Chapter 14: Jo Beth
“I’m bored.”
“Then go skiing,” Mitch rolled over in bed and put the pillow on top of his head. In twenty minutes, his alarm would ring and then it would be time for him to get up and teach ski school. But Jo Beth had been awake for hours and there was no reason for her to go back to sleep. She had nothing she needed rest for. Besides, if she got tired she could take a nap in the afternoon, and that was the problem.
She stretched out her foot and kicked him gently in each ankle. “Mitch, I need to go back down to Santiago next week.”
“Why?” he said, his voice muffled by the pillow.
“Because I’ve been neglecting Adventuras Tours and I think Magda is mad at me. She and I were supposed to do this business together.”
“If Magda was mad at you, you’d know it. She’s not the type of girl to hold it in.”
Jo Beth repressed a frustrated groan, hating that Mitch had ever been intimate with her business partner/best friend. But it was easier to shift her body and push herself up against him than to voice her insecurities. “I’ll hate to leave you.”
Mitch’s breath was hot against her ear. “Then I’ll convince you to stay.” He reached over and shut off his alarm, a pre-emptive action so that eight minutes later, they wouldn’t be disturbed by a beep-beep-beeping. Then Mitch distracted her, briefly making her forget that she had nothing else to do for the whole rest of the day.
An hour later, after he’d showered and dressed, he was pulling on his boots and putting on his coat. “You could always get a job here with the ski school, you know.”
“But I don’t speak enough Spanish.”
“Still, they’d have you for sure. A star like you—I’m surprised they haven’t begged you already. In a parallel universe, I bet they have.”
Mitch had already explained the parallel universe theory, telling her how time was like a ribbon and every choice they made could create an alternative multiverse where infinite possibilities were played out. But Jo Beth wasn’t interested in a parallel universe, for she was stuck in this one, where her options felt limited. She sat in bed, watching Mitch prepare to confront the day, while she would stay in this tiny apartment indefinitely. “I’d make a terrible ski instructor. I couldn’t deal with all the fat tourists who are just after a good photo op for next year’s Christmas letter.”
He gave her his schoolboy grin. “You’re thinking of home in Colorado. It’s not really like that here.”
She pulled up her knees and rested her chin against them. “Maybe. But I don’t want my job to be about skiing.”
“Why not? You’ve got talent and fame. Why shouldn’t you build a career around skiing? Lots of people would kill to have what you have.” She silently snapped at him, sending him a look of laser-focus indignation, but Mitch ignored her attitude. “Do you even need a career? I mean, how much are you worth?”
It wasn’t the first time he’d ask her this, and Jo Beth couldn’t tell if he was simply curious about her money since he didn’t have any of his own, or if his intentions were more selfish. “Well,” she said, jokily evading the question, “my parents think I’m priceless.”
He laughed. “And I agree!” He secured his ski hat over his thick black curls, came over, brushed a lock of her hair away from her face, and planted a kiss on her freckled cheek. “You’re right. You should call Magda. Go back to working with her.”
Did he just say that so she’d invest more of her money into the business that Magda had insisted upon starting? What if this whole thing was a setup, what if Mitch and Magda were in collusion? “Yeah…”
He stood up straight. “I’d better go or I’ll be late for my first client. Have a good day.”
“You too.”
When Mitch shut the door behind him she fell back in bed. Staring at the ceiling, she knew it was crazy to think this way. Mitch was a good guy and he just wanted what was best for her. No, she was simply imbalanced. After all, here she was, a ski star at one of the best resorts in the world, and she didn’t care to go skiing. That was insane. Yet she couldn’t motivate herself to go outside and conquer some slopes. She knew she needed to call Magda, but Jo Beth had broken the don’t-fall-for-your-best-friend’s-ex code, and while Magda pretended to be cool about it, Jo Beth realized the growing silence between them was personal. Jo Beth had abandoned their friendship and their business, and for what? A guy. Magda had every right to hate her.
Jo Beth hated herself.
This was nothing new. She had hated herself back in Black Diamond when she’d betrayed Skylar. She had hated herself as she travelled around South America, aimlessly looking for a new identity, as if she could buy one at a street stand and wear it like an Alpaca sweater. She had even hated herself as she fell in love with Mitch, thereby breaking every rule she’d ever established for Skylar and for herself. But he was such a charming, handsome guy.
Screw it, Jo Beth thought. Having a purpose was more important. She’d call Magda, do some groveling, and get their business and herself back on track.