I’m glad Mike’s not with them, but I feel bad that she’s not skiing today. Evan and the guys are in line for the big jump and the Half Pipes are right behind them. They wave at Blake and he gives them a thumbs up.
I stop while he straps on his board and glare at Brianna. I don’t know if she knows her dad returned the notebook, but it proves she stole from me—from Dad—and I’m done being civil with her. “Did you miss a turn at the last green?”
She rolls her eyes. “You think you own this run?”
“No, but I’ve seen you ski.”
Kenzie’s eyes narrow. “Where do you get off acting like you’re all that?”
“Didn’t seem to bother you before.”
She huffs, and I try not to smile. If these two want to make fools of themselves, who am I to stop them?
Evan pushes off first, and Austin and Reece follow close behind. They hit the jumps right after each other—boom, boom, boom—and land perfectly at the bottom.
“Ready, Kenz?” Brianna pushes Kenzie to go, and Kenzie hesitates.
As much as I want to be a bitch, I know what can happen when you don’t know what you’re doing on a jump. “It’s harder than it looks.” My voice is flat. I really don’t want to help them. “Just keep your skis straight and don’t miss the landing or you might break your neck.”
Andrew laughs. “Yeah, I’m proof of that.”
Brianna’s eyes go wide, and Andrew is my new best friend.
“Bet my helmet doesn’t seem so dumb now, huh?”
She narrows her eyes at me and her mask of composure resets. “You people are ridiculous.” She uses her poles to get going and slides to the top of the jump, Kenzie at her side. With a quick glance at Kenzie, Bri straightens her skis so they’re pointing downhill and she starts moving.
“This oughta be good,” Blake murmurs.
Her skis wobble as she approaches the first jump—the first time I’ve seen a crack in her composure, at least on the slopes—and a high-pitched squeal echoes off the mountain when her skis leave the ground. Arms flailing, she somehow lands on both feet and immediately snowplows. By the time she reaches the second jump she’s going so slow that she coasts over the top, her skis never leaving the snow. All of us at the top exhale when she does the same on the third jump.
She comes to a graceful stop at the bottom and Austin pulls her into a bear hug.
“Well, that was anti-climatic.” I flick snow off the tip of my ski, sending it high above our heads.
Ian laughs. “Show’s not over yet.”
Kenzie’s still standing at the top of the jump. By now there’s a line of boarders behind her and their taunts carry to where we’re standing.
“Go already!”
“Get out of the way if you’re not jumping!”
Luke cups his hands around his mouth and shouts, “Go back to the bunny hill!”
She turns her head our way, mouth clenched in a firm line.
“Not so nice when it’s directed at you, is it?” Blake’s voice is low, but the disgust is unmistakable.
Kenzie inches forward until ever-so-slowly her skis begin to move.
Blake shakes his head. “If she doesn’t pick up speed she’s not gonna clear the jump.”
And that’s exactly what happens. Kenzie’s going so slow that she doesn’t have enough momentum to crest the jump and she starts to slide backwards.
He snorts and I nudge him. “You should do commentary.”
“Screw this. I’m hitting the rails.” Luke hops, slapping his board against the snow, then takes off down the hill. The Half Pipes follow him, leaving me alone with Blake.
Kenzie tries to skate up the hill but her skis keep slipping. By now a small crowd has gathered above her, their shouts getting obscene.
I shift my weight. “Should we help her?”
Blake looks at me. “You’re joking, right?”
“I guess.” Kenzie and Brianna have gone out of their way to make my life miserable, but she’s out of her element here. I remember how my stomach cramped the first time I pushed off the top of a scary mountain. I still get a twinge of nerves at the top, but I know I have the skills to get me safely down the hill. Kenzie doesn’t have that.
What she does have is a cheering section because she’s given up trying to go uphill and cuts to the side, freeing up the run. Boarders fly by her—a couple even flip her off—before she points her skis toward the bottom and glides to Brianna’s side, head high and form perfect like nothing happened.
Brianna gives her a quick hug at the bottom, then they get in line for the same lift.
“They’re coming back for more?”
I shrug. “Let’s wait until they’re on the lift so we won’t keep running into them.” We get in line for the jumps, but my adrenaline has faded. The Snow Bunnies are the only thing that make me not want to ski.
“You okay?”
I nod. “Just a lot of standing around.”
“Mind if I go first?”
I’ve never seen him do his thing from the top—er... from the top of the jumps. And now I’m thinking of really inappropriate things. I blush and Blake raises an eyebrow at me. “Go for it.” I flush even more and he leans his head toward mine.
“I’m dying to know what you’re thinking.”
“Not a chance in hell.”
He winks. “Maybe later?”
I smile. Later, when the Bunnies are gone and it’s just us and... “Mmm, maybe.”
He pecks my cheek, then hops forward. “See you at the bottom.” Then he gives me another wink that sends my heart into convulsions. His first jump is a smooth three-sixty. He lands easily and crouches to gain speed for the second. As soon as he leaves the ground, he grabs his board behind him and arches his back. It looks like an easy move but it takes a lot of control to keep yourself steady.
And a lot of muscles.
Muscles.
Like probably a six-pack.
I bite my lip and give up trying not to blush.
The third jump is all big air. Body tucked, arms steady, soaring far beyond where most people land. He sticks the landing and turns around to wait for me.
My thoughts are so rattled from imaging him without clothes that I play the jumps safe and copy him—three-sixty, ollie, and big air—although his air was way bigger. I come to a smooth stop next to him and my hand reaches for his belly. I can’t feel muscles through his heavy jacket, but I can imagine.
His brows furrow. “You okay?”
I run my hand over his torso. “Better than okay. Let’s go.”
We head back up and my stomach sinks. The Bunnies are still at the top. “Why would they come back up if they’re too scared to do anything?”
“I’ve never claimed to understand what they do.” He glances at me and rests a hand on my thigh. “Hey, just ignore them. They don’t own this place.”
“I know, it’s just...” I hate the squicky feeling I get when I’m around them, like I’m waiting for the other shoe to drop. “Being suspended clearly didn’t make Brianna change her ways and I trust Kenzie about as far as I can throw her.”
He squeezes my leg. “Do you have plans for winter break?”
Oh, right. That’s next weekend. When we first moved I’d hoped I could go back to Vermont, but I never made plans and now it’s too late. “What did you have in mind?” I realize he didn’t actually ask me out, but I never claimed to be bashful.
He smiles. “More of this? Maybe go to that movie?”
I lean so my shoulder’s pressed against his. “I’d love to.”
We fall silent until we reach the top. The Bunnies are still there, watching the jumpers.
“Ignore them,” Blake whispers.
They’re in the middle of the lip so I hang back while Blake fastens his boots, then follow him to the jump. This time I’m leading. I crouch to gain momentum and hit the first jump at top speed. Spread eagle. Not super difficult but I’m dying to see how Blake handles that on a board. I barely notice my landing and am prepping for the next jump when a flash of neon orange alongside the jump catches my eye. I ignore it and launch a three-sixty. I’m going inverted for number three so I want to keep my speed up and—what the hell?
The spot of orange drifts into my landing zone.
“Watch it!” I shout, but it’s too late. I twist to avoid hitting her and land sideways, but instead of my skis popping off, I end up sitting on my skis, shooting sideways on the hill toward the tree line and the chairlift. A chorus of “Ohhhhs” sound above me but I’m too pissed to care. I roll to my side to stop and am back on my feet in a flash, but a bolt of pain rips through my knee and I fall back into the snow. I look up in time to see Kenzie glide away, her black ponytail swinging.
“I can’t believe she did that! What is wrong with you?” I shout after her, but she’s already gone.
A spray of powder above me makes me jump.
Blake.
He’s at my side in a heartbeat. “What happened? I didn’t see you land, just that you didn’t make the third jump.” He gives me a visual once-over, making me forget my anger for a second, and pauses on my knee.
I’m gripping it without realizing.
“Is it bad?”
“I don’t think so. I landed at a weird angle to avoid crashing into that stupid B. I should have just—”
He shakes his head. “Then you’d be just like them. And you’re not.”
I thrill at his words. I feel like I’ve been battling this impression he made of me when we first met—however right or wrong it was—and to hear him say that means he’s finally seeing me for who I am. Just Cally. Not some stuck-up rich girl who cares about stupid crap like money and clothes and—
The whine of a snowmobile stops my thoughts.
“No. Uh-uh. No way.”
Blake stands to look down the hill. “They’re coming this way.”
I push myself off the ground and am standing almost completely normally by the time they reach us. “I’m fine. Really.”
A patrol woman jumps off the back. “We have instructions to check more people after that boy hurt his neck last week.”
“Frigging Andrew,” Blake whispers.
She glances at him, then focuses on me. “Chairlift operator says you took a hard fall off the jump. Considering you’re still here I’m guessing he wasn’t making it up.”
I shift from foot to foot. There’s a twinge in my knee, but it’s nothing a little rest and some ice won’t fix. “It looked worse than it was. I swear.”
She looks at the patrol guy still on the snowmobile. “Whaddaya think?”
He shrugs. “She seems okay.”
I breathe a sigh of relief. “Thank you.”
She climbs back onto the snowmobile and they drive off.
When the whine of the engine fades, Blake leans his head close to mine. “I was really hoping to see those bunny pants again.”
“That’s too bad.” I smile. “Today it’s hearts and rainbows.”
He raises an eyebrow. “Really?”
I give him a half-smile. “Maybe.”
His eyes darken. If I had more experience with boys I’d guess that now I’ve got him thinking of me the way I can’t stop thinking of him, but I’m not sure. The moment passes and he rubs my arm. “You okay to get to the lodge?”
I bend my knee, but rather than pain, I just feel exhaustion. “Yeah. But no more jumps for me.”
I follow him to the lodge. He secures our gear on a rack and we head inside. Half the mountain seems to be in here. I eye the line snaking along the far wall, then take his helmet. “You get hot chocolate, I’ll find a table.”
He stuffs his gloves and goggles in the helmet and kisses my cheek, causing my pulse to skitter. I’ll take a sweaty boy with hair sticking all over the place over a neatly groomed one any day.
I meander through the lodge in search of a table when I spot Evan and the guys. I turn around but he calls my name and waves me over.
Their feet are propped on two empty chairs.
“Is there room for two more at the inn?”
Evan nods at the chairs and Austin gives him a sideways glance. Brianna and Kenzie are nowhere to be seen, but I’m sure these are for them.
“I’m not taking their seats.”
Evan shrugs. “They’re still skiing.”
“More like hiding after making me fall.” The words are out before I catch myself.
Evan sits straighter and gives me a once over. “What’d they do now?”
I wave his feet off one of the chairs and sit. “I’m sure Kenzie will claim it was an accident, but she cut in front of me when I was landing a three-sixty.”
Now it’s Austin’s turn to look concerned. “On purpose?”
I roll my eyes. “When do they do anything on accident?”
“That’s not cool.”
“Yeah, no kidding.” I look across the room to check on Blake’s progress and spot him halfway to the cashier, talking to two girls in line behind him. A stab of jealousy makes me grip the table, but I force myself to relax and stop being a hypocrite. While he’s in line talking to girls, I’m over here talking to boys. I turn back to Evan and he gives me a small smile, making me wonder for the hundredth time why he’s friends with the Snow Bunnies. If what Mike said was true about why they broke up, then he’s not into all that superficial crap, and while I get that he’s friends with Austin and Reece, that sounds like a miserable way to go through life. “I really don’t want to cause a problem when they get here. I’ve had enough drama this week.”
Evan leans toward me and lowers his voice. “Brianna doesn’t tell me who I’m friends with.”
I appreciate the sentiment but that’s not going to stop Bri from throwing a fit when she comes inside. “So why—never mind.”
“What?”
“I was going to ask why you hang out with them, but—” I nod at the guys. “I get it.”
He glances at Austin to make sure he’s not listening. “Some day Austin will realize what a raging bitch she is and put an end to whatever it is they have going on, but until then...” He shrugs.
Kind of like Mike. I smile, happy that she seems to really be free of them.
“Am I interrupting something?” Blake’s standing at my side, a cup of hot chocolate in each hand and a bag of chips dangling from his fingers.
I jump back, noticing how close Evan and I were and how it must look. I nod at the other chair. “I found seats.”
The guys shuffle so Blake can sit next to me and he sets the drinks on the table. He locks eyes with mine as he sits, seeming uncertain.
I lean so my cheek is pressed against his and whisper in his ear. “We’ve commandeered the Bitches’ chairs.”
I feel his smile. “Nice.”
The guys fall into an easy conversation and before long I’m laughing and joking like I’ve known them forever. Reece is in the middle of a completely disgusting joke about a pig and a bottle of baby oil when he suddenly falls silent, his gaze locked over my shoulder toward the entrance. I don’t need to turn around to know who’s there.
“The eagle has landed,” Evan whispers. “Repeat. The eagle has landed.”
Blake snorts. “You mean the vultures.”
Austin gives him a dirty look but doesn’t contradict him.
I remain still, dreading what’s about to happen. I refuse to turn around. Blake slips his hand into mine and smiles like there’s no one else in the room. The distraction lasts all of five seconds.
“This looks cozy.” Brianna’s fake-sweet voice makes the hair on the back on my neck stand up.
I twist in my chair and smile up at her. “Sorry, this table’s full.” Go big or go home, right?
Her calm demeanor vanishes and her lips curl into a snarl. “I thought we got rid of you.”
I pat my knee. “Nice try, but I’m still here.”
Kenzie stiffens beside her. I won’t give her enough credit to think she feels guilty for what she did, but it’s nice to see she has a reaction other than total bitch.
Brianna nudges Kenzie’s arm. “Maybe next time.”
Blake yanks his hand from mine and is on his feet, toe-to-toe with Brianna. “When are you gonna realize this isn’t a game? She could have really been hurt.”
She lifts a shoulder and rolls her eyes at me. “Maybe your girlfriend shouldn’t go where she’s not welcome.”
I start to rise but Evan pulls me back by my shoulders.
The gesture doesn’t escape Brianna. “It’s not enough to have a Ski Bum trailing after you? You’re still stringing him along, too?”
I look between Blake and Evan. “What? No, I—”
She sneers. “Don’t play innocent. I invented that game.”
Austin cocks his head and there’s a flash of concern on Brianna’s face, like maybe she said more than she intended, but she shakes it off.
Blake moves a step closer to me, as if his body can shield me from her venom.
She crosses her arms. “Oh, so now you’re her bodyguard or something?”
“Enough, Brianna.”
“Since when do you care about anyone but yourself?”
“You’ve treated me like shit for years and I’ve never said anything. As of today, I’m done.”
The Brivolution is real!
But she’s not backing down that easily. “You’ll never be anything but a Ski Bum.”
Blake laughs, but it’s filled with disgust. “That name didn’t stick the first hundred times you tried calling me that. Give it up.”
I snort. “Ski Bum? Seriously?”
Blake turns his head toward me. “I guess it was supposed to keep me and Luke in our place. You know, as far away from the Snow Bitches as possible.” He turns back to Brianna, whose face has turned a garish shade of red that clashes with her bright pink jacket. She should really reconsider her wardrobe choices if her face keeps doing that.
“Snow Bunnies,” Brianna corrects. Her eyes have taken on a glassy sheen and I don’t think she’s blinked in at least a minute.
Blake matches her glare. “My mistake.”
It’s so quiet at our table that noise from the surrounding tables suddenly seems much louder. Bits of conversations from other groups drift over to us, but no one seems aware of the Blake vs. Brianna showdown.
Austin finally stands and tugs at Brianna’s arm, but she shakes him off without looking at him. She points at me and Blake. “You two are not welcome here.”
I cross my arms. “Funny, no one complained when I was invited to sit here.”
Her eyes flick to Evan, then back to me. “There’s no explaining some people’s taste.”
I glance at Austin. “I could say the same thing.”
She takes a step closer. For a second I think she’s going to launch herself at me but she just stands there with her finger frozen in midair.
I’m tempted to grab it like I sometimes do to Dad when he’s giving his Behave warning. That would snap her out of her power trip.
“I’m complaining now.”
I exhale loudly. I could keep going back and forth with her, or I could go someplace more private with Blake. Plus I can’t guarantee I won’t kick Kenzie in the kneecap if she decides to add her two cents. I rest my hand on Evan’s shoulder and he looks up at me. “Thanks for saving us seats, but we’re gonna take off.”
Blake quirks his eyebrow at me.
Evan smiles at me like Brianna isn’t fuming two feet away. “See ya, Cally.” He nods at Blake. “Blake.”
Brianna huffs. “Don’t act like this was your idea.”
I wave at the other guys. “See you at school.” I loop my arm through Blake’s and lead him though the maze of tables to the exit.
He chuckles when we step outside. “I can’t believe you caved.”
“Well, I figured I could trade insults with Brianna for the next hour,” I slide my arms around his neck and focus on his lips. “Or I could spend time with my Ski Bum bodyguard.” I barely notice his lopsided smile before his lips brush mine. “Does she really still call you that?”
“She tries. But nicknames are only fun when the person hates it and since I don’t ever react, she’s the only one who cares.”
“That’s a good strategy.”
“I don’t waste my energy on people I don’t like.” He pulls me closer and nuzzles my neck. “I have lots of energy for you.”
I know he doesn’t mean the innuendo that pops into my head, but he’s turned me into a lovesick horndog who can only think about all the inappropriate things we could do in an hour. “What did you have in mind?”