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    Jennifer bit her lip as she tore open the envelope, her anxiety kicking up a notch. Between wondering what kind of date they were supposed to go on and reliving Alex’s kiss, she’d hardly slept last night. She took the papers out and briefly scanned them.
    â€œOh, no, this can’t be right!” she practically wailed. She looked up at Alex, stunned. “It’s a date for an entire weekend!”
    â€œA weekend? Where?” Alex asked, surprised to learn their date involved more than just one evening. “My aunt never said I was obligating myself to a weekend when she roped me into the auction.” He was a man who planned his life, and he hadn’t planned to spend any more than a night with the woman who’d won him. Of course, he’d made that decision before he’d learned the woman was Jennifer.
    The thought of sharing a weekend with her changed everything. He could spend an evening taking her to dinner and manage to keep his hands off of her. But a weekend alone with her? Alex wasn’t so sure.
    â€œOh, my goodness!”
    â€œWhat is it? Does she have us climbing Mt. Everest or something?” He wouldn’t have put even the wildest stunt past his aunt.
    â€œSomething just as ridiculous,” Jennifer replied, her voice shaking as she looked at pictures of a cozy ski lodge. There were huge beds and fireplaces in the rooms. “Here.” She handed the brochures to him. “It’s for a ski weekend in Vermont.”
    â€œReally? When?” Alex couldn’t suppress the excitement racing through him. He loved to ski, but living in Virginia Beach where it rarely snowed meant traveling to the mountains. Last winter he hadn’t taken the time for even a day trip. The idea of going to a ski resort—and especially going with Jennifer—turned his whole attitude toward being obligated into anticipation. He could see them having dinner in front of an intimate fireplace, her eyes beckoning him with desire that no man could resist.
    â€œ This weekend,” she stated, pulling him from his fantasy.
    â€œDo you ski?”
    She looked at him. “What?”
    â€œDo you ski?”
    â€œNow wait just a minute.” Holding her hands out, she sat forward. “Don’t even think about it.”
    â€œIt’s a simple question,” Alex noted. “Just answer it.”
    Eyeing him cautiously, she shook her head. “No. I’ve always wanted to try it,” she admitted reluctantly, “but I’ve never learned.” Oh, no, she thought, watching his eyes widen. She wished back her words.
    He took the packet from her when she held it out to him. “Then you’re in luck. I’m an expert skier and I can teach you.”
    â€œI don’t think so.”
    â€œWhy not?” Alex asked, already thinking about sliding down the slopes and perhaps stealing a kiss or two.
    â€œWell, for one thing, we both have to work,” she reasoned, hoping their work schedule would be enough to discourage the sparkle in his eyes.
    Alex studied the itinerary for the trip, then looked at Jennifer. “We’d only have to miss this Friday. I think the company can live without us for a day.”
    â€œAlex—”
    â€œI’m the boss,” he stated, his tone firm. “And I say we can both take off.”
    â€œIt’s not just the time off.”
    â€œWhat is it, then?”
    She narrowed her eyes. “I just don’t think it’d be right,” she insisted. “Um, you know, spending a weekend together. I wouldn’t want to jeopardize our working relationship. And what would everyone else here think?”
    Alex shrugged. “They don’t have to know, do they?”he reasoned. “And why should it affect our working relationship? We’ve traveled together for overnight business meetings before.”
    â€œAn intimate weekend skiing is different,” she insisted,