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They sat side by side, their shoulders bumping into each other as they kicked off the shoes they’d come in with and donned the skates. The entire time, Mindy threw glances in Noah’s direction. He seemed more stuffy than usual, and for a moment, she wondered if it was the crowd that had him so on edge.
But then she thought of the amount of people who had attended the tree lighting ceremony the night before. There had been considerably more people there than were currently at the ice-skating rink, and while Noah had been a bit uncomfortable there at first, he had relaxed relatively quickly. But Mindy couldn’t think of anything else that it could be.
“So,” she prompted as they made their way out onto the ice. “What did you think of the proposal? Pretty cool, huh?”
“I still can’t believetheValerie Bernard lives here, and that you’re friends with her.”
He sounded almost impressed, and Mindy tried hard to ignore the little thrill that ran through her at that realization.Good. Maybe he was starting to realize just how special Snowy Pine Ridge was.
“Well, like I keep telling you,” she admonished as they began to skate side by side, falling into a familiar rhythm easily despite the years that had passed since they’d last done this. “It’s a pretty cool little town. And Valerie being here just makes it even better.”
“Yeah, yeah,” Noah said with a chuckle.
Mindy glanced at him, noting that he was beginning to loosen up a bit more as they made their rounds, passing other townspeople as they went.
“I bet I can still beat you,” she murmured, elbowing him lightly as she tried to draw him out of his serious shell.
He huffed a breath. “What, like in a race?”
“Yeah. You in?”
A grin split his face, making him look younger and more boyish. “Oh, you’re on.”
They stopped in their tracks, agreeing that they’d go on the count of three, and they began counting down together. When they hit three, Mindy took off. It had been a long time since she’d skated this hard, but her body fell into the familiar pace of it quickly. Her arms began pumping rhythmically at her sides, and the muscles of her thighs began to burn.
She knew better than to look behind her, her competitive nature telling her that to glance behind would cost her precious seconds. But she knew that Noah couldn’t be far back.
Sure enough, out of the corner of her eye, she caught sight of him, pulling up neck and neck with her until she put on another burst of speed. The end point that they’d agreed on was in sight, and she leaned forward as she propelled herself toward it.
Other people laughed as the two flew past them, pointing out the obvious race that was taking place on the rink. But Mindy didn’t pay them any mind, pushing herself even harder as the finish line drew closer.
But when she was only a few yards away, one of Mindy’s skates caught on the ice. Her arms windmilled as she started to lose her balance, but she was going too fast to get her legs back under her.
She started to go down, but before she could hit the ice, strong arms wrapped around her waist, catching her.
“Whoa there!”
Noah almost slipped himself as he caught her, and they ended up spinning around on the ice, both of them laughing. They came to a stop, and he kept his grip on her for another second to make sure she truly had her balance.
“You okay?” he asked.
“Yeah.” She nodded breathlessly, her heart racing from her close call. “I guess you win.”
He smirked. “Well, technically not. I haven’t crossed the finish line yet.”
They shared a look, both of them standing stock still for a second. Then they both took off again, racing to be the first one to make it the last few yards to the finish line. Noah had a bit of a head start on Mindy, so she was certain he would get there first—but to her surprise, he slowed a bit right before he reached the designated ending spot for their race, allowing her to cross the finish line before him.
She turned to face him as he followed after her, narrowing her eyes. “Did you let me win?”
He shrugged one shoulder. “You know I’m too competitive to ever do that. But you were in the lead before you slipped, so you would’ve beat me for sure.”
She laughed, surprisingly touched by the small gesture. “We can call it a tie.”
“Nope.” He shook his head as they continued around the rink at a more leisurely pace. “That was a clear win for you, Min. It wasn’t even a photo finish.”
“If you say so,” she agreed with a grin.
“I do.” His green eyes took on a slightly faraway, nostalgic look as he added, “You know, I’m pretty sure we raced the last time we skated together too. And you won that time as well, if I recall correctly. It was at the Winter Ice Rink in Boston, remember? Just after Thanksgiving.”
