Walking into the little community arena, I can feel how excited Jackson is about this part of our date. When I saw the sign and asked if we were skating, the look on his face was pure adorableness. He nodded his head, biting the side of his lip in an attempt to keep his grin in check. I could tell he was a little nervous about what I’d think of this idea. But I’m pretty sure bouncing in my seat and clapping was enough of a hint that I was excited too.
“Have you ever ice-skated before?”
I scoff. “Uh, yeah, in like middle school. I fancied myself as decent back then. But I also thought I was a superstar rollerblader. I tried that again in college and wiped out so bad that I needed to call Meghan for a ride home.”
“Ouch. Any lasting scars?”
“Just to my ego. I was scraped up, but not so bad I couldn’t have made it back if I tried. The real problem was that when I fell, I skidded a little on my side and tore my pants right down that outside seam. It was still connected at the top and bottom, but if I got any momentum the wind would have opened it up like a sail. And I didn’t really feel like sailing around campus with my pink undies on display.”
Jackson chuckles as he opens the front door for me. “I promise to keep your panties safe.”
Snorting, I walk past him and mutter to myself, “I doubt that.”
Once inside, Jackson takes a black knit cap out of his jacket pocket and pulls it on over his head. Ugh, how does that make him even sexier? The leather jacket, and the handsome face, and the scruffy beard, and the hair sticking out of his hat… I can’t even handle it.
“I’m trying to be incognito,” he says in way of explaining the hat to me.
I’m not looking at him like this because I’m questioning the hat. I’m looking at him like this because I think my underwear just disintegrated.
“I’m not sure it’s working,” I tell him truthfully. But when he reaches for his hat, assumedly to pull it off, I lunge for him and grab a hold of his arm. “Don’t you dare!”
He keeps his arm up, hand still halfway to his head, as I cling to it. “I thought you said it wasn’t working.”
“Yeah, at making you incognito. It doesn’t exactly cover your face. But it does somehow make you even sexier.”
He smirks. “You think I’m sexy?”
“Oh, shut it. Of course I do. Everyone does. But that’s beside the point. Leave the hat on. You look like a mysterious man of danger, not the famously nice hockey player.”
“ ‘Famously nice?’ I don’t think that’s a thing.”
“If it’s not, it should be.” Exasperated at being questioned, I give Jackson a look. “So are you going to take me skating today? Or…”
“Yes, Kitten.” He flicks my pompom. “Now quit distracting me.”
Rolling my eyes, I follow him to the rental counter. Jackson brought his own skates but insists on paying for mine. The kid behind the counter looks so bored I think he might be one long blink from falling asleep. He pays zero attention to us, just hands over the skates and takes the cash. Even if he’s a hockey fan, he didn’t look at our faces long enough to notice Jackson.
Taking a seat on a bench in the corner of the room, we swap our shoes for skates. I catch myself watching Jackson as he laces his up. His hands dance over the ties, pulling them tight, sliding them through his fingers.
Jackson clears his throat. “You need some help with those?”
“Huh?” Damn it, I was ogling again. “No. Nope. Fairly certain I learned how to tie my shoes a while ago.” I hurry up and finish with my skates.
It’s not until we are standing at the threshold to the ice that my nerves hit me. Jackson is already holding my hand, but now I grip his back even tighter.
“Promise you won’t laugh too hard when I fall?”
“Kitten, I’m not going to let you fall.”
Giving him side-eye, I say, “There’s no way you can promise that.”
Jackson steps so our fronts are nearly touching. “I can promise that. I’ll be right next to you, holding your hand. And if you’re feeling brave enough to go out on your own, I won’t be far away. If you start to fall, I’ll get to you in time to catch you.” He leans in closer to whisper. “I don’t know if you know this about me, but I’m kind of quick on my skates.” He gives me the lightest kiss on the cheek before pulling back. “Besides, I thought kittens were afraid of water, not ice.”
Laughing, I give his arm a friendly shove. “Such a jokester. All right, all right. Let’s do this.”
