Leaving Luke and me alone in the massive chalet was either a sign of trust or obliviousness on Tad’s part. Luke was always indulged, given a long leash, since he would have snapped anything shorter in half. Because Luke had appeared to have taken the divorce the hardest, Tad had done the most to win him back. It was Blair who had to be perfect, not just on the slopes but also in school and in life. He was also expected to somehow keep his brother out of trouble, which was no small feat.

After we got back, Luke and I split up to shower, then met on the deck, where the hot tub was. This part of the house had a majestic view, especially on a sparkling day like this one. I stayed in my room for a long time, suddenly feeling too aware of my body in the black bikini that I’d bought for a trip we were planning to Hawaii that summer. I’d never worn it. I put it on now and told myself that this was just my friend Luke, so who cared how I looked in a swimsuit?

Luke was in the hot tub already and had pilfered a bottle of red wine from his dad’s cellar. As I dropped my towel to join him in the tub, I could feel him staring. I’d never had a damn thing against my small breasts until that very moment, when I unhelpfully pictured the top-heavy Breanna and how she might have looked in my new bikini.

“What?” I finally said, scrambling up the steps to submerge myself in the water.

Luke shook his head, snapping out of his apparent trance. “Nothing. I mean, not nothing. You look good, Bomber, that’s all.”

He poured me a glass of wine and we fell into our normal conversation: rehashing our best runs of the day and talking about the final races of the World Cup season, which would resume after Nagano. It wasn’t until the bottle was halfway gone that Luke finally kissed me.

Liz after Dark

“YOU’RE COMING tomorrow, right?” Gianluca stops me and takes me by the shoulders as class is dispersing. I feel embarrassingly thrilled by his attention.