‘Look, I’ll take it from here,’ Alex told her instructor. ‘Why don’t you get going and you can start again tomorrow? I promise to return her in one piece.’
The instructor regarded her inscrutably from behind his dark lenses. He was tall, tanned and had a lithe grace that at any other time she would have had some pleasure in appreciating but it had been absolutely wasted on her today—she had been far too tired to attempt to flirt back.
‘Tomorrow morning,’ he said finally. It didn’t sound like a request. ‘You will be begging to try a black slope by the end of the week.’
‘Never,’ but she muttered it under her breath, just holding up a hand in farewell as he launched himself down, as graceful as a swallow in flight.
‘So, you know another way down?’
Alex shook his head. ‘It’s on your own two skis only. And we need to hurry up. It’s getting late.’
Flora bit her lip. She shouldn’t be such a wuss but staring down that great expanse made her stomach fall away in fear. It was the same reaction she’d had when Alex took her abseiling. She and mountains were not a good mixture. From now on she would stick to flat surfaces only. Like beaches; she was good with beaches.
‘Okay.’ She inhaled but the action didn’t soothe her at all, her stomach still twisting and turning. Did people really do this for fun?
‘I’ll be right next to you,’ he said, his voice low and comforting. ‘I’ll talk you through every turn.’
‘Right.’
She pulled her goggles back down. Alex was right. It was just after four p.m. and the sun was beginning to disappear, the sky a gorgeous deep red. The slopes had been getting quieter so gradually she had barely noticed, but now it was obvious as she looked around that they were almost alone. Ahead of her the last few skiers were taking off, leaving the darkening slopes, ready to enjoy the huge variety of après-ski activities Innsbruck had to offer.
‘It’s a shame I didn’t know you were here earlier.’ Alex adjusted his own goggles. ‘A couple of the hotel lodges are on this shelf. I’d have liked to show them to you.’
‘It is a shame you didn’t because I am never coming back here again.’
But he just laughed. ‘You wait, when you’ve done it twice you’ll wonder what all the fuss was about and be begging me to let you try something harder. Okay, count of three. One...two...three.’
Flora gritted her teeth and pushed off as he said three. The slope had been completely deserted as Alex began his countdown but as he reached the last number a group of snowboarders appeared from the slope above. Impossibly fast, impossibly spread out and impossibly out of control. Flora saw them out of the corner of her eyes and panicked, losing control of her own skis almost immediately as they swarmed by her, one of them catching her pole with his stick and spinning her as he sped by. She shouted out in fear and grappled for her balance, falling heavily, her ankle twisting beneath her.
‘Oi!’ But by the time Alex had caught her and yelled out a warning they were gone, their whoops and yells dissipating on the breeze. ‘Are you okay?’
‘I think so.’ But Flora couldn’t quite stop the little shivers of fear as Alex pulled her up. ‘I thought they were going to run me right over.’
‘I’ll be putting in a complaint as soon as we get back down.’ He retrieved her ski and handed it to her. ‘Here you go, you’re fine. I hate to hurry you, Flora, but it’s getting pretty late. I don’t want to guide you down in the dark. That would send you over the edge.’
‘I know...’ How long would it take? Her instructor had said that it was a ten-minute run but if Alex was going to talk her through it surely that would add on a few crucial minutes. She looked anxiously at the sky; the red was already turning the purple of twilight. Did they have fifteen minutes?
She put the ski down and slid her foot into the binding, wincing as a spasm of pain ran across her ankle. ‘Ow!’
‘What’s wrong?’
‘I must have twisted my ankle as I fell. It’s not too bad. I should be able to walk it off...’
‘But you can’t ski on it.’ His mouth tightened. ‘Those damned idiots.’
‘Can’t we ask for help?’
‘We could. But I hate to ask the rescue guys to come out in the dark for a twisted ankle—especially as we took so long to get started. We’re going to look pretty silly.’
‘But we can’t stay here all night.’ Or did he still think she was going to make it down while they could still see? Flora swallowed. She was not going to cry.
Alex grinned. ‘Panic not. I have a solution. Remember I said the ski lodges were on this shelf? This kind of situation is exactly what they’re for. They should be completely kitted out because I know Camilla is hoping that some guests will try them out. It’s hard to get permission to build anything up here so they’re pretty special. Warm, comfortable and there should be food.’
‘You built them for guests who got stranded on the slopes?’ Now she thought she really might cry. Salvation! If the lodge only had running hot water then she would never ever complain about anything ever again. Her ankle was beginning to throb in earnest now and, standing still, Flora was all too aware of the chill bite of the wind.
‘Really they’re for people who want privacy or to spend time with nature. But this is as valid a reason as any. They’re about half a mile this way. Can you manage?’
Half a mile? Through the snow? But if it was a choice between that and skiing down then Flora guessed it wasn’t much choice at all. She nodded as convincingly as she could. ‘Let’s do it’
By the time they reached the first cabin the sun had disappeared completely and the twilight was moving rapidly from a hazy lilac grey to the thicker velvety purple that heralded night. Luckily both Flora and Alex had phones with torch apps on, which provided some illumination against the encroaching dark.
‘Here we go,’ Alex said with more than a hint of relief as they approached the pine grove. ‘Good to know my memory hasn’t forsaken me.’
The Alpine shelf was much narrower than the wide, buzzing nursery slopes and empty apart from the ski-lift way station. There wasn’t even a gasthaus to serve up beer, hot chocolate and snacks, which meant that once the ski lifts had stopped running the guests would have total privacy.
‘We built them in a pine grove, which means they have the advantage of shade in the much hotter summer months,’ Alex explained as he guided her along the path. ‘There are two in this grove and two even higher up. It makes them easier to service in pairs. But we’ve spaced them apart so guests should get the illusion of being all alone. In a fully catered, all-whims-pandered-to way.’
‘I like the idea of being pandered to,’ Flora said as Alex led her into the trees and down a little path. ‘Oh, it’s like a fairy tale cottage, hidden amongst the trees like that! A kind of sci-fi fairy tale anyway.’
It was a futuristic design, more of a pod than a traditional lodge with a low curving roof, built to blend into the landscape. ‘They’re so well insulated,’ Alex said as Flora stopped still, trying to take it in fully, ‘that they’re warm in winter and cool in summer—although there’s a stove in there to make it cosier.’
‘It’s gorgeous.’
It was, however, a little eerie arriving as darkness fell. Flora felt like a trespasser as they stamped their way through the snow to the door, discreetly situated at the side. ‘It’s as if we are the only two people in the world,’ Flora whispered, not waiting to break the absolute silence