“Trying to bribe me with chocolate?” I joke, tearing off a piece and popping it into my mouth.
“Depends. Is it working?”
“Maybe a little,” I say around a mouthful, some crumbs spraying onto the table. I brush them away and take a sip of my coffee. It’s pretty good.
Ansel wraps his fingers around the cappuccino he ordered, watching me.
“What?” I blink.
“Nothing,” he replies amusedly. “You’re just really bad at skiing.”
My cheeks flame and I toss a packet of sugar on the table at him. He dodges it easily, laughing.
“Maybe you’re a bad teacher, did you think about that?”
“Nah,” he grins, “pretty sure it’s you.”
I sigh. “It’s hard with my leg,” I admit brokenly. “It’s not strong enough for things like this.”
His smile falls, eyes going wide. “Shit, Meadows, why didn’t you say anything?”
I shrug, scooting my chair closer to the warmth of the fire. “I wanted to try.”
He shakes his head. “If you’d hurt yourself … fuck, next time speak up.”
“Are you going to try to teach me any more sports?” I raise a brow.
He cracks a small smile. “Probably not. Snow sports are the only ones I excel in.”
“There you guys are!” We look over to find Sasha unzipping her bright orange puffy coat. “Seth,” she commands, “go order me a mocha and get whatever you want.” She shoves some money from her pocket at him and he takes off without a peep of protest.
She reaches our table, pulling out one of the empty chairs and collapsing into it. “I’m exhausted, but this was so much fun. Thanks for inviting me.” She shoots a tentative smile in Ansel’s direction.
He wiggles his fingers in response, silently replying that it’s not a big deal.
“Wanna head up for showers in a few? After, we can all head out for dinner.”
“That’s good with me,” I agree, realizing darkness is creeping in. We promised to be on the road early in the morning, so the sooner we eat and settle in for the night, the better.
Seth returns with Sasha’s mocha and a steaming cup of tea for himself. He hands her the change and she puts it back in her pocket for safekeeping.
After our drinks are emptied the four of us head up together to our floor and into our adjoined rooms.
I let Sasha shower first while I peel off all the layers of clothes I stuffed myself into.
With most of my layers off, leaving me in black leggings and a fitted long-sleeve black shirt I wait for Sasha to finish.
Flopping back on the bed I send Sage a text, letting him know what we’re doing. I’ve sent him frequent updates throughout the day to help ease his worries.
Sage: Glad you’re having fun.
Me: Thanks. I’ll see you tomorrow.
Sage: Text me before you go to bed.
Sage: Text me when you leave in the morning too.
Me: I will. Don’t worry.