Read Love on Ice (Cannon City Series Book 2) for Free Online Page B

Hospital was a favorite. I couldn’t stand that stuff and on one of the sports networks I got to watch the National championships and later caught the Worlds. I really liked to watch the women skate. They were hot. I just caught on to the jump lingo and other stuff. Can you do a Biellmann?”
    “Not anymore. I haven’t skated enough and lost the dexterity to do that spin.” She couldn’t believe the words coming out of his mouth. It impressed her that he even had a clue what a Biellmann looked like and could name a jump she’d just done.
    “Did you ever skate in the Nationals?”
    Kate suddenly realized she danced on the edge and was getting too comfortable. She didn’t want to go there. “No.” It felt like only a partial lie and if he found out the truth, hopefully he’d understand, but she wasn’t about to tell him what happened to her at Nationals.
    “Why not? You are great, even though you haven’t skated for awhile. I suppose it’s like riding a bicycle. It’s something you never forget. Why didn’t you skate in the Nationals?”
    This was not a discussion she wanted to continue. She turned away from him and headed to the entrance. She picked up her blade guards and stared at them. Jay slid up next to her.
    Kate looked up at him. “Lost dreams, nothing but lost dreams.” She shrugged and bent over to put the guards on her blades. She straightened up and looked at him.
    “I bet it’s a long story. I have the time,” he said and took her hand.
    She stared at their hands and then pulled hers away. She backed up a step. “I should go.” She walked around him and off the ice. She tried to figure out why she let him see her skate. She’d never done it before and she knew he might be smart enough to put two and two together. She sat at the table and unlaced her skates.
    “Kate, wait a minute.” He came over and started untying his own skates. “Listen, I get that you have a history that bugs you and it would be great if you’d let me help, but I won’t be pushy. Nosey, yes, but you can tell me or not. I like you and hope we can spend some time together.”
    She tied the laces on her shoes and put her skates back in the box. This guy made it difficult for her to think and she became so confused. She thought he might be someone who’d listen and not judge her, but she didn’t know if she could trust him. They’d only really known each other since this morning. Jay used the two H words, hope and help. She hadn’t heard those words in a long time.
    “Do you know how to play Broom Ball?” he asked.
    She looked up at him. “What?” Her brain found it difficult to sort the question from the confusion in her brain.
    “Broom Ball. It’s played with sawed-off brooms and a rubber ball about the size of a cantaloupe. It’s sort of like hockey,” he said.
    “No, I’ve never played.”
    “I know you’re off work on Monday’s and it just so happens there will be a game here tomorrow night...wait, I mean tonight. Now I’m confused. It’s Sunday now, right?” He shook his head. “Anyway, it starts around six in the evening. It’s a bunch of jerks I went to high school with and their girlfriends and wives. Lark and Charlie will be here. You met them at the diner. Sometimes kids come along and play, but this week is adults only. We’re serving beer. What do you say? We could have dinner after.”
    “I don’t know.” She felt completely flummoxed. She felt like she’d run in two different directions.
    “Think about it. I’ll give you a lift home tonight.” He stood and plucked his jacket from a chair.
    “Jay, I only live two blocks from here. I can walk it.”
    “Nope, won’t happen tonight. I’d be a terrible date if I let you walk alone and some jerk tried to attack you. It would be wrong of me to let that happen.”
    “I understand this is a pretty safe neighborhood and this isn’t really a date.” She watched as he put on his coat.
    “Sure it’s a date. We ate food earlier