Snow on the Mountain (The Mountains) by Singer P.D

Author:Singer, P.D. [Singer, P.D.]
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Published: 2012-08-15T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 16

“AW, YOU guys! What happened?” the women cried once they followed the men off the lift.

“Does the altitude give you nosebleeds?” Cassie grimaced as she looked at the blood. “Should we clean you up here?” She stole Ulf’s bandana and scooped a handful out of the nearest snow bank. Fortunately, the blood in Ulf’s pale blond hair attracted more of her attention than did Kurt’s partially cleaned face—she began to scrub at his head. She was more than a head shorter than Ulf, so it was quite a reach.

“Thank you, dear, but we can clean up at our destination.” Ulf cast glances at the other skiers going by, making the other women go into gales of “wink wink, nudge nudge” and giggles. Kurt thought he recognized people from the other night, but the big avalanche vests and the other equipment obscured them. If they were Mark and Marty, he wouldn’t attract their attention.

“Ooh! Plumbing?” Emily giggled. “I didn’t expect that!”

Into the babble of “have fun” and “see you later” Cassie said, “Wish me luck!” and turned to lead the group to the left of the lift. Only Killy’s Knees and Cement Chute were marked on the map in that direction, with a “Closed” sticker over Cement Chute. Still, the entire group went that way, the three women stopping to watch Ulf take over the lead, breaking trail for Cassie and Kurt. Ulf glanced back—Kurt knew it was his warning to not cut and run down the other side. Grimly, he followed the two to a small A-frame cabin on the windward side of the mountain, over the rise from the slopes.

“Do not bring in the snow,” Ulf warned as he unlocked the sliding glass door on the protected side of the A-frame. They left their skis on the porch, stuck in the snow that no one had cleared, though a set of tracks led both to and away from the porch. “Your key unlocks this, Kurt.”

Great. Like he ever wanted to be here again. He didn’t want to be here now, and only the total sincerity in Ulf’s threats kept him from just bolting.

Cassie let Ulf help her off with her coat and then pulled off her ski boots in the little mudroom. She headed into the cabin as the men removed outerwear, exclaiming at the furnishings. “Oh, this is so cute!” She wandered through the one large room, around the fireplace, and returned smiling. “But cold! Yum! Lunch!” She peeked at a tray of finger foods and opened a container that steamed into the chill air. Kurt ducked to one side to avoid getting struck in the face with Ulf’s parka. He got even by removing a ski boot that “accidentally” crashed into Ulf’s shin.

“Yes,” Ulf grunted, due to the timing of the ski boot, and then said sotto voce, “I bring Jake here sometime?”

Kurt pulled his other boot off without more contact. “Don’t even think about it.”

“Are you hungry?” Cassie popped a tiny quiche into her mouth and tried to feed Ulf a bite when he came into the tiny living room and kitchen area.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.