Melting Away The Ice (THE ICE SERIES)

by Smith, Mary

  He kissed me gently, but I wanted more. I gently slid my tongue over his lips and the kiss became deeper. I could taste the beer on his tongue along with the sweetness of the pizza sauce. I could smell his cologne, just a hint a woodsy-spice, not over powering though. I pushed my hands through his soft hair and gripped the back of his neck.

  It was then I realized I was on my back and Lucas’ weight was on top of me. I moved my legs so that he was cradled in them perfectly. I could feel every inch of him and I wasn’t scared. I rocked against him and I could feel his hardness.

  Just as soon as it started, it ended. Lucas broke the kiss and put his forehead on mine. We both were trying to catch our breath and I was trying to stop shaking.

  “Sara, I need to stop or I might not be able too.” He voice shook with desire and all I could think about was kissing him again. Nevertheless, I knew what he meant and I nodded. He sat up and ran his hand through his hair, his eyes still clouded with desire and his face a little pale.

  “Lucas, are you okay?” I asked, my voice low with its own desire and concern for him.

  “Yes, I am. I just didn’t mean to get that carried away.” He smiled a sweet smile and stood up. “I do need to leave though. We both have early days.” Did I do something wrong?

  “Hey,” he said and grabbed my hand, “don’t over-think it. I can see it written on your face that you are thinking about it. Don’t. I just don’t want to go too fast. Okay?” He could see it on my face. Wow, he actually does pay attention to me.

  I nodded and stood up next to him. He gently placed a kiss on my lips and we walked to the door.

  “Will I see you at the game tomorrow night?” he asked.

  “Oh, I don’t know. I don’t have tickets.” I had forgotten that he played tomorrow.

  “I will get them for you and Rachel. I will call you later,” he kissed me one more time before walking down the hallway.

  Could these be real feelings or just lust?

  Oh, I think I am in trouble.

  Chapter 16 – Lucas

  “Max!” I yelled down the hall at my friend and teammate as he walked with Marc. I was still fuming mad thinking that he ran his mouth to Sara. They both turned to see me coming. “I’m going to kill you!”

  “What did I do?” He laughed as I got closer to him.

  “Don’t play all innocent with me. You told Sara I have not been in a relationship in two years,” I looked him dead in the eyes and dared him to lie back to me.

  “Look-“ he started.

  “No,” I threw my hand up to stop him, “there is no excuse for it. Why did you do that?”

  “Calm down, big guy.” He slapped my shoulder and all I wanted to do was punch him in the face. “I just didn’t want you to get involved with someone who didn’t like you back. I didn’t do it to be mean. I was trying to be your friend.” He looked sincere and I knew deep down he was trying to be a friend.

  I sighed. “Don’t try to be helpful again. Let me tell her about personal stuff, okay?” Max nodded. “Now let’s get ready for practice.” I slapped him on the back. I could not really stay mad at Max.

  Coach D was hard on us at practice today, but it was worth it. It was still early, but I could feel us getting stronger as a team and the Cup was within our grasp. After talking to Amy and making sure Sara and Rachel had tickets, I decided to text her.

  Me: Hey, tickets will be at the front gate, under your name.

  Sara: I haven’t told Rachel yet, but I am sure she will go.

  Me: Wanna grab lunch?

  Sara: Sorry, I can’t! I have stale crackers that I will enjoy while I work =)

  Stale crackers are not lunch. Maybe I could run something over to her office. I had the address on the card that Rachel had given me.

  Me: I will run some food by your work, then.

  Sara: That is nice of you but if you brought me food then you have to feed Rachel and our assistants & that is too much trouble.

  Me: Not any trouble =) be there soon.

  Sara: No No you don’t have to do that

  I was going to ignore that text and text the one person I knew would help me out.

  Me: if I were two bring lunch for 4 lovely ladies @ a law office what would they want

  Rachel: they would want ham & cheese subs from Sam’s on thirty-second & their homemade potato chips and bring extra for Charles

  Me: Charles?

  Rachel: our bodyguard =)

  I laughed and shook my head. I jumped into my car and headed for thirty-second street.

  I made to the eighth floor with a box of food. Getting off the elevator, I saw a security guard’s desk. An older gentleman, decked out in a security uniform and a gun sat behind it.

  “May I help you sir?” he asked professionally.

  “I’m bringing lunch for Sara Smith and you must be Charles,” I said.

  “Sorry, she is not here and yes I am.” I noticed that he moved his hand to his belt with a mean look on his face.

  “Um, I just spoke with her and Rachel…“ Just then I heard the door to his left unlock and we both turned to look. A young girl with long, dark, shiny hair stepped out. She had a bright smile on her face.

  “Lucas?” she asked. I nodded. “Charles, this is Lucas Sharp. He’s allowed to be on Sara’s list. It’s okay.” Her smile was just bright.

  Charles nodded. “Sorry about that, sir. I am just protecting Sara and the girls. We don’t need anything happening to her again.” I nodded. Again? What did that mean?

  “Come this way Lucas.” The young girl headed back towards the door, where she had to swipe her badge and put in a fingerprint for it to unlock. Are we going into the CIA?

  As she opened the door I saw a very small office, much smaller than I thought it would be. There were three desks in the middle and large office to the left and to the right. Straight ahead was a copy/file room and off to the side of that was a small kitchen area.

  I looked up and saw on the far back wall: Silver & Smith, Law Office. It was then that it hit me, she owns the law office.

  “Charity, where are those statues-“ Sara stopped dead in tracks as she came out of the office on the left side. “Lucas, what are you doing here?”

  I didn’t need to answer when I heard Rachel shout, “Yes, food is here!” and came out of the office to the right.

  I looked at an older lady at the desk near Rachel’s office as she piped back, “Stop shouting child. We can see the food is here.”

  “Lucas, you brought us lunch?” Sara had the most puzzled look on her face.

  “I thought this would be better than stale crackers?” I smiled sweetly at her.

  “Come this way, Lucas,” the young girl said. I followed her to the kitchen area, as Sara stood there. “By the way, I am Charity. I am Sara’s legal assistant. That is Betty and she is Rachel’s legal assistant.”

  “It is nice to meet you both. I’m Lucas and ladies, we have Sam’s ham and cheese subs with homemade potato chips. I also brought Charles lunch,” I announced.

  “I will run it to him,” Charity said cheerfully, grabbing the food and heading to the front.

  “Lucas would you like a bottle of water?” Betty asked as she was standing by the fridge.

  “Yes, thank you.” I placed the box of food on the table. Rachel came in and sat down. Betty placed five waters on the table. Charity came back and sat next to Betty. I started handing out subs to the ladies sitting at the table. Finally Sara came in and sat down, still looking confused.

  “How did you know we liked Sam’s?” Sara asked.

  “A little bird told me.” I winked at her. “I have to say, I thought I was coming to a huge law firm. I didn’t realize this was your place.” I looked at Sara as I sat down.

  “Yeah, we started this up a while ago,” Rachel piped in. “We worked at a big firm, but it didn’t work out. So, we grabbed Charity and Betty and left. We have one more girl who works for us, but it is only part time. Just to help out when needed.”


  “What happened at the larger firm?” I asked. I noticed all three ladies stopped eating and turned to Sara.

  “We needed a change,” Sara finally said. I felt the tension in the room getting thicker and I knew that there was more she was not telling me. All ladies have secrets, my mom would say. “And we didn’t grab Charity and Betty. We asked them to come with us,” Sara clarified.

  “You were not there the day we left. I grabbed them and was giving everyone a piece of my mind as I walked out,” Rachel proclaimed. Charity and Betty laughed. I could see in my mind that Rachel doing just that. She was short with a small frame, but she almost looked deadly at times.

  “I can see that from you, Rachel.” I said. Rachel smirked. She was definitely a handful.

  “How was practice?” Sara changed the subject.

  I shrugged. “It was good.”

  “You have a very young team this year, Lucas. Do you see a Cup in your future?” Betty joined into the conversation.

  “Yes we are, and hopefully this year. Are you a fan?” I asked. Betty was an older lady, probably older than my mother. Her hair was completely gray; she wore glasses, but was thinner and dressed very well.

  “My husband loved you guys very much.” She smiled sadly. Rachel patted her hand in a loving way and I got the impression the husband was not around.

  “Well, my son wants to be Marc Kane when he grows up. French accent and all,” Charity chimed in. This brought a laugh from the table. Charity went on to tell how her four-year-old son loved hockey and thought Marc’s accent was funny. She even explained that he does an impersonation of it.

  “All of you like hockey and not one of you could convince Sara,” I laughed.

  “No,” all three said.

  “Is this pick on Sara Day?” she asked as she folded her arms.

  “Yes, I sent the memo out,” Rachel quipped back at her and the rest of us laughed.

  “Rachel, you have a visitor,” the intercom went off beside us and the girls turned their head to the monitor above us. I thought it was just a TV screen, but could see a couple older gentlemen in professional suits looking into the monitor.

  “They are fine, Charles. You can let them in,” Rachel said back to the monitor. I was still a little shocked to see this place with such high security.

  Rachel stood up, threw away hers and Betty’s trash and walked over to me and hugged me. “Thank you Mr. Sharp, it was lovely.”

  I hugged her back. “You are very welcome.”

  Betty also stood up and shook my hand. “It was very good. Thank you, Lucas.” Then they both headed towards the door to meet the gentlemen.

  “Well, I have work that needs to be done,” Charity stated. “Thanks, Lucas, it was very yummy.”

  “You are very welcome, Charity.” I nodded at her and couldn’t help but smile at her. Her grin was contagious almost like Marc’s.

  “You have a great place here, Sara,” I leaned over and said once we were alone.

  She nodded. “Lucas, thanks for lunch. You didn’t have to, though.”

  “It was no biggie. Besides I wanted to see you.” I took her hand and looked at her. It was the first time I saw her hair up and she wasn’t wearing a scarf. I noticed the scars along her jaw and her neck. “Hey, where did you get these?” I ran my finger along her jaw. I saw her eyes get wide and she paled.

  “Um, I-“

  “Sara, sorry,” Charity popped back into the kitchen, “it’s the Judges’ office about the Johnson case and they want to talk to you now.”

  “I need to get back to work.” Sara stood up quickly.

  “I understand.” I stood too and gently touched her chin. “I will see you tonight.” I kissed her, then pulled back and looked into her green eyes. She bit her lip to hold back the smile on her face.

  Chapter 17 – Sara

  “You will have to tell him. I know you don’t want to, but come on you can’t hide it forever,” Rachel said as we walked into the arena. I had told her what happened in the kitchen when Lucas saw my scars.

  I nodded. Yet again, Rachel was right. The problem was, I didn’t know if I could talk about it. “I should wait until we are serious. I mean, we haven’t really become a ‘couple’.” I air quoted.

  “He wants to be a ‘couple’,” she quoted back to me sarcastically. “Trust me, I see the way he looks at you.”

  “Let’s go sit down.” I pulled her sleeve towards our seats, the same seats as last time. I was sitting there staring at the Zamboni going around the ice when I started thinking about Lucas. There was something about him that I wanted. Yes, he was good-looking, but there was more. The way he talked about his family, his friends, and hockey. He had pride, confidence and was all around a wonderful person.

  It hit me like a puck to a goalie. I wanted to be a couple with him. I didn’t want to be alone and sad all the time. I wanted my life before Jake, before the beating and before I lost myself. Rachel and I used to go out dancing, shopping, and hung out with friends. I used to go to the movies and enjoyed being around people. I would also sit at home, read a book and enjoy being by myself. I loved to cook and have friends over. Now, I was scared all the time and I didn’t know who I was.

  I can’t do this anymore. I need to be me again.

  “When was the last time we went to a bar and danced?” I blurted out to Rachel. She looked at me like I grew a third eye.

  “I don’t know. It has to be at least a year and half,” she guessed.

  “We need to go out.” With that statement, Rachel grabbed the pop from my hand and sniffed it. “What are you doing?”

  “Just checking to see if it was spiked. What has gotten into you?” She looked at me puzzled.

  I huffed, sat up straight and blurted it out: “I’m tired of living this way. I like Lucas and he is not Jake. I am tired of being scared and alone. I think I just had a realization about my life and I want me back.” Rachel leapt into my arms, giving me the biggest hug.

  “I am so glad! I knew that you would come back.”

  Just then the crowd cheered and the Eagles took the ice. My eyes wandered until I found number eighty. As always, he was the last on the ice. He skated around a few times before making eye contact with me. His signature smirk came across his face and my knees weakened.

  He went over to center ice and prepared for the game. Watching him on the ice was nothing less than perfection. He looked like he was home. He would yell out commands to his teammates and they would follow, like a general with his army. It was amazing to watch. I caught myself a few times yelling for the team, holding my breath when they would shoot, and cheering if they made it. I couldn’t help it. The roar of the crowd and the atmosphere sucked me right into the game.

  After three periods and two intermissions the game was over. Eagles won four to zero. I never heard a louder crowd. When it was all over, Rachel and I headed to the tunnel on the far side of the rink. Lucas had texted me earlier and told me to meet him there. Rachel had informed me that we were standing just down the hallway of the men’s’ locker room. She looked like she was about to burst and I had to say, for the first time I was actually not nervous to see Lucas. I was looking forward to it. It seemed like we were waiting there forever when I saw Max emerge from the locker room.

  “Rachel, my future girlfriend, I am so glad that you are waiting for me.” He came over and put his arms around her shoulders.

  “No, Mr. Non-Norris-Trophy-Winner, I am not. I’m waiting with Sara for Lucas,” she fired back, crossing her arms. Max put his hand over his heart like he’d been shot and stumbled back. I laughed and felt someone put their arms around me. I looked up to see Lucas rolling his eyes at Max. Then he leaned down and kissed my temple. I was so happy at that moment that I laid my head on his chest. It felt wonderful. I could see that he just got out of the shower, from his lightly damp hair and fresh smell.

  “Sharp, I am so lost now. My future girlfriend just shot me down. What am I going to do now?” Max’s
dramatic theatrics were hilarious. I could not help but laugh and Lucas did too. Rachel just rolled her eyes.

  “Would you ladies like to have dinner with us?” Lucas looked down at me and over to Rachel.

  “I am going to say ‘no’.” Rachel declared. “I have work tomorrow and I have lots to do. You all go out and have fun.” I stared at her in disbelief. I figured Rachel would never turn down food.

  “You know, Luc, I’m a little tired, too. I will catch you on the plane in the morning,” Max slapped his shoulder as he turned to Rachel. “My lady,” he held is elbow out to her. “May I walk you out?” Rachel rolled her eyes at Max’s fake English accent but took his elbow.

  Lucas whispered in my ear, “How about dinner, beautiful?”

  Yep, my heart is going to burst.

  “Hey,” I turned to face him and put my hands on his chest, “how about take-out and my place?” I smiled sweetly at him.

  “I have to be home by seven AM to get ready for the road trip,” he winked back.

  “Road trip?”

  “Yeah, we are heading to St. Louis, Dallas, and Colorado for the next week,” he stated.

  “Oh,” I looked down, “I didn’t realize you would be gone.” I knew they traveled a lot but I hadn’t considered about how much.

  “Well, I’m in love with your idea. Let’s get out of here.” He grabbed my hand and we headed down the long hallway. All I could do was smile.

  Chapter 18 – Lucas

  Agreeing to go back to her place, might be a bad idea. The other night I almost ripped her clothes off right there on the couch. But, I just couldn’t stay away from her.

  We grabbed some take-out before entering back into her apartment. Walking into her place was almost serene. It smelled clean with a hint of sweet, just like her. I could see her all around the place. I put everything on the table as she brought out plates and silverware. She was wearing a black Eagles t-shirt with a red Eagles scarf and a great pair of jeans. I couldn’t help but look at the amazing boots that she was wearing. I just could not stop staring at her.