“This is going to be epic!” Cameron Bentley exclaimed, his gray eyes lighting up.

Allyson Prescott turned her gaze to the snowy slope, her heart pounding. She couldn’t believe that Nadia Nakamura, world champion, and hometown heroine of Snow Canyon, Colorado, was actually going to snowboard down a slope that steep.

“She’s really going to do this, isn’t she?” Allyson sucked in a sharp breath.

The crowd that had gathered around the slope buzzed with excitement. All the other snowboarders had wiped out and come up short. But Nadia was the one everyone had shown up to see. If she crashed and burned, Snow Canyon residents were going to be massively disappointed.

Suddenly, Nadia leaned forward and plunged off the edge of the slope and slid down on her board. Spectators cheered wildly as Nadia sped down, a sheet of white snow flying behind her.

She was already halfway down the slope, a blur against the snow.

Allyson started cheering as Nadia picked up even more speed, expertly maneuvering her way towards the bottom of the steep slope with ease. The crowd went into a frenzy as Nadia came to a stop and started pumping her fists into the air.

“She did it!” Cameron was busy snapping photos with his phone.

Photographers and videographers from Prescott Global’s marketing department were scattered around, and had also gotten photos and footage of Nadia snowboarding down the treacherous slope.

Excitement pumped through Allyson. Today was going exactly the way she had planned. After weeks of planning the annual Snow Canyon Winter Sports Show, their big star had pulled off a death-defying stunt on one of Prescott Global’s new snowboards. Nadia’s appearance was going to shoot last-minute holiday purchases of Prescott Global’s women’s line of sports gear through the roof.

“That stunt’s going to make an amazing print ad.” She grinned at her assistant, her cheeks heating with excitement.

Cameron grinned back. “Definitely. I’m tempted to use my employee discount and get a board for myself.”

“You snowboard?” Allyson glanced at Cameron.

“Nope. But it would be awesome to learn to do that,” he said, gesturing down to Nadia.

A crowd of excited kids had gathered around Nadia, who was happily signing autographs and taking selfies. Allyson felt her heart swell. Just seeing the happy faces of all those kids—especially the little girls—gave her a warm, fuzzy feeling inside. Nadia was going to get more young girls excited about sports, and Allyson was so proud that Prescott was a part of it.

“Well, if you want to learn you’re in the right place,” she told him.

Snow Canyon was the kind of town that athletes flocked to, and Nadia just happened to be one of the area’s brightest stars. The town was full of visitors this time of year and the Prescott-sponsored Winter Sports Show was one of the highlights of the holiday season.

Allyson and Cameron trudged across the snowboarding park towards some local officials, including the mayor. Mayor Samuels beamed at them, obviously delighted with Nadia’s performance. The mayor started rattling off statistics about visitor turnout, which Cameron quickly recorded in his notebook.

“We’ve had a lot of students from nearby schools visit town this year,” the mayor said.

“That’s great to hear.”

“Nadia always draws a crowd,” he said.

She hoped all the visitors to their town would be good for Prescott and local businesses alike. Weeks of planning had gone into the Winter Sports Show, and the pressure was really on her this year. At least, that’s how she felt. She wanted the women’s line to be successful. She wanted to prove she was more than everyone thought, and she wanted to prove it to herself as well.

As the head of the company’s women’s division, she had a lot to prove. Not just because she was still learning on the job, but because she hadn’t exactly paid her dues to get such a senior position at the company. Being the wife of the CEO had its perks, but the residents of Snow Canyon certainly didn’t care about any of that. If Prescott was going to make an impact with women, and reach their target sales, Allyson knew that hard work was the only thing that was going to make a difference. That, and Nadia’s spectacular performance.

“The press certainly seems to love her.” Allyson glanced over at the photographers who’d gathered around Nadia.

After chatting with the town officials, Allyson headed over to the different exhibits to make sure everything was going smoothly. As always Cameron was right by her side, making things as easy as possible for her. She had no idea how she would have survived without her assistant these past few weeks.

Work had been beyond hectic in the run-up to the sports show. Not just because she had to plan and organize the event, but because her husband had a hectic schedule of his own. Christmas was just a few days away, and they hadn’t seen that much of each other. Sure, Dane had flown back and forth between Colorado and Michigan, but they were both so busy with work. She with the sports show here in Colorado; he overseeing the opening of Prescott Global’s new office in Detroit.

She missed him terribly, but work had taken over everything. Work and... something else. Something else that kept her up at night, and leaning on her assistant Cameron a little too heavily.

If her husband knew how much time she was spending with Cameron and why... Pushing the thought out of her head, she focused on the task at hand. It didn’t matter that Cameron had been there for her in Dane’s absence. All that mattered now was that they sold as much sports gear as possible today.

Cameron hovered over her, and she tried to ignore him as she looked over the equipment. Everything from fishing rods to dog sleds to ice skates were on display, and there were scores of excited women shoppers. Women with their husbands and boyfriends. Each cozy couple sent a pang of jealousy through her heart.

When Cameron tapped her gently on the shoulder at the ice skate booth she whirled around, startled. She swallowed hard, ignoring her jitters about what Dane would think about all the time she had been spending with her assistant. “Yes, Cameron?” she managed to choke out.

“Mr. Prescott will be landing within the hour.” Cameron tapped his watch. “Would you like to meet him at the hotel, or would you rather stay here and keep working?”

She bit her lip. “I don’t want to leave too early.”

“You’ve been running yourself ragged for days,” he said. “It’s up to you, but I can assure you everything’s under control here.” He reached for her hand and squeezed it. “You should get some rest. Especially since—”

“Not here,” she said sharply, cutting him off. Her eyes scanned around, making sure that nobody was listening to their conversation. She wasn’t ready to share that yet. Wasn’t ready to reveal what was really going on. Only Cameron had some inkling of the secret she was keeping. “Let’s head back to the hotel to meet Mr. Prescott.”

With a nod, Cameron followed her to the park entrance and into their rental car. Their driver whisked them away from the snowboarding park and headed towards the Snow Canyon Hotel.

As they navigated through the streets, Allyson took in the sights of Snow Canyon. The town was beautiful, surrounded by majestic, snowcapped mountains. Christmas decorations lined the streets, complete with Christmas trees, wreaths, garlands, lights, and nativity scenes. The festive displays in the store windows were so inviting. Main Street was lined with shoppers. Store Santas rang bells outside, trying to entice even more shoppers into the stores. It was all picture-perfect. Like a postcard.

“It’s so beautiful out here,” she said with a sigh.

“Got any holiday plans?” Cameron asked from the seat beside her.

She nodded. “Dane and I will be heading back to New York tomorrow to spend Christmas with our families.” There were butterflies in her stomach. Spending her first Christmas as a married woman was already putting her on edge. She wanted this Christmas to be absolutely perfect. Her family and Dane’s family would be coming together, and she had spent the last few weeks organizing the festivities at the same time she had been planning the sports show. The stress from it all had been so draining, but it would be worth it for a perfect Christmas in New York. “What about you?” she queried.

“I’m flying out to California first thing tomorrow,” he said. “I haven’t seen my family in a year, and I’m really looking forward to it. Thanks again for giving me some extra days off, by the way.”

“No problem,” she said with a smile. “You’ve only been working with us for a short time, but you’ve worked so hard. You deserve an extended holiday.”

“I just hope you’ll be okay without me,” he said.

She focused her gaze on him. “Of course. I mean, I’ve gotten used to having you by my side, but I think I can survive.”

“Good. I’ll still miss you, though.” He touched her shoulder gently. “Just... make sure you take care of yourself.”

His face turned red and he adjusted his glasses. It was a habit of his to fidget whenever he was nervous about something. Cameron was such a sweet and caring guy. Of course, he was concerned about her. She just hoped that her husband would one day understand what she had done with Cameron. And what she was about to do.

Dane had never taken a liking to Cameron, and she worried that her husband would never forgive her for what she had done. A slight amount of jealousy had made Dane suspicious of Cameron’s motives since the day she had hired her assistant. She supposed it made sense. Cameron was handsome, young, and very charming. It was no wonder the women at Prescott’s New York office all seemed to have massive crushes on him.

“I will,” she said finally. “It’s been a hectic few weeks, but things will be sorted out soon.”

He nodded. “I hope everything at your appointment goes well.”

Guilt gnawed away at her. Today was the twenty-first, and the appointment was the day after tomorrow. Cameron had arranged everything, so all she had to do was show up. Without Dane. Without telling her husband. Keeping secrets from Dane was the last thing she wanted to do, but that couldn’t be helped under the circumstances. That didn’t stop her from feeling awful about being so secretive. Especially around the holidays, when everything was supposed to be about family.

Finally, they made it to the Snow Canyon Hotel and Cameron helped her out of the car. The hotel was immense, and it looked more like an enormous Swiss chalet than a hotel. The sky was turning hazy, casting the property in a grayish golden light. All the hotel lights had been turned on now that darkness was approaching, and the lights glowed cheerfully through the windows.

They headed upstairs, and Cameron stopped her on the way to her room.

“I have a surprise for you,” he said.

“Oh?”

He grinned. “Give me a second to get it and I can give it to you in your room.”

“Okay,” she said, and hurried into her room.

Casting off her scarf, gloves, and coat, she sank down onto the plush sofa in the sitting area. Exhaustion seeped into her muscles, down to her bones. Cameron had been right. She really had been running herself ragged lately. Her joints ached; her entire body was stiff. Not to mention her mind was filled with anxious thoughts. Thoughts about holiday plans, not seeing enough of Dane, and the appointment that only Cameron knew about.

With a sigh, she leaned back in the chair. Everything would be fine as long as the Christmas she was planning for her family went off without a hitch. Dane would be here soon, and then they’d fly back to New York together. Their families would meet at his parents’ townhouse for drinks and gift-swapping on Christmas Eve, then they could all spend Christmas Day at the new house. The thought of finally spending quality time with her loved ones in her new home had kept her going all these hectic weeks.

A knock on the door broke through her thoughts, and she rushed across the room to let Cameron in.

Hands behind his back, Cameron stepped inside. “Close your eyes.”

“What is it?” she asked breathlessly.

“I can’t give you a surprise if your eyes are open,” he pointed out.

Taking a deep breath, she shut her eyes. She felt Cameron take her hands and place a heavy object in her hands.

“Can I open my eyes now?” she asked, curious.

“Yes.”

She opened her eyes and stared down. The box was silver, and wrapped around it was a red ribbon tied up in a bow. Suddenly she felt like a kid again, excitement rushing through her as she untied the ribbon and opened the box.

A gasp escaped her lips when she retrieved the gift inside. “It’s a snow globe!”

“I know it’s a little cheesy,” Cameron said. “But you told me that you collected snow globes when you were a kid, so I thought you might want to start doing that again.”

Inside the snow globe was an adorable polar bear ice skating merrily. Her heart swelled at the sight. “This is so thoughtful, Cameron. I love it. Thank you.” She paused. “I was going to give you your gift later tonight, but I’ll get it now.”

Allyson headed over to the nightstand and took out a gift bag. She walked back over to Cameron, handed it over, and watched as he pulled out his gift.

“No way!” Cameron took off his old watch and put on the luxury smart watch she had gotten for him. “This must have cost a fortune. Thank you so much.” He reached for her and pulled her into a tight hug.

It was right then, with her arms around Cameron, that her husband stepped into the room.