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. He laughed. Are you kidding me? The wedding s tomorrow, Gail.There s no way I can changeanything. If he backed out, he feared Noelle would make it impossible for him to ever see his child.As long as she got her way, she was tractable.But if he embarrassed or upset her, she d fight him oneverything. Kyle There you are. They both turned to see Eve, who managed The Gold Nugget, the bed and breakfast owned by herfamily. Did you tell him what we think? she asked Gail.Gail shot Kyle a meaningful glance. I told him. Eve gave him a stern look. So are you going to call it off? Once again, he searched for a better way to handle the situation but couldn t find one. No.I mgoing to be a father.Nothing can take precedence over that. * * *They were almost out of the room, almost free, when Kyle s father caught up with Brandon and pulledhim off to one side. So what are you doing to keep busy now that the cast is off? he asked.Olivia gritted her teeth at being detained.She couldn t wait to leave, to put the rehearsal dinnerbehind them and return to the peace of Brandon s secluded cabin.She needed to regroup, but shecouldn t allow her eagerness to show.Everyone was watching her too closely, wondering if she dbeen late in some passive-aggressive attempt to make her unhappiness known. Just working out every day, trying to get in shape for the season. Brandon answered Bob s questions politely, but Olivia could tell he was purposely playing up theski bum image.He d already told her that spring and summer were almost as busy as fall and winter.When she d acted surprised, he d explained that he had to meet with his sponsors, be available tofilm commercials and participate in photo shoots, most of which required travel to New York or LosAngeles.He also had to appear at various events, including children s camps and autographings, andincrease his presence on social networking sites.Professional skiing was a business as much as asport, and the stacks of paperwork on his desk mostly contracts of one kind or another seemed toprove it.So did the poster samples he d been sent.One showed him dropping, seemingly withouteffort, down the face of an alarmingly steep mountain wearing an expensive brand of ski gear.Another captured his smiling face in a pair of Oakley goggles with ice crystals caught in the beardgrowth along his jaw.He could ve told his stepfather about these things.He could also have mentioned that he wasmaking a tremendous amount of money.Although they hadn t spoken about that aspect, Olivia couldtell it was true.But Brandon refused to vie for Bob s approval, and Olivia couldn t help but respectthat. Can the leg take another season? This question was spoken with apparent concern, but Oliviaheard the subtext.Bob thought Brandon should hang up his skis and get serious about life.She guessed Brandon interpreted his tone the same way and that made her sad.Brandon was one ofthe best skiers in the world, yet Bob treated him as if he hadn t accomplished anything.He seemed tothink Brandon should be a horse breeder like him, or something else more legitimate, like Kyle. Leg s getting stronger all the time, Brandon assured him. It ll be fine. Olivia imagined the pain Brandon must ve suffered from that injury.Another daunting descentwould require courage, but she had no doubt he d do it.His daring made her smile.She was still smiling when she realized that Brandon was watching her with a speculativeexpression.He had somehow guessed that her smile was related to him.His lips quirked slightly as ifhe was tempted to grin back at her, even though a grin wasn t appropriate to the conversation he washaving with the disapproving Bob. Well, you ve got several months before you go back to Europe.You want to learn what it s like toput in a hard day s work, come on out to the stables, Bob was saying. We ve got our hands full thisyear.Might be a great way to make some extra cash. Brandon thanked him for the opportunity but begged off, saying he was going backpacking inNicaragua.That didn t win him any points with Bob, but it made Olivia chuckle.Brandon knew justhow to tweak his stepfather s nose without appearing to be impolite.She turned to hide her mirth and came face-to-face with Brandon s mother.Paige had been talkingto Nancy and Ham, who d just left. I m sorry about how things worked out for you with Kyle, Paige said, almost conspiratorially. We miss seeing you at the house. I miss you, too, Olivia responded, feeling an odd tug for what used to be. Brandon s far more of a handful, she responded. But it s impossible not to love him. Another warning in case Olivia wasn t already a believer. We re just friends, she said, butPaige had already started a separate conversation with Cheyenne Christensen, whose mother wassuffering from cancer.Olivia didn t think Paige had heard the rejoinder. What d she say? Brandon had finally broken away from his stepfather
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