“Here’s the hot chocolate,” he says, setting what looks like a gallon jug with Yeti spelled out on the side, and two small travel mugs that have the Beckett Construction logo on them on the center console.
I watch him move the steering wheel and begin to put his skates on. “Why don’t you move your seat back?”
“Tall guy problems.” He laughs. “I’m good. You ready?”
“No.” I bend back over and lace up each skate. “I don’t think I can walk in these.”
“Sure you can, and if not, that’s what I’m here for.”
“What? To carry me?”
“You know it.” He winks. “You good?”
“As good as I can be, I guess.”
“You need another coat?”
“No, this one is warm.” I dig my gloves out of my coat pocket and pull them on. I grab my hat from the dash, pull it down over my ears, and turn to look at him. “Ready.” He nods, and before I can say anything else, he’s out of the truck and at my door. “How did you do that so fast in these things?” He lifts me from the truck and sets me on my feet. “Wow.” I wobble and hold onto him.
“I’ve got you. I’m not going to let you fall. Just take one small step at a time.”
Slowly we make our way to the ice. “I’m not so sure about this, Kent.”
He moves to stand behind me. His hands settle on my hips, and his hot breath caresses my ear. “I’ve got you, baby. Nothing is going to happen. If you fall, I fall, and I’m not a fan of falling.”
My skin prickles from his closeness. Then again, it could be that deep timbre of his voice as he calls me baby. I never thought I’d be one for terms of endearment, but coming from Kent, they’re sexy as hell.
“I’ve got you. We’re going to put one foot in front of the other. Slow and steady.”
My hands land over his where they grip my waist. “I don’t know.” I can hear the wobble of uncertainty in my voice.
“Trust me.”
I do trust him. “Okay,” I concede. Slowly, I take one small step and then another until we’re standing on the ice.
“Good. Now, glide one foot forward at a time. Just small glides. I’m right here with you. I won’t let you fall.”
I do as he says. My legs tremble, but before I know it, we’ve made a full lap around the pond. “I can’t believe I’m doing this.”
“Want to try it on your own?”
“No.”
“How about you try it holding my hand instead of me behind you?” he suggests.
“I don’t know.”
I feel his body move closer as his warmth seeps into my back. His lips press against my neck, and I shiver—not from being cold, but from the contact. “You can do this, Laney,” he says softly.
Something flashes in my mind, and I freeze, almost causing us both to tumble to the ice.
“Laney?” he questions.
I close my eyes and try to see it. The flash. It was so quick, I don’t even know what it was, but it was familiar. As if we’ve been in this very spot, and he’s kissed my neck before.
“Delaney, are you all right? Answer me,” he demands.
I turn in his arms and stare up at him. “I had a flash. I think it was a memory. We were here. I couldn’t see you, but I could feel you, and you kissed my neck. I don’t know for sure, but it feels like I’ve been here before. Like we’ve been here before.”
“We have. And I’ve said those exact words to you the first time I brought you here.”
“You remember that?”
“Beautiful, Laney. I remember it all. Every moment I had with you. I remember it.”
“I’m jealous,” I admit.
“I’ll retell you every detail. In fact, I can write it down. You can read it whenever you want.”
“I just want them back, Kent. I want to remember my time with you. I want to remember creating our daughter. I want to remember it all.”
“I want that too, but you have to promise me something.”
“Anything.”
“When your memory returns and I have faith that it will, don’t leave me. I was an asshole to not show up that night, and I regret it. I will always regret it. So when you remember and you’re mad at me, I deserve your anger, but please don’t leave me. I need you, and I need Kendrix in my life.”
“We just got here,” I say stupidly. His words, they make me weak in the knees, and I want to tell him that I love him too. But it’s still too soon. I need more time. I feel it deep in my soul, but I need more time.
“No. You’ve always been here.” He places our joined hands over his heart. “I just got Kendrix, but I won’t let her go. I won’t let either of you go.”