‘Okay then. As a resident here, why don’t I show you why the world loves Mont Coeur so much? Do you have any other plans for tonight?’
He shook his head. ‘None. I’m all yours.’
‘Then how about we meet later—around nine o’clock?’ She grabbed a notepad sitting next to the phone. ‘Here’s the name and number of the place to hire gear. Okay?’
His hand touched hers as she slid the piece of paper across the table towards him. He smiled again. ‘This sounds like a date,’ he said, his tone teasing.
She shook her head. ‘It’s no date.’ She wagged her finger at him as she headed to the door. ‘Don’t you be getting any ideas, Leo Baxter.’ She gave him a cheeky wink and then hurried out the door before her rapidly beating heart exploded in her chest.
The hand he’d just touched was pressed up against her chest wall, still tingling. She looked down and smiled.
What on earth had she just done?
CHAPTER THREE
LEO BAXTER WAS used to being in control. Anything else was alien to him. Which meant the last few months had thrown him off his game.
The letter he’d received from his birth parents was still in his briefcase. It had been there since it had landed in his penthouse mailbox in August. It had taken him weeks to reply, and then, when he had, his mother and father had sounded overjoyed and couldn’t wait to come to New York to meet him.
He’d been struggling with the realisation that what he’d believed for most of his life had been wrong when they’d died in a helicopter crash on way to New York. He’d never even got to see them in the flesh. He’d never got to hug them. He’d never got a kiss from them. It was almost as if, since he’d received that letter, all elements of his normally micromanaged existence had spiralled out of his control.
The will was just another element. He hated being manipulated. He hated the thought that someone might be trying to take charge of his life.
His parents had had no idea where he was, or how life had turned out for him, when they’d included him in the will. Maybe they’d hoped it would give him the financial security that most people craved. But Leo had no need of financial security from his parents. He’d carved out his own successful business through dedication, hard work and a tiny edge of ruthlessness.
If they’d had a chance to meet they would have realised that Leo didn’t need money. He had no need to be part of the family business—or any interest in it. But that chance had been stolen from them all, and right now the will was creating havoc with his own business interests.
He needed to be in New York. He had several large deals coming off and for Leo the devil was in the detail. The thing he prided himself on. Being in Mont Coeur, surrounded by family pressure, was messing with his head.
Anissa’s idea to come up the mountain to clear his head had come at the perfect time.
There was a nudge at his back. ‘Come on, then, Leo. Show me your moves.’
She’d arrived behind him right on time at the ski lift. Her eyes swept up and down his body. ‘Did you get that gear from the hire shop?’
‘Maybe,’ he answered, noncommittal. He didn’t want to let her know that he’d just gone to the most exclusive shop and bought a whole host of new gear and equipment.
She gave a nod. ‘They’ve obviously improved their range. Cool.’
She gestured towards the ski lift. ‘Ready, then?’
‘Sure I am. You show me your moves, and I’ll show you mine.’
She grinned and glided ahead of him on her skis, lining up with the swiftly approaching chair lift. He slotted in behind her in the queue and tried not to think about how neat her backside had looked as she’d been swept up by the seat. She was wearing the same black ski gear she’d been wearing the first time he’d seen her. And, boy, did it fit well.
They reached the top of the slope around ten minutes later. It wasn’t for the faint-hearted, and just being here gave Leo a hint of mischief.
The whole of Mont Coeur lay beneath them, twinkling with lights, surrounded by a dark sky and white snow.
‘I love it up here,’ Anissa said quietly, her warm breath clouding the air in front of them.
‘Impressive,’ he said as he looked around. There were only a few other serious skiers. He watched them dart down the slopes in front of them, zig-zagging with ease.
Anissa was moving from foot to foot—obviously anxious to get started. He turned to face her with a wide grin on his face. ‘Okay, so you might need to give me a few pointers.’
‘What?’ Her face fell.
He held up his ski poles. ‘You know—the kind of stuff that you teach.’
Her mouth opened. ‘But you said you could ski. That you could hold your own.’
He shrugged. ‘I might have been a bit economical with the truth.’
Concern laced her brow. ‘Please tell me you’re joking. I would never have brought you up to this slope if you weren’t experienced.’
‘I am. I’m maybe just...’ he grinned and shrugged again ‘...a little out of practice.’ He loved teasing her. It was clear she was taking it all in and contemplating how to tell him he was about to kill himself skiing down this run.
She sucked in a deep breath and obviously tried to still the panic she was feeling. She shuffled over next to him. ‘Okay, let’s practise the basics. Positioning. Moving. Slowing and stopping.’
She seemed to go into automatic pilot, demonstrating each position and talking him through it. Leo took great pleasure in getting most things wrong, particularly when she came over and tried to move his body into the position it was supposed to be in.
‘When was the last time you skied?’ she asked.
‘College,’ he quipped.
‘College?’ It came out more like a squeak.
He could see her professional face slip into place. ‘Leo, maybe this isn’t such a good idea.’
‘How long have you been doing this?’ he asked. He was curious. Was her dual role between ski instructor and chalet maid her ambition or a convenience?
She bit her bottom lip. It made her look the tiniest bit vulnerable.
‘Only for the past year. It’s kind of a needs–must situation.’
Now he really was curious. ‘Why? What were you doing before?’
She looked distinctly uncomfortable, shifting from ski to ski. ‘I had other career plans. But they got...side-lined.’
He couldn’t help himself. ‘Why, what did you do before?’
She glanced over her shoulder, almost as if she were checking to see if anyone was listening. But the few other skiers up on the slopes were all occupied. She took a deep breath. ‘I was a professional. Have been the last few years. I was training for the International Skiing Championship. I was hoping to get gold.’
For the first time since he’d met her, he was struck dumb. ‘What?’
She looked a little hurt. ‘Is it really so unbelievable?’
‘What?’ he repeated. ‘No, of course not. But...’ he paused for a second ‘...what happened?’
Her face was serious and her body posture tense. ‘I had an accident. One that my surgeon termed “catastrophic”. I broke my leg in three places. He said it would never be strong enough for me to ski professionally again.’
Leo reached out and touched her arm. ‘Oh, Anissa, I’m so sorry.’
She tossed her hair over her shoulder. ‘Don’t be. I get better every day. I can feel the strength returning. I just need to keep practising, keep conditioning myself to gain momentum again.’
He heard the words she was saying but wasn’t quite sure he believed them. He’d seen how much she’d been in shock the other night after her minor accident. And if her doctor had told her that being competitive wasn’t possible again, could Anissa be deluding herself?
‘What happened to the team you had around you?
Didn’t you have a sponsor?’
She pressed her lips together and looked off into the distance for a second. ‘Yeah. They weren’t interested in hanging around. They’re in it for the here and now. They don’t want to wait for someone to get back to fitness.’
He moved in front of her. It was awkward when they both had skis. Right now he wanted to touch her cheek, give her a hug, let her know that he empathised with her. Because he did.
Anissa sounded as if she’d been the next big thing—only to have it all ripped away from her. In a resort like this, she had a daily reminder of what she’d lost.
He knew how hard that was. He’d spent the last few days purposely avoiding Sebastian and Noemi—even though Noemi had called four times. He was trying so hard to think about the family stuff. He didn’t even want to acknowledge how much his life had been turned upside down.
He reached out and took his Anissa’s hand. ‘I get it,’ he said quietly.
Her pale blue eyes met his. ‘Get what?’ He could see a whole host of mixed emotions there.
‘I get what it feels to have your life change completely.’
She narrowed her gaze, a little wrinkle appearing in her brow. ‘You do?’
He nodded. He didn’t want to say too much. ‘Let’s just say the reason I came to Mount Coeur is turning out to be tougher than I originally thought.’
Anissa didn’t hesitate. She leaned forward and gave him a hug. He breathed deeply, letting the familiar aroma of her orange blossom scent surround him. He stayed there for a few seconds, enjoying the feeling of her pressed against him.
When she pulled back, he was more than a little sorry. ‘Hey,’ she said, smiling brightly, ‘we came up here to clear our heads and enjoy the view.’ She swept her arm out to Mont Coeur beneath them. Nestled in the valley, with mountains and snow surrounding it on all sides, Mont Coeur glistened with yellow lights and exuded warmth. From here it looked like something from one of those Christmas cards adorned with glitter that sat on people’s shelves every year.
It gave him a strange pang to realise that he’d never really celebrated Christmas the way he’d always longed to—in an environment where he felt as if he was loved and belonged. Last year’s Christmas had been spent in an exclusive restaurant in New York with a visiting work colleague and an annoyed girlfriend. When he’d received the letter from his parents he’d been both excited and nervous about what Christmas might hold this year, all for his hopes to be dashed. It just proved to him he was better off on his own.
He turned to face Anissa again—the brightest spark he’d met since he’d got here. She had her head tilted a little, watching him through enquiring eyes without actually saying anything. It was almost as if she was giving him time for his thoughts. She’d said she came up here to think. He could understand why.
She smiled. ‘We’re also supposed to enjoy the skiing.’ She gave him a sympathetic glance. ‘Want to go down to an easier slope? We can do that. You might be more comfortable.’ She was being sincere, trying to let him down gently. It seemed he’d fooled her more than he’d planned to.
His stomach gave a little twist. They’d just opened themselves up to each other. Anissa had been going for gold. A gold medal. She’d been that good.
And somehow? He wasn’t surprised.
He couldn’t begin to imagine how much her life had somersaulted. What had happened to her coach? Her team? The sponsors he could almost understand. But the rest?
It made him angry for her. Angry that she was forced to spend her days cleaning other people’s chalets and teaching the basics of the thing that had been her passion.
She deserved better.
But she was still thinking about him. She patted his arm. ‘It will be fine. Honest. People come up runs all the time that they aren’t really equipped to deal with. We’ll get you back down and find something safer. Something easier.’
It was the way she was patting his arm. Nicely. Reassuringly. All the while thinking he was probably about to fall on his backside.
Now his wicked streak was beginning to emerge again. He straightened up and looked down the slope. ‘How about a little race?’
‘What? No.’ She was totally surprised. ‘This is a run for experienced skiers. I thought you were—but I’ve obviously overestimated things. It’s far too dangerous.’
‘You think?’ He couldn’t help himself, he easily adopted his true skiing position and winked at her over his shoulder as he pushed off.
‘Leo!’ he heard her shout as he started skimming down the surface of the run. It was fast, glistening in the dark night against the bright white and blue lights adorning the run.
He bent low, picking up speed and bending into the turns. Despite the small lie he’d told Anissa, it had only been a few months since he’d skied and he’d always seemed to have a natural rhythm for it. He loved the feel of the cold air on his face and the speed and freedom of virtually flying down a mountain. Within thirty seconds he heard the swish of skis behind him and heard her calling to him. ‘Why, you dirty, rotten...’
He laughed and looked over his shoulder. Sure enough, Anissa was catching up fast, a determined look on her face.
‘You lied!’ she shouted.
‘I was economical with the truth.’ The words were lost in the air behind him, but Anissa was there, almost on his shoulder.
‘I’ll give you a race,’ she yelled, bending lower and edging closer.
His competitive edge would normally take over at this point, but inside he was already laughing.
Laughing at the fact he’d fooled her, and laughing at the fact she was determined to win. Anissa Lang played to win. Just another thing to like about her.
There was a flash of black to his right-hand side just as he was about to bank right. He instantly straightened a little, giving Anissa the opportunity she’d obviously planned for as she whizzed past.
He tried to get lower to match her speed. But she was too well in tune with the mountain, too experienced on this slope. She was a natural, moving easily and with ever-increasing speed.
As the bottom of the run loomed ahead his stomach clenched.
‘Slow down.’ He said the words automatically through gritted teeth. She was still moving at a lightning pace, completely focused, with one intent—to win.
Panic swept over him. But it was as if someone had flicked a switch. All of a sudden she straightened, bending her legs to slow and guiding herself with one pole. It was the most graceful of moves. Perfect. Professional.
He slowed himself, but much sooner than she had. By the time he reached the bottom of the slope she was standing, waiting for him, with a large grin across her face.
She waited until he swept up to join her. She raised one eyebrow. ‘Thought you would be a smarty-pants, did you?’
He raised his eyebrows back. ‘Now, there’s an expression I haven’t heard in a hundred years.’
She waved one hand. ‘Thought you would fool me?’ She put her fingers in the air. ‘Let’s pretend we can’t ski, let’s act like a fool, let’s see how long it takes her to catch up.’
He opened his mouth in mock surprise. ‘Did you catch up? I didn’t notice.’
‘I chewed you up and spat you out.’ She was being snarky but she had a wide smile on her face. ‘You wish you could catch me—but you didn’t have a chance.’ She was taunting him now, obviously picking up on his competitive edge.
He folded his arms. ‘I could have caught you.’
She folded hers too. ‘Really?’
He nodded. ‘I think so. I was being kind. I let you win.’
She pushed down the latch at the back of her boot with her pole and stepped out of one ski. ‘Oh, you let me win?’
He kept smiling as she pushed down the latch on the other. ‘Sure I did. Didn’t you know? I’m a gentleman. A gentleman always lets a lady
win.’
Now she was free of her skis, Anissa moved around. She crouched down in the snow.
‘Who says I’m a lady?’ Something flew through the air and smacked him square in the face. For a second he was stunned, choking on the tightly packed snow. Then he spluttered, shook his head and brushed the snow off his jacket. He stepped out of his skis. ‘Oh, it’s like that, is it?’
She smiled, ‘I play to win.’ Another snowball hit him in the chest and a second flew over his shoulder.
He didn’t need to be baited twice. He reached down and grabbed the nearest mound of snow, packing it together and taking aim. Anissa was good. She moved at lightning speed—even in her ski boots. And her hands were even quicker at forming and throwing snowballs.
Pow. Pow. Pow.
‘You New York boys,’ she yelled. ‘Always think you’re better at everything!’
‘That’s fighting talk,’ Leo shouted back as he threw snowballs wildly, each one missing the target.
Anissa’s laughter rang throughout the night. Leo didn’t hesitate. He ran at her, stumbling in his boots. For a second she looked surprised, trying to work out what he was about to do.
But she realised just a fraction of a second too late. Leo yelled as he dived on her, sending her flying onto her back.
Whoomph!
Anissa lay flat on her back, looking up at the stars. She was momentarily stunned.
Leo couldn’t stop laughing. He had a leg on either side of her and his hands in the snow beside her head.
She blinked, several thick snowflakes landing on her cheeks and lashes. ‘You don’t play fair,’ was all she said.
He kept laughing. ‘Play fair? How am I supposed to race a potential gold-medal winner down a slope? Did you tell me before we got up there? Let me know what I was really up against?’
She flicked her head from side to side in the snow. ‘I wasn’t planning on telling you at all.’
He stopped laughing for a second. She still had a smile on her face. He lowered his face closer to hers. ‘I get that. But you were just too cute up there.’
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