Page 49 of High Seduction
Tim connected his free foot, then brushed the snow from his sleeves. “I was in the right place at the right time, that’s all. And you’re still making plenty of money.”
“True. But I’m spending it on things that make me happy now rather than worrying about increasing my net value and rising in the ranks of the Fortune Five Hundred.”
“Good for you.” Erin took a deep breath and enjoyed the icy bite in her lungs. “You’re in good health now, it seems.”
“Better than before. Surgery to fix the problem, and then I got in shape.” Matt casually adjusted his stance. “Better shape than you two—race you to the bottom.”
He was gone, a war cry echoing into the air, his skis aimed straight down the hill.
Tim caught her arm before she could take up the challenge, dragging her against him for a heated kiss. Their helmets knocked briefly before they lined up properly, but by that time she was laughing too hard to kiss him without her amusement getting in the way.
He smiled against her lips. “You having fun?”
“Uh-huh.” She slipped one arm free, planting it carefully on his chest. “You?”
“Absolutely.” Tim eased back slightly. “So, what do you think?”
She pushed as hard as she could, and he went sprawling for a second time. His expression was wide with shock as she quickly stepped out of reach and poled down the hill. “I think I’ll meet you at the bottom,” she shouted.
He was already rising to his feet, so she focused on the hill before her. Matt’s tracks wove through the trees in as close to a straight line as possible, and she followed them, turning aside to enter a gully that opened into clear territory.
Matt was visible ahead of her, leaving wide, controlled tracks. He was obviously not racing now so much as having a good time, and Erin joined in, turning in opposition to his marks. The snow rose around her boots, leaving a perfect record of her passage, and together their trails formed one perfect figure eight after another.
It was exhilarating to be in the mountains under her own power. So often she brought the team into remote places and stayed with the chopper, which was her role. But it was good to be on foot this time. Far into nature, and right smack-dab in the action. She needed to do this more often.
Her cheeks were slightly numb from the icy air rushing past by the time she approached where Matt had pulled to the side, waiting for them to regroup before reentering the trees. His contented expression had to match her own.
“Nice. I like the artistic touch on the hillside.” He pointed at the tracks they’d laid.
“Now we need to see what Tim does,” Erin warned. “I can see the showoff driving a straight line through the middle.”
“You could be right,” Matt admitted.
She soaked in the scenery, admiring the low foothills rolling off into the distance, clouds covering their feet where they met the coastline. Behind her and Matt, the mountainside was one massive bump completely filling sky and horizon.
“Or”—Matt grabbed her arm and pointed above them—“he could be taking the elevator down.”
Far above to the right was the near-level surface that she would have skied if not for selecting the gully. There she’d had a slope gradually descending her to the level where they now stood.
Tim had missed the turn. Deliberately or not, she wasn’t sure, but he was in the clearing on the very edge of the precipice, headed for the cliff.
“Is he serious?” Her heart gave one giant pound, then seemed to freeze in her throat as Tim made a couple of casual turns but didn’t change paths.
“Landing could be interesting.”
She jerked her eyes off Tim for one second to gape at Matt. “Interesting?That’s a... what? Sixty-foot drop?”
“Tim can do it. He’s got a fantastic line to follow, and enough of a run out. If he lands it.”
The absolute calm Matt projected helped, but didn’t erase her fears. She snapped her gaze back up to Tim with dread weighing her down. “Thank you for that, Mr. Warren Miller.”
It wasn’t her imagination. Tim was going off the edge.
He had built up a lot of speed before he left the mountain ledge, body in a controlled position. Then instead of falling as she’d expected, the asshole added to her heart attack.
His snowboard spun skyward, his body straightening until his head was down, feet up. The rotation continued slowly, seeming to pause when he was belly down and rapidly descending toward the earth.
She would have sworn, but all available air was stuck in her chest behind a closed throat. He tucked in his knees and finished the rotation, the smooth surface of his snowboard making contact with the snow. He coasted. Arms stretched wide, snow flying everywhere as he moved rapidly forward until the deep powder pulled him to a stop a short distance below them.
