I hold my hands out for her to take.
She lifts her shoulder as if to say that I make a good point and then places her mittened hands in mine. I pull her gently, skating backward as she glides forward. We move together, finding a rhythm, breath clouding in the cold air between us.
We skate like that for a while until we reach the other side of the pond.
“When I was a kid, I’d imagine those icy trails led to Narnia. Then, as a teenager, I used to long for someone to skate out here with.” Her eyes brighten. I’m not sure if it’s because she has an idea for a scene in her book or if she’s living out that little daydream.
“Like this?” I pull her closer, our bodies touching as we glide in slow circles.
“Yeah. Like this,” she whispers.
I’m not sure who moves first, but suddenly we’re standing still in the middle of the pond, her face tilted up to mine.
Time slows down in this secret snow globe place.
Her long lashes flutter and her lips part.
My pulse pounds as I leandown, brushing my mouth against hers. The kiss is soft and tentative, answering my question about the mistletoe.
My skin blazes at her touch as she slides her palms up the nape of my neck.
She rises onto her skates’ toe picks, deepening the kiss. Her hands shift to my shoulders, and I wrap my arms around her waist, tugging her against me.
The world around us fades away, leaving just the two of us in our own perfect moment on the pond.
Her lips are soft and warm against mine, a stark contrast to the winter chill that surrounds us. I can taste the hint of melted chocolate, sweet and comforting.
Through our bulky winter coats, her heartbeat quickens to match my own. My pulse outpaces my thoughts as our hands intertwine, loosening when I gently grip her jaw as the kiss deepens once more.
Her palms press my back, keeping me in place. Like she doesn’t want this moment to end.
Me neither.
And it doesn’t, for what feels like a long time.
When we part, her cheeks flush pink, whether from the cold or the kiss, I’m not sure, but she’s never looked more beautiful.
“Wow,” I whisper against her lips, my voice husky.
She smiles shyly, her eyes meeting mine with a new warmth that makes my chest flare. I brush a strand of hair that fell out of her hat from her face, marveling at how such a simple gesture now feels so intimate.
We sway slightly on our skates, finding our balance together as we hold each other close, neither of us quite ready to let this moment end. The ice beneath us creaks softly, a gentle reminder of where we are, but it feels like we’re floating as our mouths meetagain.
When we finally pull apart, snowflakes have begun to drift down around us. One lands on her eyelashes, and I press my lips there, wanting her to know that our kissing doesn’t need to be a one-time thing. I don’t want it to be.
“I wasn’t expecting this,” she says softly.
“Neither was I,” I admit.
We skate a while longer, hand in hand, saying nothing but communicating everything by not letting go.
Twilight casts long shadows across the pond, and I realize something that terrifies and exhilarates me. I’m falling for Bree. Forget the arrangement, the bet, and the thirty days.
Just Bree.
And I have no idea what to do about it, especially if she doesn’t quite feel the same way. After all, she entered into the mail-order bride arrangement for research purposes. Though our kiss felt very much like the real thing.
CHAPTER 16
