Author's Chapter Notes:
So we've arrived to Chapter 2. Nicole has initial anxiety, but puts her toe into the water.
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"I can't wait to see you on the slopes." Brian said, with encouragement.
"NO! I think you mean fall down on the slopes." I returned.
"I bet you will do fine...ok, you may fall a few times. But you'll get a feel for it" he said, with a bit of regret.
"RRR-Right...and I should believe you because?" I said with a warm smile.
Brian was really making the slopes sound exciting. But I was terrified that I would be sore and shut in away from all of the fun. The drive was really nice. After packing my luggage into his huge Tahoe, we stopped for road snacks and headed north.
Soon we were unpacked and on skis. I was moving around like a child taking his first steps. My skis were getting crossed. I couldn't hold my posture. And just when I would find a groove I got all tangled up in the skis and down I went. This happened a few more times. I was getting a little dizzy from the wind and of course the falls. I needed to stop the insanity quick!
"I knew it! I should have never listened to you." I exclaimed in a sing-song pitch.
"Aw, babe, I am sorry. You only fell twice. That's pretty good considering it's your first time."
"I'm cold. I want to warm up." I cried.
Just as Brian winked at me, a thunder of loud voices was growing near. It had to be JT, Greg, and Neil, Brian's fraternity brothers.
"Hey, what's happening?" Slaps and chest bumps commenced as the ‘brothers' became reacquainted. "Wow, so who is this beautiful lady?" Greg asked. I had already met Neil at the university so his face was the only familiar one in the crowd.
"This is Nicole." Brian said, casually giving introductions.
As Neil and I exchanged greetings, Brian and JT were returning our skis. Greg excused himself as he interrupted our chat and reached for my hand and said "Neil, I think I hear the ‘lil woman' calling you."
"Hey dude, get a grip, and rise up off her" joked Brian.
I laughed a little giggle, because it was all I could think to do. Here I was surrounded by all of these gorgeous hunks, with model jaw lines...too much hotness. Thank heavens they were with their partners. Well, all except Greg. As Peyton would say, "it's a hotness alert".
Coming up the cobblestone walk was the ladies to accompany these gorgeous men: Celeste, Neil's fiancée, JT's girlfriend Kym, and the other I recognized from campus was Liz. Yes, the former fiancée of Brian. And for a moment a thick lump caught in the back of my throat.
"Hi," was my best effort, considering I was shivering. We all exchanged greetings. They seemed cordial. The only busybody of the group was Liz.
Neil took the liberty to introduce me to the ladies. I was familiar with Liz from campus, but I wasn't sure if she knew who I was. "Why was she here?" I thought to myself. Well, any way, I was going to have a good time no matter what. The trip was free, and Greg was certainly touching my hand every chance he got. It was cute. I thought it was harmless.
"Hello, Brian." Liz reached from behind, playing the peek-a-boo, covering his eyes. "Guess, who?"
"Hi, you made it." I studied his face for any indication that this was a surprise. He seemed indifferent.
"Well, I couldn't let you spend the week getting your butt bruised on the slopes." Liz boasted.
"Oh...it's like that, huh?" Brian returned.
"And so who is this, I don't think we've met?" Liz asked.
"This is Nicole. Nicole, Liz."
"Now that I think of it, I do recall meeting you on campus you are Brian's ex, right?" I spoke sharply, while throwing a glance at Brian. You could tell he wasn't playing ref.
Liz had been introduced to me already by Neil. So, I guessed she wanted to know who I was with. I was sure that Brian said they were now ex's and friends. But I know women. We are territorial about lovers and ex-lovers. It didn't matter what her intents were. There was a single man in the fold, and many around the bungalows. I wasn't going to let some petty jealous woman interfere with my vacation.
We all started towards the bungalows. The plans were to shower and prepare for the early dinner. Greg, who kept flirting with me, asked if he could get me some hot chocolate from the snack bar. By now, Brian was lecturing Greg on etiquette and boundaries. But it didn't matter to Greg. He kept right on doing his thing. It was a part of his charm. And charming he was indeed.
Liz surprisingly gave some reassurance. "Don't worry about Greg. He's just being Greg, a harmless flirt."
"Thanks. He seems harmless." I replied.
"One can never know though with Greg. His type is female", she chided. "So is this your first time on the slopes?"
I was stunned by her apparent attempt to condescend but I decided to let that one go. Any effort to defend myself would have been misconstrued.
"Yes, this is my first time. I am looking forward to it. It seems like so much fun."
"Well, skiing is fun. But it's not for whimps though chica. You might want to get a few runs with the coach before you actually get out there and hang with the real skiers."
"Thanks. I'll take that into consideration." I returned.
"Good...Good" she said sarcastically.
I shook my head hiding my disgust behind a frozen smile at the gall of this petty troll. I could tell this was going to be an interesting week. At this point she was focused on sizing me up, as if I had to pass her inspection or something. Good grief.
I wasn't sure what her purpose was for first telling me how harmless Greg was, but it obviously served her purpose. She doesn't seem downright uncouth, but simply the type who gets what she wants by feigning a jovial personality. She was definitely the type of woman who didn't have to work hard for much. Again, Brian and I were friends and technically didn't go up there as a couple; my intentions were to spend some unrestricted time getting to know him better. I wasn't at all worried about Brian's gallantry. He was always a gentleman; sometimes to his detriment.
Chapter End Notes:
How did you like Liz? She's a peach huh?