“I know that, too,” he said with a sigh.

“She’s special, and so is that little girl of hers.”

“Yes, they are.”

“Okay, baby,” Emma said into the phone. “Have a great time, and be good for Colton and Lucy.” She hung up the phone. “Apparently, Uncle Colton has offered to teach Simone how to ski today.”

Grayson knew a moment of pure elation at realizing Emma was free to hang out with him. If she wanted to, that was.

“She couldn’t get a better teacher,” Molly said. “Except for Will maybe. But Colton is a fantastic skier.”

“I certainly can’t compete with her fun aunt and uncle,” Emma said.

“She’s in a new place with new things to try,” Molly said.

“She’s not going to want to go home,” Emma said. “It’s way more fun here than it is there.” She turned her potent gaze Grayson’s way as she said that, and his heart skipped a beat.

“What’re you doing today?” he asked as casually as possible.

“I have no idea. I’ve been ditched by my kid, so I’m at loose ends.”

“You can help me move into my new place, if you want.”

“Um, sure, I can do that.”

“Great.”

They ate breakfast with Molly and Lincoln, and then went outside to dig out the cars, which took well over an hour. Thankfully, Linc had a snowblower for the long driveway. He took care of that while Emma and Grayson focused on the cars.

“This is hard work,” she said.

“Vermont in the winter isn’t for sissies.”

“Are you calling me a sissy?”

“Would I do that?”

“I think you would.”

Grayson was heaving a heavy load of snow to the pile they’d created next to the driveway when something cold and wet hit him square in the face. She did not! Her squeal of laughter indicated that she had.

“This is war.” He threw down his shovel and ran around his uncle’s Land Rover, nearly falling on his ass when he slid on icy snow.

Seeing him coming, she took off screaming, heading away from the house down the driveway.

Grayson caught up to her, hooked his arm around her waist and hoisted her right off her feet.

She screamed with laughter as they landed in a snowbank. Her face was red from the cold, and their breath formed clouds around them.

He kissed her right there in the snow, mindless of his uncle a few hundred yards from them or Ringo and George frolicking in the snow nearby. The whole world could’ve been watching, for all he cared. He kissed her until he felt her surrender—and then he smashed a handful of snow in her face.

She sputtered and smacked at his arm and shoulder. “That was a dirty trick!”

“You started it.”