A Slippery Slope by Emily Harvale Page A

and leant on the table instead, grabbing the cloth
back from him and heading towards the kitchen, more annoyed with herself than
with him.
    ‘I
work for you , remember,’ she said.
    ‘You
could have fooled me,’ he mumbled.
    Verity
took a breath and entered the kitchen, relieved to see Etienne leaning against
the worktop farthest away from Lucy.
    ‘Can
I help in here?’ she asked. ‘I think it’s best if someone else pours the wine.’
    ‘I’ll
do that,’ Etienne said, grabbing another two bottles.
    When
he’d gone, Verity turned to Lucy.
    ‘Was
there something going on just now between you and Etienne?’
    ‘No.
He was just ... being silly.’
    Verity
studied Lucy’s face. ‘He seems extremely nice, Lucy and there is no denying
he’s incredibly handsome, but he is nine years older than you, he works as a
ski guide and he lives in a ski resort.’
    ‘I’m
well aware of that, Mum. And your point is ...?’
    ‘Nothing.
Sorry. You’re old enough to make your own decisions and a lot wiser than I am,
in all probability. I just don’t want you to get hurt, that’s all.’
    Lucy
smiled and, removing the ramekins from the oven, placed the first course on a
tray.
    ‘Don’t
worry, I’ll be careful. Besides, who says I’ll be the one getting hurt?’
    She
winked and nodded towards the door, which Verity opened to let her pass into
the dining room.
    Josh
and Etienne were standing by the fireplace. It was smaller than the one in the
sitting room but the heat from the fire had less space to fill. This room
wasn’t vaulted, so even though the floor space was comparable, it was as warm
as toast within about fifteen minutes. Which was just as well; Verity had
forgotten to light the fire until ten minutes before Josh arrived. She wondered
if he’d realised and would mark her down on that score too. Lucy had told her
how important ambience was in a ski chalet and they’d agreed that Lucy would
cook whilst Verity prepared the dining room. She almost failed at that.
    ‘It’s
very cold tonight, isn’t it?’ she said, hoping that would cover her lapse.
    ‘If
you think this is cold, just wait until January,’ Josh replied. ‘The
temperature often drops several degrees then. More of a ‘beach bunny’ are you?’
    ‘A
beach ... bunny?’ Verity could feel herself scowling and tried very hard not
to. Every time Josh opened his admittedly kissable-looking mouth, he either
infuriated her ... or made her think things she definitely shouldn’t be
thinking.
    ‘As
opposed to a ski bunny,’ Josh clarified.
    ‘Oddly
enough, Mr Calder–’
    ‘Josh,’
he interrupted, with that sensuous smile hovering on his lips.
    She
attempted to match it. ‘Oddly enough ... Josh, I have never thought of myself
as either type of ... bunny. I’m an all weather, all conditions, woman. I think
you’ll find that many women are ... nowadays.’
    ‘Let’s
eat,’ Lucy suggested with a definite edge to her voice.
    Verity
was surprised when Lucy and Etienne sat opposite one another. She was even more
surprised when Josh held out a chair for her before taking his. He was clearly
determined to irritate her. She studied the ramekin containing her egg.
    ‘Do
you know much about Meribel?’ Josh asked.
    Glancing
up, she saw he was looking directly at her.
    ‘Um.
No. I’ve never skied in France. Only Vail in Colorado and St Anton in Austria.’
    ‘Really?
Why just those two resorts?’
    Verity
sighed. ‘One of my mum’s husbands lived in Vail and another had a chalet in St
Anton.’
    ‘Past
tense? She’s no longer with either of them? And neither one was your father,
clearly. You didn’t refer to either as ‘Dad’.’
    Trust
him to pick up on that, she thought.
    ‘No.
Mum and Dad divorced when I was very young. He died a few years ago. Mum’s on
her fifth marriage now – or is it her sixth? I lose count.’
    ‘Fifth,’
Lucy said, ‘but she ...’ Her voice trailed off and she took a mouthful of her
food.
    ‘I’m
sorry,’