Page 18 of Hot Ice, Tennessee (Hard Spot Saloon #2)

18

JESSE

“Knees bent. Bent ,” I said, reaching out to hold Mason’s legs, putting him into position.

“We aren’t even on the ice yet,” he protested, but he followed suit, bending his legs.

“There you go,” I said. “You ready for the ice?”

“No, but I’ll do it anyway,” he said, looking out over the rink.

It was free skate time, and I’d brought Mason in early before the rink would be packed full of kids and teenagers on summer vacation. Right now, the only people out there were a couple of grey-haired women, gossiping while they skated, and an ambitious figure skater girl who showed up to every free skate I’d ever been to.

In other words, it was the perfect condition to teach Mason the basics.

I turned back to him, and he was still practically crab-walking in his skates on the rubber just outside the rink.

“You look adorable in skates,” I told him.

“When you said you’d teach me, I didn’t think it would be this hard. You make it look easy.”

“Wait ‘til you’re on the ice. It’ll all click in a couple of minutes. Let’s go.”

“Oh, fuck,” he said, trepidatious as I hopped out onto the ice, reaching out my hand to grab his.

“You’re the one who has been skydiving and you’re afraid to ice skate?” I teased him.

“Skydiving doesn’t involve strapping knives to your feet.”

I snickered. “Knives. Perfect for cutting up a chocolate cupcake puck, huh?”

He smiled, pulling in a breath.

I leaned over, kissing him, then moved out a couple inches more onto the ice.

“You’re pulling me,” he protested.

“That’s the idea.”

Finally he stepped out, his skates awkwardly sliding a little as he made it onto the rink. I went as slowly as possible, positioning us away from the other skaters, showing Mason that nothing bad was going to happen.

“Whoa,” he said.

“Knees. Bend ‘em.”

“Jesse, if you want me to bend over, at least take me to the supply closet— oh God—”

He wavered a little as I pulled him forward, but as he bent his knees a little lower, he found stability. A smile played at his lips again as we finally made it to a steady forward skate.

“You are my favorite,” I told him.

He groaned quietly, smacking one of my hands. “Don’t say things like that out here. I’ll get lost in your eyes and fall on my ass.”

“You should fall on your ass,” I said. “Learning to fall is one of the most important things to do. Don’t fear it.”

Slowly, over the next few minutes, I led him around a couple of laps of the rink. Finally, after he’d gotten the hang of it, I brought my hands away from his and let him skate independently for the first time. He was a little nervous in his movements at first, but I stayed right by his side, ready to spot him. I taught him to avoid stepping with his heels, then guided him around the corners, helping him bank and turn without running straight into the walls.

“ That’s my fuckin’ cowboy, right there,” I said, watching him lean into a turn for the first time, clearing the wall easily.

“I’ll be good enough for the Talons anytime now,” he said.

I snorted. “There you go, Mason. I’m sure you can replace me as center within just a couple days, right?”

We both laughed so much that Mason forgot to pay attention to his skates, and soon enough, he rammed into another wall.

“It’s okay,” he said. “I’m learning to hit the walls more gently, at least.”

We skated laps around the rink, slow and easy, for the next twenty minutes or so. More and more people started to show up for the free skate, but now that Mason had a basic hang of how to move, he wasn’t too intimidated by the teenagers whizzing past.

“So I know how to go forward on the ice now,” he said to me a while later. “Now you have to teach me to fight like a hockey player.”

I hummed. “Now, that’s a skill that takes years of honing. The right comebacks, the right shoulder checks, the best death glares… well, I think you might have the death glares taken care of, personally.”

I skated up near him and put my hands on his waist. He did a quick glide over toward the exit and popped up onto the rubber just as I leaned in to kiss him. He stumbled a little, but I got off the ice and grabbed him, holding him at his waist and pulling him back up.

“Dangerous,” he said, but there was a mischievous smile on his face. “I’m going to leave you a bad review, teacher.”

I kissed his cheek. “If you leave me a bad review, I’ll just have to punish you,” I murmured.

He sat back on one of the nearby benches and I stood over him, going up between his legs. I leaned over, putting my fingers to his chin and tilting his head back for a kiss.

It was only when I stood up straight again and leaned back that his expression changed. He glanced at something behind me, his eyes going wide.

“Oh,” he said softly.

I turned to see Kane, walking up along the rows of seats, slowly making his way to us.

I stood up a little taller as I saw it was him.

The first thing I felt was relief, quickly followed by a defiant streak. Yeah, I did just kiss Mason. And you’re not going to change how I feel about him.

But if I expected to find anger in Kane’s eyes, it didn’t end up happening. I couldn’t tell what he was feeling, actually.

“Wanted to drop off the phone charger you left at the bar, Jesse,” Kane told me, his voice even. “At the frat house, Robbie mentioned you were at the rink, and… I figured I’d stop by—”

“Thank you,” I said, nodding.

He was silent for a moment, looking between me and Mason, his face revealing nothing.

“Thought you might have just been loopy, after you knocked your head the other night,” Kane said. “But is this real? The two of you?”

I looked back at Mason. He was a lot worse off than I was right now. He looked like he’d just been given a death sentence.

“It’s real,” he finally said, though, speaking up and standing up, a little wobbly, on his skates. “Jesse and I are…”

“Dating,” I said.

“ Dating ,” Kane repeated, looking between the two of us again.

Please, don’t fucking act like you know better than me.

“Hot Mess,” Kane said, crossing his arms in front of him like some displeased police officer. “Do you know that I used to make after-school snacks, dinner, and most breakfasts for Jesse, all throughout his elementary school years?”

Mason nodded. “Yes.”

“And that the idea of him being given the fuckboy treatment by any person under the goddamn sun makes me just about homicidal?”

“As it should,” Mason said.

“Kane, I swear to—”

“ And ,” he said, “that I trust Jesse’s judgment now, and I know he can make his own good decisions?”

Mason’s expression finally softened. “I trust him, too.”

Kane looked down at the ground, pulling in a long breath. “I don’t like it. I don’t like the idea of it, the reality of it, or the implications of it.”

“But it’s not your decision,” I said, taking a step forward.

Kane gave me a serious look. “But I’ve also never seen Jesse as happy as he is when he’s around you, Mason. Jesse, I haven’t seen you smile like you were when I just walked in… for years.”

My heart was pounding faster. “I really haven’t been this happy in years.”

“And even the other day after being fucking socked in the face by the prick, son of a bitch asshole Elliot, all you could do when you woke up was ask for Mason.”

“That’s right,” I said. “Well, I don’t remember much of what I said, but I’ve been told.”

Kane shook his head, finally uncrossing his arms. “If either of you ever hurt each other, I’ll make your lives a living hell. I need you both in my life, okay?”

I exhaled, leaning over to wrap my arms around Kane in a tight hug.

“I need you in my life, too, K.”

He hugged me close. “You can tell me things again. I can’t even think about the last two years without a pit of regret in my stomach. Hell, even if Mason fucks around on you and you drop out of college, I’m not going to stop talking to you again, J.”

I let out a laugh. “I’m not dropping out of college, to say the least.”

“Kane,” Mason said, stepping up to hug him. “I’ll never hurt him. Never .”

“You better mean that,” he said. “Going to watch you like a motherfucking eagle.”

I lifted my eyebrows. “No you’re not. Because you’re going to let us live our own lives,” I reminded him.

“Yes, yes, I am,” Kane said. “But I’m not going to stop being a stubborn grump just because you two twirl around on the ice like two goddamn butterflies.”

I dropped my jaw. “He finally admits it. You’re the stubborn grump of Bestens, Tennessee—”

“Jesse, for fuck’s sake—”

“And we all love you for it,” I finally said.

“Well, I love you, too. Both of you,” Kane said. “But I’m still going to have to go pour bleach in my eyes every time I see you two kiss.”

“Give me a break,” I said. “Mason, Kane will get used to it by the end of the week. I promise.”

Kane clicked his tongue, but I could tell that even he was holding back a smile. He reached in his pocket, brought out a phone charger, and dropped it onto the bench.

“See you two crazy fucks around,” he said, walking off. He paused a moment later, though, turning back to both of us. “What the fuck , though? Jesse, I’ve never known anyone to hate other people as much as you. You are the most introverted athlete I think I’ve ever known, and Mason … you’re like a goddamned pig in shit whenever there’s a party! You can’t survive one day without being around people. Are you two stupid?”

I was smiling again. “Yeah. I think we might be.”

“Jesse likes people,” Mason said. “If they’re the right people, at least. And it’s not like I hate being alone that badly.”

Kane let out a full, resonant laugh at that. “Can’t bullshit me, Minton.”

“Okay. Fine. I’m an extrovert. But I like Jesse’s lone wolf mode, too.”

“You two are going to be the death of me,” Kane said. “Love makes people nuts.”

As Kane walked off, his words hung in the air between me and Mason.

Love .

For God’s sake, Mason and I weren’t even technically boyfriends yet, and here my brother was, talking about love.

But if what I feel for Mason isn’t rapidly turning into love, I don’t know what love is.

The thought made me feel a little fucked in the head, actually. I wanted all of this to be real. Wanted it more than I’d ever wanted anything with my ex, that was for damn sure.

Well, maybe we should make our own damn rules.

Maybe that’s what we’ve been doing the whole time .

“Mason,” I said, before he could say anything about Kane. “I want to be your boyfriend.”

He went wide-eyed, smiling and sitting back down on the bench before he responded. “Swear to God, I’m going to pass out. Is this just how the Sanocki guys operate? You toss out big things like they’re a lit match into a fire, and then just… see what happens?”

I bit the inside of my cheek, then nodded. “Yeah. That is kind of how we do it.”

“God, come here ,” Mason said, tugging on the front of my shirt and pulling me down to kiss him. “I swear I’ve wanted to be your boyfriend probably since the week I met you, and I don’t care if that sounds crazy.”

I breathed against him, smiling like an idiot again. “I don’t care if it’s crazy, either. I just want to be with you.”

“Jesse, do you realize that Kane saw us kissing , and we both still have all of our fingers and limbs intact?”

I laughed, peppering him with kisses again. “Damn right.”

“We’re not on a bloody heap on the floor. He still wants to talk to us both. And all he did was make fun of us a little bit?”

“It’s a Tennessee miracle,” I said.

“I need to go buy a lottery ticket, or something. Fuck, you’re my boyfriend, too. I—”

He stopped, letting out a long breath as he leaned back. I saw in a second that his expression had changed a little, and when I saw his eyes get watery, I reached out to stroke his hair.

“Mason, what’s up?”

“I… just realized that I felt something today that I haven’t felt since Dad’s been gone,” he said softly. “I felt like I had family. Like Kane was some disapproving father who didn’t quite understand my decision, but… loved me for it anyway.”

“It’s true,” I said.

A tear broke off down his cheek, but he smiled at the same time. “I know he isn’t my family, but in a way, he’s the closest thing I’ve got. And Finn, and now Ori, because the two of them are attached at the hip.”

“You know what? I can tell how much they care about you, too.”

His tears dried up. The sad expression left his face, and he morphed back into the rugged, handsome cowboy in a quick minute. A guy who looked like he had everything figured out. A guy who talked to anyone. A guy who smiled and had fun, even through the shittiest situations.

My cowboy.

My fuckin’ favorite.

“Oh, we are going to be the menaces of the Hard Spot Saloon,” Mason said, a devilish grin on his face.

“Mason, I want to be your boyfriend more than anything, but I’m telling you right now that you’ll never get me to do a keg stand, cocktail stand, or a stand of any kind.”

He laughed. “No. But we get to be together. As a couple.”

Something fluttered in my chest. “That’s not something I’ve ever gotten to do publicly.”

“Get ready for me to walk you around like you’re a celebrity,” Mason said. “Holy shit, I am so lucky.”

“I’m the lucky one. I tamed you.”

He gave me a smoldering look. “If you think I’m tame, you ain’t seen nothing yet.”

I leaned in and kissed him. “Yeah. I take it back. Don’t ever become tame, because I still need to punish you.”

He groaned, nuzzling against my neck. “You are so hot.”

The ice rink beside us had slowly been filling up as we talked, and I became aware of it again now, looking out at a couple of dozen people out there, making their way around the ice.

I was able to be here with Mason—publicly, and unashamed—actually acting like he was my boyfriend.

It was a gift.

The simplest thing, but something I’d wanted for so long. I’d thought this summer would have to be a slow process of focusing on only myself, getting back to hard work on classes, and lone-wolfing it the only way I knew how.

Instead, the summer bloomed.

Hell, it was a fucking riot of blooming color, since Mason walked into my world. Always unexpected, and never tame. And you know what?

I fucking loved a hot mess.