Page 35 of Mountain Challenge

Ry dropped the boards in front of them and cocked an eyebrow. “What now?”

“You sure you’re up for this?” she asked. She was only half kidding.

“My shoulder’s fine. I’ll be careful. I promise.” Isla nodded, trusting him to know his limits. He said he’d never snowboarded before, but he was obviously a confident skier, or he never would have made it into the PGHM.

“Let’s go, then,” she said, turning to the Funi 2000, the tiny funicular carrying beginners to the top of a very small hill.

“Really?” he asked, standing in line behind a group of six-year-olds wearing brightly colored vests. “This is where we start?”

“What were you expecting? A black run? By the time we’re done here today, you’ll know the green pistes of Brevent like the back of your hand.”

At the top, she showed him how to fasten the strap bindings on his lead foot, leaving his back foot free. “There. Now you push off, like this.”

She watched him push off and slide forward, gaining momentum. When she saw he was stable, she taught him some of the basics—heel edge, toe edge, and eventually “S” turns. It didn’t take her long to see he was a natural, with incredible balance and coordination. It didn’t hurt that he had an intuitive knowledge of how snow and slopes behaved. In just a short while, he was ready to take his first lift.

“Are you sure you’ve never done this before?” she asked, when they were safely on the lift.

The grin on his face grew wider. “Does that mean I’m doing well?”

Isla laughed. “Don’t let it go to your head.”

“Well, I surf, and I’m a skier,” he shrugged. She couldn’t see his eyes behind the reflective sunglasses he wore, but knew he was staring at her. ”I’m having a lot of fun. Thank you for teaching me.”

Something warmed her inside, and this time it wasn’t the sun. “I am too. I think by the end of today, you’ll be able to goanywhere.” She raised the bar at the end of the lift, instructing him on how to push off.

The exit went off without a hitch until a small girl on skis crossed over in front of Ry to get to her parents. His arms windmilled, and he ended up flat on his ass.

“Or almost anywhere,” she laughed, stopping next to him. “Maybe you still need to practice that a bit.”

“You think?”

“Are you okay?” She offered him a hand up, though he put no pressure on her as he stood.

“I’m okay. It’s just my pride.”

“Is that what you call your butt now?”

He laughed so hard several people turned to stare at them. “You have a point. Maybe I should have rented the butt protector after all.”

She loved snowboarding enough that she didn’t need to do it with anyone else to have fun, but snowboarding with Ry was different. He made the air feel crisper somehow, the sun warmer. She wasn’t used to having quite this much fun.

“I think you might be ready for the Parsa chair,” she said after a few more runs.

“If you say so, Teach.”

“Don’t call me that.”

Ry laughed, reaching out to her with his gloved hand. Even through the material, she could feel the heat of his skin. “But you’re a great teacher, Isla. Come on, let me buy you lunch, then we’ll take the chair.”

Awoman could get used to this.

Usually, Isla had to stand in line for her meal. Instead, she was sitting outside, enjoying people watching—one of her favorite activities up on the slopes—while Ry went to get their food.

She stretched out in her seat and closed her eyes, enjoying the feeling of the sun on her face. It felt so nice. Her toes tingled, like after really good sex.

She’d asked for the rosti and a hot chocolate—a strange combination, perhaps, but surely there was nothing wrong with putting two of her favorite things together. Just thinking about it was making her feel hungry.

She opened her eyes, wondering what was taking Ry so long, and caught sight of him as he moved forward, a laden tray in his arms. Her stomach growled. She was debating whether to get up and help him when a woman dressed in a bright burgundy ski suit fairly jumped into his arms, almost dislodging the tray. The suit was a bright, garish color, one that would have looked hideous on Isla, but with her beautiful dark skin, the woman made it work.

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