Frank looked at his watch just as the scent of freshly brewed coffee floated out onto the porch. "Yeah, I think it’s safe now," he smiled. Standing, he extended a hand to Callie, wrapping his arm around her as they went into the cabin.

After spending the night at the lodge, they had returned to the cabin early in the morning, only to find it unnervingly quiet, indicating Joe and Vanessa weren’t up yet. Frank had then suggested they take an early morning hike in the event the younger couple ‘weren’t quite done celebrating yet’.

"Hey, it’s about time you guys got here!" Joe grinned, as Frank and Callie shook off their coats. He was seated at the table sipping a cup of coffee, having just filled a plate from the assortment of breakfast goodies he and Vanessa had cooked up.

Studying his younger brother, Frank thought Joe looked so happy he just might explode. In fact, he could recall only one other time when he’d seen Joe quite so ecstatic – the day he and Vanessa had announced their engagement. Shifting his gaze to Vanessa who was at the counter pouring herself some coffee, he finally understood the term ‘glowing with happiness’.

"We were here earlier," Frank informed him. "You weren’t up yet so we left."

"Good thinking," Joe winked at him.

"TMI, little brother," Frank warned, feeling his cheeks flush slightly as he took a seat next to Joe. "So are you ready to get your butt kicked on the slopes today?" he continued, changing the subject before Joe could elaborate any further.

"HA!" Joe scoffed. "You’re an old married man; you’ll never be able to keep up with a young stud like me."

"Oh, great, he’s in rare form today," Frank rolled his eyes at Vanessa and Callie.

"But he’s right…at least about the stud part," Vanessa whispered in Frank’s ear as she walked by, unable to resist.

"Van!!" Frank scolded her, blushing furiously. "That is way more information than I need to know about my brother!"

"Sorry," Vanessa giggled, as she sat down at the table next to Joe and gave him a lingering kiss, before turning back to Frank. "I couldn’t pass up an opportunity like that."

"Okay, you both got your digs in. Can we change the subject now?" Frank pretended to be miffed, silently thankful to see Joe and Vanessa finally returning to the unbridled playful teasing that had been sorely missed for the past year.

Frank’s request was accommodated while they ate and less than an hour later the foursome were at the lodge. Callie waited with Frank by the ski rental office while Joe and Vanessa had a rather long, drawn out goodbye.

"You’d think they weren’t going to see each other for months," Frank joked, watching them kiss and then separate, only to return to each other’s arms for another kiss or two…or three.

"I guess they’re still celebrating," Callie mused, snuggling closer to Frank.

"I don’t think that celebration will ever end," Frank remarked dryly. "Finally!" he said, exasperated as Joe and Vanessa headed their way.

"Ready?" Joe asked his brother.

"Am I ready?" Frank repeated, incredulous. "Unbelievable," he muttered, rolling his eyes.

Giving Callie a quick peck on the cheek, Frank grabbed Joe by the collar and pulled him away just as he was leaning in to kiss Vanessa once more. "Let’s go, Romeo. The helicopter awaits."

After picking up their skis from the rental office, the two brothers walked outside to the waiting area where four other people were waiting. Moments later, a shuttle pulled to a stop and they all piled on with Frank and Joe taking seats at the very back. As Joe sat staring out the window at the passing scenery, Frank sat staring at Joe. Slowly, Joe turned and looked at his older brother.

"You’re staring," Joe accused.

"I know," Frank confirmed without elaboration.

"Why?"

"You look…different," Frank replied.

"More devastatingly handsome than usual?" Joe quipped.

"Better watch out, little brother," Frank warned with a chuckle. "If your head swells too much you won’t be able to get through the door and you’ll be stuck on the shuttle all day."

As Joe shrugged good naturedly and returned his attention to the view out the window, Frank frowned, searching for the word that eluded him.

‘Happy?’ He thought studying Joe, though not as blatantly as he had been. ‘Of course he’s happy!’ Frank chided himself. ‘Content? Yeah he’s content, but that’s not it either…’

"At peace," Frank murmured softly. It suddenly struck him that Joe – and Vanessa, too – had been wearing a cloak of sadness for so long now, that it had become a part of them. Now however, the sadness was gone, replaced by peace, happiness and contentment.

"You say something?" Joe asked absently, straining to gaze up at the mountain peaks as they passed by.

"No, nothing," Frank replied. He shook off the sadness he now felt at the realization that Joe and Vanessa had been in living in a state of limbo for the past year, not entirely certain they should plan a future together.

‘That’s all in the past,’ he smiled as the shuttle pulled into a parking lot and stopped in front of a building bearing the name Extreme Adventures. A large helipad was visible in the far corner of the parking lot, with a pilot climbing into the helicopter that was parked there.

Frank, Joe and the four others were ushered into the building and then into a small conference room. There a tall young man, in his late twenties with dark hair and eyes stood smiling while they all found seats.

"Good morning," he greeted them, "and welcome to Extreme Adventures! My name is Evan and my two buddies back there," he paused, pointing to two young men leaning against the wall at the back of the room, "are Troy and Gregg."

Troy looked to be about Joe’s age with white-blond hair and sparkling green eyes. Gregg was several years older, with hazel eyes and brown hair with blonde streaks. Both nodded and waved at the small group.

"We’ll be your guides today; one guide for every two skiers," Evan smiled again at the pleased murmur from the group.

Joe elbowed his brother, excitedly. "A two-to-one skier to guide ratio? Awesome!"

"Let’s get all the rules, regulations and safety stuff out of the way first, okay? All of our guides are certified by the International Federation of Mountain Guides and belong to the International Avalanche Association. The IAA uses a data-sharing system that helps us in making accurate assessments of snow stability, as well as educating us in avalanche science and rescue techniques.

"Our helicopter pilots follow a rigorous schedule of safety inspections and maintenance by their own engineers at our site. They have extensive mountain flying experience, have taken part in mountain training programs, and have superb local knowledge," Evan continued.

"Pilots and/or guides report their location to the base station every half hour. The guides carry rescue, first aid, and backcountry survival equipment in their packs. In addition, rescue equipment, survival supplies and additional first aid supplies are carried in the helicopter. The base station is equipped with additional back-up supplies for field rescues as well as incidents that arise at or near the lodge. There are also completely equipped rescue caches in several different areas in the Mountains.

"In the event of an emergency, your guides and pilots are trained in every possible scenario. The helicopter is used for transportation, perhaps for direct transfer to the hospital, or to a waiting ground transfer vehicle. So you can see, the pilots and guides work together to bring you the best and safest skiing experience possible," Evan stopped only for a moment, flashing a dazzling white smile.

"Let’s try and avoid that kind of trip in the helicopter, huh?" Joe whispered to Frank.

"I think you need to concentrate on that more than I do," Frank warned, referring to Joe’s penchant for impromptu risk-taking.

"Now onto the fun stuff!" Evan enthused. "We have incredible snow quality thanks to the dry, Northern powder that falls in our area. As for the slopes themselves, you have your choice of wide-open alpine ridges and vast bowls surrounded by jagged peaks covered with sparkling deep champagne powder. These open runs average between 2100 and 3300 vertical feet. But for the more adventurous among you, nothing compares to tree skiing!"

Frank stole a glance at Joe and could already see his eyes lighting up at the thought. ‘Great, just great. He’s gonna want me to go with him….I wonder if my life insurance policy is up to date…’

"We have some deep valleys with naturally well spaced, mature trees and an abundance of snow that never fails to exceed the expectations of even the most demanding skiers."

"That would be us, bro!" Joe nudged Frank once more, practically bursting at the seams with excitement.

"Our most impressive tree runs are steep-pitched at over 3700 feet. In percentages our terrain is 40% gentle, 40% steep and 20% very steep," Evan informed the group.

"Very steep!" Joe leaned over to his brother, thumping him on the arm. "That’s the one we want!"

‘I would have been perfectly happy skiing the black diamonds, but noooooo,’ Frank slumped down in his seat, throwing a mild glare in Joe’s general direction. ‘The adrenaline junkie here just has to find out what it’s like to fly down thirty seven hundred vertical feet, dodging trees all the way…and taking me with him!’

"Now we are expecting a snow storm this afternoon, but this one shouldn’t arrive until we’re done so it shouldn’t disrupt our day. Even so, with our tree line at around 5200 feet and some of our pick ups at 2400 feet, our guides can usually still find skiing possibilities during the most challenging conditions in these sheltered areas."

Evan looked over the group as his smile grew. "So...are we ready?"