“So, Aunt Kate,” Alex said, “How did you manage to land yourself a guy like that?”

Laura snorted, then giggled. “She picked him up in a bar.”

Trish and Alex squealed and her mother dropped her head in her hands.

“Hey!” Kate objected. “That’s not what happened.” She took a sip of her milk. “He picked me up in a bar.”

“Dear God,” her mother said quietly. Everyone laughed. And laughter was always good.

“He’s something though,” Trish said. “Gorgeous, smart, totally devoted, rich…”

“Protective,” Mom said.

“Protective?” Kate repeated, curious about her mother’s comment. “Mom?”

Melinda Adams wasn’t easily impressed, but something in her mother’s voice told her David had managed to do just that. “He and Richard had a little chat outside. I heard the words ‘beat you to a bloody pulp’, but not much else. Richard didn’t say anything because he couldn’t breathe.”

Kate felt her mouth drop open. “David had him by the throat?”

Mom nodded and took another stab at the brownies. “Had Richard pinned on the hood of that Mercedes you gave him last Christmas. I was trying to figure out where we could hide the body in the event David killed him.” Nobody spoke and when Mom looked up she saw everyone’s eyes on her. “What? I was just being practical.”

Kate stood and gave her mother a hug.

Mom patted her arm and smiled. “He’s a keeper, even if he is too young for you.” After a moment, her mom’s hand gently grazed over the beautiful necklace David had given her before he left. “That pendant is a work of art; it suits you.”

The moment between Kate and her mother was quick and quiet, but Kate felt her approval like a warm embrace, and that meant the world to her.

“So, Mom,” Laura said, smiling. “I hear you need to get your skates sharpened?”

Kate nodded and thought about the upcoming date night. David had invited the whole family to go skating at Penn’s Landing the day after tomorrow. All the people made it less of a date, and more of an outing, but it made her happy. He made her happy. It was shaping up to be a much different Christmas than the one before.

“I can’t believe Travis and I are leaving. I’ve never seen you on the ice, Aunt Kate.”

Laura elbowed her cousin. “YouTube.”

“I can’t remember the last time I was on skates. I’m sure I’m pretty rusty.” Kate grimaced as she thought about how many times she might end up on her ass. “I miss it, though.”

“You took me skating when I was eight. Me and Tracy. You were beautiful when you skated.” Laura smiled and Kate remembered the day. It was a good memory. “You and Dad had a fight after. I remember that, too.”

That would make sense. Richard didn’t want any part of her old life to touch Laura. Kate thought about it, mentally slapped herself for allowing him to manipulate her, and beamed at her daughter. “You know what? I don’t want to talk about him anymore. I’m done with it.”

Trish raised her glass of milk in a toast. “To moving on.”

Kate clinked her glass against her sister’s and took a sip, moving on.

Chapter 24

‡

David watched Kate’s eyes as they pulled up to the ice rink. The outdoor facility was right on the Delaware River, with the Ben Franklin Bridge in the background, and planning a date here was probably the most sentimental thing he could have done. Her parents, sister, and daughter all passed on his invitation, which was nice, but not necessary. So it was only the two of them, and Annie and Jay, who he’d called that afternoon.

When they stopped the car, Kate noticed the sign that said it was closed for a private event and shot him a look.

“You got them to close the rink? Why?”

“If it was too crowded, we’d be worried about stepping on little kids and dodging crazy teenagers.”

“We’re all alone here?”

“Jay is coming with Annie. I want you to meet them. And Cam said he may come by because he’s been dying to meet you since California. But he didn’t know if he would make it.”

She smiled because she knew they were like his family. He parked and grabbed their skates when they left the car. “I asked Julie to come.”

“Really?”

“She can’t, but she’s going to want to meet you, too.”

He smiled. He was glad Julie was willing to give him another chance. Especially since she blamed him for Kate’s run-in with Chelsea.

“Thank you for getting my skates sharpened,” she said.

He’d gotten the equipment manager to do it for him. It wasn’t a big deal, but he liked doing things for her, liked making her life easier. It had been ten days since the miscarriage, and physically she was almost fully recovered. But, over the past couple of days there were times he could see she was thinking about the baby. He’d catch her daydreaming and touching her stomach. It made him feel guilty because he hadn’t been there to help her heal. The grief hit him as he thought how beautiful she would have been carrying their child. Maybe someday it would happen for them. But right now, he was happy to have her in his life.

Kate didn’t want to talk about what Chelsea had done, but Laura filled him in before she went to her stay with her dad. Even though he couldn’t control his ex, he felt like he was responsible somehow. David was happy to hear that Kate had told the bitch where to go, and had gotten a restraining order, but it shouldn’t have been something she had to deal with at all. Someday he’d tell Chelsea what he thought of her, and what he had to say would make Kate’s words seem tame in comparison.

He glanced over at her and took in what he saw. She didn’t ever wear a lot of makeup, and tonight she had her hair long and loose. A soft white headband kept her ears warm and her hair out of her face. She wore a white sweater, a pink jacket, and black skating pants. It always amazed him how she could wear the simplest, most basic things, and look more beautiful than women half her age who were decked out in the fanciest clothes. When she finished lacing up her skates, Kate looked up, leaned in, and kissed him gently on the lips. That was when the whole ‘inner beauty’ thing made sense to him.

A Christmas melody was playing over the loud speaker, and Kate smiled as she stepped onto the ice. It was flurrying, and she glided like she’d never been off skates. He stood by the boards, watching her skate alone in the rink. The first movements were basic—forwards and backwards, easy, graceful turns, almost like she was floating across the frozen surface.

Annie and Jay came up beside him, skates in hand, and took in the scene. The tempo of the music changed as Kate picked up speed, throwing in little twizzles and turns. He knew she wouldn’t be doing anything like the jumps that almost got her to the Olympics, but from what he could see, the years hadn’t affected her skills all that much.

She did land an elementary jump and based on her smile, she was pretty proud of herself.

“Wow,” Annie said. “She’s incredible. I’m going to look like a spaz out there with you three.”

Jay smiled. “That’s why we bring you along. You’re fun to watch.” His smile dropped away when his wife punched him in the shoulder.

Carol of the Bells started to play, and Kate skated to the music in perfect time. Her moves were fast, sharp, and dynamic. David could see every step, every spin, came straight from her heart. Against the dark sky, with the lights of the bridge in the background, he was genuinely moved. He’d seen skaters before, girls who practiced until their feet bled, and none had her inborn grace or ability. This wasn’t just a sport to her; it wasn’t just something to win. It was her soul, and now she had it back. When the song ended, she came to where he was standing and threw her arms around him.

“Thank you for this. It’s amazing.” Kate stood on her toes and kissed him. Seeing her so happy was all the thanks he needed.