5. Not That Kind of Siblings

5

Not That Kind of Siblings

Zane

After giving Ivy her boots back, I head home, stopping by the hut to put the equipment away. A faint smile tugs at my lips as I’m closing the door. Her husband must have his hands full with her. I haven’t been this tired in ages, and I have twenty Siberian huskies keeping me busy. Teaching is exhausting.

Once I’m home, I walk by the kennel to see my team. I count twelve of them, so Seth must still be out on a sled ride. After ensuring they have everything they need, I bend down for a few cuddle sessions—Buffy, Bagel, and Bear stealing most of the hugs, as always. Once I’ve had my dose of puppy love, I stride out of the barn and walk up to my house.

“Hey,” Daisy says, sauntering toward me. Her dark-red hair is peeking out from under her white beanie. “How was your lesson?”

I let out a grunt. “I’m not sure how long I’ll survive, sis.”

She laughs hard, tilting her head back. “You’ll be fine. You’re outdoors, in your element. Just make sure they don’t die on your watch and you’re good.”

I growl. “Anyway, Darwin is having us over for dinner.”

Great. He probably wants to grill me about today’s lesson. “Has Seth been gone long?”

She checks her watch. “About an hour.”

I nod. “Any more tours today?”

She squints at me. “Look at you, taking interest in your business again.”

“Of course I’m interested in my business. It’s mine , Daisy.” Bruce was kind enough to teach me everything he knew, and after his death, Belinda handed me the reins. This business is my greatest pride. And the only thing keeping me sane.

“Doesn’t seem like it. Seth told me you haven’t led a tour in months. He says you only go out alone or with Aaron. ”

“I hired him to do the trips.” Why is everyone getting so worked up about this? Aren’t I allowed to hire help?

“He also says you don’t even welcome the tourists or handle any of the front-office stuff anymore. And not just because I’m here to help during my winter break.”

“Seth has a big mouth that he should probably keep shut so he can focus on his job.” If he wants to keep it, that is. I like the kid well enough, but he still has a thing or two to learn. Like not talking about me behind my back to my siblings.

“Even so,” she continues. “I’ve been here five days, Zane. I have eyes. I’ve been working right alongside him, remember?”

I scoff, crossing my arms. “ You asked to work. Remember?” It’s not my fault she’s a workaholic and needs to keep busy during her vacation. I didn’t ask her to.

“Is this because of Sofia leaving?”

My body goes rigid at the sound of her name. I look at the ground, avoiding Daisy’s gaze. “Don’t talk to me about her.”

“Well, you have to talk to someone. You’ve been so different.” Worry flashes across her face.

“People change, Daisy,” I grumble, stalking away. “Get used to it. ”

“But—”

I swing back around to face her. “Don’t try to ease your guilt for leaving us and only coming back once a year by trying to ‘fix’ me or make me ‘talk about my feelings.’ The only thing that’ll accomplish is pissing me off. We’re not the kind of siblings who spill our hearts to each other.”

“Exactly!” she yells. “I’m your sister. You can talk to me. And you know what? I come back as often as I can. It’s not like you can’t visit me either.”

I shoot her a glare. “Fine. You really want to talk about our love lives?” I ask, crossing my arms. “Why don’t you start by telling me why Todd isn’t here.”

With a grunt of frustration, she lets out a heavy sigh and stomps back into the house.

Yeah. That’s what I thought.

Daisy and I both give each other some space and simmer down separately before dinnertime, and we agree not to bring up touchy subjects again. With the air cleared, she’s back to being my cheery little sister, and we walk down to my brother’s house for dinner. Aaron comes running as soon as we pass the threshold, and I’m pleased to know I still get the first—and longest—hug. It means a lot to me. Besides, Daisy only comes once a year. It wouldn’t be fair if she stole his attention.

Darwin made baked chicken with his signature four-cheese macaroni—my favorite. He’s far from being a great cook, but as the eldest of a family with no parental supervision, he was forced to develop some cooking skills as we were growing up.

“So, how did it go today? You had the honeymooners, right?” Darwin asks, helping himself to a scoop of chopped salad.

“Actually, it was only the wife. And it went all right, I guess. I took her on the bunny hill. She won’t be skiing black diamonds anytime soon, but she’s not a lost cause either.” I voluntarily skip the part where she fell and got hit in the head by a ski perch. I think it’s better if Darwin doesn’t hear about that.

My brother’s eyes widen like two saucepans. “You’ve taken her on a slope already?”

“Well, it is a ski lesson. And I said the bunny hill.”

Daisy chuckles, and I pin her with a death stare.

Darwin shakes his head like I’m the most depraved human being on the planet. “You don’t take newbies on the slope for their first lesson. Not even the bunny hill. You let them get acquainted with the gear, teach them the safety rules, and show them the positions. Then you take them on the slope.”

With a groan, I help myself to more mac and cheese.

“Don’t you remember your first ski lessons?” he presses.

“Nope.” At this point, I feel like I was born with skis attached to my feet.

“Relax, Darwin,” Daisy says softly. “I’m sure he did great.”

Her way of trying to smooth out even more the tension between us, I’m sure.

“You didn’t give her poles, I hope?” he continues.

“Of course not. I’m not a total moron.”

“Glad we ruled that out,” he says, rolling his eyes before he lowers his voice. “Look, I’m grateful for your help, I am.”

I guess the daggers I was throwing at him from my blazing eyes finally landed.

“Just take it easy, okay? The last thing I need is to be hit with a lawsuit because someone got hurt.”

I clamp my mouth shut, focusing on my food. I guess it was a good thing I didn’t say anything about the ski lift incident.