Rose huffed up the edge of the hill, smiling wide. “I want to race too.” She swung her arms out as she ran, her steps awkward and clumsy while her boots burrowed down into the snow. She arranged her toboggan by Jonas.
“What shall the winner receive as their award?” Jonas asked, readying himself.
Owen sidled up beside Leah, tucking his scarf tighter around his neck. “Bragging rights.”
Apparently he was joining their little race. Ducky.
“Is that enough of an award?” Rose asked, her brow crinkled. “How about a sweet of some sort?”
Cecily laughed. “You have had enough sweets to last until the new year.”
“No worries, Rose,” Owen assured her. “I shall find you something in the kitchen even if I have to endure the wrath of Mrs. Bowles. I am not afraid of her.”
“No?” Leah laughed despite herself. “I certainly fear her.”
“She is all bark and no bite.” Owen laid out on his stomach, staring down the hill. “So, are we doing this?”
“Yes,” Cecily piped up. “On the count of three. One, two . . .” She glanced down the row at everyone, pausing dramatically. “Three!”
They all pushed themselves forward, Owen taking a quick lead. Leah leaned her weight forward, feeling the rush as her toboggan sped ahead. The wind caught her hair, and her stomach lifted as the hill’s incline steepened. A laugh bubbled out of her and she took a deep breath, filling her lungs with the crisp air. The siblings were gaining speed at varying degrees, Rose quickly falling behind. It was a tad unfair as she weighed much less than the rest of them. Owen’s lead waned as Jonas shot ahead, with Miranda just behind him. Her pretense at grumpiness had quickly faded and she laughed as she brought her sled up beside their brother.
Leah scrunched lower, trying to gain speed. She took a quick glance to her right to see if Owen had managed to get ahead of her again, but when she expected to find him staring down to their destination, she found him watching her—but only for a moment. As soon as her eyes met his, he quickly moved his gaze down the hill. She did the same, but had lost her place as Miranda sped ahead.
The end of the hill neared and just as Leah thought she might manage to place second, something looming in the corner of her vision neared, making her gaze jerk toward it.
“Owen!” she yelled. But it was too late. Just after she yelled his name, the front of his toboggan slid in front of hers. Their toboggans collided, throwing Leah from her seat and right into Owen. She felt a jolt as their bodies crashed into one another, dislodging Owen from his sled and both of them landing in the freezing snow.
She used her feet and hands to shove him away, sitting up and wiping snow off her face. “What was that for?” Her chest heaved. Not only had it startled her to be thrown into him and consequently into the snow, but this was so typically Owen. Anger burned within her. Why could he not just allow a race to simply be a race? Why add the silly antics?
Owen pushed himself upright, reaching back and pulling a clump of snow from within the neck of his jacket and throwing it to the side with a grimace. Turning toward her, his chilled frown melted into a scowl. “Excuse me? You think I did that on purpose?”
“How else did your toboggan happen to slide in front of mine just as we finished?”
“Oh, I don’t know,” he began, sarcasm dripping from his words. “How about I got off track and accidentally clipped your sled?”
She shook her head, unable to find her voice.
“I won,” Jonas said smugly from down the line of bodies. “Not much of a surprise though. I usually do.” He smiled wide, pulling his toboggan up on its end so it tucked neatly under the crook of his arm. “I suppose this means you must endure the wrath of Mrs. Bowles, Owen. I shall require an apple tart for my victory.”
Owen sighed, pulling his disbelieving glare from Leah and over to Jonas. “As you wish.”
“Shall we race again?” Miranda glanced about.
Cecily covered her mouth as she smiled. “Enjoyed it, did you?”
Miranda shrugged. “I must admit that I did.”
“I would have had Owen not crashed into me. Apparently if he can’t beat me, he must thwart me.” Leah turned on him in a flash.
“Got a flea in your cap, Leah?” Owen stood, shaking his head. “It was an accident.”
“Of course it was,” she spat. It sounded like a simple enough explanation, but nothing was simple with Owen. He was scheming, conniving, and loved to convey innocence when he was nothing of the sort.
Leah stood, gathering the rope to her toboggan and turning to head up the hill. And then she felt it. The tell-tale thump of a snowball against her back. She twirled in an instant, her mouth gaping.
Owen leaned against the trunk of a tree, glancing up in the air with his arms crossed over his chest. He brought his eyes back to her, rearing back. “Oh dear, Leah. Your cheeks are rather flushed. Do you feel all right?”
And that’s when it was decided. For once in her life, she was going to give Owen Turner a taste of his own medicine.
