Page 40 of Her Forever Billionaire

She bit her lip—she wasn’t a party queen. And she couldn’t even have a drink to help her relax. This was just madness.

The place was full already, of course. Pre-dinner drinks were almost over, which was perfect timing because they could just slip into the crowd rather than make any kind of grand entrance.

‘That’s them over there.’ Jack waved to a guy across the room and took her hand to draw her with him. There were a bunch of them, all in suits but some with personalising features—big hair and beanies seemed to be the order of the day.

Jack got waylaid three quarters of the way across the room by some other big, tall, fit person but she glanced over and saw the snowboarders were watching them, and now walking nearer to meet up with them. She half turned to Jack to listen to him greeting the guy who she now recognised as a rugby star. But the low conversation easily came to her ears as the beanie brigade neared.

‘Check out the woman Jack’s with.’

‘Sick.’

‘Yeah.’

Kelsi stiffened. They thought she was sick? Okay, so she had pale skin, so what? That didn’t mean she was at death’s door or anything. She shouldn’t have left her arms bare. She shouldn’t even be here.

‘You okay?’ Jack asked quietly, turning to her after a big laugh with the rugby dude.

‘Sure.’ She made herself smile.

‘Come and meet the guys.’

Reluctantly, she stepped up as he introduced her. Tahu, Drew and Max—who all stood smiling and silent and staring at Jack as if he was better than Father Christmas.

‘Max is the current boardercross champ,’ Jack said with his wicked grin.

‘Boardercross?’ Kelsi asked

‘You get four guys going straight down an obstacle course as fast as possible. First to the bottom wins. Take no prisoners,’ Jack explained. ‘Tahu and Drew specialise in superpipe.’ He looked over at Drew. ‘How was Silverton?’

‘Sick.’ Drew answered Jack direct with an almost shy smile. ‘Tori pulled another McTwist and then nailed her first 720.’

‘Wow.’ Jack’s brows lifted. ‘She’s been after that for ages. Is she here?’

‘Should be soon.’

Kelsi tugged on Jack’s sleeve. ‘You’re going to have to translate again for me.’

‘McTwist, 720, 1080, all tricks—jumps and turns you make on the half pipe.’ Jack twirled his finger in the air.

‘And they’re “sick”?’ Kelsi really needed that one clarified.

‘Awesome, fantastic, rad.’ Thesaurus Jack offered some synonyms.

So ‘sick’ was a compliment in snowboard speak?

Kelsi flushed, felt her smile go natural.

Jack put his hand on her back. ‘The slang is a little OTT.’

‘You don’t snowboard?’ Drew asked, amazed.

Kelsi shook her head, unable to speak because Jack’s hand had slid a little higher up her back and now his thumb was stroking over that small spot of bared skin.

‘You have to go,’ Tahu said. ‘Do it once and you’re hooked.’

Rather like riding Jack himself. Oh, she so had to get a grip on herself.

‘Jack’ll show you,’ Tahu added.

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