Page 15 of Have a Bear-y Little Christmas
“’That doesn’t cover ice skating, apparently.”
“Lame.”
Lame indeed.
I didn’t give up, though, because what kind of example would that be for my girls? Even in the frigid air, it wasn’t long before I was coveredin sweat, and I knew I would be hurting in the morning. It didn’t help that I had to dress warmer than I normally would so I could blend in with the many humans around. What was the point of running so hot when I had to pretend that ninety-eight degrees was my normal resting temperature?
After twenty minutes that felt like four hours, I kind of managed to stand upright and scoot along, but I certainly wouldn’t call myselfgraceful.Meanwhile, Addy was navigating smoothly through multiple groups, and Eva had learned how to spin in a careful circle.
“I think I’m gonna have to take a break, guys,” I said, a bit embarrassed by how much I was panting. “You two have fun. I’ll watch from the benches.”
“Okay, Dad.”
“Okies, Daddy.”
That was my girls—brave as all get out.
I made it to the benches after a long, unsteady journey to the closest exit, and I was intensely grateful that my shifter healing stopped my muscles from getting too sore. Plopping myself down none-too-gracefully, I pulled out my phone and took some pictures and filmed a few clips.
I sat for a few minutes, until I was certain they were all right. I probably wouldn’t be getting back on the ice anytime soon,so I took my skates off and put my boots back on.Muchmore comfortable.
My stomach rumbled. I glanced back at the rink. Addy and Eva had joined a group of kids and were doing a conga line across the rink, and they seemed in their element, so I headed over to one of the snack booths.
The line was pretty long, which made sense considering the crowd, and I could smell all sorts of delicious things. Hot apple cider. Mulled Wine. Hot chocolate. The majority of the crowd seemed to be ordering that.
Lovely, but not for me. I needed to cool down so I could stop sweating up a monsoon.
I ended up settling on a fully loaded hot dog and a cold beer along with a bottle of icy water. I knew the girls would want something as well, but I’d wait until they got off the ice.
With all my stuff bought, I returned to an open spot on the bleacher seating around the rink and watched as my girls laughed, skated, and generally had all sorts of childhood fun. It wasn’t our first time skating, but I didn’t remember them being quite so fast or confident.
My babies were growing up.
I wished Zara could see it. She’d be beside herself. She’d loved watching our girls be girls. She once told me that even though she had to miss out on a lot as a kid, it was a special blessing to her that she got to watch her children experience everything she couldn’t.
Well, I’d just take some extra pictures and take them with me the next time we went to visit her gravestone.
So I did just that, eating and drinking with one hand. Would some be a little blurry or at a crooked angle? Sure. But that didn’t matter. It was?—
My pleasant thoughts were cut off when, one moment Addy was skating backward and talking to her little sister, the next she was flat on her back and skidding.
No!
I was up on my feet and at the edge of the ice before remembering that I didn’t have skates on. I hesitated, wondering if I should go put them on, but then Addy startedwailing.
I stepped onto the ice and started sliding, waving my arms to keep my balance. It wasn’t my first the rodeo when it came to cuts, scrapes, or bruises, which was why I was so concerned. Addy generally sniffled and usually preferred to go in and read or sleep after a painful accident.
“Daddy! Daddy!” Eva called. “Addy! It’s Addy!”
“I’m here!” I nearly pitched forward. “I’m coming, Addy!”
But I wasn’t the only one listening. From the corner of my eye, I saw a few other adults had stopped skating and were now heading toward my daughter, but a small boy reached her first.
“Hey there, friend. Are you okay?” I was pretty sure that the rink was too loud for others to hear him, but with my enhanced senses, I could pick up the conversation.
“It’s blood! There’s so… so much blood,” Addy sobbed.
“Yeah, it looks like you got a pretty bad cut. Went through your leggings! Is the blood scaring you?”
