Olivia’s eyes darted over Margot’s face. One corner of her mouth rose. “Thanks, Margot.”
A throat cleared. A man stood outside the elevator, one hand braced against the elevator door, holding it open. He smiled tightly.
“Shit,” Margot muttered. “Sorry.”
She hurried out of the elevator, taking a second to get her bearings once she reached the lobby.
“I think the restaurant’s this way.” Olivia wrapped her fingers around Margot’s elbow, gently tugging her toward the left. Around the corner was a hostess stand, empty, a chalkboard sign proclaiming that visitors could seat themselves. Margot stepped through the door and glanced around looking for—
“Margot!”
At the back of the restaurant, occupying a long table, were her friends. And Luke. Elle stood partway, hovering over her chair, one hand braced against the table, the other waving them over.
Two empty seats remained, both together, Elle to one side, Luke to the other. Making a split-second decision she was likely to regret, Margot slid into the seat beside Luke, leaving the chair beside Elle for Olivia.
“First one to bed and last one awake?” Brendon grinned.
“It, um, took me a while to fall asleep,” Margot said, stealing a quick glance at Olivia from the corner of her eye. “I don’t know. I kept tossing and turning.”
Elle choked on her orange juice.
Margot frowned. “Are you okay?”
“Fine,” Elle croaked, accepting a napkin from Darcy.
Luke leaned his forearms on the edge of the table, peering around Margot. “How about you, Liv? I, uh, knocked on your door this morning.” He smiled at her, adorably lopsided, and Margot’s chest clenched. Liv? Since when did anyone call Olivia Liv, but her? That was Margot’s nickname. Hers, not his. “You must be a heavy sleeper.”
Olivia blushed and nodded quickly. “I am.”
Margot reached for her glass of water at the same time Olivia did, their fingers brushing above the table.
“Sorry.” She slid Olivia’s glass toward her, taking a quick sip from her own before setting it to the right side of her place setting.
How ridiculous was it that she’d had her hands and mouth all over Olivia, had used her fingers to drive Olivia wild, and still the simplest touch made her jolt like she’d stuck her finger in a damn light socket?
Elle cleared her throat. “We all already ordered. Mar, I went ahead and ordered you your usual.” By usual, Margot was willing to bet Elle meant pancakes and bacon, Margot’s go-to no matter where she ate out. Elle flashed Olivia an apologetic smile. “I would’ve ordered something for you, but I had no idea what you wanted. I told our waitress to—oh, here she is.”
Olivia swiped the menu off the table, eyes scanning it quickly. She turned to the waitress, “I’ll have the wild-mushroom-and-pesto omelet.” Olivia smiled and handed over her menu. “And can I get a cup of green tea? Thanks.”
Margot snagged the carafe of coffee from the center of the table and filled her mug.
“You’re not wearing that to the pass, are you?” Brendon asked.
“Wait, me?” Margot lowered her mug and frowned down at her outfit. What was with everyone asking about her choice of clothes? “What’s wrong with what I’m wearing?”
Luke snorted out a laugh that immediately put Margot’s back up. “Those jeans are going to soak through in an instant.”
Margot recoiled, jaw dropping. “What the hell?”
They were at breakfast; that was gauche, even for her.
Brendon sputtered, laughing so hard tears welled in his eyes. “Oh, shit.” He laughed harder. “No. Margot.”
Annie rested her hand on Brendon’s shaking shoulder and smiled. “I think what Luke was trying to say is, denim isn’t water-or wind-resistant. If you wipe out, you’re going to freeze up on the mountain.”
“Cotton kills.” Luke nodded as if that was supposed to make sense to her.
Margot glanced around the table. Everyone, save for her, was wearing some version of what Olivia had on—insulated ski pants and plenty of layers. Margot frowned, her stomach beginning a slow descent toward her knees.
“I mean, we’re not all skiing, right? There’s a lodge at the summit where we can sip spiked cider and shoot the shit around a fire, yeah?”
Annie shrugged. “I think so? I honestly don’t know. I haven’t been skiing since I was in Courchevel with my cousins, so I’ve been really looking forward to hitting the slopes.”