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“They were seventy percent off!” she protested. “For a guy who wears track pants or workout shorts most of the time you got some opinions on fashion.” She laughed. Then she looked at the others. Ty shrugged.
“Total roadkill boots, babe. Sorry,” Eli said. Jake nodded in agreement.
“Well I can’t wear my flats in the snow and especially not skiing. I think you have to wear a boot to lock your foot in the thing, right?” she said. “So it doesn’t matter if you think they’re ugly, I still want to ski.”
“We got you,” Eli said. “We thought of this already and you have ski boots and goggles and stuff waiting in the closet.”
“There is no way you did all that. Promise me you didn’t buy me stuff, guys. I am so grateful that you included me on this trip and it’s hardly costing me a penny—I mean I got a scarf and gloves to come here, and some snacks for the plane, but that’s nothing.”
Eli stepped up, “The cabin’s free, and the amenities. We’re only paying for food and the jet fuel which I’m getting at a discount. Even if we were paying for all of this, there’s no question of us expecting you to kick in and pay for anything. We didn’t include you, Jas. Wewantyou here. There wouldn’t be a trip if not for you. Because I think I speak for us all when I say that we wouldn’t have gone on a ski trip together if we didn’t want to take you someplace nice. This is for you, and you’re not an afterthought or a tag along.”
I nodded. “We decided what needed to be done ahead of time and we divided up the tasks. Jake wanted to plan a menu for tomorrow evening so he picked out groceries, Ty got some kind of spa stuff like massage oil and bath bombs and different pampering things.”
“I picked out the flowers and candles and things. Eli got the ski gear and clothes and shoes. So check out the closet whenever you’re ready,” I said.
I couldn’t wait to give her the beautiful lingerie set I’d chosen for her, but that could wait until tomorrow night. For the time being, she looked torn between excitement and embarrassment, her eyes bright but her cheeks flushed like she felt shy.
“We wanted to,” Eli said again. “What kind of vacation would it be if you didn’t have warm enough clothes or waterproof stuff? Or, worse, if we invited you someplace that was going to cost you a fortune to prepare for? One of the things we all agree on is the fact we want to spoil you a little. Can you let us do that?”
“I guess so. I’ve just never felt like that was something I could have, I think. I’m not one of those girls who has a boyfriend picking up the tab at fancy places or surprising them with presents. It feels like I’ve stumbled into someone else’s life. Someone with a clean past, somebody who went to college and has a great metabolism and whose hair will hold a curl instead of going flat. A girl with a charmed life.”
It gutted me to hear her talk about herself that way. She believed deep down that she didn’t deserve any of this because of her background. She didn’t come from money and privilege and had an abusive ex that had done his best to trample her self-esteem.
“Those aren’t marks against you,” I said before I could stop myself. “You deserve good things because you’re human. No matter where you’ve been. None of us has a clean past like you call it. Nobody comes this far with their hands clean. We all have stuff we wish we’d never done or seen or said.”
“Regrets?” Ty said. “Yeah, no question there. But whatever we’ve all done, it brought us here, to this place, together.”
“I’ll sure as hell drink to that, little brother,” Jake said, raising his longneck in salute.
We all did the same, a silence settling over us because we all felt this so deeply. That our achievements or mistakes had led us here, and it was well worth it.
“At the risk of sounding like I’m going to break into Auld Lang Syne any second now,” Eli quipped. “I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else. This is the place, not because of the room service or the view.”
“Or the hot tub,” Ty interrupted.
“Or the hot tub,” Eli conceded. “It’s the company. I’d take a rusty old camper that looks like it should have crime scene tape around it as long as I have this crew with me.”
“Uh, I’ll pass on the crime scene stuff,” Jasmine said, wrinkling her nose.
“You know what I mean though,” he said, “the setting doesn’t matter as much as the people we share it with.”
“Aww, E, that’s so sweet!” I said in a singsong voice. “That sensitivity training we sent you to really did the trick.”
Eli casually flipped me off and then stretched, pushed his chair back.
“I’m going to go check out my ski wardrobe while you guys arm wrestle or have a pissing contest or whatever you do to decide which one is the alpha male today,” Jasmine said with a fond smirk.
I admit that when she came out of the bedroom a few minutes later, she wasn’t dressed the way I’d expected Eli to go when he chose her skiwear. I thought she’d be all in black, some sleek, techie gear that was on the cutting edge of breathable warmth thanks to a NASA polymer or something. A shiny one-piece that looked like it belonged on a scuba diver going to space or maybe a bright pink puffer and sexy leggings. Instead, she wore a luscious cream colored down bomber jacket that fit her perfectly and some flared gray pants, all of it looking as if it were knitted.
“Wool?” I said, eyebrows up.
“And cashmere. All natural fibers,” Eli said proudly.
“You did good, brother,” I said approvingly.
The look on Jasmine’s face was priceless. She beamed, stroked the soft fabric of her jacket, and adjusted her soft cream and grey fair isle beanie, a dimple showing in her cheek. With a slight blush, she gave a twirl to show the outfit to us all. Her delight was so clear that it gave off a warmth all of us could feel.
We exchanged a look of contentment. We’d done it just right, and Eli’s choices had been perfect, luxurious and elegant, warm and special. We shrugged on our own gear. Jake led us to the activities desk while Ty took out a bag and distributed new high-tech sunglasses that reduced the glare and protected us from all kinds of UV rays.
