Page 14 of Finding Love on the Slopes

Whatever she was going to say was cut short when he slammed into her. Her arms automatically went around his broad back, but the force was greater than she was expecting, or maybe she just wasn’t expecting him to be that large because she was too small to stop him, and they tumbled to the ground in a heap.

In an effort not to crush her, Enrique had leaned backward, taking her down but at least breaking her fall with his body. The wind had been knocked out of him on impact. As they slid to a stop in front of the entrance to the lodge, Leigh lifted her head off his chest where it had landed. Her hair, having escaped its ponytail, fell in a golden curtain around her face. Pushing up on her forearms, still plastered to his chest, she looked deeply into his eyes, noticing for the first time their unique honey color. Not amber, but not exactly brown either. And those lashes... they were long enough to make any girl jealous. She became awarethat she was staring when a devilish grin began to form on his lips, and her heart pounded like a racehorse just out of the gate.

Leigh slugged him in the shoulder as hard as she could before planting her glove-clad hands in the snow and lifting herself off of him. She rolled onto the snow-covered ground beside him, carefully untangling her legs and skis before resting comfortably on her side, using her left arm to support her as she leaned over him from above.

“What were you thinking?” she scolded loudly. “You could have injured someone or yourself! You have to pay attention to what you are doing out here. Consider yourself a lethal weapon when on the slopes. You are two-hundred plus pounds of hard muscle. Hitting someone at speed can cause great physical injury, even death!”

He turned his head slightly, feeling the crunch of snow and ice crystals against the base of his helmet, and looked into Leigh’s stunning blue eyes. A chuckle shook his body before turning into a full-fledged belly laugh.

“What do you think is so funny?” she growled, glaring daggers at him.

“You!” he replied, trying to calm his laughter. He removed the glove from his right hand to wipe the tears from his eyes before they froze. “You are all worried about me running someone down and killing them, and yet you thought it was a good idea to park your skis in front of me and then try to catch me, with all your what 5’5” and one-hundred thirty pounds?”

“I’m 5’6”, for the record, and that is different. I was hoping you would deepen your wedge when you saw me there, and it would be a matter of stopping your slow slide before you crashed again. Instead, I think you may have closed your wedge and sped up while you were watching that skier. You really must work on your focus”.

Leigh sat straight and disengaged the bindings on her skis before standing.

“You’re right; I’m easily distracted. I will try to keep my eyes forward. If for no other reason than to have forewarning the next time you decide to play human bumper cars. I much more prefer soft landings and will plan out our next roll in the snow a little better.” The wink he sent her way with this statement brought a gorgeous pink blush to her cheeks.

“You’re impossible!” she exclaimed, sliding her skis together so they interlocked before walking up the hill to where she had thrown her poles. Collecting them, she stomped back towards the lodge, “Meet you inside. I hope you remember what I showed you about taking the skis off.”

Without a backward glance, she entered the lodge’s warmth and ordered two cups of hot chocolate. She had already changed into her regular snow boots and packed up the rest of her ski gear by the time Enrique joined her, a scowl on his face. Handing him the now warm beverage, she asked, “Did you have any problems getting out of your skis?”

“No. I did just fine, thank you very much,” he mumbled, taking a sip of the tepid drink and grimacing.

“So well, it took you almost fifteen minutes to complete the simple task.” Leigh had been trying to hide her humor in the situation until he turned, glaring at her, and then growled. The laughter bubbled up from her belly and spilled out.

“Laugh all you want. I’m a quick study, and soon, you will be chasing along behind me, Miss Gold Medalist.”

Plopping down on the bench beside her, he began changing his shoes and stowing his gear in his bag. Leigh stood, collecting the white Styrofoam cups and slinging her bag over her shoulder.

“See you tomorrow, then. We can meet right here. I will be here at eight, which is plenty of time to claim our spot before the rest of the skiers arrive. The lodge café stays open until 7 pm if you need something quick and easy for dinner. Their burgers are the best you have ever had. The Crest is a resort restaurant all the way down at the end that stays open until 11 pm and offers a slightly fancier but still affordable dinner fare. You are more than welcome to hang out here and rest. From this spot, you have a perfect view of the sunset behind the mountain. They also have a large fire pit and lounge area up front for folks to hang out and socialize,” she informed him, pointing her thumb over her shoulder in the general direction.

“I’m not here to socialize,” he grumbled, standing to put the remainder of his gear in the bag before zipping it closed.

Turning to go, she shrugged her shoulders, “Okay, it’s your call. Have a good night.”

“Wait, I’m your transportation!” Enrique shouted at her retreating back.

“No worries, I got a ride. My brother always taught me never to be dependent on anyone, especially a man,” Leigh shot over her shoulder, then merged into the crowd, exiting the lodge.

Enrique wasn’t sure why that parting comment chafed so badly, but it did.

‘Yeah, well, I’m not sure how the big guy would feel knowing I didn’t see you safely back to his shop. If you get hurt, it’s my head that will roll,’he thought miserably. He had never had a woman walk out on him before, or if he had, he hadn’t cared enough to remember it. Leigh had taken him into new territory, and he didn’t like it.

Climbing into his rented SUV, he turned the heat on high, taking a moment for the cabin and engine to heat up while reflecting on the day. Things had not gone as he’d planned on so many levels. All he could hope was that the next day would be more successful, and he would get on an even playing field with Leighann. No woman had ever gotten under his skin like she had, and it made him feel unsettled and on edge. It was making learning from her even harder than he had expected when he found out she was a woman.

Chapter Eleven

Leighann leaned back against her chair as her eyes scanned the list of new emails in her inbox. Tension pulled her neck muscles tight, radiating pain into the base of her skull, warning her that she had been hunched over her computer for too long and it was time for a break.

As soon as she got home, she had taken a shower and went straight to work. She had been expecting email updates from her team and had spent several hours catching up on their progress and sending responses back. After tackling the important emails, she decided to spend a little longer emptying her inbox. Now, she was reaching her limit. The few hours she had spent with Enrique had drained her, and she really did need a break. He was a handful. It made her wonder how his colleagues worked with him. Surely, he didn’t work in an all-male work environment; it was the twenty-first century, after all.

Out of curiosity, she pulled up her internet browser and searched him. She had noticed skiers rubber-neck several times as they went by. And during the brief time they were in the lodge, some folks stared at them as if seeing a celebrity or whispered in small groups while shooting them secret looks. She doubted it was her they were so excited about, most folks just approached her and asked for an autograph or said hello and grabbed a hug. It had to be Enrique they were so intrigued by. Was it just his good looks garnering all the attention, or was there something more?

She wasn’t impressed, especially after the search results turned up nothing outstanding about him except his way with women. Apparently, he was a modern-day Casanova.

A celebrity bio mentioned his graduation with summa cum laude honors from a New York university, where he pursued a double major in computer science and programming, as well as engineering. His employment history consisted of a few years at some IT Help Desk, and then he opened a fashion business called Rodriguez Enterprises, a rather generic name if you asked her. Something had to be missing, though, because his net worth was listed as 28 billion dollars. What kind of person goes from a Help Desk tobillionaireby the age of thirty-two?

---