Love on the Lifts Read Online Free PDF

humbling.”
    â€œHumbling?” Brad asked.
    I loved the deep rumble of his voice. It just sorta went through me and I couldn’t help but think about how heavenly it would be to have him whispering in my ear.
    â€œIt’s incredibly quiet,” Aunt Sue said. “A snow-hushed world. You can almost hear the snowflakes fall.”
    Brad drew his heavy dark brows together. “Snowflakes make noise?”
    â€œShe’s being poetic,” Joe said. “Not literal.”
    Brad shrugged, reached for the pitcher, and poured himself some more root beer. He nudged his shoulder against mine. “Want some?”
    â€œYeah.” I held out my mug, smiled when he smiled at me. We were, like, so totally bonding.
    When he finished pouring, he set the pitcher down, took a sip of his root beer, and focused his intense gaze on me. “What do you do for fun?” he asked.
    And suddenly we weren’t at a table with a large group of people anymore. It was just Brad and me. We’d moved from a wink to a nudge to a discussion, but his interest was going to disappear if I didn’t think of something exciting to share.
    â€œI like to read mysteries.”
    â€œRead.”
    He repeated the word like I’d just told him that I enjoyed stepping in dog poop.
    I nodded, trying not to reveal that I was rattled that we didn’t share an interest in reading and that he might be ranking me pretty high on the boring-ometer scale.
    â€œI also meditate,” I offered.
    â€œWhat? Like yoga?”
    â€œYeah. Focusing on my breathing, the center of my being. I can teach you how.”
    He gave me this really wicked grin that set my heart to racing. “I know how to breathe.” He leaned closer and I could smell whatever cologne he used. It was sharp and tangy. “And I know the center of my being.”
    â€œOf course you do.” Think, Kate, think. Now is the time to be witty and clever.
    Our number was called. Aunt Sue pointed to the guys. “You guys go grab the pizzas and two more pitchers of root beer.”
    As soon as they were far enough away not to notice, I tapped the heel of my hands against my forehead. “I am so lame!”
    Reaching out, Aunt Sue rubbed my shoulder. “Katie, sweetie, relax.”
    â€œI can’t think of anything interesting to say—after y’all went to so much trouble to make sure I was sitting beside him.”
    â€œIt wasn’t any trouble, Kate,” Leah said. “Besides, Sam’s entertaining us.”
    Great. My brother was an entertainer and I was a sleeping pill.
    â€œJust be yourself, Kate,” Aunt Sue said.
    â€œRight. Right.” I could do that.
    The guys returned with the pizzas and root beer. As soon as Brad sat down, I said, “I love pizza.”
    Laughing loudly, he reached for a piece loaded with so much meat that I couldn’t see the cheese. “Me, too.”
    I cheered up considerably. I’d made him laugh, and he was still looking at me as he munched his pizza.
    â€œWhat do you like to do for fun?” I asked.
    He chewed, swallowed. “Drive fast, kiss babes, ski.”
    Okay, I so didn’t want to get into a discussion about him kissing babes, even though I hoped before winter break was over that I would end up being one that he’d kissed. So I went for something safe.
    â€œYou know how to ski?”
    â€œYeah, don’t you?”
    â€œOh, yeah. I just thought maybe you were like Allie and Leah. They’ve never even seen snow. That’s why we were building—well, actually they were building, I was just watching—thesnowman.” I really didn’t want him to see me as a kid, the way Sam did.
    â€œI’ve done some skiing,” he reassured me. “I’m not planning to spend much time on the bunny slope.”
    The bunny slope was for beginners. Pretty much a simple short incline where you learned to keep your balance and bring