24. Josie

24

JOSIE

" R eady to get on the ice?"

I glanced at the pair of skates sitting by my feet, my body already feeling the bruises I was about to sustain from falling on the ice. For the first time in my life, I wished for a little more padding on my butt.

Thankfully, Wyatt provided a wanted distraction as he slid on his own skates. His fingers moved with such efficiency, lacing up his skate, making quick work of tightening the laces from the bottom, all the way to the top before securing them in a knot.

Damn he's good with his hands.

In a matter of minutes, he was all laced up and ready to go. He stood up and glanced over at me and then my skates which remained untouched.

"So, I have a confession," I gave him a sheepish look. "I, uh…I don't really know how to skate."

"You live in a place that basically invented hockey and you don't know how to skate?" His eyes widened as a smile tugged at his lips. I shook my head. It was practically a crime in Toronto to not know how to skate. During the cold winter months, every kid was out on the frozen lakes or the ice rinks, skating. In high school, ice-skating was the most popular kind of date.

"It's okay, you're not entirely hopeless," Wyatt said, his grin breaking free.

"Excuse me. Hopeless?"

"I added ‘not entirely' on there," he said, as if it made it any better. "Don't worry, we should be able to at least get you to a six-year-old level."

"You do know this is a date, right? You're supposed to woo the girl, not make fun of her." I raised an eyebrow at him.

"This is a date?" Wyatt said, his mouth gaping dramatically. "I thought we were just two bros hanging out."

"Did you just ‘bro' me?" Now it was my mouth that fell open.

Wyatt chuckled as he lowered into a squat in front of me. My eyes widened a fraction at the sight. His shoulders looked even broader from this angle. The urge to grab him and pull him to me grew with each passing second. He grabbed my ankle and gently pulled off my shoe, placing it on the ground beside him. My lungs stopped working as he kept my foot on his lap while grabbing my skate. His finger tapped against the inside of my ankle, prompting me to lift my foot up so he could slide it inside the skate.

I was literally frozen to the bench, watching as his fingers laced up my skate with precision. I felt like my brain was malfunctioning—all coherent thoughts were gone. I'd never thought that seeing a man like Wyatt on his knees before me would turn me on so much.

He tapped my other ankle, skate in hand, ready to put on. In a blink of an eye, he had both skates laced up.

"How do those feel?" He asked, peering up at me. I wiggled my toes in the skates, pleased to find they fit perfectly.

"They feel good."

"There," he said, lowering my feet gently to the floor. "We'll have you skating like a pro in no time." The way he tilted his head up to look at me had my stomach erupting in butterflies.

"I'm going to fall on my ass a lot, aren't I?"

"Absolutely," he said. "But I've got you. I'll even promise to try not to laugh."

"Wow, that's so kind of you," I said dryly.

Wyatt laughed aloud, and in one smooth motion, he stood up, bringing his crotch directly in line with my face.

Do not stare, Josie. He is not a piece of meat.

Before I could do something stupid, I quickly stood up, only to lose my balance as I felt myself tilt to the side. A muscled arm wrapped around my waist, keeping me upright.

Balancing on thin metal blades is going to be a lot harder than I thought.

"Don't worry I got you," Wyatt said from above me. "Just remember heel to toe when you walk."

Easier said than done.

With his arm wrapped around my waist, we slowly, and awkwardly on my part, walked towards the gate that led onto the ice.

"Why do you guys jump over the boards instead of going through the gate?" I randomly asked.

"Makes us look cooler."

"Definitely makes you more of a badass."

"Obviously. Although I've fallen once or twice," Wyatt admitted from behind me.

"Seriously?" I glanced at him over my shoulder.

"Oh yeah. If your skate gets stuck on the other side, you just go flying over and eat shit."

"Won't lie to you, that makes me feel a little bit better."

"You like the image of me falling on the ice?" He raised an eyebrow at me.

"If star player Wyatt Boone can eat shit, then it's less embarrassing when I do."

Wyatt chuckled again, sending a shiver along my spine. "Want me to fall a few times to make you feel better?"

"It would help," I joked.

"Come on lil rebel, you're stalling. Let's get you onto the ice."

I stared at the ice spread out before me, my apprehension increasing.

I'm really not looking forward to falling on my ass a hundred times in front of Wyatt.

"Don't worry, I got you, remember?" Wyatt moved around me, stepping onto the ice and turning so he faced me. "You got this."

"You make it look so easy and natural," I grumbled.

He extended his hands out, ready for me to step onto the ice for the first time. I eyed his hands, biting my lip.

"Promise to hold onto me?"

"Promise."

"This is the stupidest sport ever. There I said it. It's stupid and useless and horrible," I huffed after falling on my ass yet again. The cold ice seeped through my jeans, and I'd started to think my butt would be permanently frozen.

Off to the side, Wyatt chuckled. "You almost had it."

"You're such a liar," I said, knowing I was nowhere close. Every time I went to put one foot in front of the other, I wobbled and fell. I did manage to skate a few steps, but that's the most I'd managed. "I don't care. I'm staying right here and I'm not moving." I laid back on the ice, not caring about the cold. Both my ego and butt bruised.

The sound of blades on ice drew closer before Wyatt's face appeared over mine.

"You're just going to lay on the ice for the rest of the day?" he questioned.

"Yep, because someone keeps letting me fall and won't stop laughing at me." I sent him a pointed look.

"You said you didn't want my help."

"Lies." I waved him off, denying that I did, in fact, say that. Initially when I stepped onto the ice and didn't immediately fall, my confidence grew. I let myself think that perhaps it wasn't so hard, after all. So, when Wyatt tried to teach me, I told him to take a few steps back and let me do my thing.

I clearly overestimated my abilities.

"Just help me up, you big loaf." I didn't have to look at him to know he was smirking as I raised my arms and waited. I knew if I tried getting up myself, I'd be back where I started.

Skating around to my feet, Wyatt grabbed my hands and pulled me upwards. My feet scrambled to find purchase on the ice, and I gripped Wyatt's hands so tightly my knuckles turned white.

"Find your balance," he quietly said, letting me hold onto him. Once I finally found my balance I exhaled deeply.

"Wanna try it my way now?" Wyatt asked, his eyebrow raised in amusement.

Forced to realize I couldn't do things my way, my pride had taken a hit. My inner perfectionist was not happy.

Just face it. If I don't want to fall every two seconds, I need to learn from Wyatt.

"Fine," I conceded, shifting my hands to his forearms, once again noting the muscles tensing beneath my fingers. I could tell Wyatt was biting his cheek to stop from laughing at me.

"Let's start from the feet up." He shifted his stance and skated back just a little. "Keep your skates pointed forward. Whatever direction your skates are in is where you will go."

Looking at my feet, I followed his directions, keeping the front of my skates pointed towards him.

"Bend your knees a little. You never want to keep your legs locked."

When I did as he instructed, Wyatt let out a little hum. "Good job."

The compliment may have made me feel like a little kid being told ‘good job' from their teacher, but my heart still soared at it.

"Now just hold onto me," Wyatt said before skating backwards. My grip on his forearms tightened as he slowly pulled me along after him. I looked away from my skates long enough to stare at him with wide eyes.

"I got you," he smiled. The way he said it felt bigger than just this moment. It felt like a promise.

Wyatt slowly skated backwards, pulling me along with him, and to me, it felt like we were flying. The only sound was that of our blades cutting through the ice. I glanced back down at my feet, only for Wyatt to squeeze my elbows.

"Eyes on me." His voice was soft but firm. "Don't look at your feet, trust them to know what to do."

I did as he said as Wyatt moved us around the ice at a snail's pace. We made it a lap around the rink before I started to feel a bit more comfortable.

"There you go," he murmured.

The little encouragement made my stomach flutter.

"Try pushing off the ice a little." He kept us at a slow speed letting his skate's glide.

Taking a steadying breath, I pushed my foot down and back against the ice. It wasn't much of a push but I moved forward an inch or two on my own. I did it again, a little bit harder, moving across the ice better than before. My head snapped up and looked at Wyatt with a wide grin.

"You're doing great."

Feeling empowered, I loosened my death grip on his arms and lifted my foot a centimeter off the ice to try and glide forward. Excitement grew when I didn't wobble or fall on my ass.

"Okay, you ready?" At his words I paused.

"Ready for what?" I felt his hands slowly release my elbows, which only made me re-grip his forearms. "No." I shook my head, knowing what he was about to do.

Like taking training wheels off a bike. I'm not ready.

"Babe, you've got this." He gave me an encouraging smile, prying his forearms from my grip. "Just skate towards me." Wyatt put more distance between us.

He makes it sound so easy.

Despite my nerves, the need to prove myself swelled within me as I eyed the distance between us. It was the same feeling I got when I used to run competitively. The desire to prove to myself that I can do something, even if it's hard.

So, with shaky legs, I slowly pushed off the ice. I braced myself, ready to fall, but surprisingly, my skates glided across the ice. Albeit, not as smoothly as Wyatt, but better than before. Holding my arms out for balance, I ever so slowly pushed myself across the ice. Every time I got close to Wyatt, he skated a bit further away, hovering like a mother hen in case I fell.

"Look at me!" I yelled, unable to help myself.

"Already a pro."

Wyatt stayed by me as I kept on skating, going a little bit faster each time. I was still a bit shaky, and my arms flailed whenever my balance took a wobble. But with each push off the ice, I felt increasingly confident.

Deciding I was ready for more, I made the idiot decision to try a little spin. I knew it was a bad idea as soon as I made the motion to turn. I heard Wyatt call my name as I twisted, my skates hooking together. I knew I was going to fall hard as my arms flung out and the ice rushed up to meet me. As I braced myself, eyes closed, when a large body flew into mine. I felt Wyatt's arms wrap around my middle, holding me roughly, as the two of us slid across the ice.

We came to stop a second later with me cradled in Wyatt's arms, my own around his neck. I opened my eyes to find him staring down at me in concern.

"Are you okay?" His eyes roamed my body the best they could with the position we were in. Wyatt's face centimeters away from mine.

"I'm okay," I answered breathlessly. Glancing down, I noticed Wyatt was on his knees.

Like he ran and slid on his knees to catch me in time.

I wanted to swoon at the action, but I quickly remembered his knee injury.

"Your knee!" I wriggled out of his grasp, falling back onto the ice. I didn't register the bite of the ice as I moved onto my knees, taking my turn to look him over. "Are you okay?"

If I'm the cause of Wyatt re-injuring himself, I will never forgive myself.

"What were you thinking? You could have gotten hurt." My hands fluttered around his knees as if I could help. He seemed okay, but what did I know?

"Me? You were going to fall and hurt yourself," Wyatt shot back. His tone wasn't angry, more like he was taken back that I was worried about him and not myself.

"So? I'm not the one with a hockey career to think about," I scolded. "I'm disposable."

My ex used to tell me that all the time, and in this moment he was right. Out of the two of us, I was the one who could stand to get hurt and not have my life ruined. Not Wyatt.

"Josie." It wasn't my name that made me pause, it was the way he said it. Wyatt shifted on his knees and brought his hand up to my chin holding it firmly, bringing my gaze to his. "You are not disposable." Those gorgeous blue eyes pierced straight into mine. "You will never be disposable. Not to me"

When I tried to look away from his intense stare, he just held my chin tighter.

"I know we haven't known each other long and you don't believe me yet, but you will."

The promise in his voice pierced me through the heart like an arrow. I don't think I'd ever heard a man say something with so much conviction. Like he'd make it his mission to prove me wrong.

At this moment, I wanted nothing more than to kiss him, needing to feel that this thing between us wasn't just in my head. With this hand still holding my chin I leaned forward, my hands resting on the tops of his thighs.

Wyatt remained perfectly still until I was leaning over him, and my lips were inches from his. Then whatever control he had, broke as he caught my lips with his.

I'm not sure I would ever get used to kissing Wyatt. It was like his lips were meant for mine. The way he went from soft to hard and back to soft with each pass. I could feel myself forming an addiction.

I barely felt the cold of the ice as our lips fought each other. His tongue slipped past mine briefly before he pulled back to nibble my lip.

"Do you know how much self-control I've had today, not to kiss you?" he asked against my lips.

"What was stopping you?"

"I was trying to be a gentleman." He brought his thumb up, swiping it across my lip with enough pressure to drag it with the movement. I watched his eyes darkened as they followed his thumb. He was probably smudging my lipstick, but not a single part of me cared. Not when he looked at me like that.

"Don't be." The voice that left me wasn't one I heard before. I sounded…sultry.

"Be careful what you say lil rebel." With his thumb still on my bottom lip he pulled it downwards. "I may be a gentleman right now, but there's only so much control a man has."