Page 39 of Finding Love on the Slopes

“Curtis? I can’t honestly say it has come up in one of our adventures. He runs a tight ship. There isn’t a lot of monkeying around or funny business, and he isn’t the type to dare someoneto do anything. Either you feel comfortable, or you don’t. One thing for sure is that you are as safe as possible on his watch. I certainly have never explained my issue to anyone but you. Hannah knows, but that woman has the gift of discernment. She picks up on the smallest details, at least when it comes to her boys and now her little girls. That or Anthony told her. They don’t have secrets, which is good for them but bad for the rest of us,” he said with a chuckle.

He envied the relationship his brother and sister shared. Their love was true and faithful—a one in a million, he always said. They put each other first, never wavered in their support, loved passionately and openly, and held each other in the highest regard.

Looking at Leighann, he wondered yet again, could she be his one in a million?

Chapter Thirty-Four

“Okay, so I have a slightly better understanding of your issue with women. Why you risked your life and mine on a black slope, aptly named Bone Crusher, when you were not ready. I see how much you love and admire your family and my brother. What I need to know for certain moving forward is that you will treat me with the respect I deserve. At the very least, I want to be your friend, but I need to know that having faced this shadow from your past, you will be different.”

Enrique reached his fingers forward on the back of the couch and loosely intertwined them with hers, where they rested along the back as well. “I promise you, Leighann, the man you met at the beginning of this trip is gone. Good and truly. This whole thing was a cleansing exercise concocted by my brother Julio, and I think it worked. You can trust me to treat you like thetreasure you are. That doesn’t mean I won’t be a little high-handed or arrogant at times because that is ingrained in who I am, and it comes out sometimes, but I will not intentionally disrespect you ever.”

“What do you mean, ‘A cleansing exercise concocted by my brother Julio’? Was this some part of a challenge?”

“Yes, it was. Fernando always hated us identifying with the label Bad Boys and was constantly looking for ways to make us be better, look better, and be known for better. After I started to come around and make better choices, Fernando decided I needed bigger challenges to help me make bigger, more sustainable changes. I never break a promise, especially not to my brothers. So, after I did a six-month stint in juvie for theft, Fernando proposed a new brotherhood tradition. Each year, on New Year’s Eve, one of the brothers would propose a pact that would help us grow into the better men we were destined to be. Once he explained and got everyone on board, he proposed the first of many pacts. His pact was that we avoid crime and stay out of jail. Everyone agreed even though they knew it was for me, and the tradition began. Julio proposed the pact this year. He said we had all accomplished a lot, but he felt fear was keeping us from our full potential and he wanted us to face whatever fear was holding us back, and go on an epic adventure while doing it.”

“So, your fear was what, exactly? Listening to a female instructor?” Leigh was clearly confused.

Chuckling, Enrique stroked his thumb over the fingers he was still holding. “No. It had nothing to do with you. Curtis was supposed to be my instructor and companion for this adventure. I was very put out when he said he wasn’t available for months because I needed to do this now before I chickened out. The fear I needed to tackle, which has legitimately been holding me back for years, is a deathly fear of heights and falling. The blue/black slopes had done a pretty good job of helping me get over that fear, but I wouldn’t know for certain until I did something truly risky and pushed myself to the limit. That is where Bone Crusher came in. When you said the mountain could be closed down for days, I saw my chance to truly face my fear and fulfill my brotherhood pact slipping away. So, I took it. Then the rest happened. So yes, this whole thing is going to be blamed on Julio at next year’s New Year’s Eve gathering.” His grin said he was kidding, but Leigh could imagine the row that would play out between the brothers next year over this. Poor Hannah would no doubt be upset by the close call, too.

“So, you think you conquered your fear. What caused it in the first place? These things usually have a precipitating event, don’t they?”

“That, beautiful, is a story for another day. There is only so much dirt a man can dig up in one setting, and I have reached my limit.”

Just then, the phone rang, and Leigh jumped up to answer it. Curtis informed her that the rescue team had been on standby and was now able to get to them. They were a solid two hoursaway, but if they were ready to leave as soon as they arrived, they could be home well before sunset, which would keep everyone safe. The avalanche assessment had been completed, and it was high risk. Each man had signed a waiver that they knew the danger and were prepared to do their jobs and rescue the stranded skiers. Curtis also informed her that another front was coming through the following day, which would drop more snow.

Leigh felt horrible that the men were going to risk their lives for them, but the avalanche risk wouldn’t be addressed for days, and they would run out of supplies by then. They had to leave while there was a small window of opportunity. She would need to write letters and bake something for this Safety Patrol team. She prayed Chris didn’t take it as an act of encouragement. That could make things awkward with whatever was happening with Enrique.

She laughed inwardly at her predicament as she cleaned up the cabin and readied MREs for lunch.Only you could go from having no love life at all to somehow managing to get tangled in a love triangle… not to mention one angle of this equation is a man you don’t even like.

Oh, but one of them, you really do.Her mind whispered, and her smile grew wider as butterflies in her belly took flight. After today, she had a better understanding of the man Enrique was… she really did like what she saw now. He might have been a bad boy, but he was a good man with a good heart, and she could get on board with that.

Chapter Thirty-Five

They decided to try several new MRE flavors for lunch since it was hopefully the last time they would have a reason to eat them. The pasta and teriyaki chicken were not terrible, but Enrique looked forward to returning to his personal chef’s cooking.

The cabin was picked up, all items used returned to their original locations and there was still plenty of time to wait.

“How bout a rousing game of Blackjack? You beat me mercilessly at Go Fish, War, and Rummy. It’s time to enter my world now,” Enrique suggested as they took their places on the couch in front of the dying fire.

“That is the game where you try to get as close to twenty-one as possible without going over, right?” Leigh asked.

“Correct. And there is usually, but not always, a small wager involved to keep things interesting. Are you up for the challenge?” His warm honey eyes had a mischievous glint.

“I’m fine with playing the game, but gambling… not my thing. I have issues with people throwing hard-earned money away on a game, and I have student loans to pay for.” Leigh picked up her two cards and decided whether to ask for another.

“I never play for money. Back in the boy’s home, we played for help with our chores, extra dessert, that kind of thing. With my brothers, we play with chips for bragging rights or to get donations for a charity or something. Harmless fun. What do you say?” Enrique had yet to pick up his cards. He had an agenda here and was going to apply as much charm as needed to convince her.

“I’m not sure exactly what we would wager on. We are in completely different universes as far as income. You have a staff to do your chores. This is silly.” Exasperated with him before the game even began, she placed her cards back down on the couch cushions.

“That is the beauty of playing this game with a billionaire. If you win, you can make me pay to help or accomplish something beyond your means, and if I win, I get something more valuable than money.” His most charming smile played on his lips while hope radiated from him.

Leigh knew he really wanted to play with wagers and felt like she was being cornered into something she may not like. “I don’t feel comfortable wagering you for money when you would be wagering for something like my time or assistance. It feels weird. I mean, what would I even wager? You donate a free hot meal at the homeless shelter, and I give you twenty bucks offyour half-million dollar bill for the ski lessons? It’s ridiculous. Let’s play for fun and save the betting for the men.” Having said her peace, she picked up her cards again and took an extra card off the top of the deck.

“Not so fast, trust me on this. It’s going to make things so much more interesting. Let’s do this. I will give you say… Five hundred grand to wager. You decide what causes are worthy of that amount of investment. I will wager you things that have no monetary value. Your student loan budget is safe with me.” Enrique placed his elbows on his thighs and leaned in slightly, anxious for her response.

Leighann’s hand drooped in front of her, cards forgotten as she regarded him. He was thrumming with energy like a little boy about to unwrap a gift and hoping it held the toy he had been asking for. Something was going on here… Realization hit her so hard it nearly knocked her backward, her cheeks flaming with embarrassment and anger.

“Enrique Knight Rodriguez, if you thought for one nanosecond that I would play strip poker with you, you have lost your ever-loving mind!” She jumped up from the couch, throwing the cards in his face, before stomping a few feet away. “I can’t believe you would even… My brother is going to tear you apart when he hears about this. And trust me, hewillhear about this. He has a way of pulling the most uncomfortable details out of me, and he is going to want a play-by-play of this entire sleepover. I can’t even… You…UGH!”

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