“There it is!” Charlie points ahead.
The town square is a veritable winter wonderland. A large circular rink dominates the center, surrounded by wooden booths selling everything from hot cocoa to hand-knit mittens. Across from the rink stands an enormous pine tree, still unlit, waiting for its moment of glory.
“That’s one of ours,” Everett says with quiet pride, nodding toward the massive tree. “Cut it just yesterday.”
I look at the tree, then back at him. “It’s beautiful. And huge.”
“That’s what she said,” Charlie whispers, loud enough for everyone to hear.
I smack her arm, my cheeks heating. “Behave.”
“Never,” she grins.
We make our way to the skate-rental booth, where a cheerful man in a Santa hat hands us each a pair of skates. Well, most of us. Finn stands back, arms crossed.
“I can’t wait to watch you all from a safe distance,” Finn declares. “Preferably with something hot and alcoholic in my hands.”
I turn to him with raised eyebrows. “Oh no. If I’m skating, you’re skating.”
“Absolutely not.”
“Come on, it’ll be fun!”
“Fun is not the word I’d use for strapping knives to my feet and attempting to balance on frozen water.”
Gabe’s lips twitch.
“I’m terrible at it too, so we can hold each other up.”
“Or drag each other down,” Charlie adds helpfully.
“Come on,” I say, holding out a pair in his size. “For me?”
“Playing the ‘for me’ card already? We’ve known each other for only a few days.”
I bat my eyelashes. “I’m a quick study.”
Finn looks at the skates like they might bite him, then at my face, then back at the skates. Finally, with a dramatic sigh that would put Shakespeare to shame, he accepts them.
“If I break something important, you’re all responsible for my medical bills,” he announces. “And I’ll be milking the sympathy for years.”
“Your boyfriend and I were part of the hockey team growing up; we’ll teach you what to do,” Everett says while Gabe helps Finn lace up his skates with an indulgent smile that makes my heart squeeze. There’s such tenderness in the way he handles Finn, like he’s both precious and ridiculous, and Gabe wouldn’t have him any other way.
Everett helps me with my own skates, his fingers working deftly at the laces. I try not to notice how good he smells or how warm his hands are when they briefly touch my ankles. I swear the butterflies are having a rave in my stomach.
“Ready?” he asks, looking up at me from where he kneels.
“As I’ll ever be,” I reply, my voice embarrassingly breathy.
Getting onto the ice is our first challenge. Gabe, Everett, and Charlie all glide on the ice effortlessly.
Then there’s Finn and me.
“Oh god.” Finn clutches the railing with a death grip. “The physics of this is all wrong. Humans aren’t meant to balance on blades.”
“One foot at a time,” I encourage, though I’m not doing much better. My ankles keep wanting to turn inward.
“That’s it?” Finn looks at me incredulously. “That’s your expert advice? ‘One foot at a time’? I thought you said you’d done this before.”