to his feet, but she was still too mortified to move a muscle.
Ethan stretched his hand down to her. “Are you okay? Are you hurt? This is my fault. Please let me help you up.”
Dakota shook her head, but she couldn’t look up at him or take his hand. Getting to her feet under her own power was a bit more valiant for her. It might also help her save face. At the very least, she felt compelled to give it the old college try.
Dakota failed to make it to her feet on the first and second attempts. Looking totally out of sync, she finally took hold of Ethan’s hand. Feeling silly, she thanked him, wishing her voice had been stronger. No sooner than she’d thought she could stand on her own two feet, her legs flew out from under her again. In grabbing for her date’s hand, she took him down again. Dakota didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. Bawling like a baby definitely wasn’t appropriate, especially when it was funny.
Ethan suddenly busted up into deep, guttural laughter. His rolling hilarity was so infectious that Dakota couldn’t help but join in. Before she even tried to get up again, his friends had surrounded them, sounding like a pack of wolves howling at the moon.
With his laughter under control now, Ethan got to his feet. Sympathy for her was awash in his eyes. Then he and Maxwell took a hold of each one of Dakota’s hands and helped her up. After accompanying her off the floor, they went over to a wooden bench, where she sat down to try to regroup. The three women were also sensitive to her plight, which did a lot to lessen Dakota’s embarrassment. Dakota no longer felt that she’d shamed Ethan.
Just have fun with it. You’ll do okay with it. I fall all the time. We all do.
As Dakota recalled the kind remarks the ladies had said to her earlier, she knew she was overreacting to the mishap. This was all in fun. There was nothing to be embarrassed about. Deciding not to give it another ounce of thought, she cautiously got to her feet. Before Ethan had a chance to take hold of her hand, she was making her way back to the arena floor. Favoring triumph over failure, Dakota was determined to not allow the latter to stake its claim. The huge surge of confidence made her feel powerful and in total control.
Grinning broadly, shaking his head, Ethan watched after Dakota. His eyes shone with pride and his heart began to fill with it. She wasn’t a quitter. It was one of her many qualities he liked. Determination was something else they had in common.
Once Dakota skated uneventfully around the rink a couple of times, Ethan rejoined her, careful not to startle her. He gently grasped her hand, brought it up to his lips and kissed the back of it. “You did great, kid. I’m so proud of you.”
“Thanks.” Dakota blushed, smiling at the same time.
A spicy voice suddenly came over the loudspeaker to announce a couples-only skate. The overhead lights had dimmed simultaneously. Alicia Keys’s powerful voice sweeping over the arena was exciting. “A Woman’s Worth” was the moving selection.
Ethan put his arm around Dakota’s waist and pulled her closer to him. “Think we can do this?”
Dakota smiled flirtatiously. “I know we can.”
As the couple began moving over the floor in perfect harmony, his hand tightened on her waist. Her heart rate quickened once again. His touch was tender and reassuring. The uniting of eyes ignited fiery sparks, but the union lasted only a moment. The flow of heavy traffic made them concentrate. Neither wanted another collision.
The small group of friends was seated in the concession stand area, each sipping on cold drinks. No one had ordered food since Maxwell had brought up the idea of stopping by their favorite pizza haunt before calling it a night. The rink was due to close in thirty minutes. Everyone had agreed to hang around until then.
Ethan was especially fond of the idea to stay until closing because it meant he could whirl around the floor with Dakota a little longer. He loved holding her hand and keeping her close to him.
As Ethan looked over at Dakota, his eyes were instantly drawn to her plump mouth. The kisses they’d shared thus far had been sweet and innocent and only one had been slightly probing. The way her full, luscious lips caressed the straw she sipped from had his imagination running wild.
Maybe it would happen tonight, Ethan thought. Then he recalled she’d driven herself there and he wouldn’t be taking her home. Just the thought of it was like a dousing of ice water onto a naked body stranded outdoors in the dead of winter.
Anthony’s Pizzeria was jam-packed and lively when Ethan and his friends arrived. Because another large group of folks was just leaving, they quickly grabbed the table, feeling lucky to land the vacated seats.
Booming music and a bunch of fun-loving patrons had the place lit up. Loud talking and gales of laughter came from every area of the place. A karaoke session was just about to begin, a regular part of the entertainment lineup. Performers were lousy for the most part, but there were some singers who possessed record label potential.
Dakota was now very comfortable with Ethan’s girlfriends. She felt included in their little group and it didn’t feel at all like a clique. The ladies decided to get into the bathroom before the karaoke session began.
Dakota washed her hands and dried them on a paper towel. “Have any of you ever done karaoke?” Dakota asked, removing lip gloss from her purse.
Charlene threw her head back and laughed. “We’ve got up there and made fools of ourselves countless times. We don’t care that none of us can sing. We just like to have fun. What about you? Have you ever got onstage?”
“No, but I think that’s about to change. What do you think Ethan will say if I get up there and sing?”
“He’ll love it,” Mandy assured her. “Ethan and the other guys are game for a lot of crazy stuff. Don’t be surprised by anything we do.”
“We work hard all week and play even harder on the weekends,” Charlene said.
“Now, what I want to know is, can you sing?” Maria queried.
Grinning, Dakota shrugged and winked. “I think I’ll let you all be the judge of that. Either way, I’m not ready for the good time to end. I keep hearing everyone saying it’s all about fun. I’ve bought into it now. I’m sold.”
“Let’s do this,” Mandy enthused. “I can’t wait to see if you can sing or not.”
As the ladies howled and hooted, high fives were passed all around.
Ethan noticed how antsy Dakota had become all of a sudden. It made him wonder if she had a yen to sing. But the sign of reluctance glowing in her eyes was also easy enough for him to read. If she was content to sit there and cheer on the others, whether their performances were good or bad, he wasn’t going to push her to get up onstage.
A couple of minutes after the orders had been taken, Dakota nudged Ethan to get his attention.
He turned to look at her. “Are you okay? You seem a little antsy.”
She pointed at the stage. “Will I embarrass you if I get up there and sing?”
His eyes brightened. “Stop worrying about embarrassing me. I want you to enjoy yourself.” He leaned in and kissed her cheek. “Go for it!” He didn’t ask her
