Page 32 of A Bear Ski Instructor Christmas

Rachel was worried. She was worried because Michael was nowhere to be seen, and she was worried because she couldn’t shake the feeling that his absence had something to do with thatI love youshe’d blurted out last night. Did he feel like she’d come at him too strongly? Too suddenly?

She almost smacked her forehead. Wasn’t it he who’d kissed her? Besides, this was her lover she was thinking about, not some random guy.

But he didn’t see himself that way because he still couldn’t remember her, which was a huge problem because she needed him to remember how much he loved her. Rachel stood in the center of the living room, hugging her arms to herself as she stared into the fireplace.

You need to calm down,she told herself.He’s probably just at the workshop.

That made sense. Michael was almost always at the workshop with his friend. Who was to say he wasn’t there now? She really needed to take a breather. It was Christmas Day. The least she could do was try not to soil her mood with worrisome thoughts.

Just then, her gaze drifted to a corner of the room.

Wait a minute.

She could’ve sworn she’d seen Michael’s skis there last night. Now, the skis were gone.

Suddenly, the bits of information clicked together in her mind like pieces of a puzzle. Realizing where he must have gone, she exited the cabin in a heartbeat.

The streets of Melinor were crowded, villagers milling about celebrating Christmas. It was nothing like what Rachel was used to. They might as well have been celebrating New Year’s. But the joy and laughter that rippled through the crowds simply swept past her. She had only one concern right now: to find Michael.

The hairs on the back of her neck stood at attention, and her hand shot up to touch the silver ice skater pressed coolly against her throat. Something felt wrong, very wrong.

Rachel thought she caught sight of Reba somewhere in the crowd as she pushed her way through. Before she could turn and head for the chief, someone bumped into her.

“Ow!” she said, wincing. Blinking, she realized who it was. “Elena.”

“Merry Christmas.” The woman flashed her a smile that was too wide to be genuine and started to move on, but Rachel took her by the arm, earning herself a withering glare.

“Have you seen Michael anywhere?” Rachel asked desperately. “He’s gone. I think—”

“I don’t know where your boyfriend is,” Elena spat, wrenching her arm from Rachel’s grip. “It’s Christmas Day. I’ve got other things to worry about.”

Stifling a groan of irritation, Rachel continued to push her way through the crowd, ignoring the cheering, singing villagers as she tunneled a path toward the village’s entrance. The gate was shut, but the fence was low enough for her to climb over with no difficulty. Sucking in a deep, rattling breath, Rachel stared down the snowy slope. There was no sign of Michael except…

Footprints! Not far from her own feet, a short trail of large, fresh footprints extended from the fence, giving way to twin tracks going all the way down the hill.

Ski tracks,she realized.

They had to be Michael’s. The tracks were too fresh not to be his. He’d definitely gone skiing.

But he’d been gone since the early hours of the morning. Where was he now? He obviously hadn’t returned to Melinor. No fresh tracks or footprints were leading back into the village. A chill traveled to the base of her spine. Had something happened to him? Was he hurt?

The rational part of her knew it was absurd, but she still couldn’t shake the feeling that he’d disappeared, just like he’d disappeared three years ago. As far as she knew, there was no escaping Frost Mountain, so why did the thought that she might never see him again keep entering her mind?

She needed to look for him. The tracks were still fresh. It shouldn’t be too hard to find him. It hadn’t even occurred to her until now that her heart was jackhammering inside her chest. She should probably take a moment to steady her mind. But she didn’t have the luxury of time. She needed to find Michael.

It occurred to her that she should probably alert Reba, who would most likely organize a search party for him, but Rachel didn’t have that kind of patience. She hurried onto the snowy path, wishing she was great at skiing so she could follow the tracks more quickly. Too bad she’d given it up all those years ago.

The hill was somewhat steep, and the downward journey somewhat precarious, but she managed to head down the path without losing her balance. Cold seeped through her sweater, causing her to shiver, and the wind whistled in her ears as if warning her to turn back, but that wasn’t enough to stop her.

She soon lost track of how long she’d been moving, aware only of the fact that she was headed down the mountain, following the tracks Michael had left. It wasn’t until she came across a bend in the road that she ground to a halt. The tracks ended abruptly here.

Where was he?

“Michael?” she called, her voice tight with panic. Just what had happened here? “Michael, where are you?”

“Right here,” replied a weak voice, nearly causing her to jump out of her skin. It had come from the trees.

“Michael!” She rushed forward, her heart slamming hard in her ribcage as she spotted him.

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