Snow white and the dutch Olympic snowboarding team ?The last time I was here, our house was definitely on this road,? Georgie insisted stubbornly. ?But you don't know my mom. She would totally move the house somewhere else just to spite me.? Nate looked out the Sun Valley taxi window at the stunning log cabin mansions on Wood River Drive in Ketchum, Idaho, the main town in Sun Valley. Behind them rose the snow-covered mass of Mount Baldy, its robust sides alternating between pristinely groomed ski runs and swatches of dense conifer forest. Squinting, Nate could just make out the antlike trickle of skiers zigzagging down the slopes. His new board was tucked snugly in the back of the minivan in its padded red Burton case, and he couldn't wait to try it out. ?Maybe you could call and ask exactly where it is,? the driver suggested, glancing at Georgie in the rearview mirror. The ride from the airport to her house was only supposed to take about twenty minutes, but they'd been driving around Sun Valley for forty-five. ?Just keep driving,? Georgie commanded as she rested her head heavily against Nate's shoulder. The sleeping pill she'd mooched off the old man sitting next to her on the plane still hadn't worn off, and as usual she wasn't making any sense. Also, she was wearing purple satin Miu Miu sandals and a flimsy black halter top, which was kind of strange, considering the fact that they were going skiing. Still, her smooth, pale arms felt good in Nate's hands, and her thick, dark brown hair was so sleek and luxurious, he didn't mind. It was nice just being together in person instead of on the phone. ?Do you remember how many floors it has?? he asked, trying to be helpful. ?Or if there's like, a stream next to it or something?? ?Not really,? Georgie yawned. ?I remember one time when we were here for Christmas, Nanny and I built a snowman together. I stole one of my mother's Fendi purses for it to carry on its stick arm.?
 Very helpful. The driver was sort of creeping along the road back toward town. He seemed to have given up. ?Wait a minute,? Georgie cried, sitting up. The car jolted to a halt. ?That's it!? She grappled with the door handle and slid the minivan door open, completely unmindful of the fact that she was getting out in the middle of the road on a blind turn. ?Come on!? she called to Nate impatiently. Obviously she expected the driver or the house staff to deal with the luggage. Don't we all? Nate had admired the sprawling timber ranch house the two other times they'd driven by it, wondering who lived there and if they were famous or something, since there were seven matching black Mercedes SUVs parked outside. ?Whose cars are these?? he asked as he followed Georgie down the snow-dusted driveway to the imposing eight-foot-high brushed-steel front doors of the house. Georgie bit her bloodred lower lip with eager anticipation. She didn't even seem to notice that her satin sandals were already completely ruined. ?I guess someone knew we were coming.? The massive doors swung open with barely a nudge. ?Mom doesn't believe in locks,? Georgie explained. ?She likes her friends to feel welcome even if she's not here.? ?She's not here?? Nate had sort of assumed when Georgie first told him about the trip that they'd be hanging out with Georgie's mom?that they'd help her cook dinner and then watch movies together until her mom fell asleep on the sofa and they could sneak upstairs to have sex. ?Nah. She's in the Dominican Republic or Venezuela or somewhere. She always goes south in the winter.? They were inside the lofty foyer of the house now. The floor was made of red clay tiles. Big exposed wooden beams crisscrossed overhead. The foyer opened onto a huge sunken living room with an entire wall made of glass facing the mountains. Off the living room was a wooden deck, where steam from a hot tub rose into the air, barely masking the seven heads of the people sitting in it. ?Ooh, the hot tub's turned on!? Georgie squealed, kicking off her sandals. ?Last one in has to bring the drinks!? Nate let her run on ahead as he gazed up the wide plank staircase to the second floor. Clothes littered the stairs, and along the windowsill on the landing above were the small round skulls of wildcats. He crossed the living room, sunlight pouring through the wall of glass and drenching his face. In front of the great stone fireplace was a grizzly bear rug. We should be fooling around on that rug right now,he thought bitterly, but instead he had to go out and talk to a bunch of strangers in Georgie's mom's hot tub. There were seven of them altogether, which sort of explained the seven cars, although if they were comfortable enough to sit in the hot tub together, then couldn't they just share one SUV? Georgie was already in the tub, wedged between a grinning blond guy and Chuck Bass. And they were all naked. ?Georgina told me she had a special someone,? Chuck said, leering at Nate. His chest was covered with thick, dark hair. ?But she didn't tell me it was the infamous Nathaniel Archibald!? Nate sat down on the wooden bench skirting the railing of the deck. He didn't feel like getting wet or naked, not in front of all these guys. ?And this is the Dutch Olympic snowboarding team!? Georgie said, sweeping her snow-white arm in the direction of the seven blond guys dozing lazily in the hot water. ?Chuck met them on the half-pipe just before the lifts closed.? ?That's Jan, that's Franz, that's Josef, Conrad, Sneezy, Dopey, and Gan! Aren't they too yummy?? Chuck asked, sliding down into the tub until only his nose and eyes were out of the water. Then he popped up again. ?And I'm Snow White!? ?No,I'm Snow White,? Georgie insisted. ?Nice to meet you.? Nate said, barely hiding his annoyance. If Georgie was already naked in the hot tub with the Dutch Olympic snowboarding team, then where did that leave him? A few of them could've been gay, since they were hanging out with Chuck, but they couldn'tall be gay. ?Hey!? Georgie cried, splashing water in Chuck's face. ?Quit pinching my tits!? She smiled sweetly up at Nate. ?Chuck's and my mom's sisters are cousins. Or something like that,? she explained. ?We lost our virginity together in sixth grade.? Nate tucked his hands into his coat pockets. There wasn't much you could say to that, but it made him realize how very little he actually knew about Georgie. She was definitely full of surprises, and most of the time they weren't good ones. All of a sudden, Georgie splashed out of the water and streaked into the house. ?I'm getting us some champagne! And if you're not in when I get back, Nate, I'm going to freaking push you in!? But Nate had no intention of getting in. Instead, he stood up and followed her wet footprints into the kitchen. Georgie was rummaging through cases of champagne in the walk-in pantry. Her white, naked ass caved in at the sides because she was so skinny, but other than that she was perfect. ?I'm going upstairs to unpack.? Nate announced, giving Georgie the opportunity to come with him so he could takehis clothes off, in private. ?Suit yourself,? Georgie replied, scooting by him with a magnum of champagne under each arm. Upstairs Nate discovered his clothes had already been folded and put away in a cedar closet in one of the guest bedrooms. So instead of unpacking, he did a quick sweep of the bathrooms to get rid of all the random bottles of pills and anything else Georgie might try to ingest just for fun. If her mom really wasn't around, it was his responsibility to make sure she didn't drink a bottle of Nyquil and set the house on fire or something. Once he was finished Georgie-proofing the bathrooms, he was definitely going to call Serena and Blair at the lodge. Because if he and Georgie weren't going to have a romantic week together, skiing and having sex, and she was going to be all crazy all the time, then he'd rather have a little company. And who better to help entertain his hyperactively insane, drug-addicted girlfriend than the ?ber-girl he'd always lusted after and his vicious-but-still-beautiful ex-girlfriend? B takes an interest in skiing Once they finally made it to the Sun Valley Lodge, Blair lay on her bed in their room, staring outside at the bare-branched trees and the snow, wondering if she shouldn't have gone to Hawaii after all. At least she could've gotten a tan. ?Knock, knock!? Serena yelled at the door to the room next door. ?Housekeeping!? She squealed excitedly as her long-lost brother opened the door and they embraced. Erik was all sweaty from the sauna, but he was still her big, adorable oaf. Her honey-bear. ?Hold on. I'll go change,? Blair heard him say. ?Blair doesn't care what you're wearing,? Serena replied. ?Come and say hello.? Then Blair heard the sound of bare feet padding across the carpet.  ?Hey.? She raised herself up on her elbows and blinked. Erik was naked except for a white spa towel wrapped around his waist. His blond hair was wet and fell to the nape of his neck. There was a little scar on his chin where he'd fallen on the playground at the age of nine. Other than that, he was flawless. Blair had already fallen for him after reading his diary and sleeping in his shirts. She'd never imagined the effect that seeing him in person would have on her. His huge blue eyes! His sad, sexy mouth! His perfect chest! Even his feet were perfect. All of a sudden, she whirred into motion, sitting up and crossing her legs and ruffling her hair and looking calculatedly bored. ?Hey.? She stretched her arms overhead and arched her back. ?So, have you been skiing yet?? she yawned. Erik grinned. He was used to the effect he had on girls, and it was kind of cute to see his little sister's friend all grown up and sticking her chest out at him. Actually, he hadn't seen Blair since Serena had gone to boarding school and he'd left for college over two years ago. She'd always been pretty, but with her cute pixie haircut, nicely proportioned little body, and the upward tilt of her aristocratic chin, she'd developed into a genuine hottie. ?Snow's awesome right now, and it's been, like, snowing at night and then sixty degrees in the sun during the day, so you can, like, ski in shorts. Some girls are even skiing in bikini tops. And this place is serious about maintenance, too.? Blair nodded in pretend fascination. She'd skied all her life, but she liked to take it nice and easy and never embarrassed herself by wiping out. She'd brought her favorite Eres bikini for the hot tub, but from what Erik told her, she could even wear it on the slopes! Serena had warned her that he was a superfast bump skier, but maybe if she asked super-nicely, he'd consider taking a little break from the bumps. They'd make a perfect couple, her in her bikini and him in his surf shorts, winding their way gracefully down the mountain to the envy of all. ?Do you think you could take me around tomorrow?? she asked. ?I've only skied here once before.? Erik grinned. ?Sure.? Their hotel room was large and old-fashioned, with heavy beige velveteen drapes, oak dressers and nightstands, and a walk-in closet. But it also had all the modern amenities: CD and DVD player, Internet access, and a minibar, which Serena had just discovered. Sitting on the floor in front of the open fridge, she stuffed a complimentary Godiva truffle into her mouth and washed it down with a sip of champagne. Was Blair flirting with Erik? And was Erik actually flirting back? Weird. ?Don't mind me,? she muttered under her breath as she took another swig out of the minibottle of Veuve Clicquot. ?Look, the light is blinking on the phone. We have messages!? She scooted over to the bedside phone and picked up the handset, following the instructions to retrieve their voicemail. ?Hey, it's Nate. Hope you guys made it out okay. Want to meet up tomorrow morning around ten-thirty to ski? Let me know if you're up for it. Um, I don't know what the number here is. It's kind of a crazy place, actually. But call my cell. Okay. See you.? Serena thought Nate sounded breathless?and oddly nervous, too?but maybe that was only because he wasn't getting high anymore and she wasn't used to his normal voice. Serena held on to the phone and glanced at Blair and Erik. He was pointing out the window and explaining something to Blair about the layout of the mountain and which runs the sun hit in the morning and in the afternoon. As if Blair cared. Serena dialed Nate's cell and left a message. ?We're totally up for skiing tomorrow,? she said. ?I'm going to be rusty, though, and we're going to have to stop for hot chocolate and cigarettes every other run, but if you get bored you can always blow us off. Can't wait to meet Georgie. See you at the bottom of River Run at ten-thirty. Bye, Natie.? She hung up, popped another chocolate into her mouth, and then crawled across the floor, making a growling sound before opening her jaws and biting the back of Erik's leg.