Master Class [Après-Ski 1] (Siren Publishing Everlasting Classic)

by Zara Chase

  “Can we ski off piste?” Carl asked.

  “Don’t see why not,” Ward replied. “You all good with that?”

  Everyone nodded, and Ward gave the class a brief talk about the rules of off-piste skiing.

  “Off-piste, or what we call backcountry skiing in the States, means we can take advantage of all this lovely fresh snow,” he said. “The good news is that it’s soft and deep because it hasn’t been groomed. The better news is that if you fall, the landing’s soft.” His eyes rested on Tanya, presumably aware that her backside was still pleasantly sore from the spanking it had received. “But if you haven’t done this before, it’s not as easy as it looks. It’s vital to keep your knees bent and your weight forward. Your legs will try and drift off in different directions. The snow will change every few feet from dusty to windblown, to ice and then fragile crust. It’s hard work, people, unless you do it right. They’ll also be rutted tracks beneath the new snow, made by previous skiers. Still wanna give it a go?”

  Everyone agreed that they did.

  “Okay, let’s do this.”

  Ward skied off toward a chairlift, his class following in his tracks. He waited for them to go through the gate ahead of him. Tanya hung back, wanting to ride up with him, astonished when Melanie didn’t try to do the same thing.

  “I can’t figure out what’s gotten into her,” she told Ward as they shared a chair, her gloved hand clasped in his bare one. Really, did he never feel the cold? “She’s been sweetness and light last night and all the morning.”

  Ward frowned. “I wonder what she’s up to?”

  “Why should she be up to anything? Perhaps she’s just accepted that you and I are going to be together this week.”

  “Yeah, perhaps that’s it.” But he didn’t sound convinced. “Anyway, darlin’, how are you today?”

  She sent him a dazzling smile. “Just wonderful.”

  “How’s your neck?”

  “There’s a little bruising, but it’s fine.”

  He pulled down the neck of her sweater and nodded. “That’s good. I didn’t do any lasting damage and you had a good time, right?”

  “I had a blast.”

  “I aim to please,” he replied, looking smug.

  “Ward, about the dungeon, I—”

  “Shush, tell me later.” He rested their joined hands on his groin, and she could feel his rigid cock throbbing away beneath his salopettes. “We’ll have dinner at Hadleigh’s tonight and we can talk about it then.”

  As soon as they skied off the chair, the rest of the class surrounded Ward with questions about their sortie off piste. It turned out to be as tiring on the legs as Ward had predicted, but exhilarating to cut a swathe through the virgin snow.

  There was no question of the class going to the same restaurant as yesterday for lunch, so Tanya felt obliged to join her classmates in the cafeteria. To her great disappointment, Ward didn’t join them. She knew that he really did have an hour’s private class to teach and that those classes paid too well for him to turn them down.

  Without Ward to distract her during lunch, Tanya turned her attention to Melanie. She was seated between Carl and one of the other guys and appeared to be in fine form. Her eyes sparkled as she flirted with them both in true Melanie style, but Tanya could see that she was distracted and on edge. Every few minutes she pulled her phone from her pocket and checked for messages.

  “You expecting a call?” Tanya asked.

  “What…oh, no.” She thrust her phone back into her jacket pocket, looking guilty. “It’s just…well, you never know. I like to stay in touch.”

  Tanya frowned. Ward’s cautious reaction to Melanie’s change of mood had now made Tanya wonder if she was up to something. She shook her head, telling herself not to be so fanciful. Her friend had decided she was glad for Tanya and was giving her space to pursue her holiday romance, just as Tanya would do for Melanie if the situation were reversed.

  As soon as the afternoon class finished, Tanya and Melanie went back to the hotel. Tanya needed to catch up on some sleep. She assumed Melanie would go off somewhere with Carl, who came back with them. Instead she remained in the room, even when Tanya told her she intended to go to bed and die.

  “I’m meeting Ward for dinner at Hadleigh’s at seven,” she said. “I intend to sleep for at least two hours and then take a long soak in the bath.”

  “You go right ahead, hon. I’ll probably doze a bit and then read.”

  Read? Melanie never read. “Are you sure you’re okay?” Tanya asked, frowning.

  Melanie laughed but it sounded forced. “I’m fine. Why wouldn’t I be?”

  It was gone five when Tanya emerged from a deep sleep, interspersed with erotic dreams about Ward and what she planned to let him do to her that evening. She’d known him for less than three days, but that was more than enough time for her to know he was the man she’d dreamed of meeting her entire life. Handsome, fit, intelligent, caring, and a great lover. What more could a girl want? He was mysterious, too. There had to be a reason why he’d quit the States and a burgeoning career to hide out here in Nevella. She was burning to know why he’d done it, but it was obvious he didn’t want to tell her.

  Which brought her down to earth with a resounding thump. She might have fallen head over heels in love with the guy, but that feeling clearly wasn’t reciprocated. She believed him when he said that he didn’t usually show off the private part of Hadleigh’s to any of his students, and that made her feel special.

  But obviously she wasn’t special enough to be taken into his confidence.

  When she went home on Sunday, he’d presumably sit in the bar at the hotel, cast a lazy eye over next week’s victims, and make his choice. She burned with jealousy, at the same time telling herself not to be such a fool. Of course he wasn’t interested in her—not on a permanent basis. She’d just have to make the most of the days she had left with him and be thankful for the things he’d done for her self-confidence.

  Tanya sat up in bed, stretched her arms above her head, and grinned at the thought of the night ahead of her. She absolutely wouldn’t wear her baggy clothing, but didn’t want to wear the same shirt as the night before, either. Melanie was sound asleep, so Tanya quietly dressed, slipped out of the hotel and into a boutique she’d seen across the street—the sort of trendy place with loud music and stick-thin assistants she wouldn’t usually be seen dead in. She selected a couple of pretty tops that would tuck into her new jeans and returned to her room.

  Melanie was still out for the count. Moving about quietly, Tanya slipped into the bathroom. She took her clothes for the evening in with her, intending to dress in there to avoid Melanie seeing her bruised neck. She ran a bath and filled it with half a bottle of fragrant oil. She sank into it and sighed with pleasure, plotting how she intended to tell Ward about the decision she’d made, wondering who this new, daring Tanya was. What had happened to the old, staid version who never did anything the slightest bit offbeat?

  When the water turned cool, Tanya reluctantly climbed out of the tub, wrapped a towel around herself, and set to work with the hair dryer. Ward kept telling her that he liked her hair, and she wanted it to literally shine for him as brilliantly as just the thought of him made her shine on the inside. Once her crowning glory was dried into sleek, if somewhat wayward, waves, Tanya pulled on the best of her undergarments and winced. Not terribly sexy, but she figured she wouldn’t be wearing them for too long once Ward got his hands on her, so what the heck. She thought about not bothering with panties but knew her pussy would leak all over her new jeans if she didn’t. Besides, wearing them might earn her an extra punishment.

  Giggling, she pulled on her jeans and the thin black sparkly top she’d just bought which showed off her full tits through the fabric without revealing an inch of bare flesh. She threaded her precious leather belt through the loops on her jeans and cinched it in tight, laughing aloud when she recalled the use Ward had put that belt to last night. Her butt thro
bbed in anticipation of a repeat performance. Tanya applied mascara and lip gloss with a light hand. A squirt of her favorite perfume, a final run of the brush through her hair, and she was ready.

  She examined her appearance and blew herself a kiss, aware that her eyes appeared twice their usual size and that there was a vibrancy about her, a glow to her complexion that she associated with a woman in the throes of a hot love affair. How appropriate. She had never looked better in her entire life and still couldn’t quite believe it was actually her own reflection staring back at her.

  “Hell, I’m gonna be late.”

  Tanya had allowed the usual amount of time to get ready but had dawdled way too long. As she reached for the bathroom door she heard voices coming from their room, one of them a man’s. Good, Carl must be with Melanie. That would make it easier to leave her. She strode confidently into the room and reached for her purse.

  “I need to get going.”

  “Tanya,” said a masculine voice at the same time.

  Tanya froze. She’d know that voice anywhere and delayed turning in its direction. Suddenly Melanie’s strange behavior started to make sense and a slow, burning anger seeped through Tanya’s bloodstream. She swirled around and looked up at the man who’d put her in the hospital.

  “Brad? What the fuck are you doing here?”

  Chapter Fourteen

  Ward was ready for his date with Tanya ten minutes early. Well, he’d been ready for it all day—a day that seemed to drag on interminably in direct variance to the time he spent alone with Tanya, which seemed to fly past. He wandered into the communal lounge used by him and his buddies and found Leo and Ross poring over official-looking documents.

  “What are you doing up here?” he asked Leo. “You usually like to show your ugly face in the bar at opening time.”

  “I have a meeting with the family to prepare for,” Leo said, grimacing.

  “Ah.” Ward sat down. “What’s it about this time?”

  Leo screwed up his face. “Trust me, you don’t wanna know.”

  Ward laughed. “Probably not.”

  It was true what they told each intake of skiers. Nevella was basically run by five families, each of whom had owned one of the valleys since before skiing put the country on the map. There was a legitimate government elected by the populace, but everyone knew the families held all the real power.

  And they hated one another.

  No foreigners were permitted to run a business in Nevella unless they had a local partner. Ergo, Leo only got to run his bar and club with the cooperation of the family who owned the valley of Medina. Ross only got to run the ski school on the same basis. It meant that both men had no choice but to get involved in the silly spats between the families, often acting as unofficial referees and preventing them from killing one another. Lots of family members had intermarried over the years, and it got difficult trying to keep track of who belonged where. Leo managed it because it was within his best interests to do so. Few others seemed to care.

  “Hot date?” Ross asked, running his gaze down the length of Ward’s smarter-than-usual appearance and grinning. “Let me try and guess who’s got your panties in a pucker.”

  “I hear you two put on quite a show on the walkway last night,” Leo said. “Sorry I missed that.”

  “Just teaching Tanya a few things about herself.”

  Leo sent him an appraising look. “Sure that’s not the other way around?”

  “I’m not with you, buddy.”

  “I’ve never seen you like this before. Looks like you’ve got it real bad. How will you feel when she leaves on Sunday?”

  Ward scowled. “I’ll get over it.”

  “I’m sure you will,” Ross said, serious for once. “But why would you want to? Relationships like the one you appear to have with Tanya don’t come along every day, if ever. Don’t blow it.”

  Ward rolled his eyes. “Here speak two self-appointed relationship gurus who’re just as afraid of commitment as I am.”

  “We haven’t had your luck,” Leo replied. “It’s about time you stopped hiding yourself away and got on with your life.”

  The same thought had filtered through Ward’s mind more than once since meeting Tanya, but he knew it wasn’t on. “She’s just walked out on a man that put her in the hospital. If she knew why I really left America, do you think she’d give me the time of day?”

  Ross shrugged. “Only one way to find out.”

  “I agree,” Leo said. “I don’t think you’re giving her enough credit to see you for what you really are.”

  “That’s what bothers me.”

  “Wouldn’t it be better to know than to always wonder?” Ross asked.

  Would it?

  “You’re a hell of a ski instructor, and there’s nothing wrong with that as a way to make a living,” Leo said. “But will it keep you stimulated for the rest of your days, or until you get too old and creaky to do it anymore?”

  “Hell, it’s after seven. She’ll be downstairs.” Ward jumped up and headed for the door, pleased for an excuse to bring this conversation to an end and avoid answering Leo’s question.

  “You can always stay here and mediate between a bunch of families who haven’t grown up yet when you have arthritic knees and can’t strap on your skis,” Leo called after him, laughing.

  Ward shot him the finger over his shoulder and took the stairs down three at a time. He pushed his way into the crowded bar, expecting to see Tanya waiting for him in the usual spot they occupied close to the serving flap. His apology died on his lips when she wasn’t there. He looked around the crowded bar but couldn’t see the top of her head with its adorable copper curls anywhere. He knew she hadn’t arrived before he even made a more methodical search of the bar. Somehow he always seemed to be able to sense when she was close by.

  He checked his watch and frowned. It was almost half past seven. Where the hell was she? Melanie was probably pulling one of her jealousy jags again, deliberately detaining her simply because she could. Ward fumed at the way in which she used their friendship to play Tanya and wasn’t about to put up with it.

  He grabbed his jacket, ignored greetings shouted his way, and strode out into the frigid night air. If she was on her way, they’d meet on the sidewalk because there was only one route she could take. If she was being held up by Melanie, then Ward would forcibly remove her if necessary. He was in no mood to be reasonable.

  He stamped snow off his boots as he entered her hotel and peered into the bar, wondering if she’d got caught up with the rest of her class and had forgotten the time. He thought he saw Melanie’s blonde head but she ducked behind a pillar before he could be sure. There was definitely no sign of Tanya, so he ran up the stairs, found her room, and went right on in without knocking.

  “You there, babe?”

  * * * *

  “Isn’t this a nice surprise,” Melanie said brightly.

  Tanya didn’t trust herself to speak immediately. She was fully occupied trying to absorb the shock of seeing Brad and quelling her fulminating anger.

  “That’s not how I’d put it,” she replied through gritted teeth.

  “Hey, babe, you look cool,” Brad said. “Aren’t you glad to see me?”

  The puerile charm that had persuaded Tanya to take him back more times than he deserved failed to make an impression on this occasion. Brad’s smile faltered, but he was clearly still full of confidence in his ability to talk her around.

  “I had some free time so I figured I’d join you. I flew to Toulouse and hired a car to drive up here.”

  “You did this on purpose.” Tanya treated Melanie to the benefit of her best assault glare. “That phone conversation I overheard. All that checking of your cell today. You couldn’t bear to see me having more fun than you. That’s what all this is about, isn’t it?”

  “No, I…you don’t understand.”

  “Oh, I understand all right.” Tanya shook her head. “When I think of all the times I’ve
defended you simply because I didn’t want to think of you the way other people saw you. Well, that’s over with. You’ve done it now, Melanie, and I hope you’re pleased to have finally wrecked our rather one-sided friendship.”

  “No, you don’t mean that.” Melanie’s smile lacked conviction. “You and Brad are made for one another. You don’t want to throw that away from some meaningless holiday fling. Besides, he has something to tell you.”

  Tanya simply glowered at the pair of them, so similar facially. Both were blond, both good looking, both totally self-centered with a firm belief that the world owed them a living.

  “I needed you to know that I nailed that contract,” Brad said, his smile brimming with pride. “So I can afford to pay back the money I borrowed from you.”

  “Congratulations, but you didn’t borrow, you stole.”

  “I’m going to leave you two lovebirds to talk this through alone.”

  Melody slipped quietly from the room, leaving Tanya shaking her head at the closing door. Lovebirds? She really did live in another world.

  “You could have just put the money back in my account.”

  “I wanted to see you and apologize in person.”

  Tanya rolled her eyes. “Of course you did.”

  What was it with Brad and Melanie? Why did they both need to control her quite so comprehensively? Brad was good looking—not in Ward’s class, of course, but then few men were. Still, he wouldn’t have trouble finding another woman. There was nothing special about her.

  “We can put that all behind us now.” Brad ran his gaze slowly down the length of her, an obscure hunger reflected in his eyes. “I’ve missed you, babe. Things will be better in the future, I promise. I love you and can’t hack it without you.”

  “I will not live with a man who hit me, Brad. I meant it when I said it at the time, and nothing’s changed.”

  “Just because some fancy Yank’s taken a liking to you this week, don’t get ideas,” he said, raising his voice. “He’s just using you to get what he wants.”