Page 13 of Christmas with the Elkin Billionaires

9

CHASE

Thursday afternoon, Chase stood at the bottom of the hill next to the lodge. Lindsey came down the bunny slope with a confidence he usually saw in older skiers, and not someone who’d only had a handful of lessons. He went forward to meet her at the bottom of the slope. One of the other employees—a junior instructor—accompanied her to the bottom of the hill.

“You look great out there.” He and Lindsey high-fived. “Next time make your turns bigger and wider. It’ll give you more control coming down the hill.”

Lindsey screwed up her lips. “But I want to gofastdown the hill.”

“Speed comes later.” He patted the top of her helmet. “When you get on the harder slopes, you’ll need to be in control more than you’ll need to go fast. So do two more runsslow,and then we’ll talk about going a little faster.” He remembered what Tana had said. “Not too much faster, though. You still need to be able to stop.”

“Okay!” Lindsey skied off toward the chairlift, the back of her new fluorescent pink jacket bright in the sun. Unable to resist, he’d bought one at the resort ski shop and delivered it in person. Tana had reluctantly allowed her daughter to accept the gift, but it wasn’t like he’d given her the heads-up so she could say no.

Best of all, Lindsey’s lessons were going quite well. She’d taken to the skis easily. He only wished he could go with her. Frustration flashed across his chest, watching Lindsey head up the hill with the junior teacher.

Memories tormented him, knowing as he watched the skiers face the challenges of the slopes that they were moments of sheer joy he’d never get back. The exhilaration of the wind rushing his face.

Chase didn’t belong at Elk Lodge the way he had as a kid. That part of his life was over. And the other truth, lurking in the back of his mind, was that dreams like the one he’d had inevitably led to heartbreak. They always did, even simple dreams. Like the one of his parents around to see him grow up. That hadn’t worked out either; the crushing pain of their deaths still haunted him.

As Lindsey went back to the top, Tana came down the front of the slope with a little girl at her side, the two of them matching movements. An old familiar excitement coursed through him, watching Tana ski. The two of them slowed down at the end of the slope and raised their arms into the air. The girl beamed, so proud of herself.

He’d been right to recommend private lessons with Tana to the girl’s family. While the little girl was doing okay with the group lessons, she was easily distracted and from what he could see, she was flourishing with one-on-one instruction. Definitely a win-win for all of them—Tana would be the beneficiary of their generous tips, and their daughter would get the attention she needed with private ski lessons. Chase had to wonder if the only reason the Cadwells came to Elk Lodge was to flaunt all their new possessions, like the diamond tennis bracelet the father had bought the girl. Chase could buy expensive things, too, but sticking them in people’s faces like it was nothing was an arrogance he couldn’t stand. Real wealth didn’t need to show itself off.

Chase hadn’t seen the jacket as an over-the-top gift, but perhaps to Tana, it had been. He’d do well to keep that in mind going forward.

Lindsey came down the hill making smooth wide turns as Tana headed up the hill for one last run. Coming to a stop next to Chase, she too turned to watch her mother as she began her descent down with the little girl.

“There’s my mom,” Lindsey said, pointing in Tana’s direction. “She’s a really good skier.”

“I agree. And clearly, you take after her.”

Lindsey beamed at the praise. “Thanks. Someday, I’m going to be just like her.Andyou,” Lindsey added, before rushing to meet her mother.

“Hey, hon!” Tana stepped out of her skis and threw her arms around Lindsey. “How did it go?” she asked, glancing up at him.

“She nailed it.” Lindsey had a fearlessness that reminded him of himself at her age.

“Megan!” Lindsey thrust a hand in the air and waved to a friend nearby. The young girl ran to meet up with Lindsey like they hadn’t seen each other in forever. Before long, two other friends joined them, followed by their parents. Within a minute, the parents had all agreed to take the girls to the bonfire ring, where a fire was perpetually lit during the winter season. Staff members were stationed there all day with hot chocolate and marshmallows to roast, and it was a favorite activity of the families at the resort.

Chase nodded his head in Lindsey’s direction. “Want to put the skis away?”

Tana took in the scene, eyes bright. “Looks like I’ve got a few minutes.”

She started toward the ski-rental building, but Chase stopped her. “We’ll go around back and put up your skis in the employee section ourselves. Looks like they are busy with the after-lunch rush.”

The section in the back, known as the shed, housed rows of equipment belonging to the family and the ski instructors. They could all stash their gear here, rather than hauling it back and forth from home every day. Chase reached the double doors first and pulled one open, allowing Tana to enter.

Her arm brushed across the front of his chest. “Oh, excuse me,” Tana said, as he stepped in behind her.

“No problem. There’s not a ton of room back here.” The narrow hallway was lined with racks for skis and poles, the boots stowed beneath.

Tana found an empty spot on the wall just as he spotted one on the opposite side where he could put Lindsey’s equipment. They maneuvered around each other in a careful dance, trying to put up the equipment without knocking into each other.

When he was finished, he found Tana standing in his path. They hadn’t spent much time together the past few days, and he had a suspicion she was avoiding him. He missed her and wanted to spend time with her. And here she was.

“Need something?”

“I just wanted to say, while we had a minute—” Tana pulled her hat off, flicking her dark hair away from her face. Chase’s heart stuttered.Gorgeous. “Thanks for working with Lindsey. Her teacher called yesterday to tell me how she’s been telling stories about her time with you. Evidently, she has all the kids enthralled with stories about how great you are.” She laughed a little, and he wanted to capture the sound in a bottle and keep it forever.

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