As Sabela approached, she watched a figure descend from the uppermost outcropping of the mountaintop. She could tell even from that distance that the figure was a male, and she had no doubt who she was watching.
Colin navigated the slope expertly.
He moved in graceful accordance with his skis and was confident every foot of the way down the slope. When he reached the bottom, he cut near her and sent a spray of snow flying in the air.
He lifted his thick goggles and the sun sparkled on his golden hair. Sabela’s heart skipped a beat. Colin might be a beast on the inside, but on the outside he was a prince.
“Good morning, Sabela. How did you sleep?” he asked.
“Fine, thank you,” she said.
The reply was automatic. Between how stunning he looked now that they were out in the sunshine with the cold drawing the red from his tanned cheeks and how friendly he was acting, Sabela couldn’t muster anything more.
Maybe last night had been a misunderstanding. Tired and stressed from her long day, maybe she’d jumped to conclusions too quickly. Colin looked as approachable as he did handsome.
And she couldn’t forget how eager Marie was to spout his praises.
“Ready for some skiing?” he asked. “Last night’s snow is perfect, and the slope is in great shape.”
“Maybe I can watch you. I don’t know how to ski.”
“I’ll teach you.”
“I’m not athletically inclined. I broke my leg once throwing darts.”
“Wait, what? How did you manage that?” Colin hitched a brow.
“It’s a long, embarrassing story,” Sabela admitted with a sigh. “I don’t want to relive the shame.”
Colin laughed and shook his head. The crisp mountain air complimented the sound, and Sabela wished he’d laugh more often. It made him less intimidating.
“It’s important that you can at least make your way gracefully down the bunny hill.” Colin chuckled. “Think we can work on that?”
She conceded regretfully. “I guess.”
Sabela felt awkward, being asked to do something she had no interest in doing. She didn’t feel graceful in the way she moved at the best of times. Escaping into her imagination was so much easier than getting out and trying to actually do something.
Trevor had always joked that she broke out in bruises instead of hives every time she so much as looked at an athletic activity. Looking at the ski slope left her almost breaking out in broken bones.
It was a hospital trip waiting to happen, and Sabela couldn’t afford any more medical debts. She’d simply make Colin foot the bill. If she took it slow and didn’t freak herself out, maybe she’d get by with a sprain. That shouldn’t be too costly.
Colin pointed at the ski rack next to the lift. There were several rows of skis, all of them slightly different sizes, waiting there.
“Let’s get you in a pair and get you started.”
The next twenty minutes were torturous, but for a completely different reason than Sabela anticipated. Colin leaned over her, helping her get strapped into the right pair of skis, and didn’t shy away from touching her when he needed to.
The scent of his cologne tantalized, but it was his touch and how it sent sparks through her body that kept Sabela’s mind occupied.
Why did his touch, even when it wasn’t meant to be intimate, stir her like this? She was as frustrated with herself as she was intrigued by him.
When they found the skis that were right for her, she had to lean on Colin in order to get them on. Through it all, Colin was patient with her. He made sure the skis were securely strapped, then stood up and grinned at her.
“All set. Let’s tackle this thing.”
Colin had more confidence in her than Sabela had in herself. She followed his instructions on how to hold onto the lift that took her up the slope, and soon enough they were seated side by side on the moving bench.
Sabela’s heart pounded. Getting onto the lift had been frightening, and she hadn’t even begun to ski yet.
Would Colin refuse to consider her debt paid until she mastered a sport she knew she was never going to make much progress in? She hated how everything she did was measured by what she owed the man.
At the top of the rise, Colin hopped off of the chair and helped her down, and Sabela managed to land without falling.
So far, so good.
But it was all downhill from there – literally. Colin started to tell her how she was supposed to hold her skis and keep her knees, and what to expect on the way down.
The words went in one ear and out the other. All Sabela could think of was that the hill looked a lot larger now that she was at the top of it, bunny slope or not.
“Hey,” Colin said at last, “are you listening to me?”
“I’m trying,” she mumbled, swallowing hard past the knot in her throat.
“It’s important that you pay attention so you don’t get hurt. I’m not talking because I like the sound of my own voice. If I wanted to listen to someone, it would be you.”
His flattery couldn’t soothe her nerves. Sabela felt sick. Did he really expect her to do this?
“Colin, I don’t think this is a good idea. I don’t want to do this.”
She was being pushed too far too fast in too many ways. Staring down the slope was the perfect metaphor for her current situation as a whole. If she didn’t pull Colin’s foot off the accelerator, she was going to crash and burn.
For the first time that morning, Colin’s face hardened. “You’re just scared. It’s natural. Come on. If you don’t try, then you can’t succeed.”
“If I don’t try, I also won’t end up with any broken bones,” she quipped.
“I don’t think that will make it as a slogan for any motivational posters.” Colin’s face lightened a touch.
“I just … I … I can’t.”
“We’ll go down together. Just remember what I told you, and everything will be fine.”
“I can’t!”
Colin’s expression tightened again, a look she was starting to know well. “Are you saying that you won’t work to repay what you owe?”
There it was, the carrot before the horse that she knew he was going to dangle. And that’s why everything so far was measured by her debt — because of him and his constant reminders of why she was there. Sabela grimaced.
“I’ll go,” she said.
Ungraceful, she inched forward, but the skis weren’t going anywhere.
“Remember what I told you,” Colin said.
Then, before she had time to prepare herself, he set his hand
on her back and gave her a gentle shove to provide the momentum she needed for her descent.
As soon as the wind hit her face and she realized that she wasn’t in control anymore, Sabela forgot everything she’d been told.
Panicked and unable to focus, she sped off. It was like her feet had minds of their own. And they were rapidly getting ahead of the rest of her.
She flailed her arms around, trying to catch up to her speeding skis, but it only unbalanced her further, and her spinning poles nearly whacked her in the head. Her skis began to cross.
One minute she was standing upright, and the next she was staring straight up at the sky. With a thud, she hit the snow and started to slide the rest of the way on her ass.
And Colin had the audacity to laugh as he effortlessly skied to a stop beside her.
“Get up, and let’s try it again,” he said.
Sabela wiped snow from her goggles and tried to push herself up. She wanted to smack the smug grin off Colin’s face as he grabbed her hands and heaved her upright.
She stood, turned to the side to keep herself from sliding away again. Looking down the slope, she realized it wasn’t really all that far to the bottom; it had just seemed that way.
She didn’t listen to him when he began to instruct her on everything she’d done wrong. She was too busy considering how he had forced her to do something against her will.
If he wouldn’t let her back out of skiing, what was to say he wouldn’t force her into something more? Sabela’s anger grew.
Going against who she was wasn’t worth it. Ever since she’d woken up the day before, she’d been pushed, stretched, and bullied in one way or another. This time, with the skiing, it was physical. She was lucky that she hadn’t hurt herself during the fall.
It was enough.
“No, I won’t do it,” she said adamantly.
He gave her his no-nonsense look. “You will do it because I said so.”
The beast was back.
Sabela squared her shoulders, unwilling to back down. Nothing was worth being treated like this.
“I am sick of being bullied by you, Colin Morgan, and I’m not going to stand for it any longer! You will take me home right now! I’m done.”