Chapter 19
Ella
“I prefer ‘selective about company,’” I tell him, enjoying the way his hand feels against my waist. Strong and steady, just like him.
The music shifts to something with a slightly faster tempo, but we maintain our slow rhythm, neither of us ready to break this unexpected connection.
“So, Christmas Eve is tomorrow,” Jake says, his voice rumbling deep in his chest. “Any special plans with Nora?”
I laugh. “Actually, we’re planning something completely insane. The whole family is going skiing, which would be normal except half of them have never been on skis before.”
“That sounds...”
“Like a disaster waiting to happen?” I finish for him.
“Exactly. Kane can ski, and I’m decent enough, but Kat swears she’s ‘spiritually connected to the mountain’ despite never having set foot on one with skis.
Declan claims he went once in Switzerland, but I suspect he spent more time in the lodge with hot toddies than on any actual slopes. ”
Jake’s mouth twitches. “Should I have the first aid kit ready?”
“Probably an ambulance on standby,” I admit, then add, “You should come.”
My words surprise me as much as they do him. His step falters slightly before he recovers.
“To watch the MacGallan family wipeout spectacular? Tempting, but I have some things to take care of tomorrow.” His expression clouds briefly. “Rain check?”
“Of course,” I say, trying to hide my disappointment.
The song ends, and we reluctantly separate. As we walk back to the table, I notice my siblings watching with varying degrees of subtlety. Kat gives me an enthusiastic thumbs-up, which makes me roll my eyes.
∞∞∞
“Are you absolutely certain this is a good idea?” I ask the next morning, watching Kat try to put on her ski boot backward while Rory studies the trail map upside down.
“It’s the best idea,” Declan insists, looking surprisingly competent in his perfectly coordinated ski outfit. “Family bonding through shared trauma is scientifically proven to strengthen relationships.”
“I don’t think that’s how trauma works,” Kori laughs, helping Kane adjust his goggles.
The ski resort is packed with holiday visitors, all seemingly more skilled than our motley crew. Nora, at least, has taken lessons before and bounces excitedly beside me in her pink ski jacket and unicorn helmet.
“Can we go on the big hill, Mom? Please?” she begs, pointing toward an intermediate slope that looks like Mount Everest to my nervous mom-eyes.
“Let’s start with the bunny hill,” I suggest, eyeing Kat, who has now managed to click into her skis while standing on a perfectly flat surface and yet is somehow sliding backward toward a rack of rental equipment.
“Save me!” she shrieks, arms windmilling as Lana lunges to grab her jacket.
“We haven’t even left the rental area,” Connor observes dryly. “This bodes well.”
After twenty minutes of chaos, including Rory accidentally skiing into the men’s restroom and his excuse, “The door was open, and I couldn’t stop!
”, we finally made it to the bunny slope.
Nora immediately demonstrates her pizza-wedge stop with perfect form, while Wren somehow manages to get her skis crossed and faceplant into a snowbank.
“I’m okay!” comes her muffled voice as Mia helps extract her. “The snow broke my fall. And possibly my dignity.”
Declan, to everyone’s surprise, turns out to be a natural. “I told you I went skiing in Switzerland,” he says smugly, executing a perfect turn.
“Show-off,” Kane mutters, though he’s equally competent, gliding down the gentle slope with Kori beside him.
I hang back with Nora, watching the chaos unfold.
Kat has developed a unique skiing technique that involves a lot of dramatic yelling and falling into snow drifts intentionally whenever she picks up too much speed.
Lana keeps trying to apply video game physics to real life with predictably disastrous results.
“Our family is funny,” Nora giggles, watching Rory attempt to help Connor up after a particularly spectacular fall, only to topple over himself.
“They certainly are,” I agree, warmth spreading through my chest despite the cold. “Want to show them how it’s done?”
We push off together, easily navigating the gentle slope. Nora’s face is pure joy as she zigzags ahead of me, her technique surprisingly good for someone so young. I follow in her tracks, laughing as she calls out encouragement to her aunts and uncles.
“Pizza slice, Uncle Rory! Make your skis like pizza!”
By our third run, everyone has at least mastered the basics of not immediately falling over. Kat has declared herself “Queen of the Mountain” despite spending more time horizontal than vertical, and even Connor has managed a full run without falling.
“I think we’re ready for the next level,” Declan announces, pointing to an intermediate slope nearby.
I look at the steeper incline with skepticism. “I don’t think—”
“We’ve got this!” Kat interrupts, high-fiving Nora. “Right, ski buddy?”
Nora nods enthusiastically. “It’s not even that steep, Mom. Please?”
I glance at Kane, who shrugs. “I’ll stay with her the whole time,” he promises.
Against my better judgment, we head for the lift to the intermediate run.
Getting everyone loaded onto the chairlift proves to be its own adventure.
Mia gets tangled with a safety bar, Wren drops a pole (requiring an awkward retrieval at the top), and Kat somehow manages to exit the lift backward, causing a minor pile-up that has the lift operator shaking his head in disbelief.
“Sorry!” she calls cheerfully. “First-timer enthusiasm!”
The view from the top is breathtaking—snow-covered pines, mountains stretching to the horizon, the valley spread out below. For a moment, we all pause to take it in, a rare moment of MacGallan unity.
Then Rory breaks the spell by accidentally starting to slide toward the edge. “Help! How do I stop on a flat surface?!”
Declan grabs him just in time, and after a quick review of basic safety, we prepare to descend.
“Remember,” I tell Nora, adjusting her helmet, “if it feels too fast, make your pizza wedge bigger. And stay with Uncle Kane.”
She nods solemnly, then grins. “Last one down is a rotten egg!”
With that, she pushes off, followed closely by Kane. Declan goes next, then Kori, each taking the slope with reasonable skill. I hang back with the less confident members of our group.
“I’ve made a terrible mistake,” Lana mutters, looking down the steeper incline. “This is how I die. On a mountain, wearing rented footwear.”
“You’ll be fine,” I assure her. “Just take it slow and remember your training.”
“My ‘training’ consisted of falling down a bunny slope for an hour,” she points out.
“Same principles, steeper hill,” I say with more confidence than I feel. “I’ll go next, then you follow my path.”
I push off, carving gentle turns down the slope. It’s been years since I’ve skied regularly, but muscle memory kicks in, and I find myself enjoying the rush of cold air, the satisfying crunch of snow beneath my skis. About halfway down, I stop on a wide section and turn to watch the others.
What follows can only be described as magnificent chaos.
Kat descends like a pinball, bouncing from one side of the run to the other, somehow staying upright through sheer force of will and creative cursing.
Mia takes a more direct approach, pointing her skis straight down the mountain and screaming the entire way until she crashes spectacularly into a snow fence, emerging with a thumbs-up and snow covering every inch of her.
Lana and Wren attempt to navigate together, holding hands for stability—a strategy that works surprisingly well until they reach a small mogul that sends them in opposite directions.
Wren recovers with an elegant spin that looks intentional (it wasn’t).
At the same time, Lana sits down abruptly and slides the rest of the way onto her bottom, declaring it “the most dignified option available.”
Rory and Connor, determined to maintain some semblance of MacGallan dignity, take a more methodical approach, making careful turns that would be impressive if not for Connor’s ski poles flailing wildly every few feet like an air traffic controller having a seizure.
By the time everyone reaches the bottom—through methods orthodox and otherwise—we’re all breathless with exertion and laughter.
“That,” Declan announces, brushing snow from his immaculate jacket, “was excellent family bonding.”
“I think I have snow in places snow should never be,” Kat complains, but she’s grinning from ear to ear. “Let’s do it again!”
Nora bounces excitedly beside Kane, her cheeks flushed with cold and excitement. “Can we, Mom? One more time?”
I look at my family—disheveled, snow-covered, and ridiculously happy—and feel something tight in my chest loosen. For this moment, at least, there are no shadows from the past, no threats lurking—just joy and laughter on a perfect Christmas Eve.
“One more time,” I agree. “But maybe let’s take a hot chocolate break first.”
As we trudge toward the lodge, skis slung over our shoulders, I find myself walking beside Declan.
“Thank you for this,” I say quietly. “It’s exactly what Nora needed. What we all needed.”
He smiles, a rare unguarded expression. “Merry Christmas, Ella. First of many, I hope.”
“First of many,” I echo, watching Nora skip ahead, already recounting her skiing adventures to anyone who will listen.