Owning Beauty (Taking Beauty Trilogy 3)

The rest of the day was spent teaching both her and Kelly how to ski. Neither of them had ever even seen a ski in person before, so it was definitely quite the experience. And, I had to admit, it was quite amusing watching the two of them fall face-first and ass-first into the snow over and over.

By the time the sun began to set, they had managed to get the hang of the basics at least. With a little bit more practice, they’d be skiing like pros in no time, I told them.

Despite Sarah’s reservations about the trip, she seemed to be fitting right in with everyone. She was smiling a good bit, laughing and making jokes with them as we headed back toward the resort. I was glad to see her happy and enjoying herself.

After taking turns showering back in the room, we met the guys back down in the restaurant for dinner and some drinks. And after the last couple days, I really needed a drink!

Sarah

Two drinks into the night and I was practically floating on air. I normally wasn’t a big drinker, but after everything that had happened with Nathan, I needed something to help me get my mind off everything. And drinks were the perfect thing it seemed like.

And to be honest, I was actually having a great time. I was so glad to see Kelly when I’d walked into the restaurant this morning. At least I wouldn’t just be stuck with Nathan and his friends the entire time, not that they were really that bad. They’d all been extremely friendly out on the slopes, helping Kelly and I to figure things out.

Even Billy was being a perfect gentleman so far, which actually kind of shocked me. I’d expected him to be all over me again, but he’d done nothing but offer me polite smiles as we were out on the slopes.

When I walked over to the bar to get another martini, he followed me. I took a deep breath, expecting him to have returned to the sleezeball he’d been at Nathan’s party. But he smiled at me, then ordered his drink.

As we waited for our drinks, he turned to me again, taking a deep breath as he did so. “Look, Sarah, I wanted to apologize for the way I acted last time I saw you.” He pursed his lips tight and glanced down at the floor. “I was drunk and a bit of an ass. I’m sorry I was so pushy. I’m not normally like that, I promise.”

For a moment, I just stared at him, not sure what to say. He’d been creepy as hell at the party, but maybe it was like he’d said, he’s just had too much to drink that night. Most of the guys there had been pretty wasted, including Nathan. And he had been perfectly polite all day.

I decided to give him the benefit of the doubt. “It’s all right. Apology accepted.”

“Thanks.” He smiled at me again before the bartender handed him his drink. “I’ll see you around,” he said before turning and heading back over to the group.

As I watched him go, I had to admit, he was pretty handsome. I remembered Nathan saying something in passing about Billy having enlisted in the army, and it definitely showed. He didn’t have that slim, sexy model build like Nathan, but he was sure built. Right that second, I wouldn’t have minded a little peak at what he was hiding under there.

Thankfully, the bartender returned with my martini right then and I didn’t have to think about it any longer.

Besides, even if Billy was built and wasn’t as big of an ass as I’d expected, he still wasn’t my type. I liked my guys with a bit more brain in their head. Guys who didn’t pass their classes with a C average.

Guys like Nathan a bitter part of my mind added.

I shook my head and tried to push that thought away. Nathan was off limits, I told myself. Besides, even if I wanted him again, there was no way he was going to go for it. He’d made that perfectly clear when we’d gotten here this morning. Everything we’d done together was a mistake.

By the time we headed back up to our room, I was more than a little tipsy. More than once Nathan had to catch me to keep me from falling flat on my face. Like I said, I wasn’t exactly a party girl, and I had virtually no alcohol tolerance what so ever.

When we were in the room, I stood staring at the bed, frowning. Even in my drunken state, sharing a bed with Nathan didn’t seem like the greatest idea in the world.

“You okay?” Nathan asked as he closed the curtains.

“Only one bed again,” I said, still staring at the offending piece of furniture.

“So?” I looked over at Nathan to see him shrug. “Weren’t you the one who said we were adults and that we could share a bed?”

I frowned again. Leave it to Nathan to use my own words against me like that! But what other choice did I have? The floor didn’t exactly look all that comfortable. Nor was I going to sleep in the desk chair. In this state, I was liable to fall out of it and break my neck.

“Yeah, I guess,” I said at last.

“Would it make you feel better if I slept in my clothes? I don’t have any pajamas to wear.”

I shook my head, realizing my mistake right away, grasping the bed to make the room stop spinning. “No, it’s fine. We’re both adults, right? It’s not like we’re animals who can’t control ourselves.”

I tried to smile as I started undressing, but I had to put all of my energy into not falling over. By the time the two of us crawled into bed together, Nathan wore just his boxers while I was wearing only a t-shirt and my panties.

We both probably should’ve worn a bit more, but at that point, I just wanted to go to sleep.

“Don’t turn on the vibrating,” Nathan said through a yawn. “I feel like I might puke if you do.”

I snorted. “You and me both!”

Before I knew it, the sun was shining through a gap in the curtain. Like the first night, as my senses finally came back to me, I realized I was snuggled against Nathan’s chest again. Immediately, I rolled over, moving his arm from around my shoulders.

The last thing I needed was for him to wake up and find me on top of him and think I was coming onto him or something. It was awkward enough seeing that familiar tent beneath the blankets once again. But rather than lift them up and take a peak this time, I swung my legs over the edge of the bed, then headed to the bathroom.

I was actually quite proud of my self-control as I took care of my morning routine. It’d taken a lot of effort not to just reach beneath the sheets and take hold of Nathan’s cock again. Even now, I could clearly remember how it felt to hold him, his shaft thick enough that I couldn’t even completely close my hand around it.

I knew he wouldn’t have been able to resist me if he’d woken up to me

stroking him, but I wasn’t going to take that risk. Just because he wouldn’t push me away right away didn’t mean he’d go along with it once he’d blown his load.

After that, he’d have probably chewed me out from now until we’d gotten home. Step-siblings weren’t supposed to do that kind of stuff together, after all.

By the time I came out of the bathroom, Nathan was awake, sitting up in bed and rubbing sleep from his eyes. The blanket now just covered his waist, leaving his muscular chest visible, once again making my heart pound as I looked at him.

“Morning,” he said through a yawn.

I forced myself to smile at him. It was a good thing he was still half asleep, since he wouldn’t notice how fake it was. “Morning. Sleep well?”

He nodded, yawning again. “Not bad, though I could still use a few more hours.” He glanced over at the alarm clock and frowned. “I guess I better get up so we can go get some breakfast before we head out onto the slopes, huh?”

“Probably a good idea. I don’t need you passing out from hunger while we’re out there. I’m not carrying your ass back here.”

Nathan snorted and shook his head before pushing the blankets back and getting out of bed. Once again, my breath caught in my throat as I stared at his very prominent erection. Even though I’d seen it, felt it, hell, almost been fucked by it, it was no less exciting to see.

Luckily, Nathan didn’t seem to notice his effect on me, since he just shuffled to the bathroom, yawning the entire time. By the time he reappeared, I was almost completely dressed, just pulling my sweater over my head. His erection had vanished as well, though I could still see his sizable member swinging beneath his loose boxer shorts.

God, would I ever be able to look at him without feeling like a love struck teenager? I had my doubts.

But, soon enough, he was dressed and we were on our way down to breakfast. About half of the guys were already there, including Kelly, but at least we weren’t the last ones to show up. Billy arrived just after us, and sat down across from me, smiling as he did so.