Page 82 of To Love or to Lose
Eloise skis closely behind Genevieve, catching up with her, but Winnifred is not in sight.
“How charming,” I snide.
Logan looks around in confusion before looking back toward Genevieve. “Where’s Winnie?”
“She woke up not feeling well, so she stayed back at the hotel,” she tells him before looking back at me. “Not that I’m asking you to get hurt, but if you do, know I will get a great laugh out of it.”
“I’m sure you will, but whatever I try to accomplish, I will never fail.”
“I’m sure many of your past escapades could disprove that point,” she mutters, making Logan whistle before he laughs.
“Damn Gen, you really know how to wound a man’s ego,” he says.
“I’m not wounded,” I tell them both, directing my statement mostly toward Genevieve. “And since you’re so interested, I’ve never left any of myescapadesunsatisfied.”
“Ah, he’s fond of actresses,” Genevieve whispers toward Eloise. “Interesting.”
“I could say some very inappropriate things right now, Genova, but since I have a feeling you don’t even know what an orgasm is, I doubt you would understand.”
She rolls her eyes but says nothing before skiing further toward the lift ahead of us.
Logan begins instructing me, “Okay, in short terms, dig your poles into the ground and push yourself to move forward. To stop, point the tips of your skis together.” He demonstrates and I follow. “We’ll start by going down some pretty straight and easy slopes, but if you need to turn, you just direct your skis in the correct direction. Got it?”
“Yup.” I like the simplicity of his instructions. I pick up on things quickly enough for me to not need drawn out instructions. “Let’s go.”
A couple wipe outs and a bill for a broken ski pole later, I feel like I’m finally getting the hang of the bunny slope.
And as minimally gratifying as mastering the slope that’s meant for children is, watching Genevieve make her way down the black diamond is even less so.
“You’re crazy, Gen!” Logan yells as she reaches the bottom.
She takes off her goggles and smiles at him from across the fairway. “Talk to El if you're looking for crazy!”
Right then, Eloise comes flying down the black diamond, even faster than Genevieve did. She wipes out toward the bottom, laughing as she gets up.
Clearly, Genevieve is the better skier. Eloise is just risky enough to do it without as much experience.
“I think I’m going to go check on Winnie”, Logan tells me as he pulls his ski mask off. “She’s been texting me and she seems bored.”
“She’s not contagious?” I ask. Genevieve said she wasn’t feeling well, and I have no idea if something has been going around or not.
“Even if it is, I have an immune system of steel.” He smiles, pushing off on his skis. “I’ll see you guys later!”
Suddenly, I’m left alone with Genevieve and Eloise.Wonderful.
“Are you ready to take on the black diamond yet?” Eloise asks as she approaches, motioning toward the largest slope.
“Absolutely not,” Genevieve says exactly what I’m thinking.
“I think I might call it a day,” I tell them. “I’ll head back to the hotel with Logan.”
“No.” Eloise grabs my arm. “We’re getting you down a bigger hill than the bunny slope.”
I sigh. “Eloise, I’ve never skied before today.”
“That doesn’t matter,” she says. “Gen was going down the back diamond the second time she went skiing.”
“Well, that’s because I have a faster comprehension speed than ninety percent of people,” Genevieve interjects. “He can’t go down the diamond today, El.”
