Page 13 of Finding Love on the Slopes

He wasn’t smiling at all as he flipped over and angrily retrieved his sunglasses from the snow a few feet away and slapped them back on his face. He looked madder than a wet hen.

Skiers coming off the slopes laughed as they skied by, heading towards the lodge.

“Well, are you going to help me up or just stand there gawking at me, too,” he asked angrily.

“Oh, I’m going to help you. When you are ready to listen to me.”

Irritation played out on his handsome features as he placed his hands on the ground behind him and tried to push himself up. The skis that somehow remained in place on his feet slid out from under him, and his rear end planted in slush under him once more. He fell on his butt three more times before flopping back in the snow to catch his breath, his legs bent, skis under him. She couldn’t hide the giggle that slipped out.This man is as stubborn as a mule!She thought in exasperation.

Enrique couldn’t remember the last time he had such difficulty with something as simple as standing up. He growled deep in his throat, annoyed at the situation. He was right in the middle of the main exit from the slopes, so he was the center of attention and entertainment. It annoyed him to no end. He hadn’t felt this small and out of control since he was a boy. In those days, someone usually went home with blood on their shirt, and it wasn’t him. He usually sported bloody knuckles for a few days, but the same kids rarely laughed at him twice. He rolled his head and observed Leigh shaking with giggles, and his anger grew.

“I wish I could take a picture of you right now,” Leigh commented as she pressed her lips together to stop her giggles, even though her eyes still danced with laughter. “I’m sure Curtis would get a kick out of this.”

His nostrils flared, but his anger did nothing to stop her amusement. “Oh, would he?”

Pressing her fingers to her lips and inhaling deeply to calm herself, Leigh nodded her head. “Now, are you ready to quit acting like a know-it-all and listen to me? We had one hour when we arrived, but the slopes will shut down soon. All you’ve done since we got here is land on your butt because you’ve refused to listen. At this rate, you’re going to go home disappointed and bruised in ten days.”

Reluctantly, he shook his head and sat up.

“Good, because believe it or not, my job is much more fun when I am flying over the snowwithmy clients, not behindthem, watching them crash like stunt doubles. Now, sit off to the side of your skis on the snow, not on the back of your skis. For the record, that is never a good idea. Now, place the edge of your skis in the snow. Yep, just like that. Now, keep them up on edge so they don’t slide, use your pole in front of you to anchor you to the spot, and push up to stand. Great job!” Leigh congratulated as Enrique reached his full height beside her. She lifted one gloved hand into the air for a high-five, and he glared at it before grudgingly slapping her hand with his.

“Now, I’m going to show you how to walk up the hill in case this same thing happens on a steep slope instead of this tiny incline. Once you understand what I am doing, follow behind me. We aren’t going up the entire slope this way, but enough for you to practice. This will be important in case you fall up there and lose a ski or your poles. If you try to walk or push yourself up the incline, you will wind up in a bad position.” Leigh quickly demonstrated how to put the skis on edge and walk sideways up the hill. Enrique soon followed behind, and when she was convinced he had the skill, she turned and pushed forward over the side of the hill to where a T-lift pulled skiers to the top.

“Why didn’t you show this lift to me earlier?” he asked incredulously, thinking of the burn in his thighs the first time he went up the hill.

“I would have, but you weren’t listening to me, and you needed to learn how to move forward on flatter terrain anyway, so it all worked out. Now, though, we need to get to the top so we can practice goingdown a few more times before the final alarm rings to signal the mountain is closing.”

She explained how the lift worked and then stood behind him, giving encouragement and coaching the first two times he missed the lift. The third time, he was able to grab it and pull it between his legs, riding the bar as it pulled him in a standing position to the top of the little hill.

As he rode the lift, he watched the other skiers on the slopes higher up the mountain in front of him. He was in awe of their speed and their dexterity as they jumped little hills, causing clouds or snow to rise in the air as they turned to cross the mountain in quick zigzags. He wondered what it felt like to zip down the mountain so effortlessly… so fearlessly.

It had taken everything in him to keep it together when he lost control and went head-first into the ski rack earlier. At first, he worried he would have a panic attack right there in front of everyone. His stomach felt like it had a lead ball in it, his heart raced, and even though it was cold out there on the mountain, he could feel his palms sweating beneath his gloves. It hadn’t been a real fall. There was no serious distance involved, but realizing when his skis crossed that he couldn’t control what happened next as his body pitched forward terrified him for a moment, and his world went dark momentarily. As he tried to stand, the old anger from his childhood at being helpless returned, and it took everything in him not to scream.

It was going to take every ounce of determination he had to get through this. If a tiny little bunny slopefreaked him out… what in the world would the larger slopes do to him? The rest of the ride up the hill, Enrique worked on tucking his anxiety into a tiny little chest, envisioning locking it tight.

Chapter Ten

“Enrique,” Leighann called from behind him in that sultry alto voice he was slowly beginning to like. “Focus on me. Only me. Soon that will be you up on those slopes but for now, we are here on this one and it is time to get off the lift. Watch the kid in front of you. See how he stood and just swung the T-bar away. Do the same thing. You got this.”

A solid thirty minutes later, they were exiting the lift for the fourth time, and he was “skating” his way to the top of the bunny slope for what would be the last time that day. Hopefully, the last time, period. Leigh said if he showed mastery this time they would move on the next day.

He had fallen at least ten more times, and each time, his breath caught in his throat, but the panic receded more quickly each time. The last fall, he had recovered almost instantly. At one point, concern seemed to cross Leigh’s features, and he worried that she had seen his panic, but she didn’t say anything,and her face cleared quickly, so he was pretty sure his secret was still safe.

At the top of the slope, Leigh observed his little pep talk. He inhaled then exhaled deeply, a thick white cloud escaping into the air from his breathing. From the place beside him, she saw a flicker of something flash in his eyes before a look of determination rooted there, and then he skied forward slowly.

She wondered if she had just imagined it. The emotion in his eyes left as quickly as it came. But there was a certain way in which he gripped the poles, too, and his jaw worked occasionally in what looked to be an involuntary stress response. By this point on the bunny slope, the first-day jitters should be gone, but yet, every time he got to the top, they seemed to come right back.

From his appearance, he looked like he was ready to take the world by storm. His strong physique exuded confidence to the point of arrogance, but something in her gut told her there was something underlying here, and she was missing it.

She shrugged her concern off and followed him down the slope, watching his technique carefully, monitoring for any sign that he was not fully in control. He looked good, so she quickly accelerated and reached the bottom of the hill so she could see his final descent and stop at the bottom.

“You’re doing good!” she called encouragingly. Just at the right time, he widened his heels to increase the wedge and further slow his descent. A smile was forming on her lips with a sense of accomplishment when he glanced to his side, distractedby a random skier short stopping at the bottom, a large spray of snow and ice reaching above their heads

“Enrique,” she called, but he wasn’t listening. By the time he turned back to her, he had lost control of his stance. “Oh, man,” she murmured under her breath when he frowned at her and started to wave his hand at her to move away. Leigh tossed her poles to the sides as she spread her arms wide apart, preparing for the impact.

“Get out of the way, Leighann.”

“No,” she said. “You’re going to crash aga –oof.”

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