Page 69 of The Naughty List Agreement

The truth in her words shone through. Contentment was easier to find but most weren’t satisfied with that. His job brought him joy, but she was right—true, deep joy came out of nowhere.

“Agree. But if you’ll indulge me…”

“Go on.”

“There are many types of joy. A snowflake on your tongue. Sunlight through a window on a chilly day, surprising you and making you laugh. Those are small joys, but joys nonetheless.”

“I suppose.”

“You know, you spend a lot of time smiling but it doesn’t always reach your eyes. When it does, you take my breath away,” he said.

He seemed to have taken hers away with his words. A small smile started at the corner of her mouth and gradually took over her whole face. It made Nick’s heart leap inside his chest.

“See?” he said. “I can barely breathe. You’re killing me!”

The sound of her laugh was like music to his ears.

He parked around the back of Frosty Jack’s and turned off the engine. They both got out and he immediately pulled her into his arms, bringing his mouth down on hers and taking the kiss that he’d wanted to last night under the mistletoe. Today had cemented the decision he’d made about Cora. He couldn’t imagine spending eternity with anyone else. She was the woman he wanted and there was no going back from that. He wished he had a better plan than just to take her to bed, but sometimes the simplest ways of starting were the best.

She wrapped her arms around him and hugged him close. “I like who I am with you.”

His heart stuttered. That hint of vulnerability got him every time. She was the one, he just knew it.

“I do too.”

He led the way to the portal where all the realms entered Frosty Jack’s. Luckily, no one was in there. If he’d run into Pete just now, Nick wasn’t entirely sure what he’d do. He opened the door to his world and walked through it with her by his side.

As they stepped outside, she noticed the sky tonight was clear, like dark velvet filled with stars, much the same as it had been when he’d walked her home from Calvin’s—the very night she’d started to see Nick in a different light.

“I’ve never noticed this path before you showed it to me. Not that I’ve spent a lot of time up this way,” she said. It was odd that there was a workshop and then beyond it an unincorporated area. The buildings resembled the façades that Nick had built for the toy village at the festival.

“We don’t get a lot of outsiders up here. The residents like their privacy so it’s one of those places that unless you know where it is, you won’t find it.”

“Interesting. This is where you grew up?” she asked him as they walked on a stone path past an ice rink. “Do you play hockey there?”

“As often as I can. But this time of year I’m really busy so don’t get to do that much,” he admitted. There was a hint of longing in his voice that she wanted to explore.

“Want to play now?” she asked.

“Can you skate?”

“I grew up in Vermont.”

“That’s not an answer.”

“Yes, I can skate.”

“Say no more.”

He led the way to a shed that had skates of all sizes in it. There were hockey skates and regular ice-skating ones. She found a pair her size and donned them while Nick took his time. She left him to go out on the ice. As soon as her blades hit the ice, she felt transported. It had been years since she’d gone ice-skating but tonight she remembered the escape it had offered her when she’d been a girl. It was the one thing her mom had always had money for.

She’d drop Cora off at the rink on Saturday morning and pick her up late in the afternoon—an entire day of gliding around on the ice, where she felt graceful. She could build up speed and feel the wind whipping around her, making it easier for her to daydream that she was someone else.

Being around Nick reminded her of all that her success hadn’t given her, and it hurt. Coming here tonight wasn’t what she’d expected. Being horny for him had blinded her to the reality of how Nick made her feel.

She hadn’t been lying when she said she liked who she was with him. But that woman was new and not fully formed. A version of herself that she wasn’t sure she was ready to embrace.

At that moment, Nick caught up with her. He also wore regular skates. Catching her hand in his, he held it as they made lazy loops around the rink. “After a long day inside, this feels so good. And I’m so glad I’m here with you.”