Levi snorts, eyes jumping between us before his eyes find mine. My shoulders tense under the weight of our eye contact, and I see the silent warning in his stare.
Maisy is off-limits.
Levi jerks his chin at the base lodge. “Lights start going out in fifteen. Don’t miss the lift unless you plan to attempt riding down the whole mountain, sis. I’ll see you both at the bottom.”
He chucks his board down and clips his boots in, sliding away and leaving behind a silence that’s thick enough for me to choke on.
Maisy shakes her head. “He’s worse than my parents sometimes.”
“I’m sure he is,” I mutter distractedly as I watch him go, though my chest remains tight.
She pushes off again, determined to squeeze in one last run, and I follow close behind her. The slope is even quieter now as skiers trickle down the mountain one by one. Each time she stumbles, I catch her. And each time, I have to remind myself to let go.
By the time we reach the third flag the floodlights are shutting off one by one, shadows swallowing the slope. The air has that eerie stillness before a storm.
Maisy stares down at the darkening slope, breath clouding in front of her. “Guess that’s our cue.”
“Yeah.” I reach out automatically, brushing my gloved fingers against her arm to guide her back up the mountain. We’re closer to the ski lift that brought us up the mountain than we are to the bottom.
The last row of lights blink out seconds later, plunging the hill into blue twilight. I jerk my chin toward the lift. “Come on. Let’s catch the last ride down before we’re stranded.”
Her eyes meet mine, something like fear in them. Then she nods, and we head for the ski lift together.
SIX
MAISY
The ski liftcreaks beneath us while it carries me and Sterling down the mountain, the cold air nipping at my cheeks. I hug the safety bar a little tighter than I want Sterling to notice, because I hate being this high. There’s just too much empty air between me and the ground for it to feel safe. It never bothered me during my skiing career, but after the accident, being this high up is anxiety inducing.
“So, Saltwater Springs. That’s where you ran off to, right?” I blurt out in an attempt to distract myself.
Sterling tips his head, one eyebrow raised. “Ran off? That’s a dramatic way to put it.”
“Well, you did vanish. One day you were here, the next you’re suddenly this mysterious surf-town guy. What’s it like there?”
He leans back, playing it cool, eyes shifting back to the dark trees below. “It’s sunny and laid-back, and there are waves instead of snow. So a very different vibe from here.”
“Mm.” I study him from the corner of my eye. “And that’s what you wanted? Something different than what you had here?”
He nods and a sudden ache hits my chest at his admission. But I still want to know more.
“And what do you even do there all day? Just hang out on the beach and catch waves?”
“Sometimes.” A little smirk tugs at his mouth. “Other times I shape boards for their local surf team.”
“I bet you get plenty of girls,” I say, instantly regretting how bothered I sound.
That earns me a sidelong, amused glance. “Why, jealous?”
Heat prickles at my neck, but I scoff. “Please. I just mean that it’s a surf town. I can picture it now. Half-naked, tanned tourists everywhere. You probably don’t even have to try and get girls, they just come flocking to you.”
Sterling chuckles under his breath, low and maddening. “It’s not as glamorous as you’re imagining, Maisy.”
I hug the bar tighter, rolling my eyes. “Right. I’m sure it’s a real struggle. Poor Sterling, forced to live in a sunny paradise with an endless amount of girls and amazing weather.”
His smile fades, voice dipping cooler. “You make it sound like I left just to chase a vacation.”
“Didn’t you?” The words come out harsher than I mean them to, and I know I’m being unreasonable, but I can’t help myself. “You didn’t exactly fight to stay.”
