The temperature dipped a good five degrees, making my leggings and sweater a smart choice. I briefly closed my eyes, soaking in the smell and the sound of my blades beneath me.
The moment I stepped out, it was like everything else faded away. Making it to the Olympics pushed to the back of my mind. Stress about my dad wasn’t a problem. It was just me, my skates, and the ice.
I was so focused on myself, I forgot others were still around until I moved around the corner and almost hit a person in front of me. I twisted at the last moment, shards spraying behind me as I used my toe pick to keep myself from pitching forward. Behind me, a muffled curse sounded.
I winced as I turned since it was entirely my fault for not watching where I was going. I came face-to-face with a chest before my eyes moved upward and met a pair of blue ones. It took a minute for my brain to register who was in front of me.
“Well, well, well, it’s Miss Not Happening.” The smirk on his face made my eyes narrow. “Now, who ran into who this time?”
Of course it was the same guy I ran into twice in the last five days. Mateo. Erin’s words about fate came to mind, but I quickly squashed it.
“It was an accident,” I responded back.
Mateo’s voice was teasing. “I almost think you’re stalking me.”
“Yep, I have your location on my phone,” I deadpanned.
His mouth quirked into a smile. “Kind of creepy since I don’t know your name, but I’ll roll with it.”
I ignored the way his perfect smile, white teeth and all, made my stomach swoop. Why does he have to have a perfect mouth on top of being good-looking?
“What are you doing here?” I questioned, glancing around to see we were the last ones left.
“I’m volunteering to help the kids with hockey. What areyoudoing here?”
I watched as his eyes moved from the bun on the top of my head, down to the skates on my feet. I raised an eyebrow when his eyes met mine again. “Obviously just here for a stroll.”
“Hmm, nice.”
The two of us stared at one another, neither breaking eye contact. His cap was backward, pieces of sandy brown hair sticking out from the sides. He had a few days’ worth of stubble on his face that made him look a bit older, but he was probably my age.
Up close, his blue irises were mesmerizing, like the Mediterranean Sea. I didn’t know eyes could be that color. I knew I was staring, yet I couldn’t tear my eyes away.
“So, you skate.” Mateo’s voice broke through the fog. I blinked slowly as he stared down at me. Amusementsparkled in his eyes, but at least he didn’t say anything about my staring.
“Yeah,” I replied, although I wasn’t entirely sure that was a question. Needing to move, I pivoted and gently pushed off the ice, skating ahead. I immediately heard him following after me.
“Are you ever going to give me your name?” he called out.
“Why do you want to know so bad?” I asked over my shoulder. With two pushes of his skates, he came up to my right side.
“Not sure you’d appreciate it if I called you woman or ma’am.”
I snorted. No woman liked to be called ma’am, least of all someone who was only in her mid-twenties.
“Emmie.”
If the universe was going to throw us together, I guess it was only fair to play along.
“Emmie,” he repeated, as if feeling my name in his mouth. “Nice to officially meet you.”
“You too.”
Mateo easily matched my pace as we skated around the ice. He made no notion that he was going to leave anytime soon. From the corner of my eye, I could see him open and closing his mouth like he was unsure of what to say.
“Football and hockey—sounds like you’ve got quite the busy life,” I said, putting him out of his misery.
“Looking me up, are you?” He sent me a grin that had me rolling my eyes.
