Page 17 of Mountain Security

But there are other people in other departments …

“It doesn’t have to be anyone from your team, Yvette,” Alex said gently, and she wondered how it was that he could read her so well, when they’d only just met. “It could be somebody from one of the other departments. There’s the office for the environment, education, mobility, sports, culture … there are dozens of people working in those departments, and any one of them could have gotten access to the building, to place those keyloggers. But if your team knows we’re not really dating, they could tell other people.”

He was right. She knew he was.

“Okay. Where do you want to go?”

“The snow’s going to be amazing up there,” he said, pointing at the mountains. “Let me take you skiing.”

The falafel in her mouth suddenly tasted chalky. “Uh. No.”

“No?”

“I don’t ski.”

“You don’t ski?” He repeated the words like she was speaking a foreign language. “Everybody in Chamonix skies.”

“I don’t,” she said, trying not to sound as exasperated as she felt. She’d had this conversation before, and it always made her uncomfortable, but having it with him seemed worse.

He was looking at her like she’d just sprouted a pair of wings.

“I never learned, okay? My family didn’t have money for skiing.”

He was silent for a moment, then nodded. “Okay. But now …”

She understood what he meant. He didn’t meannow, he meant why hadn’t she learned to ski later, when she’d had the chance. Which was a fair question. But she couldn’t tell him the real reason, which was that it looked hard, and she was so scared of not being good at it, it seemed easier not to try at all.

“I just never did,” she finally said, and she knew she sounded defensive, but he was looking at her like he could see right through her, and she didn’t like that at all.

“I’ll teach you,” he said eagerly. “I’m a good teacher. You come skiing with me, and then you get to choose where we go on our next date.”

She pondered that for a moment. A morning skiing with Alex. This was something she could give herself. And if she ended up sucking at it, well, it’s not like this was real. It’s not like she had to see him again once this was over. Plus, he’d owe her.

“So. One morning skiing. And afterwards, you’ll do anything I want?” she clarified.

“Yes. Anything you want.”

“Okay, then,” she said.

He laughed out loud. “Why do I get the feeling I’m going to be in over my head?”

“Don’t worry. Make sure you reserve your evening on Sunday.”

“You’re not going to tell me what we’re going to do?”

Yvette finished her last bite of falafel and picked up a french fry from the paper bag. “No. Absolutely not. It’ll be more fun this way.”

7

* * *

Yvette

“I’m not sure this was such a great idea,” Yvette said.

She’d never realized how heavy ski boots were, or how hard it was to walk in them. Her calf muscles were already aching, and she’d had them on for all but five minutes.

“What do you mean?” he asked. “We’re not even on the slopes yet. You’ve got to give it a chance.”

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