Page 5 of Finding Love on the Slopes

“Can I add,” Julio said, turning to watch the celebrations playing out on the muted TV screen. “Compared to the pact Fernando proposed 20 years ago, I think these pacts are relatively easy.”

“Not this again. You exaggerate,” Fernando said. “I only asked us to read ten classics.”

“Ten,” Enrique emphasized, using his fingertips to massage his temples, trying to stave off the massive headache he was getting. “That was one of the toughest years of my life. Why aren’t any of those old books short? I thought staying awake past the first page was hard, but trying to read all those books, on top of all the homework from senior year and dual enrollment, and working part-time at the Chuckles. I think I got less sleep that year than any other year of my life!”

“It really wasn’t that hard,” Fernando said, shaking his head. “Speaking of books,my latest novel,Wildfire,was based on Jane Eyre, you know? Did you read the ARC I sent to you?”

Enrique nodded and took a sip of his drink, grimacing at the pain in his mouth. “I always read your books, Fernando. Doesn’t matter if it takes me months to finish.”

There was a look of genuine appreciation on Fernando’s face, and Hannah smiled at him. “Wildfirewas your best work this year. I saw the bookstore had a difficult time keeping it in stock. I’m really proud of you.”

“Thank you, Han. I put a lot of work into that novel. I was very pleased to see it was received so well. Although, it sat at number two on the best sellers list for months.”

Gabriel sighed. “That’s my problem with this guy. He doesn’t know how talented he is. After all these years of grand success and dozens of awards, he still gets surprised when his books do well, and number two isn’t bad.”

“Easy now. Don’t make a grown man blush,” Enrique teased.

Fernando nudged his brother in the arm, “Yeah, well, I need to come up with a plan for the coming year for how to deal with Marie Lautner. She’s my biggest competition and keeps knocking me off number one bestseller. I’ve got a whole media empire behind me, and I’m a little tired of being at number two thanks to a faceless woman.”

“I haven’t read the book yet,” Julio said in response to Fernando. “Did you send me the copy?”

“I did, but now that you’re home, I’ll send you a hardcover version. I know you prefer real paper to reading on a screen,” Fernando said. “I didn’t know when you would be back or where you were heading, so I didn’t ship it yet.”

“Well, he’s home now,” Anthony chimed in, wrapping his arm around the smaller man and pulling him tight into his side. “And he better stay home, at least for a while. The girls need time to get to know this mysterious uncle they have never met and might be confusing with Santa Claus since they receive random gifts with his name on them.”

They were still laughing when Hannah tapped her wedding ring against her glass, causing atink, tink, tinkto echo through the room.

“It’s almost time,” she announced, glancing at the screen and pressing the unmute button on the remote. “Let the countdown begin.”

As the TV host and his family counted down to midnight, thoughts of the two pacts for this new year filled Enrique’s mind. He certainly wasn’t one to back down from a challenge, even if it could kill him. He already knew who he was going to call to accompany him on this adventure to face his fears. Facing that particular fear was going to be tough, and he worried it would be more painful than he imagined. It would be important to have a close friend by his side when he did.

He wasn’t sure that Anthony’s pact was possible. Enrique knew he wanted to build a family with someone; he just didn’t see himself settling down anytime soon. He had to meet the right woman. There was no chance, even to fulfill a BBC pact, that he would marry someone he didn’t have one hundred percent certainty about.

The room erupted with shouts of “Happy New Year” as a kaleidoscope of colors exploded in the night sky outside the floor-to-ceiling windows. Glasses clinked together with merriment and kisses pressed to cheeks. A tiny smile lifted Enrique’s lips at the scene. But deep down, he worried that for the first time since the pacts between his brothers began, he was going to fail. How did you look for love when you didn’t know what love really was?

Chapter Four

Enrique ran a razor over his cream-lathered jaw, watching each stroke clear away his morning stubble in the lit bathroom mirror. He had placed a call to Curtis a few seconds ago and was waiting impatiently for his friend to pick up the other end of the line as ringing emanating from a well-hidden Bluetooth speaker echoed off the imported Italian marble surrounding him.

Curtis Parker was Enrique’s longtime friend and adventure companion. If Enrique could trust anyone to help him face his fear and fulfill this pact, it would be Curtis. He was a famous outdoor adventurist who had an outfitter store and training facility just thirty minutes outside of Aspen, Colorado.

As Enrique drove home from the annual BBC gathering with his brothers the night before, he pondered Julio’s pact. His greatest fears were of heights and falling, and it was only reasonable to take on an adventure that would involve both. Various scenarios came to mind, but each was rejected for a number ofreasons. The most significant being… he needed to be able to actually take on the adventure without going into a full-blown panic attack at the mere thought of it. That eliminated any kind of rock climbing or sky diving. He needed something a little less traumatizing that would still get the job done.

Skiing seemed the perfect solution to his problems. All he had to do was learn how to ski first, and that was where Curtis came in. He had a lot on his plate and had decided to get this challenge done and over with as soon as possible.

On the last ring before going to voicemail, Curtis picked up the call, his deep baritone resonating from the other end of the line.

“You never call to wish me a happy new year, Enrique. Is this one of your New Year’s resolutions, to be more connected or something?”

Enrique smiled a little as he shaved his upper lip, knowing from the laughter in Curtis’ voice that he was joking. “You wish, old man. If I called you more often, I would have to charge you a consultation fee. But since we’re talking, happy New Year. I need your help.”

“I’m listening.”

“I know we’ve been too busy to get our annual trek on the calendar yet, but I was wondering what you thought about a ski vacation this year. You love to ski and probably haven’t done it just for fun in a long time. I happen to need to learn how to ski ASAP, so it could be a win-win for both of us. What do youthink?”

Curtis sighed. It was a deep sigh that made Enrique frown. “If it were any other time, I would gladly do it with you. But I’m fully booked for the next two months, Enrique. I don’t have any extra time on my hands until the second week in March. There are plenty of places we can go skiing then if you can postpone for a little while.”

Enrique ejected the blade from the tip of his razor and tossed it into the gold-plated trashcan tucked away behind the vanity doors. Retrieving a white washcloth from the bowl of steaming hot water it had been floating in, he wrung the excess water from it. “Come on, it’s me asking. Surely, you can rearrange things and help me out?”

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