Yours for Christmas (Fool's Gold #15.5)(18)

“Try bending your knees a little,” Kenny was saying. “It’ll help you balance. If you start to fall, don’t wave your arms. Get closer to the ground. Lowering your center of gravity will help keep you balanced.”

When they both stared at him, he shrugged. “I used to have Rollerblades. I can’t help it. I’m good at stuff like this.”

Chloe pulled free of their hands. “I want to try it on my own.”

She moved her legs and skated a little away from them. She was surprisingly steady. Either Kenny’s athletic prowess was rubbing off, or Chloe had inherited her skill from Will.

The three of them made a few turns around the rink. There were other families out, along with teenagers on dates and younger kids in groups. Chloe caught sight of a couple of her friends and asked if she could skate with them.

“Sure,” Bailey told her. “Just don’t leave the rink.”

“I won’t,” Chloe called over her shoulder as she hurried away.

Kenny sighed heavily. “They grow up so fast.”

Bailey laughed. “They do.”

He tucked her arm into the crook of his arm, which meant they were skating close together. She told herself to go with the moment and not read too much into his actions. He was, after all, basically a nice man.

“I have confirmation on the bedroom set delivery,” she said. “It’s the Monday before the move.”

“That’s good. So she’ll have it for her first night in the new house.”

Bailey nodded. She still couldn’t believe her good fortune—being able to buy her very own house. Whatever else happened to her in her life, she would always have that accomplishment.

“There’s going to be a dinner,” Kenny said abruptly. “With Jack and Larissa and Sam and Dellina.” He looked at her. “I’d like to take you. It’s at Henri’s.”

Bailey stopped and looked at him. Henri’s was a fancy restaurant, at a very nice hotel up on the mountain. Something hot and hopeful bubbled to life inside of her.

“If we could go as friends,” he added carefully.

The bubbles all popped. She forced herself not to let her disappointment show.

She should be grateful, she told herself sternly. Kenny had told her he had issues with her being a single mom and they made sense. He wasn’t playing games or trying to trick her or being anything but friendly, open and honest.

“Dinner sounds like fun,” she said. “I don’t have a thing to wear, but I’ll figure it out.”

“I have a spare jersey.” He winked. “It’ll be really big on you but with a belt and some accessories...”

She swatted at his arm. “Thanks, but no. And for the record, a belt is an accessory.”

“Really? I thought it was just a belt.”

They stared at each other for a second. Tension crackled between them—at least on her side. She doubted he noticed. Although if he did, maybe he would kiss her. Because while she wasn’t up to casual sex, a kiss could be nice. It had been a long time between kisses.

Worried he could read her mind, she quickly turned away. Too quickly, it turned out, as her foot slid out from under her.

She instinctively raised her arms as she tried to find her balance. Kenny reached for her but she was too far away. She staggered a couple of steps, started to fall, then felt a pain in the side of her ankle as she went down.

Her first thought was that the ice was both cold and hard. Her second was that she looked like an idiot. Ankle concerns came in a distant third.

Kenny knelt next to her. “Are you okay? What hurts? Your wrist? Your hip?”

She tried to figure out how to stand without falling again. “I’m okay. I lost my balance.” Probably not in an elegant way, either. She shifted to put her weight on her skates, only to gasp as searing heat ripped through her left ankle. Okay, that wasn’t good at all.

Kenny reached for her foot. “You hurt yourself.”

“Just a little.”

“You winced.”

“I’m wimpy.”

He had her skate off in five seconds and then removed her sock. The skin around her ankle bone seemed a little puffy, but it was a small price to pay for the feel of those strong, large hands touching her.

Kenny had her move her toes, then her whole foot. The sharp pain had faded to something fairly dull.

“I’m pretty sure I can stand,” she said, reaching for her sock.

“Let’s get you to a bench and take it from there.”

He put the sock back on her foot, then stood and reached for her. She shrank away.

“What are you doing?”

“Helping you to your feet.”

She was tall and carrying an extra twenty-five pounds. “I’m okay. I’ll just crawl over.” The bench wasn’t that far away. “I don’t want you to hurt yourself.”

He scowled at her. “I can bench-press over three hundred pounds. I can get you to your feet.”

His tone said he’d been insulted. This probably wasn’t the time to explain she didn’t doubt his strength—that she was more concerned about her own personal bulk. Either way, the ice was really cold and she could see Chloe skating toward them.

“Okay,” she said quietly. “I appreciate the help.”