Snowflakes and Ice Skates: A Holiday Romance Anthology (Utah Fury Hockey)

by Brittney Mulliner

  He nodded and stepped forward, giving me a brief side hug before moving past me. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  I watched the two of them disappear and then fell back into the seat. There had been a moment when Lane was about to say something, and I felt like it was important. I groaned and dropped my chin to my chest. Of course, Mitch had to walk in at that exact moment.

  Hopefully, we could finish our conversation tomorrow.

  Seven

  Everything was ready. Cora and I had spent five hours cleaning, decorating, and setting up for the party. Now, all we had to do was wait.

  She and I had finished getting ready a few minutes ago, just in case, we had any early birds. We both wore little black dresses but she was sporting a silver boa over her shoulders while I had decided on a headband with flashing numbers.

  “Did we miss anything?” Cora looked around her small apartment with a frown.

  “No, we didn’t.” I’d already reassured her three times that everything was perfectly in place. Music was playing, food and drinks were on the kitchen counters, and the white fairy lights we’d hung created a warm, romantic atmosphere.

  Sure, we’d invited a bunch of friends, but we were both hoping for a New Year’s kiss and figured setting the mood wouldn’t hurt.

  She sighed and checked her phone. Again.

  “Where is everyone?”

  I glanced at my phone and smiled. “It’s eight forty-five. They probably won’t be here for at least twenty minutes. And that’s at the very earliest.”

  She crossed her arms, still staring at the door as if willing the bell to ring. “I gave the doorman a list of people and said to let up anyone else who said they were here for my party.”

  I nodded. “Then he will. We just have to be patient. Why don’t we...” I looked around for a distraction. We’d already laid out noisemakers, themed accessories like we were wearing, and the food. There wasn’t anything else to do. “Let’s watch something.”

  I pointed her in the direction of her TV but she resisted. “That’s lame. What if people come in and see we’re just sitting on the couch?”

  “Is your door unlocked?”

  “No, of course not.”

  “Then we’ll have time to turn it off before we answer the door.”

  She caved and sat down on the sofa before reaching for the remote. I sat next to her, pretending I was calm. Inside, I was freaking out. What if Lane didn’t come? What if I’d wasted all this time, money, and energy for nothing? I’d spent a lot of time on my hair and makeup, and I didn’t want it to go unnoticed.

  She flipped through channels before finally settling on a home renovation show. It was a mindless distraction that I knew neither of us was actually watching.

  “Who do you want to come?”

  She glanced at me out of the corner of her eyes. “Everyone.”

  I tilted my head and narrowed my eyes. “You know what I mean.”

  She pursed her lips, facing the TV. After a moment, she finally caved. “The guy from the printing store was really cute.”

  “What about Hayden? I thought you were flirting with him.”

  She shrugged. “He’s not the kind of guy I’m normally interested in, so it’s almost like a novelty crush. I was surprised by how attracted I was to him. But he seems like one of the good guys. I need that in my life.”

  “So why the printer guy?”

  A slow smile crept over her lips. “If he comes you’ll see why.”

  I couldn’t help but laugh. “That’s shallow.”

  She laughed with me, looking shameless. “We’ll just have to wait and see who shows up.”

  I shook my head and looked back at the screen until there was a knock at the door. We jumped up and looked at each other.

  “Someone’s here,” she whispered.

  “I know. Turn off the TV, and I’ll get the door.”

  She followed my instructions while I stood up, smoothed my dress, and moved to the door. I swung it open with a bright smile. “Happy New Year!”

  Milly beamed back at me, holding onto the arm of a cute blonde. They were wearing coordinated outfits, Milly in a short gold dress and her date in skinny black pants and a gold sequined top.

  “Come on in.” I waved them in and took their coats as Cora joined us.

  “Hi, guys.” Cora helped me hang the coats on the rack next to the door.

  “Hi, this is Christy. Christy, this is Taylor and Cora.” Milly pointed to each of us, and I extended my hand.

  “So nice to meet you, Christy. I’m so glad you guys made it.”

  They both smiled, and Cora introduced herself.

  “Thanks for inviting us.” Milly beamed. “There should be more of us coming soon. The guys said they were on their way.”

  My stomach tightened at her words. He was coming. Soon Lane would be here. I resisted the urge to touch my hair or face. I was fine. No need to fuss.

  We moved further into the apartment, but before I could offer them a drink, another knock sounded.

  My stomach leaped to my throat as I watched Cora walk back to open it. Five guys strolled in, none of them Lane. I forced a smile and greeted them, helping with their coats and playing hostess. I remember giving two of them invitations—the guys from the programmers’ office, but I don’t pay attention to their names as they introduce themselves. Later, I’d get to know them and make an effort to learn their names, but I was too busy having a silent freak out to care right now.

  Cora’s eyes held mine. Her eyebrows drew together just a fraction of an inch. Just enough for me to notice. She was making sure I was okay. I nodded once and turned around, ready to play my part.

  “Let me get you guys a drink.”

  They followed me across the room to the kitchen, where I started opening bottles of champagne and cider. “Feel free to dig in.”

  “Thanks.” One of the guys from the office, the one who was wearing a Yankees’ hat, smiled at me before picking up a chip. I began to fill flutes, offering them to the reaching hands.

  One of the guys took a glass from me but held on a few beats too long. I glanced up at the attractive blond and smiled. His grin grew, and he leaned in toward me. “Thank you.”

  I nodded and pulled my hand away. “Sure.”

  “I’m Christopher.”

  “Taylor,” I respond before continuing my task.

  “Nice to meet you.” He paused, then moved a bit closer to me. “Is this your place?”

  I shook my head. “No, this is Cora’s home.”

  “You work with Travis, right?” He nodded toward the redhead I met yesterday.

  “Yeah; we’re in different departments though.”

  “Cool. What do you do?”

  I glanced around the room, not necessarily needing an escape but wondering why he was so interested in me. Oh, right. Duh. I’m only one of two available women here. Three guys were flocked around Cora, barely giving her space to breathe. I hoped more people would show up soon, especially women.

  “Content marketing.” I smiled and glanced up to find him watching me. “What do you do?”

  “Investment banking.” He sounded so proud but I cringed on the inside. He was one of those Wall Street guys. Somehow that didn’t surprise me. The many I’d run into over the years had the same air of overconfidence Christopher possessed.

  “Interesting.”

  “It really is…” He started in about the details of his job, but I tuned him out.

  A few of Cora’s friends from her yoga class finally arrived, evening out the male-to-female ratio. I’d hoped Christopher would latch onto one of them, but he remained at my side. Bored stiff by his talking, I glanced at the time on the microwave and sighed. It was already nine-thirty. Time for the fashionably late people to arrive.

  I watched the door while nodding along to Christopher’s rambling. Any other night, or time, or place I might have been interested in him. Sure, he was a bit boring, but we could still have common interests
. I just had no desire to dig in and find out. I was only interested in one man, one who hadn’t even bothered to show up.

  No. I couldn't give up yet. The night was still young.

  I stifled a yawn and glanced up at Christopher. He was so caught up in explaining different mutual bonds that he didn’t realize I wasn't listening.

  Cora met my eyes, and I widened mine in hopes she’d sense my distress. Like the amazing friend she was, she excused herself from the people she was talking to and grabbed one of the yoga women. They approached us, and my smile grew.

  “Taylor, there you are,” Cora said as if she couldn’t see the entire living area from anywhere in her apartment. “Who’s this?”

  She looked at Christopher, and he finally stopped talking.

  I glanced at her friend and almost cried tears of joy when I saw her staring up at him with undeniable interest.

  “This is Christopher, he’s friends with Travis,” I explained as if she knew who Travis was.

  But she played along perfectly. “Nice to meet you, Christopher. This is my yoga instructor, Summer.” She nudged Summer closer to Christopher, and without further assistance from us, they began chatting, forgetting about Cora and me.

  I slipped away with her, squeezing her arm. “How did you know they would hit it off?”

  She smirked. “Summer is a total free spirit but loves the suits. She thinks they’re the yin to her yang or something. Something about balance.” She laughed. “One look at him, and I knew she’d go for him.”

  “You saved me.”

  She winked. “I’ve got your back.”

  I looked around, realizing neither of her options had arrived either. “We’re striking out so far.”

  “Don’t worry. There’s still plenty of time before midnight.”

  I sighed but nodded. “I’m just anxious.”

  “I know. Just try to have fun.” She walked away, talking to the other yoga women while I debated where to go. Just then, there was another knock at the door.

  Without getting too excited, I moved to open it. “Hey!” I force a cheerful voice even though it was Hayden and another guy. He looked young like Hayden, with short hair parted and slicked to the side and a sprinkling of acne.

  “Hi, Taylor,” Hayden greeted me as they walked in and set their coats aside while looking around. Hayden turned to me and nodded toward his friend. “This is my roommate, Cameron.”

  I offer him my hand. “Hi, Cameron, thanks for coming.”

  He shook my hand briefly before stepping away. “Thanks for inviting us.”

  “There are food and drinks over there.” I pointed to the counter. “And some of the people from your team are already here.”

  I gestured toward the group of guys in the corner near the windows, but Hayden’s eyes were stuck on Cora. Oh boy.

  Cameron acknowledged me before following Hayden across the room to his target. I watched Cora notice him and smile. It was the same flirty one from when we had lunch with them. Her attraction to him surprised me, but I understood: some connections were just unexplainable.

  I was secretly rooting for Hayden. He seemed like a really nice guy, and Cora deserved one of those. Not that the printer guy wasn’t. I was sure he was fine too.

  I blew out a breath and went back to considering my options. Should I go introduce myself to the guys hanging around Travis and the other guy from work? Milly and Christy seemed lost in their own world, dancing in circles to the music.

  I glanced at the clock. It had only been fifteen minutes since I’d been rescued from Christopher. I needed a distraction. Maybe the food needed to be refilled. I started toward the kitchen, but there was another knock at the door, so I pivoted and opened it.

  “Matt!” I smiled and let him inside, along with his wife, Hetti. I’d met her a few times when she’d come in to have lunch with Matt. “Good to see you, Hetti.”

  “You too. Thanks for inviting us.” He looked around as he slid off his coat. “Is your man here?”

  I widened my eyes at Matt, but he just laughed. “I couldn’t tell him. It’s an epic story.”

  I shook my head and turned back to Hetti. “No, he’s not here yet.”

  They shared a look, and I wanted to ask them what it meant, but I didn’t want to be teased.

  “Don’t worry. He’ll be here,” Matt assures me.

  I tried to smile but it fell short. “I hope so.”

  Hetti stepped forward and gave me a side hug. “We’ll keep you occupied until he gets here.”

  I accepted the diversion and followed them to the living room where they joined Milly and Christy in dancing. I hesitated at first until Hetti grabbed my hands and forced me to move.

  After a few minutes, the four of them had me bent over laughing. We were taking turns out doing each other with the most ridiculous dance moves we can imagine.

  I hear laughter behind us and turn to see Lane and his friend Mitch watching us. I felt my cheeks heat as I stepped back and smiled at them. “Hi, guys.”

  Lane’s eyes sparkled with laughter. “Looks like you guys are having fun.”

  I nodded, trying to remain calm while pushing down the tumbling of my stomach. He was really here. I looked over my shoulder before turning back. “Feel free to jump in.”

  Mitch looked hesitant, but to my utter astonishment, Lane accepted my challenge and moved into the center of our circle, where he began doing a horrible attempt at the Charleston while also raising the roof.

  I burst out laughing. “Oh no! Make it stop!”

  Lane focused on me as he broke out the sprinkler move. That pushed me over the edge, and I ended up wiping tears from my eyes. I turned to Mitch and pointed at his friend. “Please tell me this isn’t normal.”

  Mitch chuckled and shook his head. “This is the most I’ve ever seen him dance, so it might be the best he has.”

  Lane’s jaw dropped like he was offended, and he turned his body, going into the running man.

  I held up my hands and covered my eyes. “It’s so bad.”

  When I peeked through my fingers, Milly was cheering him on. Lane bowed to the crowd that had gathered and moved to stand next to me.

  “That was quite the entrance,” I teased.

  “I had to make up for being late. I had to finish a project and lost track of time.”

  I appreciated that he acknowledged he was late and was glad to know it wasn’t normal for him.

  “I’m just glad you’re here.” I surprised myself with my honesty, but I realized I had a hard time holding back around him.

  “Me too.” He smiled, gazing at me like there were words he was holding back.

  Eight

  It was surprising that everyone we invited showed up. The apartment was packed, but people seemed to be enjoying themselves.

  “Can I get you anything?” I had to nearly shout to be heard over the music Milly had turned up.

  Lane nodded and followed me through the packed living room to where the food and drinks were set up. He picked up a flute of cider and drank it in a few gulps.

  I laughed. “Thirsty?”

  “I gave it all I had out there.”

  “Those were impressive moves. I wasn’t aware you were a dancer.”

  He narrowed his eyes at me before chuckling. I looked over his shoulder and caught a glimpse of Cora talking to Hayden. Her alternate guy hadn’t shown up still, but she didn’t seem all that disappointed about the printer guy missing.

  I nodded in their direction. “Do you think that could work?”

  Lane glanced at them again, before turning back and nodding. “I don’t know Cora very well, but Hayden’s a really good guy.”

  “I got that vibe. She needs someone who will treat her well.”

  “Then Hayden is a good choice. I’ve known him for a few years, and he’s someone I really respect.” He paused. “We’ll have to see what happens.”

  “Want to bet they kiss at midnight?”

  He laughed. “No way
. I know I’ll lose if I bet against that.”

  I was glad to know he thought Hayden was someone Cora should pursue. I wanted to test the waters though. “You don’t think it’s weird that they work together?”

  Lane shook his head. “No, they’re in different departments, and the company policy just states superiors can’t date people they manage directly, so there’s no problem.”

  I smiled and tried to hide my relief at his words. So he wouldn’t think it was weird if I told him about my crush. I wanted to shout it out for the whole room to hear just to get it off my chest, but that would be humiliating for both of us. Especially if he didn’t feel the same.

  This was when I wished there was an obvious neon sign that flashed when a person also had feelings for you. Like ‘it’s a match!’ That would be perfect.

  “That’s a good point.” It also meant he’d looked up the rule...or did he just know our company’s dating policy off the top of his head? I could stand here and analyze that tiny bit of information all night. Instead, I felt brave. “Did you look that up recently?”

  His eyes darted to mine before looking back at the group. “Um, Hayden checked.”

  It was a fair explanation, but something told me he wasn’t giving me the full story. My heart raced at the thought of him checking because he was interested in me.

  Don’t get ahead of yourself.

  He took a step back until we were standing side by side and leaned closer. “Do you want to go somewhere quieter?”

  Yes! I nearly shouted it but gave a single nod instead. I led him to the door and grabbed our jackets before cutting through the mass of people to Cora’s bedroom. I shut the door behind us and crossed to the far wall, where a door opened onto a balcony. “It’s pretty cold, but does this work?” I asked.

  “Yeah, I can actually hear myself think.” He sat down on the small iron bench and scooted to make room for me. When I sat down, our bodies were pressed together from our shoulders to our arms and thighs. I pulled my jacket tighter around me and looked out at the alley below us. It wasn’t a glamorous view, but it was the most privacy we had available.