to hear the truth. Instead, she deflects once more.

“There’s nothing wrong. I’m just sore from the hike. I’m not a very active person and these last two days have been a lot.”

The hike. Her and Frankie sure had a fun time, and I had no idea my jealousy could burn so hot. “The hike.”

“Yes,” she says flatly. “So, how can you help with that, hmm? Tell me to take a shower? Like that will help with my sore muscles.”

“It will,” I reply, slowly walking toward her. “But that’s not my advice. My advice would be to let me help you.”

“How?” The hollow of her neck deepens as she swallows.

“I know how to do a deep-tissue massage. Given the trauma to your leg after the crash and how you’ve been walking, it might be exactly what you need. Since, as you say, that’s the only thing that’s wrong.”

Rayne’s eyes narrow slightly. “For a man of few words, you sure talk a lot when we’re alone.”

“Less background noise.” I shrug one shoulder. “So, do you want my help?”

“You’ll massage me?”

“That’s what I said.”

Rayne rocks back onto her heels, and I sense I’ve backed her into a corner. Will she keep up the facade that sore muscles are the reason she’s acting weird, or will she cave and tell me the truth?

“Alright,” Rayne says after a moment of hesitation. “If you can work your magic, I won’t ever doubt you again.”

“Massage it is. If you’d be so kind as to strip.”

Crimson flushes Rayne’s cheeks and she nods, then she turns her back to me and slowly takes off her clothes. Frankie’s rough shirt gives way to beautiful golden skin and a black bra. I try not to stare and instead quickly step out of the room to grab lotion from my own bedroom.

Upon my return, Rayne smiles a soft little smile like she’s sharing a secret with me, then she lays down on the bed with a soft sigh. “Alright then, work your magic.”

“Do you trust me?”

“We barely know each other,” she murmurs against her elbow.

“And yet here you are…” My breath catches in my throat as I step forward and lean one knee on the bed. “With sore muscles.”

“That’s all it is,” Rayne insists. “So either soothe me or get out.”

With a slow, gentle touch, I caress her back. Her skin jumps slightly underneath my fingertips as I stroke across her shoulders and brush her hair to one side.

“Try to breathe evenly,” I instruct her quietly. “It will make it easier.”

“Make what easier?” Rayne asks.

I coat my hands in lotion and start at her calf. My touch is gentle at first, caressing her calf with the lotion and slicking up her skin. Then I press my thumbs deep into her muscle tissue, and she yelps.

“Holy shit, ow,” Rayne groans.

“Told you.”

She mumbles something under her breath that sounds like motherfucker . I smile to myself and continue.

It’s tough to keep my thoughts contained as I work, but her relaxation becomes my goal. While at first I wanted to delve into her thoughts, to ease her hidden pain, the tightness in her muscles becomes obvious after two passes. From her calf to her thigh, I travel with care and press my knuckles and fingers as deep as I can.

Rayne’s quiet whimpers slowly become slightly louder moans of pain as tension eases along her legs. Back and forth I work, moving in a rhythm that becomes like a dance up and down each of her legs. After rolling the sleeves of my shirt up, I discard it completely for ease and continue.

She tucks her head into the crook of her elbow and shifts under my touch, flinching when the pain gets too much and relaxing when I work a knot loose.

I take extra care with her injured thigh, carefully working the muscles under my hands and caressing her leg as firmly as I dare.

We don’t speak, and when I move up to her lower back, I adjust the pressure of my hands. Rayne shifts underneath me with a gasp and finally lifts her head.

“You weren’t kidding,” she murmurs. “You’re good with your hands.”

“In the barracks, we’d learn to quickly work out muscle tension when we had five minutes. Here, I have some time to give care,” I say. It’s therapeutic in a strange way. Like in my past when a trusted soldier would lie before me and let me take their pain away. Doing it for Rayne has the added benefit of soaking up her warmth and her touch. She’s soft and gentle, fitting right into my hands. Her back shifts and weaves as I massage her deeply, and her soft, pained groans fade away to silent breaths.

Until I reach her shoulders. Rayne’s skin flushes hot underneath my palms, and as I work at her left shoulder, she wiggles back and forth on the bed. Then, suddenly, she tries to shift away from me, and I withdraw my hands from her immediately.

Rayne curls around herself with a loud moan, and a full-body blush sweeps down across her torso, followed by a mumbled apology. She trembles and quivers, trying to cover herself with the blankets, but it’s too late. It clicks in my mind a moment later and I bite back a smile.

“Did you just… orgasm?”

“Don’t,” Rayne gasps. “Please, leave. I’m so sorry, I don’t even—please, get out.”

“Rayne—”

“Please!” She lifts her head, tears sparkling in her eyes. “I’m so embarrassed.”

“There’s nothing to be embarrassed about,” I say softly, sitting down on the edge of the bed. “You’d be surprised how common something like this is when it comes to deep tissue. I’m not upset.”

“I am!” Rayne bundles herself into a blanket and hides her face in her hands. “I don’t know what happened or what came over me. I was just…”

“I have magic hands.”

“Please don’t make fun of me.”

“Rayne. I’m not.” Taking a deep breath, I muster up a small smile for her. “This isn’t a bad thing.”

“It is,” she whines.

“Why, do you have someone waiting for you back at the lodge?”

Rayne’s head snaps up. “Of course not. I wouldn’t have slept with Frankie if that were the case, but I just… I don’t know. It’s been such a long time since I was so intimate with someone, and that’s why I was so excited by Frankie’s interest.”

Her words catch me by surprise. She’s a stunning, gentle woman. It’s hard to believe there isn’t someone out there waiting for her. At the same time, I’m a little relieved. She’s single, which means my interest isn’t a bad thing.

“Then what’s the problem?” I ask softly. “You’re single. There’s no shame in this.”

“I feel…” Slowly, her hands fall and she draws her knees up to her chest. “I feel embarrassed because you trusted me and I just…”

“You had a reaction. I take it as a compliment,” I assure her. “And if you have no one waiting for you, there’s no harm in pursuing something or allowing yourself to enjoy something.”

“You’re not disgusted?”

My brow shoots up. “No, of course not. Rayne… I came in here because I wanted to help you, not make you feel worse. And this? Did it feel good?”

“Yeah…” Rayne nods slowly. “Unexpectedly so.”

“Then there’s nothing wrong with this.”

There’s still uncertainty in those crystal blue eyes of hers, and a strange tightness grips my heart.

“Do you want me to…?” Rayne’s eyes drop down my body, and I realize her assumption.

“Rayne, there’s nothing I require in return.”

She scoffs softly. “Are you sure? Everyone always wants something.”

“Even your family?”

Rayne’s brow dips, and finally, I get a glimpse of the real pain simmering just beneath the surface. “I’m just a rich bitch to them. No one back there really gives a shit about me beyond my inheritance and the reputation attached to my name.”

“Rayne…” I shift up the bed slightly. “I promise you, while you’re here, the only thing we want from you, the only thing we require, is your honesty. Nothing else.”