worn out by now."
"Nah, I'm fine. And I want to show you something."
By the time they reached the bottom of the slope, she
couldn't believe how greatly he'd improved. He only fell
twice! And even then he recovered himself so quickly, hardly
losing any momentum at all as he pulled himself from the
snow to an upright position on the board and continued.
"That was fantastic, Spence!" she exclaimed. "Did the
instructor sprinkle you with magic dust or something?"
286Melody Carlson
"No, he just gave some good tips, and it all started to sink
in." He shoved his hat to the back of his head and wiped his
brow. His face was flushed from both excitement and the
exercise. "Want to get a soda before we head for home?"
"You go ahead. I want to check on something and then
we can meet at the car." While he headed to the snack bar,
she slipped downstairs and quickly purchased him a season
lift pass as an early Christmas present.
Jed and Maggie tried several times to get together on
Monday, but everything was so busy with the paper and last
minute holiday preparations, plus Jed had his shop and was
trying to fill some rush orders, that between the two of their
schedules it was impossible to schedule anything for more
than a few minutes. Maggie honestly reassured him that she
wasn't the least bit worried, and that when the time was
right, they'd work it out and get together. Town was so
packed with tourists and shoppers that she figured Jed had
better make the most of these eager holiday customers. It
wouldn't be long until this mad rush quieted down some,
and there would be plenty of time to talk' then.
On Tuesday she decided to avoid the additional traffic in
town by staying home and helping Audrey get things ready
for their soon-to-arrive Christmas guests. Besides, she told
herself, she was supposed to be on something of a vacation
right now, which she probably needed far more than she
realized.
The Christmas edition of the Pine Cone came out
Wednesday as planned, and she sat by the fire in her library
carefully examining each page. All in all, it was a paper to
be proud of. Scott's collage had turned out to be charming,
and the stories felt positive and uplifting. Even Greg and
Rick should find no fault with this paper!
Spencer, afraid he might forget all that he learned about
snowboarding, talked her into returning to the ski resort Looking for You All My Life287
again on Thursday. She agreed to go up for the afternoon,
but only if he helped her thoroughly clean the kitchen and
then put fresh sheets on the beds in the guest rooms. He had
this all done long before noon. And after she parked her car
in the ski resort's crowded parking lot, she turned to him and
handed him an envelope containing his surprise Christmas
present.