Higgins must’ve agreed, given the way he stared at Tasha as if she’d invented dog treats.
A short time later, they’d had a few minutes inside to warm up and hot drinks in hand. Higgins happily licked a small cup of whipped cream.
Elias held up his coffee. “A toast. To us making the most of our time together.”
“It’s not how I expected my vacation to go, but…” Tasha raised her hot chocolate. “Cheers.”
He tapped his cup against hers and then drank.
This Christmas had the potential to rival the one when he got a new bike.
Tasha licked whipped cream from the side of her mouth.
Who knew? Elias sipped his coffee. This Christmas might even surpass that one. He sure hoped so.
CHAPTER TEN
The entire week passed in a blur, which was why each morning Tasha carved out time to skate on the lake alone. The overcast sky hinted at snowfall to come. That would make practices more challenging, but she would figure things out the way she had everything else. Elias’s confidence in her must be rubbing off. She’d stopped second-guessing herself.
A little before noon, Tasha glided across the lake, enjoying the feel of the cold air on her face. Listening to the blade carve into the ice was one of her most favorite sounds in the world. The other was Elias’s voice. She’d never realized how attractive a voice could be until she met him.
She dropped into a sit spin before continuing around the patch of ice she’d cleared with a broom. Not Zamboni smooth, but it worked. Like how things with Elias were working.
A romance hadn’t been on her Christmas list. Who was she kidding? A date hadn’t been on her radar screen.
But no regrets.
It wasn’t like they saw each otherthatmuch.
She did a double Salchow.
With their schedules, they had to sneak in times to be together—usually a meal, though she’d watched a Christmas movie with him on Saturday. And she’d loved the aebleskiver almost as much as she enjoyed being with him. When they couldn’t get together, a text or call sufficed.
If she were staying longer…
Nope.
She wouldn’t go there.
Because she wouldn’t stay longer. On December thirty-first, she would leave Berry Lake. And Elias hadn’t minded her having a departure date. He appeared to consider that something positive. She did, too, if she were being realistic.
Tasha made a smaller circle and did a double flip.
Elias was nothing like her last boyfriend. Drew had been more than a guy she dated. He’d also been her skating partner, watching what she ate, telling her how to dress, talking over her in interviews. She’d gone along, wanting to do anything to make him happy, but that hadn’t worked in the end. Male pairs skaters were like unicorns. Some acted like rock stars and got away with it. Of course, they did, given there were more females in need of a partner. In the end, he’d cared more about the Ramson name than she did. She’d been nothing but a wealthy skating partner.
Elias, however, treated her as an equal and with respect. They hadn’t had any other deep conversations like the one over pizza, but this wasn’t serious, so why should they?
Focus on the positives.
She did a spread eagle, one of her favorite elements, and then stopped to catch her breath.
Someone clapped.
Tasha glanced toward the shore to find Elias and Higgins standing there. She skated over to them. “What are you doing here?”
“I spent the morning at the county courthouse, so I swung by the house on the way home. Higgins wanted to come out here for a walk.”
“Higgins, huh?”
