limit of three drinks. There is a seventy percent chance of snow.”
I smiled. “Thank you, Adam. I’ll call you tomorrow.”
He nodded and let himself outside, and I sat down and waited for Vaughn to arrive.
“You look beautiful,” Vaughn said while holding my hand. We were walking down the street, enjoying the various buildings lit up with Christmas lights while dodging tourists.
I blushed at his compliment. Vaughn had probably told me I looked beautiful a million times, but it had always felt polite and platonic. Right now, I felt like I had his full attention, and I loved it. “Where are we going?” I asked once again. Vaughn had refused to tell me.
“Somewhere every New Yorker has to go to at least once,” he replied mischievously.
It wasn’t until I saw the giant ice-skating rink that I knew for certain what Vaughn had planned. “I’m going to make an idiot of myself and fall down!” I rushed out, my eyes wide as I watched a woman fall on her ass.
“Sometimes we have to do things we’re scared of, Sena,” Vaughn replied, the true meaning of his words washing over me as he guided me to the line to get rental skates. “And if you fall, I’ll fall bigger so people won’t even notice your failure.”
“You’re such a gentleman,” I replied with a wink.
It took us about ten minutes to get skates and find a bench. Once we sat down, I started unlacing my boots, but Vaughn stopped me. “Allow me,” he whispered before kneeling at my feet and easing the stiletto boots off my feet. I watched him with a pounding heart and hooded eyes as he eased the skates onto my feet and laced them up. Holiday music played all around us, and happy couples kissed under hanging mistletoe around the arena.
Once I was laced up, he moved to sit beside me and put on his own ice skates. “Why didn’t you tell me sooner?” Vaughn asked.
I knew this question was coming. I wasn’t really sure how to answer it. Honesty was simple, though. “I was scared. What if you rejected me? What if you didn’t see me that way? What if it ruined our friendship or made working together awkward?”
“I wrestled with that too,” Vaughn grunted before tying up his laces. “But ultimately I decided you were worth the consequences.” Vaughn twisted to face me and grabbed my hand before tenderly looking me in the eye. His gaze was intense. It felt like we were the only two people out here. “I might be a little late, but I’m still in the fight, baby. I’m not letting you go just yet.” He leaned forward and placed a chaste kiss on my lips that left me begging for more. “Let’s skate.”
I had a death grip on Vaughn when we entered the rink. What looked like professional skaters started zooming past us. I glided a bit, my movements jerky and uncertain. Vaughn chuckled when I squeezed his arm tighter and clung to him. “This isn’t so bad,” I said.
“You’re doing great, baby,” Vaughn said while pulling me along. We made our first lap without any mishaps, and I slowly started to gain confidence.
“I totally got this,” I said while moving a bit faster. I went to let go of Vaughn, but he grabbed my hand tighter.
“Not ready to let you go,” he explained softly. That was our whole problem, wasn’t it?
“Neither am I,” I replied before looking down at my gliding skates. We kept skating, and as Adam predicted earlier, snow began to fall, giving the entire experience a truly magical feel. It wasn’t until a rambunctious couple of teens side swiped me that the moment came crashing to an end.
I flailed my limbs and went soaring toward the hard ground, landing right on my ass with a scream. As promised, Vaughn went down with me, making an entire spectacle of it with a loud yelp, waving his arms as he went. Even though pain shot up my tailbone, I couldn’t help but laugh.
“You really committed to that fall,” I said between laughs. He lay down and started yelling some more for effect. Everyone started staring, and I laughed even harder. “Oh my gosh, you have to stop.” My cheeks were sore from smiling so hard.
“Kiss me,” Vaughn demanded. “I need CPR.”
I leaned over him, pressing my palm to his chest while hovering over his face. Vaughn lifted up his hand and tucked my hair behind my ear. Time slowed. We stared