“We don’t have to leave. Let’s stay here again tonight and drive straight to Denver tomorrow. We’ll still get a night in Denver so I can show you my favorite places, and we’ll make it to Boulder on time.”
She sits up to look at me. “But the Eisenhower Presidential Library. The Underground Salt Museum. There are so many things you want to do between here and Denver.”
Asher runs a hand over my hair and down my back. “Part of being on a road trip is being spontaneous. Be spontaneous with me, Juliette. You like it here? As long as Shirley has space, let’s stay another night.”
“Oh, Shirley definitely has room.” We both turn around to find Shirley grinning at us from the front door. “I couldn’t help but hear the end of your conversation and honey, you hang on to that man of yours. He’s one of the good ones.”
Asher smirks and nudges me. “You hear that, Juliette? I’m one of the good ones. Better hang on to me.”
I snort out a laugh. “I’ll be so sure to do exactly that.”
“Anyway,” Shirley says. “I just came out to see if you two had any interest in ice skating. There’s a frozen pond at the back of the property that’s great for skating, and we just got the path cleared. We have skates in a bunch of sizes. No one else wants to go down, so you’d have it to yourselves.”
I smile inwardly. “I don’t know,” I say, hoping I sound unsure. “I’m not the best skater.”
“Well lucky for you, I grew up in Boulder and was practically skating before I could walk. I’ll make sure you don’t fall.”
I just barely resist the urge to cackle. Men, even the very best ones, are sometimes so utterly predictable. I’ll play this chivalrous,protect my woman at all costsboy like a fiddle.
I shrug. “Okay, sure, I guess. But no laughing.”
Asher stands up, taking me with him. “I would never. Shirley, lead the way.”
Ten minutes later, we’re sitting on a bench on the very edge of a giant frozen pond lacing up our skates. Asher finishes first, standing and holding out his hand to me. “Come on, Juliette. We’ll take it slow.”
I tilt my head, studying him. “You know Asher, there are some things in life that just aren’t meant to be taken slow.”
His expression is confused. “Like what?”
“Like ice skating.” I pop up from the bench and leap onto the pond, landing steadily on one foot. “Catch me if you can, Hot Shot!” Then I take off without looking back.
The frosty wind slaps at my cheeks as I fly downthe ice and it feels amazing. Halfway down the pond I push off with my back foot and launch myself into a two-foot spin, raising my arms above my head and whipping around so fast my hair flies behind me and the pond and surrounding trees are a blur of color and motion. I come out of the spin breathing hard, facing Asher, who is standing motionless on the edge of the pond, staring at me, jaw slack and mouth partway open.
I skate back over and come to a stop right in front of him.
“That was…you were…huh?” He looks a little dazed, and I laugh out loud and smack a kiss to his cold cheek, delighted with him and this day.
“Surprised?”
He blows out a breath and runs a hand down his face. “Turned on, more like,” he mumbles. “You can skate.”
I laugh again. “Little bit. Twelve years of figure skating, ages six to eighteen.”
“But, like, you can really, really skate. Did you compete?”
I decide to give him another little piece of myself, one I haven’t even given my family. “I never wanted to compete. I love winter, and I love skating. Learning tricks and spins was fun, but really, being on the ice made me feel free. I stopped when I went to college and my life became one achievement after another. Magna cum laude from college. Summa cum laude from law school, getting the best job, being at the top of my associate class so I could stay on partner track, starting my own firm and, well, you know the rest. But now I think I should have kept up with it. I forget how much I miss skating until I do it, and I don’t do it nearly enough. Skating makes my brain quiet in a way that nothing ever has until…” I trail off, realizing something for the first time.
Asher cups my cheek and tips my face up so my eyes meet his. “Until what, Juliette?”
I swallow hard. “Until you. When I'm with you my brain isquiet, when in the rest of my life it is so, so loud. You make me feel like it’s okay to be whoever I need to be. You make me feel free.”
“Juliette,” he says quietly, eyes swirling with emotion. He looks at me for another few seconds, gliding his thumb over my bottom lip before leaning forward and kissing me deeply, his free hand sliding around my waist to pull me flush against him as his tongue strokes over mine. Every move of his mouth stokes the fire in my belly, and I press closer, needing to feel every inch of him against me. His arm tugs me even tighter against him, and I grind my hips to his, feeling his hard cock so close to my core it makes me dizzy.
Still kissing me senseless, he reaches down and hikes one of my legs up over his hip. His cock settles right against my clit, and I roll my hips, licks of pleasure sparking out my limbs.I could come just like this. Fully clothed, wearing ice skates, on the edge of a frozen pond right out in the open where anyone could walk by. I don’t hate that nearly as much as I should, and it’s that thought that has me breaking the kiss. I pull back just enough to look Asher in the eye and give him the only thought currently in my head.
“Ash. We need to go inside. I want you to fuck me. Ineedyou to fuck me. Now. Right now.”
Asher’s gaze turns molten. In two seconds flat he has my ass on the bench, pulling the skates from my feet and replacing them with my boots, which he ties himself. He deals with his own skates, then grabs both pairs with one hand and wraps his other arm around my waist, tossing me a wink that has me contemplating dropping to my knees in front of him right there in the snow.
