Chapter 10
Chris
Iwas seething by the time we got to the ski−lift. Her words bounced around in my head. Maybe I would give someone else the money, but I knew Melinda, she would take this challenge and turn it into something awesome like she always did. And by the end of it, I'd be happy and annoyed, wondering how I could one-up her. I’d seen her decorate the school with a budget of nada. I knew what she could do. I only wished the conversation had been a bit more…civilized. Professional.
By the time we got to the ski−lift, my watch had said it was midnight, and my bones said I was getting too old to stay out so late. I pressed the button on the ski−lift, only for it to groan, and then the engine sparked and smoked.
“No, no, no!” I smacked the side of the over−heated hunk of metal, and it made it smoke more.
“What happened?” Melinda rubbed her hands together, looking down at the engine.
“What’s it look like? The engine blew.”
“I can see that. I was asking how it happened.”
“I don’t know, Melinda. If I knew, I’d fix it.”
“You don’t have to be an ass about it,” she snapped.
“Can you be quiet for like two seconds and let me think?”
“Didn’t know you were capable!” she ran to a nearby stump before I could strangle her or worse, kiss her.
Now that I had silence, I pinched the bridge of my nose and started to pace. I didn’t need this right now. The cost to fix the lift was going to be expensive, but this had to be done. I couldn’t have a ski−resort without a working ski−lift. I knew a half−mile back there was a car we kept under a tarp for emergencies. We wanted to be prepared just in case we needed to get to someone in rougher weather. That was a plan. Hey, we could do that!
“Alright, come on. We have to go back.”
“I’m not going anywhere with you.”
“Right, stay there then. Don’t let the bears get you.” I was only a few steps in front of her before she let out a cute yelp and scurried next to me.
“Bears?” she said.
“It is the wilderness, Melinda. I know it would be hard to tell in your pumps and hairspray, but animals are here, with us, existing.”
“Oh my god! There are like…animals here? Wow, Chris, what is this white stuff? It’s so, like, cold.” She put on her best high−pitched, ditzy blonde voice, and I was happy it was dark out because the smile tugging on my lips would stroke her ego too much.
“Funny.”
“Wasn’t meant to be.”
I almost didn’t hear her since she muttered it so low. She still had my coat on, and I did my best not to notice how good she looked in it. It was too big, nearly falling to her knees, and the sleeves hung over her hands. It was cute. I hated how much I liked it. How much I liked her. And how much those feelings never really went away.
Everything about this situation was enough to drive a man to the brink of insanity.
“Here,” I said, pushing a branch out of the way as I went off the path and into a shallow part of the forest. I made sure to keep the branches tucked back as she lifted her leg over the bushes to stand next to me. There, wrapped in a blue tarp, was an old Ford SUV. I hadn’t cranked it in a few weeks, but it would be fine. It never failed before.
It took both of us to get the tarp off since he had a few inches of snow on it weighing it down, but soon we were in the SUV, our breath freezing every time it lifts our lips, and when I went to crank the car, it made a sound that made you hope and pray it would start.
"How long has it been since it has been cranked?" she asked.
“What do you know about it?”
She groaned and slammed her fist against the dash. “Chris, I may not know a lot of things, but I know you have to start a car every few days, especially in cold weather, or the fuel will freeze.”
Damn it.
I didn’t say anything back because I was rightfully in the wrong. I hadn’t assumed anyone would need the car until we opened. Still, it was meant to be cranked every couple of days. And now we were stuck almost two miles down the mountain, and it was too late to call anyone to burden them with picking us up. But I still would have, had I had reception. To get reception, we would have to walk. Far. “Shit,” I cursed, slamming my hand against the steering wheel.
