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Before he could suggest she wait for him to hold her hand again, that one leg shot forward, the other flew sideways, and arms flailing, she dropped onto the ice like a landed trout. Panic coursed through his veins. Maybe this wasn’t his best idea?
“Easy, huh?” Due to years of being tackled by older brothers in flag football—where tackling wasn’t allowed—she managed to land, if not gracefully, at least without breaking a bone.
“Are you okay?” The sheer panic in his voice almost had her bursting with laughter.
Only the thick blanket of embarrassment kept her teeth gritted instead. “I’m fine.” But smart enough to know if she moved at all she’d only take another face plant. “I could use some help up, though.”
His hands had already gripped her arms and now he yanked her up with the same ease she might have lifted a feather. “I really am sorry. It will be better if you let me hold your hand.”
“You want me to do this again?” Even she could hear the horror in her own voice.
“Well,” he had the good graces to suppress a smile, “maybe not exactly that.”
She couldn’t help it. After years of being the younger sister, she did what came naturally and waved her arm, smacking him hard across the chest. “I’m not even going to apologize for that.”
“Sorry. I’m the one who should be apologizing. Can I please try again?” He extended his hand. “Allow me to help. It will only take a few minutes to get the hang of it.”
A small harrumph was the best she could manage. But she was a Baron, she could do this. That or her brothers would never let her hear the end of it. Hanging on to his hand with the same grip she might have used to hold onto the ledge of a building ten stories in the air, she dared follow him onto the ice.
For a fraction of a second, one foot threatened to wobble out from under her as her torso made a frantic effort to keep herself balanced, when she felt his weight glide around her. Before she knew what had happened, he stood on the opposite side. The hand holding her now rested on her back, while his other hand tightly gripped hers, allowing him to hold her straight and upright. Even more surprising, they were very slowly gliding forward.
“See, not so hard,” he spoke softly.
Not completely convinced she wasn’t going to fall, they’d made it halfway around the large rink before she felt herself relax just a little.
“Not so bad, is it?” The smooth gentleness, that a man might use with his frightened child, surprised her.
“I’ll admit this is better than falling.”
Though she didn’t think her reply had been very positive, it brought a wide smile to his face nonetheless.Men. Would she ever understand them?
They’d made it completely around the rink twice when in that same gentle voice, he asked, “What do you say I move to your other side and we go around with me only holding your hands?” Panic must have risen in her eyes again because he quickly rambled, “Or we can keep doing this?”
If there was ever a time to put on her big girl panties, this was it. Taking in a deep breath and slowly exhaling, she shook her head. “No, it’s okay. Let’s try one hand.”
Slowly, he maneuvered around her and gliding his right hand across her back as his left slid away, he quickly snatched her free hand in his right. How he made it all look so simple, she’d never understand. Then again, he’d once made his living on ice. She shouldn’t be surprised if, like Cary Grant in the fifties holiday film, he suddenly skated away doing jumps and twirls.
“You’re doing great.”
Those words brought a smile to her face. She was doing better than she’d expected after her less than stellar first attempt on ice. “Thanks.”
“No thanks necessary. You’re doing all the hard work.”
Not that she’d expected him to be a mean oaf or anything, but she hadn’t expected such tenderness from him either. “Have you ever taught skating before?”
“Yes. One of my youth hockey coaches thought it was important character building skill for us to mentor younger players. I ended up with a kid who only skated because his dad wanted him to. Poor kid had no natural skill at all.”
“That must have been hard?”
“For someone who could skate as easily as I breathed? Yeah, but it also taught me a great deal about patience and appreciation for the skill I had.”
“Sounds like the coach was right.”
Daniel nodded, and for a moment seemed lost in another place and time. “After the required teaching time was over, Tommy asked me if I could help him without letting his father know. The kid wanted so badly to make his dad proud. Where Tommy was lacking in coordination, he made up for an entire team in the brains and personality department. He wasn’t just a brilliant nerd, he was a social one. Had a great sense of humor for a ten year old.”
“How old were you?”
Daniel shrugged. “Maybe fifteen.”
