Chapter 13 #2
Though he didn’t get too fancy with his footwork, Ace certainly impressed me.
He wasn’t unsteady. And although it wasn’t necessary to keep a hold on me, he never let go of my hand unless it was to watch me after he encouraged me to show off my skills on my skates.
As soon as I’d finish showing him something, he’d reach for my hand again.
I truly had the best time and hadn’t realized how late it had gotten until Ace finally said, “We should probably grab something to eat.”
I nodded my agreement and allowed Ace to lead us to the snack bar, where we ordered slices of pizza and a side of fries. By the time we sat down, I realized just how hungry I was and dove right in.
After taking a few bites, I said, “This was so much fun tonight, Ace. Thank you for being willing to bring me here.”
“I’m glad you had fun, Tessa. It’s nice to see you laughing and smiling again.”
“You impressed me out there. I really thought you were going to struggle.”
He arched a brow. “What? Are you saying I don’t look like a guy who skates regularly?”
“I’m saying you don’t look like a guy who skates at all.” I popped a slightly mushy fry into my mouth. “But you pull it off and look good doing it.”
His lips twitched as his eyes dropped to his pizza. “I’m relieved to know I could do something to impress you.”
“You impress me a lot, Ace, and it has nothing to do with skating.”
Curiosity washed over his expression, his head tilting to one side. “I impress you?”
I nodded.
“How so?” he asked.
“Well, for starters, you can fix cars that have been all banged up in accidents,” I shared.
“I wouldn’t even know where to begin. You’re also observant, caring, selfless, and loyal.
I never realized how important loyalty was until recently.
Most impressive of all is that you’ve got time management skills that I don’t.
Oh! And it’s quite remarkable that you don’t get upset about my lack of those same skills. ”
“You think all that about me?”
Smiling, I answered, “Yeah. If you gave me enough time, I could probably come up with a list three or four times that size.”
“That was nice of you to say.” A genuine smile spread across his face. “Though I will say that even though I managed the skating today, I’m not sure how you do it on a regular basis. You actually enjoy doing it by yourself?”
I shrugged. “Well, this has probably been the most fun I’ve had skating for as long as I can remember. But I don’t mind doing it myself, especially because I’m usually outside. It’s how I like to exercise unless I’m going to go to Harper’s studio to dance.”
“You only have so much time left before it gets too cold out to skate.”
“Then I’ll have to resort to dancing and the occasional day of snowboarding.”
Ace popped the last bite of his pizza in his mouth. “You know, it’s kind of crazy. Our parents used to have us out snowboarding together all the time when we were younger. Now, our whole group might get one or two days over the entire winter that we all go riding together.”
Nodding, I said, “You’re right. I mean, I prefer when it’s warmer out, but we can’t exactly escape the cold here.
And when I think back to those times when we were younger, I always did have so much fun.
In fact, until the day you took me to First Tracks recently, I’d completely forgotten about the mornings we’d go there first. We really were such lucky kids. ”
He covered my arm with his hand and brushed his fingertips lightly back and forth. “If you decide that you’d like to do it more often this coming season, and you’d like someone to go with you, I’d love to join you. I’ll even take you for breakfast first.”
I grinned. “Only if you promise to share your Belgian waffle with me.”
Laughter spilled out of him. “Why do you think I got one when I took you there recently? I knew how much you used to love them.”
My mind had been such a mess that morning.
Hearing Ace admit that he’d intentionally ordered a waffle because he remembered how much I liked them made my heart melt.
Years of casual observation had led to moments like this.
Moments when he didn’t get upset that I was late.
Moments when he offered to take me roller skating.
Moments when he admitted knowing what I liked to eat.
I understood we were just friends, but the way he was with me had me asking myself one simple question. Why had I been willing to accept anything less?
“Looks like we’re going to have a blast this winter.”
“I’m looking forward to it.” He gave my arm one final squeeze, pulled his hand back, and gestured toward my plate. “All finished?”
I nodded.
“Want to go out for one more round of skating?”
“Try and stop me.”
With that, we got up, threw out our trash, and returned to the rink for more fun. It was just as enjoyable as it had been before we had dinner, the time flying by.
But eventually, with us both having to work tomorrow, we had to call it a night.
Ace drove me home, and as he walked me to my door, he asked, “So, do you have any plans for this weekend yet?”
“I’ve got a wedding on Saturday morning.”
“A wedding?”
“For work,” I clarified. “I’m doing makeup for the bride and her entire bridal party.”
“Busy day for you, then.”
I shook my head. “Not really. The morning will be slightly chaotic, but I should be done right around lunchtime.”
We came to a stop at my front door. “If you’ve got nothing else going on, would you like to get lunch together afterward?”
“I don’t have any other plans, so I’d love to.”
He smiled as he lifted a hand to my shoulder and squeezed. “I hope you had a good time tonight, Tessa.”
“I did. Thank you for taking me.” Although I knew it wasn’t the case, so much about this felt like the end of a date.
Ace was simply being a great friend. A faithful friend, just like my fortune had said.
But even with that knowledge in the back of my mind, I wondered why I felt unsure of what to do next.
“Did you… Would you like to come in for a bit?”
His lips parted, seemingly surprised by my offer. “I’d love nothing more, but it’s getting late. I should probably head home.”
“Yeah, that’s probably a good idea.” Without thinking twice, I offered him a hug. As his arms came around me, I said, “Thank you, again, for giving me this tonight.”
“You’re welcome.”
Ace loosened his hold on me and stepped back. Our eyes met, and we exchanged awkward smiles.
“I’ll see you on Saturday afternoon, then?”
He jerked his chin down. “Absolutely. We’ll talk before that, though.”
“Perfect. Goodnight, Ace. Drive safely getting home.”
“I will. Goodnight, Tessa.”
At that, I opened my door and walked inside, waiting to close the door until Ace made it to his truck.
Then I waved as he pulled away, thinking that despite a little hiccup earlier in the day in the form of Ryan, my evening with Ace was beautiful.