Harlequin Special Edition November 2021--Box Set 1 of 2 by Christine Rimmer

Author:Christine Rimmer
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2021-10-15T00:00:00+00:00

* * *

Standing behind the table where swimmers were signing and submitting waivers, Emma wrapped her oversize beach towel more tightly around herself. She’d had a perfectly nice night of icing her ankle and pretending the smell of Luke’s bodywash wasn’t still lingering in the air, tempting her to invite him to spread the fragrance all over the sheets.

“You’re not limping anymore. And you were avoiding me last night,” he murmured into her ear.

She kept her gaze on the participant she was helping and pointed at the line for the woman’s signature. “Make sure you sign here.”

Like the snow cave construction, it was Emma’s first time attending this event. She did not plan on a repeat performance next year, not even if she kept the festival going. She’d put her own spin on the seventh day of Christmas, figure out a way to turn the swan theme into something not involving dunking oneself in a frigid river.

Many participants sported wet suits. She’d gone that route, too, borrowing one from her cousin who lived on the lake and water-skied a ton during the summer. Emma doubted the neoprene would make much of a difference. Despite her winter jacket and the towel, she was shivering.

Luke wore a long-sleeved Henley, a surf-style bathing suit, wool socks and work boots.

A ridiculous getup.

Hot as hell, you mean.

His shirt left no shoulder muscle to the imagination. And since when were a guy’s knees gorgeous? Luke’s were—sprinkled with light brown hair, curving down into strong calves—

“See something you like, honey?”

“You’re going to get frostbite.” She jogged the stack of signed waivers with emphasis.

“Nah. With all these propane heaters, it’s downright tropical.” They had two roaring bonfires, too.

“It won’t be in the river,” she called after him as he strolled out from under the tent and joined his cousin at the water’s edge. He and Brody had laid down a long sheet of canvas flooring to allow people a way to get in and out without slipping.

It might be nicknamed the swan swim because of the “a-swimming” line from the song, but it was going to be as polar bear–esque as any New Year’s Day plunge. Snow edged the riverbank. Even though the water ran fast enough in front of the lodge to prevent it from freezing over, it wasn’t warm like some of the hot springs in the area. The deeper pool in the middle the swimmers would have to dunk in to earn a swan certificate was a dark blackish green. Sometimes the river looked blue, but not with today’s overcast sky.

No one else seemed to mind. The sixty-five participants, dressed up in various swan-themed hats and festive costumes over their swimming attire, blithely chattered away as they waited for the official start.

“How could a person possibly be excited about this?” Emma muttered to herself.

“It’s tradition,” Hank said.

She startled and went to push her glasses up, only managing to poke herself in the bridge of her nose. Right, she had her contacts in. Cheeks heating in

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