It was there Brett was able to mingle more, he felt confident in his home court, and having Rylan holding his hand relaxed him. Everyone from Celebration on Ice, with the exception of the Sweenys, were there for the entire day. Only about half had found other jobs. Brett and Rylan paid for those unable to afford the expense to travel to Montana for today. Rylan had told Brett repeatedly how close the cast and crew were and they didn’t want anyone left out for any reason. Talking with Celia’s friends and co-workers sparked an idea for Brett. Eventually, he was able to get George alone for a few minutes and the barest bones of a plan formed between them.
Chapter 17
The week after Celia’s service things at Big Sky had returned to normal. Training resumed and Brett and Rylan were kept busy with their duties once more. Brett left Missoula for a few days, telling Rylan he was needed on a quick business trip for his restaurant chain. It was only half true, and Brett felt a bit guilty, but the surprise he planned and how he imagined Rylan’s face would light up dampened any negative feelings creeping in.
His return was vastly different from the last trip he’d gone on. After stopping at home to drop his bags off, Brett headed straight for the skating complex. He arrived just in time to see Rylan stepping out onto the ice with his students. A special cane had been crafted by Ed, their engineer friend. It gave Rylan support and allowed him to skate without another person assisting him.
“Let’s see if this thing works,” Rylan was saying to his kids. They flocked around him as he inched to the middle of the rink. The cane had a base with an ice skate blade, complete with a toe pick and a trigger on the handle to push down treads if needed to stabilize him.
The children seemed very excited, so Brett guessed Rylan had told them about the cane.
He skated slowly in a straight line, his little group of helpers spread out to a circle around him.
“It works,” Brett whispered to Gloria, the PT supervisor. They both watched from the sidelines.
Gloria grinned. “It sure does. He won’t be doing spins and jumps, but he can skate and I think that cane was a great idea.”
“I can’t take credit for it; the idea was Rylan’s.”
“Do you realize how damn important it is that he did something for himself?” Gloria asked.
Brett glanced at the floor. “I do now. When he told me, I thought it was a good idea, but that’s it.”
They watched in silence as Rylan continued his class, coaching the children on some new movements. After ten or fifteen minutes Rylan laid the cane down and balanced on one foot.
“Here, let me show you a good—” Rylan stood on his good leg, pushed his right leg behind him, and leaned forward.
“Christ he’s going to get hurt.” Brett was on his feet in an instant, stepping toward the ice.
Gloria’s hand gripping his forearm and pulling back stopped him. “Let him fall.”
“But.”
“But nothing. Let. Him. Fall. We can have an ambulance here in under seven minutes and I don’t think he can really do more damage to that knee,” Gloria said.
As if on cue Rylan lost his balance and tumbled to the ice. There was dead silence for a few seconds.
“Oh, ow, well that didn’t work out as planned,” Rylan announced. The group of children dissolved into giggles and Rylan held out both hands. “Don’t just stand there, get the old man up.”
His students rushed forward, fighting over who would take hold of Rylan, laughing with him. By pushing and pulling they managed to get Rylan halfway to his feet before he lost his balance again and the whole lot of them ended up in a heap on the ice. It took Brett a minute to realize Rylan wasn’t hurt, far from it. He was belly laughing. Brett snickered and Gloria started to giggle. It really was a funny sight.
At first there was sheer pandemonium until Abby, never shy, turned to Brett, put her hands on her hips and announced, “Mr. Rocha, don’t just stand there!”
Brett saluted and headed out to the group. “Yes ma’am.” He got behind Rylan and hoisted him to his feet. One of the boys retrieved Rylan’s cane and handed it to him. Brett asked, “You got this?”
Rylan turned and grinned, blushing slightly. “It’s all good.”
After Brett was back at the sideline, Rylan skated around for a few more minutes with his students before joining Gloria and Brett.
“Only my pride was wounded,” Rylan told them and eased into one of the seats. He stretched and waved one arm. “Pedro, tuck your arms in more.”
“We’re having a meeting after all the classes are finished. I’ll see you both upstairs in a bit,” Brett said. He rubbed Rylan’s back for a few seconds before leaving him to finish this training session.
A little more than an hour later the entire staff of Big Sky Skating complex was assembled in one of the meeting rooms on the second floor.
“Sorry to keep everyone so late, this won’t take too long,” Brett stood at the front of the room. Rylan sat with the other coaches. “First, I’d like to thank everyone for your help with Celia’s memorial service. I appreciated it, and I know Rylan did as well. Now, I have an announcement. As you know, Celebration on Ice was disbanded. Thanks to our business manager, George, and a small army of lawyers, I’ve purchased it and contracts and jobs are in the process of being offered to those in the cast and crew. It occurred to me that even though not all of our students will go on to higher level competition, many are still well suited to careers in ice skating. Having our own performance troupe will provide some of them with another avenue.”
Rylan’s mouth dropped open and he looked around the room. There was a wave of chatter that went through the group, but he met Brett’s eyes and nodded. His shocked expression morphed into a huge grin.
“My thought is to have Rylan and I skate the opening number at the first show, which will be here in Missoula in about six months.” Brett paused and swept his gaze around the room. “So, uh…someone’s going to need to teach me to twizzle.” He made a twirling motion next to his head with one finger.
“Sure, ‘cause who needs at least one good knee?” Rylan chimed in which brought a round of laughter. “I can get matching braces.”
Brett’s eyes narrowed. “Are you saying it might be dangerous to figure skate with me?”
Rylan held up both hands, pulled a face, and shrugged.
* * * *
Six months later…
Rylan leaned back against some equipment trunks back stage watching Brett pace back and forth. He heaved a sigh and straightened his outfit. “Did you do this before your games?”
“Huh? What? I wasn’t nervous before games,” Brett grumbled. He did some weird wiggle movement to adjust his shirt. “And we wore comfortable clothes.”
“You walk around in a three piece suit half the time, how is this different?”
“Keep this up and you don’t get that spanking I promised tonight.”
Rylan snorted. “Yeah, I’ll take that seriously.”
Brett opened his mouth and shut it fast when the lighting on the ice changed, the audience quieted and their announcer took to the ice. There was a brief rundown of the performers before Rylan and Brett were introduced.
Rylan took Brett’s arm and urged him forward. “We’re on. Just remember this whole routine was your idea.”
They skated out, holding hands and began their routine. The spotlight followed them, which always gave Rylan a little thrill. Their routine was simple, some turns and twizzles. Rylan refused to have Brett lift him, because frankly Brett wasn’t all that stable on figure skates and the thought scared the shit out of Rylan.
At one point, Brett took a position behind Rylan, their hands clasped together and arms extended before they leaned forward, each held one leg back and lifted off the ice. They glided the length of the rink in that pose. The breeze they created ruffled pleasantly through Rylan’s hair and he inhaled deeply, always loving the fresh, clean scent of the ice.
“Relax,” He whispered to Brett. “The
y love us.”
“The show is booked for a year out. There’s even a stop in Hawaii,” Brett said in a low voice as they turned, faced each other then turned again to resume their previous positions, this time both feet on the ice.
“Nice,” Rylan said.
“Good honeymoon spot,” Brett’s voice trembled ever so slightly.
Rylan turned his head far enough to look at Brett. “Marry me?” His hair fluttered against his cheek.
Brett smiled softly. “That’s the idea.”
When their routine was finished they left the ice and went backstage to watch the rest of the show. Brett pulled Rylan close, bent, and kissed his cheek. “I’m not alone, neither are you. Not anymore.”
Those were the most romantic words Rylan had ever heard.
THE END
ABOUT ELIZABETH NOBLE
Elizabeth Noble started telling stories before she actually knew how to write, and her family was very happy when she learned to put words on a page. Those words turned into fan fiction that turned into a genuine love of M/M romance fiction. Being able to share her works with others is really a dream come true. She has a genuine love for a good mystery complete with murder and twisty plots as well as all things sci-fi, futuristic, and supernatural and a bit of an unnatural interest in a super-volcano in Wyoming.
Elizabeth has three grown children and is now happily owned by an adorable mixed breed canine princess, a spunky Welsh corgi and their sidekick, tabby cat. She lives in her native northeast Ohio, the perfect place for gardening, winter and summer sports (go Tribe and Cavs!). When she's not writing she's working as a veterinary nurse, so don't be surprised to see her men with a pet or three who are a very big part of their lives.
Elizabeth received several amateur writing awards. Since being published several of her novels have received honorable mentions in the Rainbow Awards. Her novel Jewel Cave was a runner up in the 2015 Rainbow awards in the Gay Mystery/Thriller category. Ringed Love was a winner in the Gay Fantasy Romance category of the 2016 Rainbow Awards.
For more information, visit elizabeth-noble.com.
ABOUT JMS BOOKS LLC
JMS Books LLC is a small queer press with competitive royalty rates publishing LGBT romance, erotic romance, and young adult fiction. Visit jms-books.com for our latest releases and submission guidelines!
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