Page 114 of Pucking Forbidden

His words give me the shot of courage I need, and before I can let my brain plan a way out, I lean forward and let myself fall into the stream.

The air hits me like a solid wall, lifting my body off the ground. A loud, terrified scream tears from my throat, echoing inside my helmet, but the pure rush of weightlessness is so shocking that the terror vanishes within two seconds.

Through my goggles, I see Julian step into the tunnel right after me. The wind catches him, but he stabilizes as he reaches me. He catches my hands. We float there together in the center of the glass tube, suspended in mid-air, the world outside spinning in a blur. Julian looks at me and opens his mouth, his booming laughter swallowed by the roar of the wind, his eyes crinkling with a pure joy I’ve never seen on his face before.

By the time the fans slow down and the instructor pulls us back onto the solid rubber floor, my legs are shaking from the surge of adrenaline. My heart is hammering against my ribs like a trapped bird, an ecstatic laugh tearing from my lips.

I rip my helmet off, my hair falling wild around my face, and turn to Julian. “That was…oh my God, Julian! That was insane!”

Julian doesn't say a word. He takes one look at my flushed cheeks and my wide, happy eyes, and he steps forward, his arms wrapping around my waist. He lifts me clear off the floor, his mouth slamming down onto mine in a fierce, breathless kiss that knocks whatever air I had left right out of my lungs.

I grip the shoulders of his jumpsuit, kissing him back hard. The residual adrenaline from the flight melting straight into a thick heat that floods my lower stomach.

“Come on, sweetheart,” he grins against my lips. “The day’s not over yet.”

CHAPTER FORTY-THREE: PRICKLING SENSATIONS

HADLEY

By afternoon, Julian takes us downtown to the Civic Center park, where a massive, European-style holiday market and food truck festival has taken over the plaza. The air turns crisper as the sun begins to dip, the scent of roasting nuts, melted cheese, and hot apple cider hanging thick over the crowd. It’s lively, cozy, and unlike anything I’ve been to before.

We grab some food before walking side-by-side through the rows of wooden chalets, our fingers linked together inside Julian’s large coat pocket. He occasionally squeezes my hand and drops a kiss on top of my head, making me blush every time. Having him show his affection like this in public without any hesitation, or feeling the need to hide, is even more thrilling than the festival.

A few times throughout the afternoon, however, a strange, prickling sensation hits the back of my neck.

It happens when we’re standing near a hot cider booth. It’s like the sudden, uncomfortable feeling of eyes locking onto us from the crowd. I glance over my shoulder, my eyes scanning the sea of faces, but no one is paying attention to us. A few minutes later, as Julian is leaning down to kiss the top of my head outside a small coffee shop, the feeling hits me again, sharper this time.

“Julian?” I murmur, my fingers tightening around his arm as we walk down a quieter side street toward the downtown square.

“Yeah, sweetheart?”

“Do you…do you feel like someone is watching us?” I ask, my eyes cutting toward a guy in a dark baseball cap standing near a brick pillar twenty yards away, his hands buried in his pockets. “Like, specifically watching us? A few times today, I swear I felt someone tracking us.”

Julian pauses, his sharp eyes cutting across the perimeter, his body shifting into a rigid stance. He looks at the crowd, looks at the pillar, but the guy in the cap has already turned around to look at a menu board.

Julian lets out a slow breath, his shoulder dropping as he rubs the back of my hand with his thumb. “It’s just the crowd, Hadley. Maybe even a fan of the team. I get a lot of Night Hawks fans that watch me from a distance because they’re too nervous to get close. It’s fine. Besides, you’re still coming down from the skydiving rush. You’re hyper-aware. We’re fine, I promise.”

I let out a slow breath, forcing myself to nod. He’s right, I think, pushing the unease down. I’m just overthinking.

By the time evening descends, the gray winter twilight takes over Denver, and Julian drives us back toward the arena.

“Why are we here?” I ask, my brow furrowing as he pulls the truck into the empty player lot beneath the stadium. This day has been so amazing. I’d anticipated going back home and falling into bed together…I can’t imagine what we’re doing here.

“Come on,” he rumbles. A mysterious smile touches his lips as he grabs my hand and leads me through the quiet, underground tunnels of the arena.

The facility is completely dark. The massive concrete hallways are silent and empty. When Julian pushes open the heavy double doors leading out to the main ice rink, I stop dead in my tracks, my breath catching in my throat.

The massive overhead arena lights are shut off. Instead, the stadium is bathed in a low, soft amber glow from the perimeter concourse lights. Soft, instrumental music is drifting faintly through the massive speaker system, echoing off the empty tiers of seats. Sitting dead center, in the middle ice, is a small, round table draped in a white cloth. There are two chairs, and a small lantern casting a warm, flickering light across the pristine, smooth surface of the ice.

I stare at it, my mouth open in shock, before turning to look up at the man standing beside me.

“Julian,” I whisper, my eyes stinging with sudden tears. “Did you…did you do this?”

Julian shrugs, his cheeks turning a faint shade of pink in the amber light as he rubs the back of his neck. “Theo and a few of the guys helped me coordinate with the facility managers. It’s no big deal, Hadley. Just wanted to give you dinner without a restaurant crowd.”

“It is a very big deal,” I choke out, throwing my arms around his neck and burying my face in his chest. He holds me tight, his heavy chest rumbly against my cheek.

We walk out to center ice in our boots, the traction pads keeping us steady, and eat a hot, delicious meal Julian had ordered. He told me he had wanted to cook, but since they only landed this morning, he couldn’t wait another moment to see me.