And if she wasn’t crazy about this man yet, she was pretty sure she was halfway there.
***
Maddy was determined not to let negative feelings put a damper on the mood she’d originally had. She was psyched to be there, even if actually doing the part of ice-skating was more daunting than thinking about it. On the other hand, Nate seemed completely at ease.
“You know, with your height, falling would hurt much more because you have to cover more distance,” Maddy said thoughtfully.
Nate was looking at the crowd gathered at the ticket office but his lips were twitching.
“Whilst I,” she continued, “am much closer to the ground, so maybe there’s less chance of me getting hurt.”
“You forget I’m not actually planning on falling though.”
“I know. I’m just making casual conversation. Involving potential injury, bruising, maiming, the usual.”
“Mads.” Nate’s soft, low voice made her seek his calm, serious expression. “I’m not going to let anything happen to you.” He squeezed her nape with his warm palm. “You’re safe, I promise.”
Maddy was powerless not to believe such an earnest expression so she just nodded.
The crowd around her was pretty much people of all ages. There were a lot of families with children that were either squealing their delight at something or munching on greasy food with a look of bliss on their round, little faces. She could also see many gaggles of friends here and there, as well as couples walking around hand in hand, pointing out things to one another or staring at each other’s eyes and smiling sappily.
Kinda like what Maddy was doing right then, gazing at Nate who was buying their tickets.
Apparently, buying tickets was a drool-worthy experience.
Maddy shook her head at herself.
When their time slot was up, they found the appropriate size for their skates and after a few minutes of fitting and tightening and standing upright, they were unleashed on the ice.
And now Maddy could say that she had intimate knowledge of what being a newborn calf felt like. And she was only trying to keep herself standing while holding on to the side bars for dear life, while kids zoomed up and down around her. Nate stood a few feet away not even bothering to contain his laughter. She shot him a withering look she hoped he felt.
“You know,” he said, chortling, “the whole point of ice skating is to ice skate. That means letting go of the bar and actually trying to glide on the ice.” He was making a sliding motion with his hands as if he was explaining this to a toddler and Maddy had never wanted to kick someone more.
“Thank you so much, Nate. That is such helpful advice, I would never have thought of that myself,” she deadpanned.
Nate was still chuckling as he glided towards her gracefully. He held out his hands, his smile now warm, waiting for her to reach out. She did, gripping his palms tightly as he guided her through the movements patiently, until they were able to move side by side with only their hands threaded.
Okay, so maybe she wouldn’t break her face after all.
Sneaking a glance at Nate, she spied his red cheeks and nose, his bright eyes, his dark brown hair that kind of flopped on his forehead, his breath that came out in white puffs in the cold, and almost tripped at the picture he painted. Her heart was pounding like mad and she was absolutely sure that it wasn’t because of the physical effort it took to remain standing.
It was because of this kind and beautiful man next to her.
He’d once told her that he liked seeing her happy. And she was. She was happy, and light, and more carefree than she could remember herself being.
She hoped it was the same for him.
They spent their half hour on the ice ribbing each other, narrowly escaping other skaters that seemed hell-bent on making her face-plant, and Nate grasping her tightly with a strong arm around her whenever she slipped.
Afterwards, Madison felt absolutely famished. Apparently physical and emotional exertion made one’s appetite sky-rocket.
Since Nate seemed to be as hungry as she was, they hunted down burgers that were as big as her hands. They went to sit on a bench to eat and people-watch, and when Maddy couldn’t finish her burger, Nate graciously finished hers as well.
“Thanks for coming with me, Nate. I really had fun today.” She could feel her face redden for more reasons than the cold.
Nate smiled softly and then tugged lightly on her ponytail.
“You don’t have to thank me, Mads. I am exactly where I want to be.”
