Page 33 of Say Hello, Kiss Goodbye

“And I shouldn’t have assumed you could.” She scraped a toe pick along the ice. “But we’re all laced up and ready to rock, so let’s make Ava proud of Uncle Talk, ’kay?”

Aw, she’d love you. He grinned. “Let’s smash it.”

Hand in hand, they moved forward together. Leia’s strokes were slow and graceful while Tarquin’s drifted toward choppy and impatient. She encouraged him along the way, but a full-on conversation was put on ice as he concentrated. Left foot glide, right foot glide, left foot glide…

Halfway around the large rink, Leia beamed. “You’re doing great! How does it feel?”

“Uh, good.” Actually, these boots are rubbing my toes all to hell. It’s blister city down there. He kept his chin up, fighting the impulse to eyeball his skates.

“Great!” She squeezed his hand. “Try to glide more than step. See what I’m doing?”

He studied her feet, easily stroking beneath her. Coping her movements, he looked up, gawking at the blue and pink spotlights washing over Somerset House’s majestic white façade.

A few wobbles, desperate hand squeezes, and one lesson in stopping later, and Tarquin’s strokes were becoming less jerky and more fluid, his confidence growing with each completed lap.

This is fun! He grinned at the slightly brown but still sparkly Christmas tree, at little kids zooming past at twice his speed, but most of all, he grinned at Leia by his side, hand in hand. She’s so patient. And she’s athletic as fuck—such a turn-on.

Leia ogled Somerset House and bobbed her head to an Adele track, her smile in no hurry to leave. “This place is so pretty. The website doesn’t do it justice.”

“Yeah, they do a grand job.” Oh, shit—yeah. She had a job thing yesterday. “Hey, speaking of, how’d the interview go?”

“Good—I think. It was hard to tell.”

I hope it went well, but I also hope it didn’t. A tightness clenched his chest. Maybe she’d stay here if there’s bugger all to go home to? He cleared his throat. “Yeah, especially over Skype.”

Leia nodded. “My boss was wonderful, but the HR person frowned the entire time. He knows of me, but—” She cut herself off. “I just hope I gave good interview. A coworker texted me last night and said the daughter of the editor of Vogue applied. I don’t know, it might be too steep a hill for someone like me to climb.”

“What’s with the ‘someone like you’?” Rounding a corner, Tarquin dipped his chin, checking out his skates, then looked up again. “Leia, you’re an amazing candidate. You’re friendly and smart, good on paper, too—your master’s and experience scream ‘Hire me!’. I know I would.”

A grin met her blush. “Aw, thanks.”

“Your designs are brilliant. What more proof of your creativity and resourcefulness do they need? I bet this Vogue sprog doesn’t get a look in.”

“If only.” She let out a heavy breath. “A position like this has come up twice, and twice it went to someone else. I was promised the next one, but…”

“Well, that’s bollocks, but I have a feeling your luck is about to change.”

Glancing at him, a warm smile lifted the corners of Leia’s mouth. “Like yours? Look at you, Scott Moir, ice dancer extraordinaire! I knew you’d get the hang of it. Ready to let go?”

She wants her hand back. Dammit. “But don’t ice dancers, you know…hold hands all the time?”

“Not all the time, but they do have to skate as close together as possible and in unison.” She squeezed his hand. “Look, if you feel unsteady—”

“No, it’s not that…” Actually, it’s exactly that. I like holding your hand. Christ, needy much, Tarq? He gulped and looked straight ahead. Don’t be a wuss. “Okay, let’s give it a go.”

Leia released his hand and scrutinized his strokes. The choppy strides and wavy arms of earlier were long gone. “See? You’re a natural! We could go all night.”

We could definitely go all night, no skates required. Tarquin shot her a slow smile that grew with each glide. I mean it, Leia. Just say the word. He grinned at the thought of an intimate soak for two in his large tub, followed by deep massages and even deeper kisses, her hands exploring, skimming down his abs and curling around him tight… He gasped, his pulse hammering in his chest and a scorching heat hardening in his jeans. Someone is eager. He smoothed his free hand down his long coat, keeping his predicament secret. I can’t come on too strong. I can’t fuck this up. He pushed harder, faster, sweeping around a corner with Leia matching his speed. Coming out of the turn, his skates dug in, and his left blade clipped the back of his right boot. “Jesus!” He stumbled, knocking Leia off-kilter.

“Shit!” Her sharp retort shot a burst of warm breath into the chilly breeze. Stabbing a toe pick into the ice, she swerved and cut him off. Knees clashing, blades tangling, Leia clutched his coat and shoved his shoulders back, halting his plunge. “You okay?” She swallowed a gulp of frosty air.

Tarquin pulled her in, her rapid puffs of breath skating across his cheek. Bloody hell! “You saved me.” He chuckled, his chest rising and falling, the scent of her perfume making him deliriously dizzy. “You sure you’re not a Jedi?”

A burst of awkward laughter split her smile. She loosened her death grip on his coat and stepped back, pulling off her mitts.

Shit. Nice one. She hates Star Wars and you blurt out a film-related compliment? Idiot. Tarquin followed her lead, straightening up and releasing her from his bear hug. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to.”

But Leia leaned in again, plucking a piece of fluff from his shoulder. “Well, I told you I wouldn’t let you fall, didn’t I?” Her soft gaze felt warm and playfully confident.