Chapter 29 Giselle
GISELLE
I stood beside Thayer as he checked in at the registration table. Steamboat was a gorgeous resort with high peaks and amazing trails—not to mention massive ramps for Slopestyle and Big Air jumps.
“Nice to have you back, bro,” the guy behind the table said.
“Thanks,” Thayer said, looking around at all the people there for the competition this weekend. The place was abuzz with snowboarders, skiers, and fans.
The guy handed Thayer a white bib with the name of the event and a number on it. “I have you down for Big Air.”
“Yep,” Thayer said.
“You’ve got practice today with qualifiers tomorrow. If you make it, the event’s on Sunday.”
“Got it.”
“Hope you kill it, bro.”
“Thanks,” Thayer said before he turned and led me toward the bottom of the mountain, where we could get a good look at the Big Air ramp.
I wondered if his nerves were growing as he stared at the massive ramp, outlined in light blue so the snowboarders could see the ground while flipping through the air.
He hadn’t competed in over a year, and now he was putting himself out there again. This had to be intense.
“Giselle,” a familiar voice called.
I spun to find Shay walking toward us while Kason trailed behind, stopping for photos with fans. “Hey.”
“Hi,” she said to Thayer, though her voice was clipped as if she’d been warned about speaking to him.
“’Sup, Shay,” Thayer said, likely realizing the same thing.
“We’re just checking out the ramp,” I explained as Thayer turned back to look at it.
“Yeah, Kason wanted to do the same thing.”
“Is he taking practice runs today, too?” I asked.
Shay smirked. “What do you think?”
“I think any chance he gets to show off, he will.”
She laughed.
Kason approached, his eyes jumping between Thayer and me before stepping up to the registration table, where he was greeted by more people who were eager to see him. So much for our conversation making things better.
“Sorry,” Shay mumbled.
“Not your fault,” I said. Wanting to get Thayer as far away from Kason’s negative energy as possible, I cut the conversation short. “Well, we’re going to check out our hotel room. See you later.”
Shay nodded while Thayer gave me an appreciative smile and followed me away.
Thayer
Giselle and I stepped into our hotel room, rolling our bags in with us.
“One bed?” she noted.
“It’s all they had,” I lied.
She laughed, plopping down onto the bed. “Of course it was.”
“Careful, G. You on a big bed like that is making me have very dirty thoughts.”
“Well, it’s a good thing we have all weekend.”
I smiled, elation swelling in my chest. Being in Steamboat. Having G there. Having a sponsorship team behind me. Getting ready to compete. I’d forgotten how at home I felt on a mountain. “Thank you.”
Her brows knit together. “For what?”
“I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for you.”
“Bullshit. You’re an amazing snowboarder.”
I laughed as I plopped down beside her. “That’s not what I meant.”
“Then what did you mean?”
“That morning after the X Games. I was only saying I’d go to Switzerland because you were pissing me off.”
“What?”
“Gino had shown up, and I hated seeing the two of you together so—”
“So, you wanted to get as far away from me as possible?” she said, surprise brimming in her eyes.
“No. Yes. Maybe. I just wanted to prove I could do whatever I wanted to do, whenever I wanted to do it. And yes, I realize how childish that sounds right now.”
She laughed. “I kinda like that you were jealous.”
“Jealous? You don’t know the half of it.”
She climbed onto my lap, straddling me and twining her arms around my neck. “Well, I’m yours now, Thayer. So what are you going to do with me?”
I tucked a piece of her hair behind her ear because I just wanted to savor the moment and look at how beautiful she was.
“That’s definitely a loaded question…first, I’m gonna get out there and practice so I don’t embarrass myself in qualifiers.
Next, I’m gonna come back here and shower, preferably with you, and then I can’t wait to go show you off at the Kincaid meet and greet. ”
“Show me off?”
I nodded slowly. “I want everyone to know you’re mine.”
“You’re going to be breaking some snow bunnies’ hearts.”
I smirked. “I’m off the market. They’ll have to find someone else.”
Giselle tried to stifle her smile, but she failed miserably. “That makes me very happy.”
“You on my lap makes me very happy.”
She cocked her head. “Don’t you have somewhere to be?”
“Yep.” I tightened my arms around her and stood up with her in my arms. She threw back her head and laughed. It was the sweetest sound I’d ever heard.
Giselle
Before we stepped through the door of the bar, Thayer slipped his hand into mine.
My eyes cut to his, and he smirked. He was making good on his promise to show me off and break some snow bunnies’ hearts.
I’d paired a green sweater with jeans and boots, while Thayer opted for a light blue hoodie and baggy jeans.
He was always unapologetically himself, and I loved it.
We spotted Jesse sitting beside the Kincaid sign displayed on the wall. As we approached his table, we found him sitting with some of the German snowboarders who Thayer practiced with earlier. They all greeted Thayer with bro-hugs and acknowledged me with smiles and head nods.
“This is Giselle,” Thayer said, reaching for my hand again. “My girlfriend.”
Flutters erupted in my stomach; his declaration was more gratifying than I expected because it was how he saw me. And, hearing it aloud to a group of people made it even more real than it already was.
Thayer spent the next half an hour talking to them about the event and the condition of the ramp, which apparently was pretty icy. I loved how animated he became over snowboarding, since it had been so long since he’d been out there doing the thing he loved for as long as I could remember.
“Hey, where’s McCloud?” one of the guys asked.
Thayer shrugged it off casually, not letting on that he and Kason weren’t currently speaking. “Not sure.”
“He looked good out there,” another said.
“He’s the one to beat,” another added.
“Not if Thayer has anything to say about it,” Jesse announced.
Thayer looked away, clearly embarrassed by Jesse’s words. “Let’s just hope I qualify,” he mumbled.
“Dude, that’s going to happen,” Jesse assured him.
“Do you snowboard?” one of the guys asked me.
“Oh. Not much,” I admitted.
“Giselle’s amazing on a board,” Thayer said, always my biggest fan. I hoped I could offer him the same amount of support when he competed—especially since his mom wasn’t there to cheer him on and her absence definitely left a void.
“Here he is!” one of the guys announced, and all heads turned to Kason, strutting into the bar with no sign of Shay behind him.
“’Sup, boys,” Kason said as he stepped up to the table. His eyes immediately narrowed when he noticed Thayer and me standing there. He quickly averted his gaze and began speaking to the snowboarders at the table.
“You hungry?” Thayer whispered to me.
I shook my head, but given the disappointment in his eyes, I wondered if that was his way of trying to move away from the table and my brother. “Actually, I am.”
His appreciative grin told me I’d been right.
We stayed long enough to be polite, and then we left. It was a quiet ride back to the hotel. I knew Thayer hated the current state of his friendship with Kason—especially because I knew he would’ve liked to have his best friend’s support when he returned to snowboarding on such a big stage.
After brushing my teeth and changing into my pajamas, I climbed into bed as Thayer stripped down to his boxers. I knew if I didn’t say something, I wouldn’t be able to sleep. “Would you tell me if this was too much?”
He looked to me, his brows pulled together. “What?”
“Me coming between you and my brother?”
“G, we both know how your brother can be.” He climbed into bed, pulling me to him so we were face to face. “He’s making this about him when it’s really about us. If he can’t see how happy we are together, then he’s more of an asshole than I thought possible.”
“This should be such an exciting time for you, but now you have to deal with him acting like a baby and ignoring you. It’s gotta suck.”
“It’d definitely be easier if he wasn’t avoiding me, but that’s on him. I’ve got you here, and I’m competing again. Nothing’s going to ruin that for me.”
I cupped his cheeks and stared into his pretty eyes. “I want to be the first face you see when you land your run.”
“The first one?” he asked dubiously. “G, you’re the only one I’m going to see.”
“Wow. Good one.”
I expected him to laugh, but he didn’t. He looked into my eyes with sincerity. “Don’t you realize you’re all I ever see?”
I closed my eyes, unable to believe feelings could be this pure. Light kisses landed on my closed eyelids, and butterflies fluttered in my stomach. His lips were soft and gentle and exactly what I needed.
“Just you, G,” he assured me as he continued dropping soft kisses all over my face. “Always you.”