The Best Of The Year - Medical Romance. Carol Marinelli

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      “It shouldn’t be. I’ll let you know when we get closer.” She glanced back at him. “Follow me, okay, and don’t go off the trails.”

      As if he would.

      Slowly, Mira guided him down one slope, taking it slow and easy before sidestepping across a plateau and arriving at another well-groomed slope. No one seemed to take any notice of them, but Mira had checked her phone several more times. Jack had no idea what she was looking at, or even for.

      A flick of ice hit his cheek and then another. He reached out to touch her jacket before they started down the next hill. “Do you feel that? I think the snow’s started.”

      “That’s what I was afraid of.” She put her hand over her brow and seemed to scan the area.

      Jack followed her line of sight, but all he saw were skiers going down various slopes, as well as another ski lift on the far side of the resort carrying people up the hills.

      Jamming her poles into the snow, she scrolled through her phone, her finger sliding up the screen repeatedly as the occasional flake turned into a light snow shower. Then she bit her lip. “Jack, do you think you can make it back to the lodge on your own?”

      “Why?” Was she texting her ex, getting ready to hook up with him or something?

      No, she seemed genuinely worried about something.

      “I’m not sure.”

      Jack heard a low rumble then it stopped. He cocked his head, listening. “Does it normally thunder during snowstorms?”

      She didn’t answer, just shoved her goggles on top of her head and jabbed her finger at her phone. Then she put it up to her ear. She waited and waited then someone evidently answered. She stared off into the distance. “It looks like some snow may have shifted over by the Vendry Mine.” She waited and then continued. “No, I’m not positive, but I don’t remember seeing it that far down on Friday evening.”

      Friday evening. When they’d been kissing in the back of the sleigh? She’d paid attention to the snow cover by the mine? That’s the last thing he’d been thinking about on that crazy ride. It stung his pride a bit that she’d been able to concentrate on things other than his mouth on hers.

      She paused again. “And in case you haven’t noticed, it’s snowing again, and we got a couple of inches last night. I’d like you to let my dad know. He’s not answering his cell.” Her brows went up. “What do you mean, he went into town?”

      Jack pulled his goggles up over his head as well when the snow kept hitting them and then melting, leaving behind droplets of water. Another roll of thunder came and went.

      “I think you should call him and ask him to come back. I’m telling you, you need to be ready, just in case. Something’s going on. Do you want me to have them clear the slopes?”

      She waited for the other party to respond. “Are you sure?”

      A puff of something that looked like a lazy roll of smoke sifted into the air over by the mine. A fire? There weren’t many trees in that particular area, so he didn’t think so. And Jack hadn’t caught sight of any lightning, neither could he imagine anyone smoking while skiing.

      “Okay. I’m going to stay up here for a while. I’ll call you in a half-hour or so.” She scrubbed her cheek against her shoulder. “Will do. Yeah, me too. Bye.”

      She hung up and scrolled again, then dropped the phone back into her pocket.

      “Problem?” he asked, when her jaw remained tense. Had she been talking to the instructor?

      As if realizing for the first time that he was still there, she slowly turned toward him. “Not really.” She hesitated and then lifted her chin. “I don’t want you to take this the wrong way, but maybe it would best if you headed back to the lodge.”

      Suspicion immediately flared in the back of his head. “Conversing with the ex?”

      Why he’d said that, he wasn’t sure. Even if she’d called him, it was pretty obvious it hadn’t been to meet up with him or anything. She was worried about something over on that hill. Enough to want whoever was on the other end of that line to call her father and ask him to come back to the resort.

      But his veiled accusation didn’t go unnoticed. Her eyes chilled. “What I do or don’t do is none of your business.”

      Okay, that had backfired. He’d hoped she’d give him a hint as to why she’d suddenly changed course, going from flirty to worried to angry in the space of a few minutes.

      He touched her hand. “Sorry. I didn’t mean it that way. I was digging for information, actually.”

      A thin layer of snow now covered the cute pink cap on her head and dotted her lashes. She smiled. “Okay, in case you’re wondering—or even if you’re not—I’m not going to get back together with my ex. Not now. Not ever. But I need to check something out, and I don’t really want an inexperienced skier on any of those harder slopes.”

      “The ones closer to the mine.”

      She nodded. “The snow looks like it’s moved, to me, shifted downward since our ride the other night.”

      “I heard you mention that, but what does it mean?”

      “We got some snow last night. And we’re due for more tonight. Not a ton, but enough to add more weight to the already thick layer. If it slides any further there could be trouble.”

      He brushed a couple of flakes of snow off her nose with a gloved fingertip. Her cheeks were pink with cold, as was her nose, and she looked pretty damned adorable right now. In spite of her worried frown.

      The thunder rolled again, and Mira immediately jerked around to the side and stared at the mine, where, sure enough, another puff of white erupted into the air. Not smoke. Snow. Just like when Mira’s ex had sent a burst of it shooting toward him. Once disturbed, the finer stuff drifted into the air, while the heavier stuff had hit him and then fallen to the ski slope, where it had slipped downhill a few feet. Then it had rolled to a stop.

      So if the puffs he saw over by the mine were snow vapor, then something was disturbing it. But what?

      At that second the rumbling started up again, this time growing in volume. He vaguely heard Mira’s “Oh, my God!” before what seemed like half the mountain began to move, sliding downward, giant plumes of vapor rising into the air. And below the action—on another set of slopes—was a group of about twenty skiers.

      He finally understood what Mira was panicking about, his own chest tightening and his breathing shooting through the roof in response to what he was currently witnessing.

      Because, like a tsunami that churned its way toward shore, an avalanche was slowly building up momentum. And it was headed right for that unsuspecting group.

       CHAPTER SEVEN

      “STAY HERE.” MIRA’S only thought, once the rumbling stopped, was getting over to the site and helping get those people out.

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