Today had been her first day of a proper holiday. And she’d loved every minute. Or almost every minute. Right up until she’d realised what her life before had been like.
It was almost as if a fog was being lifted from her eyes and she was finally getting clear vision. And the person clearly in her vision right now was Leo.
She smiled again and settled back in her chair. Above her the planets were aligning with stars, sending beautiful streaks across the sky.
It was almost like a message. A message that she was going to take some time to consider. And she knew just who to do that with.
CHAPTER SIX
LEO HAD ALWAYS been familiar with the tourist spots in New York but he’d never really visited them.
The time at the Natural History Museum had tugged at something inside. In one way, he’d felt a wave of anxiety when he’d seen the tears in Anissa’s eyes at Belvedere Castle. It had pulled at all his primal instincts to protect her, and try and take away the hurt she was experiencing. The museum had been the nearest place to go that might distract her.
But it had done a whole lot more than that. She’d come alive in there. He’d almost felt her confidence build as they’d moved around the museum. He’d loved watching the excitement in her eyes at some of the exhibits. She could find joy in the smallest things, and had a million ideas, opinions and questions—all things he’d never really thought about before.
Being around Anissa was fun. The truth was at Mont Coeur there had been an air of sadness around her—even if she hadn’t known it. He knew it was likely due to her uncertainty and her change of circumstances, but the more hours she spent in New York, the more he could see her gradually shaking off those worries and feelings. And he liked that. He liked that a lot.
Because she was having an effect on him. Today he’d sent a text to Noemi. It was ridiculous. It had taken him nearly an hour to decide what to send.
Hi there, had to return to New York for urgent business but will be in touch soon. Won’t do anything to jeopardise Cattaneo Jewels.
He’d wanted to be reassuring. Noemi had replied straight away, saying that she hoped everything was okay.
He’d felt a little bad that he hadn’t spoken to them before he’d left. But he wasn’t used to this family stuff. He wasn’t used to keeping in touch with people.
Watching Anissa send frequent texts to her mum and dad had made him feel guilty.
He really needed a chance to try and get his head around all this.
But now wasn’t the time. Because right now he was steering Anissa along Fifth Avenue.
She stopped outside one store then another. He watched closely. He could see when something caught her eye. ‘Want to go in?’
She shook her head. ‘Not a chance. I’m a window shopper. That’s it.’
He tried to be tactful. ‘Well, one of things I wanted to take you to was the Christmas ball. It’s fancy. You’ll need something formal. And obviously it’s my treat. So if you see something you like and want to try, go ahead.’
She hesitated for a second, apparently struggling to find the words. ‘Leo... I’m really honoured you want to take me somewhere like that...and I’d never want to embarrass you, but I’m not quite sure how comfortable I feel about you buying me something that...’ She held out her hand and gestured to the store behind her. ‘That will probably cost more than I earn in a few months.’
He’d somehow known Anissa might feel like this. ‘But it’s my treat. I want you to buy something. Something you like and feel comfortable in.’
She pressed her lips together. ‘Let me think about it. I’m just not sure.’
He nodded his head. He had to respect her wishes. ‘Of course. But don’t leave it too late. We only have another three days until the ball.’
She glanced along the street. ‘Enough of Fifth Avenue. Let’s have some fun.’
‘What kind of fun?’
She pulled something from her pocket. ‘I have a list. I made it last night.’
He sidled up to her and tried to look over her shoulder. ‘You made a list?’
She whipped it away so he couldn’t see it as she laughed. ‘Yep, I wrote down all the things I could possibly do in New York.’
She pulled out her phone and stared at it as it buzzed. The weirdest expression flashed over her face.
‘Who is it?’
She gave a little shake of her head. ‘It’s someone I used to deal with.’
‘Your coach—your ex?’ He couldn’t help it. It was first person that sprang to mind. It didn’t matter he’d never set eyes on the guy, there was a definite flicker of jealousy.
She shook her head harder as she still stared at the buzzing phone. ‘No, no. It’s someone who worked on the championship skiing committee.’ She genuinely looked puzzled. ‘I have no idea why they want to speak to me.’ She pressed her lips together and hit the reject button, sending the caller to her voicemail.
‘You don’t want to speak to them?’
‘No. Not now. Not here.’ She still had the list in her other hand. She waited for a second then put a smile back on her face. ‘This is about us. This is about New York.’
He wanted to ask more questions. But it was clear she was trying her best to put Mount Coeur behind her. ‘Okay, then, what’s next on the list?’
She concentrated hard for a few seconds, laughing as he kept trying to duck behind her to see the list.
‘Okay,’ she said, tucking the list back into her pocket. ‘I’d really like it if we could see the view, either from the Empire State Building or the Rockefeller Center—whichever you think is best.’
‘I think this is my time to cringe,’ he admitted.
‘Why?’
He pulled a face. ‘I’ve never managed to get up either, but...’
‘How long have you actually lived here?’
He gave a rueful shake of his head. ‘No. I think I’m going to take the first amendment here. I don’t want to implicate myself at all.’
She held out her hands. ‘Well, just think. We get to do a first thing together.’
He couldn’t help but be surprised. And a little impressed. ‘Yeah, that’s a cool way to look at it. In fact—’ Another thought sprang into his head. ‘There’s actually something else that would be a first—that we can do together.’ He gave a slow nod. ‘Actually, it makes it easier for me to decide which place we go to for the view.’
He held out his hand towards her. ‘Want to see a little more of New York?’
She shot him a huge smile. ‘Absolutely.’
* * *
The tree was stunning. She’d never quite seen anything like it before. It was around seventy feet tall and stood right in front of the Rockefeller Center, overlooking the most perfect ice rink.
He leaned over the barrier alongside her. ‘If we stay here for another week we could see the Christmas tree-lighting. They do it live on television now. It’s a big deal.’
She sighed. ‘Oh, that would be great. But we’ll be back in Mont Coeur by then, won’t we?’
There was an almost wistful tone to her voice. Didn’t she want to go back to the place she was currently calling home?
Mont Coeur. It was odd. But the name made it feel as though a dark cloak had settled around his shoulders. So much uncertainty. So much still to sort out. He wasn’t quite sure if was ready for all this.
‘Probably,’ he said finally.
She was watching the people skating underneath them. Some were clinging onto the barrier at the side, others were stumbling around the rink and a few were spinning around and skating backwards with ease.
‘Want to go skating too?’ he asked.
She pointed at one girl who was twirling around in the middle of the rink. ‘Just so you know, that’s not going to be me, not even close.’
He pointe
d to a guy who was trying to gain his feet at the side of the rink—and failing miserably. ‘Is that going to be you?’
She laughed. ‘Let’s just wait and see.’
She looked upwards. It was afternoon and the sky was beginning to darken above them. ‘Are we going to up?’
He nodded. ‘Let’s go. This is the perfect time. You’ll get to see the city at the end of the daylight, then you’ll get to see it in the dark too.’
They made their way inside and he bought the tickets and they boarded the elevator. By the time they exited above the viewing platform sixty-eight floors above, the sun was just starting to descend in the sky.
Anissa couldn’t believe the view. There was a glass wall straight in front of them. ‘You can walk right around?’
Leo nodded. ‘There’s a three-hundred-and-sixty-degree view up here.’
She walked over to a set of binoculars and fumbled in her pocket for some change. Leo was quicker and slid some coins in while she still trying to make sense of the American currency.
‘The Empire State Building is amazing,’ she breathed as she peered through the binoculars. ‘The rest of midtown is just amazing.’
‘Is that your favourite word today?’
She looked up from the binoculars. ‘It could be, but let’s wait until we’ve done the skating.’
They moved around all sides of the viewing platform, spending time looking over Central Park and then east towards Brooklyn.
She gave an appreciative nod. ‘The view from your apartment is good, but this, this is just...’
‘Amazing?’ he finished with a laugh.
‘Yeah,’ she agreed. It was over an hour before Anissa finally decided she was done. By then, she’d worked her way back around to the south view in time to see the Empire State Building light up.
‘It changes colour all the time,’ said Leo. ‘Traditional is white, but if there’s a big sporting event, a special day or support for a charity, or a past historical event then the colours change.’ He gave a smile. ‘Then, of course, there’s Christmas. It usually lights up in red and green just a few days before.’
She gave a rueful kind of smile as she stared over at the Empire State Building currently illuminated in white, her head rested on his shoulder. ‘We’ll miss that. We’ll be back in Mont Coeur.’
His hand slid around her waist and it seemed only natural to turn around to face him. ‘Thank you for bringing me to New York, Leo,’ she whispered, her warm breath steaming in the cold air around them. With his Italian good looks and sincere eyes he almost took her breath away. For a few moments, even though there were people around them, it felt like it was just the two of them—no one else.
For a second she wondered what he might do, then his head lowered towards hers, his eyelashes brushing against the skin on her cheeks as his lips met hers.
She slid her arms up around his neck. She couldn’t think about anything else. Just his lips on hers. She could feel all the tension she hadn’t even realised was there melt from her body as Leo deepened their kiss and pulled her even closer. His hand slid down to her backside and the spark she’d felt that first night flooded through her again, coupled with the connection she’d felt today when they’d lain in the planetarium, watching the night sky above them, with their fingers entwined. Leo Baxter was getting well and truly under her skin.
They broke apart naturally, both trying to catch their breath. She let out a little laugh and stepped back as she saw a few other people staring at them.
He stepped back too, with a nod of his head.
He gave her a nudge. ‘How about a visit to a bakery in the next street, then we can try the skating?’
Her stomach gave an automatic rumble and they both laughed. ‘Well, okay, then,’ she said.
The elevator ride down was swift and the white-trimmed popular bakery was right around the corner with a queue out the door. One of the servers gave Leo a wave.
‘You know them in here?’ Anissa asked, her eyebrows raised.
‘Perhaps.’ He shrugged. ‘Have a look in the counter. They have cupcakes, scones, desserts, pies, cheesecakes, speciality cakes.’ He pointed to one end of the counter. ‘They even do a speciality cupcake every day.’ He squinted around the guy in front of him. ‘Today’s is banana, pineapple and pecan with cream-cheese icing.’
She groaned. The smell in the bakery was wonderful and was making her hungrier by the second. The queue shuffled slowly forward. ‘Okay,’ she asked. ‘What would you recommend? Somehow I think you might have tried a few of these.’
‘Guilty.’ He gave a grin. ‘Honestly? It would have to be the banana pudding.’
She was kind of intrigued. ‘What’s in that?’
‘Vanilla wafers, fresh bananas and creamy vanilla pudding all topped with chocolate shavings. Once tried, never forgotten. I promise you.’
Her stomach rumbled again. ‘Okay. I’ll go with that.’
Two minutes later they had piping-hot coffee and small tubs with spoons. It was growing even darker outside with the cold air starting to bite. ‘Oh, this is perfect,’ Anissa said after the first mouthful.
Leo was watching her anxiously. ‘Glad you didn’t fold and get a cupcake or a brownie?’
She took another spoonful and shook her head. ‘Not a chance.’ She glanced over her shoulder. ‘But when does it close? We should have bought some cupcakes for the penthouse.’
‘Don’t worry. They deliver,’ he said as they walked back towards the skating rink.
The lights were on around the rink now and it was busier than before. They stood for a minute, finishing their coffee and pudding, before Leo headed over to the skate hire. A few minutes later he came back with two sets of blue skates. Anissa quickly laced hers and stood up, wobbling, while Leo handed over their boots. ‘Who is the gold statue?’ she asked.
The giant statue overlooked the rink in front of the Rockefeller Center. ‘It’s Prometheus, and it’s made of bronze. I think it’s supposed to depict him bringing fire to mankind.’ It glistened against the dark night sky, surrounded by the colourful flags of many nations and twinkling lights in the trees around the sunken plaza. ‘This whole place is just magical,’ breathed Anissa as she tucked her hands back into her gloves.
Leo was waiting for her at the entrance to the rink. He held his hand out towards her. ‘Ready?’
She took a few precarious steps towards him. ‘Oh, I’m ready. Let’s go for it.’
* * *
His bravado lasted around five seconds. Long enough to realise he should have held onto the edge.
Anissa stared open-mouthed as he landed flat on his back. Then she couldn’t help pull him back up for laughing. People moved past them, a few shuffling, others moving gracefully.
‘Hey!’ shouted Anissa as he grabbed onto her legs to finally balance himself. A few seconds later he was facing her, breathing hard. ‘Right. Let’s try this again.’
She burst out laughing once more. ‘Whose idea was this?’ she asked as she spun away and did a wobbly kind of twirl.
‘Hey, cheater. You said you didn’t know how to skate!’
She shook her head as she glided back towards him. ‘No. I didn’t.’ She gave a wicked grin. ‘I might have hinted that I wasn’t very good.’ She gave his chest a prod. ‘Just like someone else did on the slopes. Are you trying to play me again?’
He put his hands down to her waist, anchoring her next to him. ‘Oh, I promise you. I’m definitely not trying to play you. This seemed like a good idea at the time—but I might live to regret it.’
‘What’s a few bumps and bruises between friends?’ Her eyes were twinkling underneath her blue hat and her cheeks had a glow about them, lighting up her normally pale skin.
A warm feeling spread through him. She was blossoming. She was blossoming in New York, being here with him. What must it hav
e been like, spending most of her life concentrating on training? Had she ever really had time for herself or for friends?
Maybe she’d just needed the break—the freedom to get away and try and find out who she was, what she really wanted to do. Back in Mont Coeur she’d seemed so determined, so focused.
He took a deep breath. ‘Have you thought about what you might do if it the skiing thing doesn’t work out?’
He could see her whole body tense. Her jaw clenched. ‘Why would my...’ she lifted her fingers ‘...“skiing thing” not work out?’
Wow. She was instantly mad. Interesting. He thought carefully. He could skirt around the edges but he got the distinct impression that might be what everyone else did. ‘You’ve had a horrible injury.’ He gestured down towards her leg. ‘And you’ve been lucky.’ He could see her jaw tense even more and sensed she wanted to butt in, but he was determined to keep talking. ‘You’ve had surgery. Rehab. And you’ve got your mobility back. You’re up, about and walking, with very few problems.’ He licked his lips. ‘There might be a chance you won’t quite reach where you were before. What will you do then?’
For a few seconds it looked as if he’d swept the feet out from under her. She blinked a few times and her eyes looked glassy. He was determined not to fill the silence. After a few minutes she licked her lips and spoke carefully. ‘Maybe I am lucky—I guess it’s just not really a word that I thought applied to me. You’re right. There are other sportspeople who’ve had horrible career-ending injuries and never got...’ this time when she put her fingers in the air she didn’t seem mad ‘“back to normal” like I have.’ She sucked in a long breath. ‘But my normal was a woman who had the chance of winning championship gold. I’d feel like a quitter if I didn’t try to get back to where I was before.’
His hand moved and rubbed her back in reassurance. ‘I know, I think it’s great. But you’ve got to have a back-up plan. Even when I throw everything into a business deal, I always have a back-up plan. It’s sensible.’
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