Jesus Christ. It’s like he’s wearing a goddamn jetpack. Connor swings out around me and is riding a line parallel to mine until I have to move out of the way for a dad teaching his kid to ski.
When I get back in the fall line, Connor is ahead of me.
I hear his voice in my head.Watch my hips. Anticipate my movements.I actually let him gain on me just a little more, so I can actuallyseehis hips. The movement is slight, but when hezigs to the right, I zag to the left and cut back to the middle before he does, getting ahead ofhimthis time.
Of course, he knows that move himself since he taught it to me, and it’s a fight to the finish line the whole way down the mountain.
By the time we get to the bottom, we’re both panting with our hands on our knees off to the side of the main slope. I push my goggles up onto my helmet and watch Connor do the same. It was too close to call, but I’m pretty sure that if I finished first, it’s because he allowed it.
Connor offers me a fist bump and a smile. “Nowthat’show you race.”
Chapter 32
Connor
I’m on cloud-fucking-nine. This is the first time I really feel like I’ve taught Vox something helpful. That run was also eye-opening for me.
I’ve still got it.
I haven’t sailed down a mountain like that in a really long time. I was confident riding next to Vox. He kept me calm while also pushing me. Elite-level athleticism is hard to find, and once you reach it, it can make everything else feel weak and insignificant in comparison.
Clarity struck me on the way down the mountain, confirming something I’d already known to be true, but was too afraid to voice…
I will never meet another man like Vox Montgomery.
Not only does he share my passion for boarding, but he also shares my skill level. He calms my storms while fueling my passions. He’s not afraid to give me a fight when I’m looking for one, but he’s also strong enough to be my safe harbor when all the fight’s gone out of me. He opens himself up to me, commanding my trust and respect, and makes me want to dothe same for him. Since meeting Vox, I’ve healed, I’ve grown…I’ve come back to life.
“Do I have something on my face?” Vox says, pulling me from my epiphany as we slink back closer to the edge of the slope so we’re out of the way.
“Um, no?” I answer, totally confused.
He laughs. “Then why are you staring at me like that?”
To my horror, the words leave my lips before I can catch them, think about them, or fully process them.
“Because I think I’m starting to fall for you.” My eyes go as wide as his, which I can see since his goggles are on his helmet, and I clamp a hand over my mouth. “Fuck, I didn’t mean to say that out loud.”
“Is it true?” he asks. His chest is still heaving, and I can’t tell whether it’s still from the race or the words that just erupted from my mouth.
“Vox, I?—”
“I asked if it’s true, Connor,” he says again, interrupting me.
“Yeah, it is. I’m sorry,” I apologize for just throwing the words out there. It somehow feels both too soon, and like I should have said them sooner.
Vox rips his glove off and smacks my ass. It’s a hard slap, but I barely feel it because of all the padding in my clothes. I arch a brow at him in question and listen as this man throws my own words back at me.
“That was for apologizing. Don’t do it again.”
I tip my head back in laughter.
“Oh, hotshot, trust me, I wasn’t apologizing for the way I feel about you. I’m sorry that I just let it spill out like that. It’s fast, and I don’t want you to feel any pressure where I’m concerned.”
Vox undoes his chin strap, drops his helmet in the snow,and reaches for mine. I can’t help the way my eyes dart around as he rips it off, but no one is paying us any attention.
As soon as my helmet lands next to his, Vox’s mouth is against mine. He sucks my top lip between his and rolls his tongue across it in a way that makes me want to fall to my knees in the snow right here.
“I want to feelallthe pressure where you’re concerned. Do you hear me? I’ve had a crush on you since I was fourteen fucking years old, Connor. I’ve just been waiting for you to catch up.” He licks across my lips again, and I can’t resist.
