Terri Reed - Treacherous Slopes

He saluted and sauntered off with his camera, which he never let out of his sight.

A few minutes later a woman took a seat a couple chairs away from Julie. She was pretty with dark hair and dark eyes and held a gift-wrapped box in her hands. Something about her seemed familiar, but Julie couldn’t place from where. She exchanged a smile with her and went back to reading.

A nurse stepped into the waiting area.

“Are you here to see Nick Walsh?”

“Yes,” Julie said.

“Yes,” the brunette said at the same time.

The nurse looked as confused as Julie felt. Eyeing the brunette closely, Julie realized why she’d recognized her. She’d been the one calling out to Nick after his crash.

“Uh, tell me your names and I’ll let him know you’re both here,” the nurse said, clearly uncomfortable letting two women in to see Nick when he was only expecting one.

“Julie Frost.”

“Kitty Rogers,” the brunette stated. “He’ll see me.”

Julie arched an eyebrow at the woman’s certainty. Clearly she had some claim on Nick. Something unpleasant stirred in Julie’s tummy. She mentally stopped herself in her tracks. She needed to remain professional. Knowing he had a girlfriend would help to keep her own feelings in check. She would never poach another woman’s man.

Even if that man had had the starring role in her girlhood daydreams.

* * *

Nick shifted uncomfortably on the hospital bed. Though he appreciated the excellent medical care he was receiving from Bend’s premier medical center, he wanted to be back on the slopes hitting the kicker, not confined to an eight-by-ten room with linoleum floors, stucco walls and the smell of antiseptics filling his head.

The memory of the fresh floral scent of Julie’s perfume tightened his gut. She’d smelled like a warm, sunny spring day.

Julie.

The image of a pretty blonde danced through Nick’s mind. She’d been Julie Tipton when he’d known her. Man, she’d blossomed, becoming a beautiful woman sans the glasses or the braces he remembered. She’d always been the quiet, studious type. Not the kind to go into show business.

She’d saved his bacon a few times in high school when he’d asked her for help with his English assignments and his math homework. The girl had been wicked smart. Now she was a newshound. A reporter. Go figure.

Distaste coated his mouth. He didn’t like the press. Didn’t like the way they sensationalized or capitalized on every aspect of his and his fellow athletes’ lives, the good and the bad. Whatever would generate ratings was fair game.

Just look at the way they’d sensationalized Cody’s death.

Familiar pain and grief welled until he thought he’d drown.

Gordon entered his hospital room. Tight lines of concern bracketed his eyes and mouth. “Doc says you’re A-OK. They’ll release you in few hours.”

“Sweet.”

“We have a lot riding on you being fine,” Gordon reminded him.

We being Gordon and the sponsors backing Nick. The biggest of which was an international company with its headquarters in Bend and named after one of the runs on Mt. Bachelor. The CEO of Thunderbird had supported Nick even after Cody’s death last year and had continued to provide financial support during the weeks when Nick was too grief stricken to train, let alone compete.

Nick owed them big-time.

And he always repaid his debts.

“Ted tell you about the ambulance ride?” His heart thumped remembering the chaos. And Jules. The smell of her hair, the way her bright blue eyes had flared with first shock, then concern and finally awareness before she’d shot away as though she’d been burned.

“He did. He gave the police a good description of the car.” Worry darkened Gordon’s hazel eyes. “I don’t like this.”

“You and me both. Whoever sent that threatening note is going to a lot of trouble to hurt me.”

“That’s why it’s important Ted stay close,” Gordon said. “And that you cooperate and let him do his job keeping you safe.”

Nick had every intention of staying safe and alive.

“Hey, there’s something else I need to tell you,” Gordon said.

“They found the ski?” Nick asked.

“Yes. Given the circumstances, the local police have taken charge of it and sent the ski to the crime lab for inspection.”

Nick’s fingers curled into a fist. There was no doubt in his mind this hadn’t been an accident but another attempt on his life.

“But that’s not what I wanted to talk about,” Gordon said, drawing up a chair to the bedside. “The local lifestyle TV show Northwest Edition is going to do a feature piece on you.”

Nick drew back. “Excuse me?”

Gordon held up his hands like brackets on a marquee. “Local Hero Comes Home for Anniversary of Brother’s Death.” He shrugged and lowered his hands.

A knife twisted in Nick’s gut. “I will not use Cody’s death to bolster my career.”

“Not just your career. Thunderbird wants the exposure. They are fully on board with Ms. Frost’s idea for a feature story on you. This will be good exposure for them.”

Nick snorted. “Great. And if I refuse?”

“You can tell Lucas Davenport.” Gordon took out his cell phone. “You want me to get him on the line?”

As much as it galled him, Nick shook his head.

Gordon put his phone back in his pocket. “Northwest Edition wants to do a human-interest story. Their reporter, Julie, is a sweet gal and easy on the eyes.”

“Jules is great,” Nick said, figuring better the enemy you know.

“Tell me you didn’t break her heart.”

Nick scoffed. “Naw. Nothing like that.”

She’d been out of his league then. Now she was just plain dangerous. A reporter. His mind struggled to wrap around the concept.

Gordon rubbed his hands together. “Excellent. Local girl, local guy. It’s all good.”

Gordon was always working the angles. “I don’t know about this.”

“I worked out a deal with the station manager that we reserve the right to edit the piece or scrap the whole thing if it doesn’t meet with our approval. Does that help?”

A small consolation. One he could live with. “I suppose.”

“Good. She’s waiting to come talk with you,” Gordon said. “I told the nurse to give me ten minutes and then send her in.”

Nick wasn’t surprised to hear she was still at the hospital. She wanted her story. “Oh, by the way, Kitty followed me home to Bend. I saw her in the crowd tonight.”

Katherine “Kitty” Rogers, a ski groupie, had been hounding him for the past year. When she’d first starting hanging around the competitions, making it clear she was there to see him, he’d been flattered. Amused, even, the first two or three times she appeared in the crowd. But then it started to creep him out. Last month she’d gone so far as to find his hotel room in Colorado and wait outside his door. She’d made it clear she was willing to be more than just an adoring fan. There was something slightly off about her that made him wary.

Gordon wrinkled his nose. “She’s your biggest fan.”

“She’s taking it to the extreme.”

“Excuse me.” The nurse stood in the doorway. “There are two women waiting to see you, Mr. Walsh. A Julie Frost and a Kitty Rogers.”

Of course Kitty was here. Nick nearly laughed at the irony. “Send in Jules, not Kitty.”

The nurse nodded and retreated.

“And the hits just keep on coming,” Nick commented dryly.

A few minutes later Julie knocked on the door frame.

“Come on in.” Nick drank in the sight of her. The pink color of her outfit heightened the rosy hue of her cheeks and brightened her crystal-blue eyes. Her sleek blond braid made him wonder if she was as tightly coiled. What would she do if he reached out and undid the band holding the strands together?