Authors: Jay Crownover
to do something to make him feel better.
He had gone out of his way to show me a good time, to take me out and keep things between us fun and
playful, but always keeping a sexy edge to it all so that I knew he wanted me. I felt like it was time I
returned the favor.
He showed up at my apartment sulking, thunderous, and in a full-on bad mood. His eyes were all dark
and swirly, and no matter how much I tried to get him to talk about it, he just grunted one-syllable answers
at me and scowled at nothing and no one in particular. I couldn’t really shake him out of it, and when I
suggested we get out of the apartment, he just looked at me like I had lost my mind. Really he wasn’t fit to
be around other people, but I couldn’t stand to see him so unhappy, so I was going to drag him into a better
mood kicking and screaming if I had to.
It was a testament as to how much he wanted to please me, wanted me to have a good time, that he
agreed to leave the apartment with me in the first place when clearly he would have been content to sit and
wallow in his awful mood for the rest of the night. I could have kissed him all over his shaved head for that
alone. When we got into the Jetta and he didn’t ask any questions as I drove downtown, I could only hope
my plan didn’t backfire and end up with him in an even more sour state of mind.
I had to find a place to park and he gave me a questioning look as I took his hand and guided him
toward the ice-skating rink that was located right in the heart of Denver’s downtown at Skyline Park. It was
only open a few months out of the year, in the winter, and you could skate for free if you brought your own
skates. It had always been one of my favorite parts of growing up in a cold-weather state. There was
nothing like gliding around the ice in the dark while white lights twinkled over your head. There was
something so fun about doing something so quaint right in the middle of such a metropolitan area … I
hoped Nash felt the same way.
He looked at me and lifted one of his midnight-dark eyebrows.
“Seriously?”
I shrugged and bit my lip.
“What? It’ll be fun.”
“If by ‘fun’ you mean me spending the entire time on my ass, then yeah, fun.”
I bumped him with my shoulder and he wrapped an arm around my shoulders.
“You used to skateboard. I’m sure you can keep your balance long enough to make it around a couple
times without falling.”
I remembered him rolling around back in high school, so I was sure he would be fine despite the
pensive look on his face.
“That was a long time ago, Saint.”
I made him let me pay the guy to rent us skates and secretly thrilled inside when we sat down to put
them on and he got on his knees in front of me and helped me lace mine up. I couldn’t resist the urge to
bend forward and kiss him on the top of his head. I liked the way the scruff of his supershort hair tickled
my lips. I looked up when I heard giggles coming from a group of young girls watching us.
“You can concentrate on not falling, and it’ll take your mind off of today.”
He grunted at me again and rose to his feet in a graceful move that had my belly tightening and the girls
next to us sighing. He begrudgingly put on his own skates and towered over me as we trudged out to the
ice.
It was rough going for the first ten minutes. Nash was a big guy, and while he typically moved with a lot
of grace and ease, perch him on a razor-fine blade on top of frozen water and he just sort of turned into an
out-of-control freight train. I wanted to be sympathetic, wanted to help him out, but I wasn’t strong enough
to keep him upright and his dirty mouth and hostile expression had me folded over in fits of laughter that
were making it hard for me to stay upright myself.
Little kids buzzed around us. Teenage girls twirled and flittered by, obviously trying to catch his
attention. Dudes on hockey skates blazed past in a bid to impress, but Nash was focused on trying to stay
up and on me. He finally found his balance enough to make it around the rink once and I reached out to
grab his hand. He snickered at me and squeezed my cold fingers.
“I’ve never been ice skating with a girl before.”
That made goose bumps run up and down my arms. He had been the first for me in so many ways, I
never really thought I could return that for him.
“Good.”
I glided next to him and watched him out of the corner of my eye. Some of the tension that had been
around his mouth and some of the darkness in his gaze had lightened.
“You know you can talk to me about it, right? About what went down with your mom today?”
I was doing a pretty good job at keeping him and this thing between us within boundaries I was
comfortable with, but I didn’t want him to think that if he needed me to listen I wasn’t willing to do that.
Sure, we had some killer sexual chemistry and a really intimate draw that pulled us together, but we also
needed to like each other enough to share things with one another if we were going to keep hanging out.
His thumb traced over the back of my hand and I stumbled a little, almost taking us both down to the
hard surface of the ice. He was just so good at being distracting.
“Nothing to talk about. She’s just as unpleasant as she always was, which makes me feel awful every
time I talk to her. I left today knowing pretty much that I’m done with her. She’s not my family, she never
was.”
I sucked in a breath and due to the cold air, it made my teeth hurt.
“That’s really sad.”
“I guess. It’s just the way it is.”
I had a fair amount of resentment built up at my dad, considering the way he had acted and the way he
had chosen to leave my mom. But even though I didn’t approve, didn’t appreciate the drama and heartache
he had caused, I couldn’t imagine just walking away from him forever. Couldn’t see myself ever just
declaring that he was no longer a part of my life or my family. My insides twisted at the fact Nash had to
make that kind of call on top of dealing with his father being so ill.
I squealed in surprise as the big body next to mine suddenly pitched forward and went down in a
spectacular splay of strong arms and legs. Nash managed to turn before he hit the ice and I ended up hitting
his chest with a thump that knocked the wind out of the both of us. He wrapped his arms around my waist
and shook with silent laughter.
“Okay, Saint, you win. This is ridiculous. I can’t stay pissed off when my ass is broken.”
I rubbed my cold nose along the edge of his jaw.
“Well, I
am
a nurse. When we get home I can take care of all your boo-boos in the best way possible.”
I heard him sigh.
“Can you do it naked?”
I laughed because he was such a guy, and when I told him of course I could do it naked, that meant our
time on the ice was over. It was nice, made me feel good about myself and about the way I was with him,
that not only had I shaken off his dour mood, but I managed to make him laugh and take his mind
somewhere else. I wanted to think that not anyone would’ve been able to achieve that, and when we got to
the apartment and he proceeded to get us both very naked and very much into the best mood possible, I had
to wonder if being with me like that was as special and different for him as being with him was for me. It
sure felt that way.
The next morning I was standing in the little kitchen in my apartment making coffee and finger-
combing my still-shower-wet hair. I was feeling pretty mellow, pretty languid and satisfied, because I hadn’t
been in the shower alone and was still basking in the after-orgasm glow when the front door swung open
and my sister came flying in unannounced. She looked harassed and stressed out, tired and so very
pregnant. She didn’t have any of the kids with her and there was a high flush in her cheeks.
“Mom just called me.” She stomped across the living room and I shot a nervous gaze to the back room,
where I had left Nash getting dressed with the promise of having coffee waiting for him when he was done.
I didn’t want Faith to see him here, didn’t want to try and figure out how to explain what I was doing with
him, because I didn’t really know and words had never been my strong suit.
“Okay. Is something wrong?”
She huffed out an aggravated breath and plopped her round form in one of the chairs at my little dining
table.
“She’s moving.”
I adjusted my robe and kept an eye on the hallway.
“Okay.” I should’ve been asking where Mom was going, but I was too concerned about Nash popping
around the corner in all his naked and tattooed glory to focus properly on what my sister was saying.
Faith shot me a dirty look and shoved her hands through the front of her hair. “What do you mean,
‘okay’? She’s leaving Colorado. Is that still okay?”
“I mean she’s an adult and has been acting like a lunatic for two years. Maybe getting away from
Brookside, away from where she can run into Dad and any reminders that he moved on, is what’s best for
her.”
“But we’re here. The kids are here. She shouldn’t have to pick up and move her entire life to another
state … Dad should. He’s the one who messed up.”
She was right. Dad
had
messed up, the blame for the way our family was divided did fall squarely on
his shoulders. Mom would’ve never gone so bonkers, acted so drastically, if he hadn’t sent her into a
tailspin. But in all honesty, I was proud of Mom for taking a stand, for taking the reins back in her life and
doing something for herself. Blaming Dad for being a jerk, not getting over the fact he had a wandering eye,
wasn’t going to put Mom back to sorts, but I really thought a change of scenery and some room to breathe
might. It had done wonders for me when I needed it most after high school. Faith was right that Mom
shouldn’t have to move, but the fact that she was willing to finally be accountable for some of her actions
made me happy inside. This was just the way our family looked now and both of us were going to have to
live with it. And trying to tell Faith that she would feel the same way about Dad moving, that he also would
miss out on spending time with us, with her kids, was just going to have to wait because I heard movement
from the bedroom.
I sighed … more because Nash had finally emerged from the bedroom than because of what Faith was
saying. He was on his way to meet Rome at the gym, so all he had on was a black tank top and a pair of
black-and-white nylon track pants. His head was covered in that ever-present black hat he liked to rock, and
I had to really try not to let out a dreamy sigh. He was hot, like stupid hot, there was no missing that fact. He
was pulling on his black hoodie and texting on his phone, so I don’t think he even saw Faith when he
walked right up to me and put an arm around my waist. He pulled me to that massive chest and dropped a
hard kiss on my mouth. He smelled clean and slightly flowery from my body wash, which would have
made me grin had I not seen Faith glaring at me over his shoulder.
“Don’t forget to show around nine tonight. The Bar, it’s kind of a dive and there isn’t really a sign, but
it’s off Broadway and the Charger will be in the lot, so it’s hard to miss.” One of his midnight-colored
brows shot up. “If you bail, I won’t be held responsible for what the girls do in order to get to know you
better.”
His friends wanted to meet me, like for real meet me, not just passing by in the hospital halls, and I was
panicked at the very thought. It made what we were doing seem more important than I wanted it to be, but I
couldn’t figure out a way to slip out of it gracefully, and honestly, I could tell it mattered to him and I didn’t
want to disappoint him.
I cleared my throat and put a hand lightly on his stomach. It was rock-hard and I wanted to pet it.
“Nash …” His other eyebrow shot up. “This is my sister, Faith. I don’t know if you remember her or
not. She was a year ahead of us in school.” The implication was there: she knew all about the scars he had
left on me when we were younger.
My sister was looking at him like she wanted to stab him in the heart, but Nash just gave her a lopsided
grin and made his way toward the front door.
“Hey, Faith. Nice to officially meet you. Seriously, Saint.” His voice dropped a little. “If you don’t show,
it’s gonna bum me out.”
I sighed again and put my hands flat on the counter in front of me. “I’ll be there. Promise.”
He smiled at me for real and vanished out the door, leaving me and my seething sister alone.
I held up a hand when she opened her mouth. “Don’t even start.”
She hefted herself up from the table and marched so that she was poised across the counter from me.
“Are you out of your ever-loving mind?” It would have been better if she screamed it at me, but the fact
that it was almost a whisper twisted my heart.
“Probably.” I picked up my coffee, more to have something to do with my hands than anything else.