Page 20 of Shining Through

The kiss they’d shared in the bar had left him ravenous for more. Her soft, responsive mouth and taut, athlete’s body displayed in tight clothes, had tempted him in every way possible. At the same time, he sensed that if he hoped for anything beyond tonight, he needed to let her set the pace. If he pushed too hard, or too fast, she’d shut him out. Better to be patient, and let her set the rules, just like the pool game.

On the train, she’d stayed in her Hildegard character. Though it was a little strange, he understood. For Tabitha, the role play was safe. Her alter-ego could get away with doing things she felt she couldn’t. An athlete didn’t reach her level by giving into her impulses, a lesson he was only now learning. He admired her discipline, though he realized the steep price she’d paid for it.

So tonight, after a disappointing day, she deserved to have fun. They’d just passed a dessert café and Tabitha halted on the sidewalk. Daniil caught the aroma of chocolate. Yelena and the other female skaters he knew always craved sweets. “Hungry?”

“Not particularly.”

He followed her gaze, which wasn’t fixed on the chocolate shop, but on the place next door. An old cinema, turned into a music club. A crowd milled around the entrance and through the open front doors, he heard a band playing. Tabitha’s white-frosted lips curved into a smile. She gave a decisive nod and grabbed his hand. “Here.”

He paid the cover, and they went inside, weaving through the crowd that filled the auditorium. Onstage, a five piece band, led by a guy playing a red electric guitar, rocked through a song about dead bodies in a swamp. Gruesome lyrics, but catchy tune. Though there wasn’t a designated dance floor, everyone in this sea of people was moving to the music. Tabitha did too.

As a fit figure skater with a natural sense of music, her sensuous dance meshed with the mid-tempo song. Eyes closed, one hand buried in her hair, she moved and swayed, lost in the music the way she’d been at the practice rink when she’d glided on her sexy edges.

Daniil moved with her and as hot swarm of bodies pushed them together, he grasped the sides of her open leather jacket, pulling her even closer. She opened her eyes and tossed back her head, then looped her arms around his shoulders.

It wasn’t a slow-dancing kind of song, nor were the ones after that, but he rested his hands on her hips and followed her sinuous movements. When the set ended, he leaned in, breathing in the exotic scents of patchouli and flowers, and murmured in her ear. “I like the way you move.”

“I like the way you move, too. I’m hot,” she said, as she slipped off her jacket.No argument there.“Let’s get a drink.”

She grabbed his hand and marched toward the bar. All he had to do was admire her slim but muscular body as she wove them through the crowd, a woman on a mission. The downstairs bar was mobbed, but Daniil spied a staircase in the corner which led to the balcony that jutted out over the main floor. Upstairs, though still crowded, he found space for them at the bar. He signaled the bartender for two beers. But Tabitha put her hand on his arm. “Actually… I want a chocolate martini.”

“With whipped cream and a cherry?” Tabitha’s day-off cravings weren’t much different from Yelena’s.

“And a drizzle of syrup.”

The bartender’s brows shot up beneath his beanie, and he shook his head in hipster disdain. Tabitha was oblivious or didn’t give a damn. Daniil suspected the latter.

The drink came in an oversized pink martini glass, topped with whipped cream, and a swirl of chocolate syrup. She wrapped her luscious lips around the skinny red straw and took a generous sip, then sighed, glowing with blissful satisfaction. “Amazing. Just like I knew it would be.”

“You’ve never had one?”

She slanted him a look. “Ever hear of calories? Chocolate martinis are on the forbidden list, along with donuts, ice cream, French fries, late nights. And bad boys.” She plucked the cherry from the whipped cream peak and popped it in her mouth. Daniil felt a hot ache in his groin.

“Your forbidden list seems long.”

She propped her chin on her fist, and peered at him, brow furrowed. “Is it true what you said, about not wanting to get tied down, so you can be free to enjoy any woman you want?”

God, why had he said that? It might have been true before, but Tabitha Turner could be the game-changer. “I’d say it’s true until I meet the right woman. She could ask me for the moon and stars, and I would happily give her that and more.”

“Your heart? Your faithfulness?” She scoffed. “That sounds like a line to me.”

“And you sound like a cynic. Why don’t you believe I would be true to the woman I loved?”

“Your reputation precedes you, Bad Boy of Russian figure skating.”

The role play was cracking. “Maybe I’m ready to change.”

“Yeah, right. I’ve heard that song a few times.”

He stilled. “And you’ve been hurt?”

Her gaze hardened. “Never. But I’ve seen it happen to others. Personally, I haven’t given anyone the chance.”

Something besides skating pressure had given rise to the Ice Queen. Though he was curious what that might be, she’d turned back to her drink, savoring every sip as though she’d never have another. When it was gone, she gave a bright, playful smile. True confessions were over, and the blue-haired fem-bot just wanted to have fun.

The next place that grabbed her interest was a comedy club, and when the MC asked for an audience volunteer, she shocked Daniil by raising her hand. Called to the stage, she answered the MC’s questions, in perfect, slightly zany character. When the midnight show was over, and Saturday night slipped into Sunday, she headed to the all-night diner across the street.

She dug into a plate of cinnamon French toast—also on her lengthy forbidden list. He stirred his coffee, still trying to get his thoughts around the beautiful, but complicated woman seated across the table. His phone chimed a text, and he glanced down. The number wasn’t familiar, but the message showed a photo of Ruslan and Tabitha’s cousins. He smiled and aimed the phone’s camera at Tabitha, who looked up, alarmed and raised her hands to block her face.

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