“How about you?” I say. “Why half-pipe?”

He turns thoughtful. “When you ride the park you get, what, four or five jumps max? Big air you get one. In the pipe you get ten or so hits in the space of less than a minute. The adrenaline’s like nothing else. My head’s pretty busy normally, I’m thinking of a million different things, but while I’m in the pipe, my head’s empty. I’m in the zone. Using the force or something.” He breaks off. Grins. “I couldn’t have this conversation with anyone else.”

“Likewise.”

He holds my gaze a moment longer than he should do. I’m glowing right now.

Brent comes out and Curtis scrambles to his feet. He doesn’t talk to me in the same way when Brent’s around. A male respect thing, I guess.

“So long, Luke,” I say under my breath. “May the force—”

“Shut it,” Curtis mutters.

It’s funny to think that if Curtis and I had hooked up that night on the glacier, we’d probably have had some awful breakup by now and wouldn’t be speaking to each other. By turning him down, I’ve ended up getting to know him in a way I wouldn’t otherwise have done. So it worked out for the best, after all.

It doesn’t stop me from wanting him, though.

We enter the cable car. Damn. Saskia is in there already with Odette. Curtis nods to Odette and heads to the far corner without saying a word to his sister.

But Brent strides right up to her. “Why are you such a bitch?”

No, Brent. Don’t do this.

The cabin falls quiet. I look on, helpless.

Brent lifts his hand as though he’s about to grab her. “Leave Milla alone. Got it?”

Saskia arches her eyebrow and looks like she wants to laugh. Brent’s hardly a threatening guy.

Curtis starts to push his way over.

“I can’t believe I ever used to like you. You’re just a spoiled, insecure brat and everyone around you knows it.” With that, Brent lowers his hand and returns to my side.

I let out my breath. That was awkward. Brent hates confrontations, so I’m amazed he would do that for me. “Thanks,” I whisper. “But I can fight my own battles.”

Across the cable car, Saskia’s smirk has faded somewhat. Did he get to her? I think he actually did. Behind her bravado, she’s human after all.

Odette pats her on the hip. And her hand lingers. Whoa. Are they together?

Saskia darts a look at me, as though she can hear what I’m thinking. The spark returns to her eyes and her lips curl back into a smile. She knows I saw.

My head reels.