Downhill From Here (#1)

3. The Lilo Whisperer

Nathan's POV

October 17th

3:20 pm

"How could you be so stupid?"

Maybe I was.

I rolled my eyes and raked a hand through my hair, gripping at my scalp.

I knew she would think this was a bad idea. She thought everything was a bad idea.

I moved out of the living room where Lilo was sitting and coloring on the couch. Walking into her bedroom, I put my phone call on speaker.

"Piper, you know how important this is," I emphasized.  "I'm running out of options here and I'm willing to try anything."

I could already imagine her facial expression in my mind. She was stubborn but so was I.

"What about your season Nathan?" She sounded bewildered. I understood why. I hadn't missed a Winter X-Games season since I started riding professionally.

But some things were more important now. I had a child to think about.

"That's not something I'm focused on for this year," I said, my voice deflating. I always knew snowboarding would come to an end at some point. I was turning 27 in a few months so retirement was around the corner.

I looked around the room. Lilo's bed was made with flower bedsheets and blue pillows. I had a white dresser placed against the wall with pictures of her and my mom and Piper. There was a big pink chest at the foot of her bed filled with all of her toys sitting on top of the light brown carpet.

My mom said that her room was pretty void of character and personality. But to be honest, I didn't know much about what Lilo liked. Everything I knew about her I learned from my mom or from watching her very closely. And it was difficult.

I'd already missed so much of her life, that I couldn't spend even more time away from her. She was mine and aside from my family, I was all she had.

Piper sighed and I looked out of the bedroom window. The weather was slowly getting colder and it was getting chilly as fall started coming in. I had to call my mom about sending Lilo's winter clothes and jackets over.

"I don't know," She started again. "We don't know this girl and I don't like her using you like this."

My brows furrowed. "We ran a background check on her and she's about as boring as they come. And I'm the one who made her choose something else when she didn't want the money."

It made no sense to me why she didn't. I was willing to go above $20,000 dollars. And considering she never finished grad school and was working at the sporting goods section of the resort, I figured the money offer would've sounded enticing.

"Just...be careful," She said, losing the frustration in her tone. "I don't want anyone else taking advantage of you."

"I appreciate that, but I doubt it'll be anything serious," I said, referencing to snowboarding. "She's 24 and I've never heard of her in the circuit. I don't think she'll even make it to the end of the season."

It sounded harsh but it would probably be true. If you were good enough at snowboarding, someone would want to sponsor you by now or you would've paid to make your way on the list.

I figured I'd pay for her practice time, a personal trainer, and whatever gear she needed. It made me feel better paying for this favor because I needed something from her. And it's not like it was much money to me anyways. Most of these things I got for free because of sponsorships and brands I worked with.