“Hardy har-har.”
We do a couple more laps before I give in and suggest a breather. I’m not sweating—not much, at least—but my toes and calves are cramping from keeping the skates upright and I feel every edge of the insoles.
At the boards, we stop next to a group of kids. Their eyes all widen at their proximity to Cole, no longer giving a rat’s ass about what their instructor is teaching them. I get it. It’s impossible not to be a fan of this man.
One of the bolder kids breaks away from the group and skates up to us. “Hi. You’re Nicholas Berrett.”
Cole bends down so he’s closer to the kid’s height and leans in conspiratorially. “I am. But my friends call me Cole. What’s your name?”
“Andrew Garrett Klein, but my friends call me Andy.”
“It’s nice to meet you, Andy. Are you a Bobcats fan?”
He nods enthusiastically, his blond curls flopping against his forehead. “Thebiggest. I’ve been to six games. I was there when you beat the Tigers during overtime last year.”
“I’m our team’s goalie.” Andy’s attention drifts to me, his head tilting. “Are you his girlfriend? Because his Wikipedia page doesn’t say he has a girlfriend.”
Heat creeps up my neck, but Cole only grins at the innocent question. Rather than answering, he weaves his fingers through mine and pulls me against his side.
The youth hockey coach skates over and shoots me an apologetic smile while squeezing Andy’s shoulders. “He’s a great goalie, but not so great at subtlety.”
Clearly.
I give Andy a small smile, ducking a little deeper into my jacket. “I’m Maya, Cole’s friend. He’s teaching me how to skate.”
Andy’s jaw practically touches the ice. “You do private lessons?” He drops his head back, eyeing his coach. “No offense, Tom, but you’re totally fired if Nic—Cole—can teach me.”
“I’d stick with your current coach, bud,” Cole says with an apologetic chuckle. “Private lessons with Maya take up most of my free time.”
I elbow him in the ribs, which likely hurts me more than him. “Do you want a picture with Cole? I’m sure he’d be happy to take one.”
“Yeah!” Andy shouts. He waves for his teammates to gather around us. “Let’s get?—”
A blurred figure approaches in my periphery, stealing my attention. If I were a more experienced skater, I could’ve braced myself for impact. Instead, when the skater crashes into me, all the air whooshes out of my lungs and I’m tossed backward. My body hits the ice, a chill reverberating through my bones, followed by my head thumping against the slippery surface. Starbursts cloud my vision, and then the world goes black.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
cole
Raw panic surgesthrough me as Maya’s small frame slams into the ice. And when her head hits, memories of my brother’s fatal head injury momentarily paralyze me. My heart beats in my ears, making the cacophony of shouts and laughter surrounding us fade into white noise. I push through the gaggle of kids surrounding me and drop onto my knees next to Maya.Fuck, fuck, fuck.
“Can you hear me?” I rest my hand against her cheek, careful not to move her neck. She’s warm to the touch, a nice juxtaposition to the chill of the ice seeping through my pants. “My?”
A moment later, her dark blue eyes open and slowly blink into focus. Relief slams into me so fast my limbs go weak. A ball of stress still sits heavy on my chest, but seeing her eyes settles the worst of my nerves.
“Hey, gorgeous,” I say softly, trying to keep my panic at bay.
Her face twists in discomfort, her eyes a little unfocused.
I brush a soothing thumb against her cheek. “You got hit pretty hard. That’s got to hurt. You want to try to sit up so we can make sure you’re okay?”
She grimaces but allows me to tug her into a sitting position. When she’s upright, I gently probe the back of her head to ensure it’s not bleeding. She winces when I press on the spot that took the brunt of the fall and will no doubt turn into a goose egg.
“Let the record state,” she says, giving me a strained smile, “that my lack of coordination wasn’t the sole cause of this tumble.”
“I’ll note that,” I reassure her. “Let’s get you off the ice, yeah?”
It takes a controlled effort to not drag her out of here like a caveman. If I wasn’t concerned about jostling her, I’d say fuck it and give in to the urge. But with her best interest in mind, I take her hands and slowly lead her off the ice and onto a nearby bench. Once I’m sure she can sit up without toppling over, I grab our things from where we stashed them in a locker.
