bumped one of the guys with his shoulder. “This is Maxwell Harper, my best friend since kindergarten, the comedian in the bunch. He’s also a great world history teacher at a high school magnate program.”
Smiling, Dakota extended her hand to Maxwell. “It’s a pleasure meeting you.”
Ethan pointed at one of the women. “Charlene Rhodes, Max’s girlfriend, is a special-education teacher. Dakota is working toward a career in the same field. You two already have something in common,” he said to Charlene.
“That’s great to hear,” Charlene said. “There is such a shortage of good teachers in special ed. If you ever have any questions about the field, please feel free to ask me.”
“Thanks, Charlene. I’ll probably have a lot to ask about. It’s a fascinating career.”
Ethan presented to Dakota the rest of his friends. “Rudy Cantos is my old college roommate. He and our lovely Maria Castro are engaged to be married and Mandy Harris and Todd Williams have been dating a couple of months. Mandy is a long-standing member of our group, the only female. Maxwell, Rudy and I are also fraternity brothers.”
Dakota’s smile was genuinely friendly. She was nervous, but she didn’t come across as such. “It’s nice to meet all of you. I’m looking forward to our evening.”
The ladies immediately put Dakota at ease. The guys went off together to let the women get a little better acquainted.
“Are you going to skate?” Maria asked Dakota.
Ethan and his friends appeared to be having so much fun that Dakota easily made up her mind, giving Maria a positive response.
She excused herself and quickly made her way to the rental area. “Size six-and-a-half,” she told the teenaged girl behind the counter. “I prefer the white skates over the brown ones.”
“Sure thing. Are you planning on wearing socks?”
“I am.” Dakota looked puzzled. “Is that a problem?”
“It might be if you don’t go up at least a half size. The seven will work better with socks. Otherwise, the fit might be kind of snug.”
With her rental skates in hand, Dakota found an empty bench and sat down to lace up. Her parents had also loved to skate. They’d accompany Dakota to the rink when she was younger. She smiled wistfully.
Maria, Charlene and Mandy came over to where Dakota was.
“How’s it coming?” Mandy asked. “We came back to see if you’re ready to hit the floor.”
“Ouch,” Dakota said, grimacing playfully. “That’s the last thing I want to do. I haven’t done this in a while.”
“You’ll do okay,” Maria encouraged. “You can’t be any worse than me. I fall all the time.”
“We all do. Just have fun with it,” Charlene suggested.
“Thanks for the pep talk.” Dakota got to her feet but was a bit shaky.
Maria and Charlene got on either side of Dakota.
“We’re here to help you. It’ll be all right,” Mandy remarked.
Grateful for the kindness shown to her, Dakota smiled. “Okay. Here goes.”
Mandy reached down and picked up Dakota’s shoes. “I’ll put these in the locker with the rest of ours. We never pay for two.”
After slipping twice, Dakota wasn’t so positive she’d made the right decision. Slowly and carefully she made her way around the huge rink, staying close to the railing. Teetering to the left and tottering to the right had her fearful. Her butt kissing the floor would mortify her. Moving even closer in to the railing, she slid her arm alongside it to help keep her upright. She thought about retraining herself upstairs where the children’s floor was located. It would be safer.
An arm slid unexpectedly about Dakota’s waist, startling her, causing her to nearly topple over. As she looked up at Ethan, her eyes gave him a slight warning shot. “You scared me…and I almost fell. I can’t afford to break any bones.”
Ethan looked sheepish. “Sorry about that. But I recall someone telling me they could skate. Or did I just imagine it?” His eyes gleamed with boyish mischief.
“What I said is that it was probably like riding a bike, something you never forget. I also mentioned your getting embarrassed if you had to pick me up.”
Ethan’s eyes suddenly locked into Dakota’s hot, melting gaze. In his ears the silence was loud as a lion’s roar. As he had blocked out the overhead music, all he wanted to hear was the sound of her sweet voice. Her eyes, startled with surprise, had captured him in their brightness. Her pretty face was creamy and soft as silk.
The enchanting expression on Ethan’s handsome face caused Dakota to tremble within. The intimate feel of his concerted gaze caused a rosy blush to spread over her cheeks. No one had ever looked at her the way he did. It made her feel good.
Ethan’s fingers itched to flit tenderly across Dakota’s lips. His mouth desired to kiss hers until each gasped for air. He couldn’t count the times he’d imagined himself kissing her passionately, his tongue coiling around hers. Holding her tenderly in his arms, they’d dance to music only they could hear. He knew he needed to snap out of this trancelike state he found himself in, but he didn’t want this special moment to end. Staring into this sexy woman’s eyes actually brought amazing peace to his spirit.
Tearing her eyes away from the intensity of Ethan’s came hard for Dakota, but she was the first one to break what had seemed like a magic spell. The tender way he looked at her had increased her trembling. She imagined that gently smoothing his face with the back of her hand would bring her sweet solace, but she wasn’t that bold. Their physical desires were quickly becoming an ever-brewing passion, waiting impatiently to break loose, giving them freedom to touch, kiss and explore each other’s body the electrifying way lovers did.
Would they eventually become lovers? Dakota couldn’t help but wonder.
This felt like old times for Dakota, fun times, when her life was carefree and full of laughter. All the family responsibilities had belonged to her parents back then. Accomplishing her homework and light chores around the house was it for her. She had a mother and father and she hadn’t had to act as a single mother to a small girl while going to school and working.
The feelings of clumsiness and fear of falling had just upped and left Dakota. Her legs were steady now. Tickled pink that her skills hadn’t been forgotten, she smiled broadly. Perhaps Ethan skating beside her, his arm lodged snugly against her waist, had unleashed her confidence. Reclaiming her ability to skate was like riding a bike. She hadn’t forgotten. The fluid smoothness in which she now moved allowed her to relax.
Loud, with ear-piercing bass, a fast-paced Usher song, “Yeah,” suddenly blasted from the speakers, knocking Dakota off stride. As Ethan’s feet picked up speed, he practically dragged her around the floor. As a sharp turn loomed in front of her, she fought hard to stay on her feet. His speed was too much for her to keep up with. Then her feet got tangled up with his and both went down hard.
The heat stealing into Dakota’s face felt like a raging inferno
