ROMANCE: Mason (Bad Boy Alpha Male Stepbrother Romance Boxset) (New Adult Contemporary Stepbrother Romance Collection) by Elisa Elliot Read Free Book Online Page A

him.” That was a lie, but I didn’t want to like him, so it was close enough.
    Kate nodded. “Fair enough. But we’re going to the slopes again this afternoon. You’ll come, won’t you?”
    “Is he going to be the instructor?”
    “We had to book in advance because these guys are busy,” Ella chipped in. “So yes, we can’t just change it half-way through.”
    “Then no,” I said.
    “Don’t be a bitch about this,” Ash said. “We’re all here to have fun and you’re being a total stick in the mud.”
    I took a deep breath and blew it out again. “Fine,” I finally said. “I’ll do it.”
    I didn’t really have to say anything to him, did I? He was just a ski instructor.
    “Great,” Kate said and hugged me. It was so easy to keep my friends happy. And they were right, I was being a bitch about it. “First we’re going to eat and then we’re going to head into town. I want to get some souvenirs.”
    After lunch we phoned car and piled in. We headed to Whitefish itself, a town about four miles from the resort. It was like a town from a story, with downtown consisting of small stores and pick-up trucks scattered around against the backdrop of The Big Mountain. We walked from one shop to the next, sifting through winter clothes and fishing tackle. Kate bought a handful of fridge magnets and Ella bought Mike a fishing rod that we would have to fit on the plane somehow.
    “This is so nice,” I said. The escape had lifted my spirits again and the sun made an attempt at warming up the day despite the icy wind that blew every now and then. I had been childish about the whole thing with George. Everyone had flaws, reasons why I could or couldn’t date them. His little quirk was just something like that. The more I kept telling myself that, the better I felt.
    By the time we got back to the hotel room to get dressed for our afternoon session, I was in a good mood and ready to take on the mountain again. I zipped up a bright green jacket and white pants to go with it, and pulled a hat over my ears. It was getting colder, and I didn’t care about looking sexy anymore. There wasn’t anyone I wanted to dress up for, anyway. And if George thought I was unattractive, well, all the better.
    “Ladies,” George greeted us while we were getting into our skis. Kate and Ella greeted him back but I ignored him. I had nothing to say to him unless it was a question about skiing, in which case he owed me because we were paying him for this.
    “We’re going up the slope today,” George said. We had been working on mastering not-falling-over until now. Excitement rippled through our little group and we made our way to a chairlift.
    Riding it up the mountain was an activity in its own right. It was beautiful. The air was clear and I could see for miles, the pine slopes of the mountain and the water in the distance that shimmered in the sun. The other girls chattered and George pointed out landmarks but I was getting happily lost in my own world. I wondered what it would be like in those woods, surrounded by nature only, the race of civilization untouchable. 
    We finally reached the top of the beginner sloped and slid off the chair lift one by one. We lined up and I listened to George for a change as he explained what we had to do.
    “One rule,” George said. “Never come here without an instructor. Not this week.”
    The girls nodded but I rolled my eyes. What were we going to do that an instructor had to keep watch over? It wasn’t like we were kids that would look for trouble.
    Kate went first and she did it perfectly. Obviously. Ella was next who looked like a chicken with her legs wide open and her elbows out. Ashleigh looked okay except for the fact that she fell face-first into the snow. When it was my turn George checked my skis for me.
    “I’m glad you decided to still come this afternoon,” he said.
    “I didn’t want to waste our money. Besides, it won’t be fair to the girls if I just stayed