white
gloves to go with it and black pants that were designed to keep the cold out.
Even with my ski gear I was frozen solid five minutes after we’d left the
condo. It didn’t matter how well dressed I was, years of living in Phoenix just
didn’t prepare me for this kind of weather.
“Ladies, this is George,” Ella announced behind us. We
turned around and I looked our ski instructor up and down. Kate nudged me. He
was like a coil, muscle and power wound up in a perfect body. He wore the thick
ski pants with sheepskin lining, but only a thin thermal-type shirt stretched
over his chest and his biceps, and there was more than enough for us to ogle
at.
“Have any of you ladies skied before?” he asked. His eyes
were the color of ice, and his dark hair was shiny and smooth. Like the kind
you would want to run your hands through... He looked at each of us, but his
eyes lingered on mine. A shiver traveled through my body. We all shook our
heads.
“Don’t worry about that. We’re going to have a lot of
fun.”
Oh, I bet we were.
We followed George to a room that looked a lot like a
shop, and he helped us find skis. We walked out onto the snow and sat down on a
bench. I couldn’t clip the ski around my foot, it just wouldn’t tighten. George
kneeled in front of me in the snow and helped me. His fingers were nimble even
with his gloves on. He wrapped his other hand around my ankle. I could feel his
skin burn mine through my pants. Shivers traveled through my body again,
fanning out from his fingers. He was close enough for me to smell. Clean and
manly.
“All done,” he said and looked up at me. His blue eyes
smiled at me, even though his face was serious and professional, and like a
love struck teenager, I blushed. When George moved on to Ella to help her, I
scolded myself. I was twenty-four dammit. Not fourteen.
The first session consisted of more falling into the snow
than really skiing. I wasn’t as elegant as I would have liked to be. So much
for impressing the handsome hunk that was showing us how to glide over the snow
like he did. He made it look like he didn’t even need to think about it. The
skis might as well have been an extension of his feet, and his muscles moved
and rippled under his shirt when he pushed himself forward with his ski poles.
We all stared.
Three hours later every muscle in my body complained and
my face felt raw.
“Tomorrow will be easier,” George promised us. I groaned.
Right now I couldn’t think of doing it all again.
We headed back to the hotel.
“Good god he’s hot,” Kate breathed.
“I know, right. Makes you wonder what you’re doing with
Charlie, eh?” I stuck my tongue out at her. She rolled her eyes.
“It’s not like Charlie has to worry about anything. George
was paying the most attention to you. I could stand on my head and he wouldn’t
notice me.”
“Don’t be ridiculous,” I giggled. “Every guy looks twice
when he sees you.”
“Everyone except George, apparently.”
I shrugged. She wasn’t right about that. She was the one
that got all the male attention among the four of us.
In the hotel I showered until every part of my body was
thawed again, and brushed out my hair before I used the hairdryer on it. In
Phoenix I never blew my hair, but nothing dried here by itself.
“Let’s head out to the restaurant. There’s one facing the
slopes,” Ella said. We followed her and got a table at the large window that
faced the slopes.
“They make it look so easy,” I said, watching the people
lean from side to side, gliding down the slope like it was nothing.
“Well, with George teaching us we’ll do that soon.” Ella
said. “Or at least, you will,” she added, looking at me.
“Why is everyone saying that?” I asked.
Ahleigh and Kate laughed.
“You’re too modest, Anna,” Ella said.
The next lesson was easier already, as George had
promised, and this time it was clear he was paying me a lot more attention.
Ella and Ashleigh
Mary Jane Clark
Kathleen Eagle
Ian Woodhead
Jane Haddam
Beth Hyland
Willow Monroe
Connie Suttle
Claudia White
Alan Burt Akers
Iain M. Banks