Checkmate

11

Valerie and Nathan were out on the ice. She was glad he was able to skate. She would have felt ridiculous if she had brought him all the way out here and he could not even stand up on the blades. He was even able to dance with her on the ice. It would have been beautiful to watch if she was not the one skating. They seemed to be in perfect sync.

"I am so glad you could skate I would have felt the fool for bringing you out here otherwise."

"Do you like to skate a lot?"

"I love to skate it is something I am very good at. One could say I am passionate about it.
"Is that all you are passionate about?"

She laughed dare she tell him what else she recently became passionate about. What could it hurt.

"I have decided that I am passionate about kissing. I think that is my favorite passion now at least as of today."

He had to laugh she was so naive and honest.

"Anyone special who made you passionate for kissing."

"Mayhap but if he does not want to kiss me some more I have decided to see if others can inflame my soul as he has done."

He pulled her to him and held her close to his body. She was getting overheated again just by his mere closeness.

"You will not kiss anyone other than me, young lady."

She laughed at his statement.

"Does this mean you are passionate about kissing me also?"

He did not answer her he showed her instead. The kiss was full of want and need and Valerie was happy to give him what he wanted. Valerie heard a popping sound she thought it was funny, but she was feeling funny all over. Then she realized something had struck the gazebo. Nathan pulled away when he realized the noise they were hearing was gun fire. Someone was targeting them, and it was a good thing he was a terrible shot.

Nathan needed to get Valerie to safety, but the only place they could go was the gazebo, but it would be better than nothing until he could think of a better place for them to run to.

"Valerie sweetheart, I need you to listen to me and remain perfectly calm."

She could not speak he had called her sweetheart. She could only confirm she was listening by the shake of her head. When he was assured of her attention he continued.

"Someone is shooting at us, and we need to get to safety. The only place to go is the forest, or the gazebo, but we need to get out of the open. Do you understand?"

She came out of her fog. She looked over where the buggy was and realized they would not be able to get their footwear, whatever they did they were going to have to do it on skates.

"There is a hunting lodge about a mile up my family owns. I have only been their once, but it is over in that direction. If we skate fast, we can make it to that end of the lake without being shot. Once we get to the row of trees there is a place the men store winter boots we can change and run."

She was amazing. Valerie did not even seem upset she came up with a plan and she was right the best thing to do was to get to the boots and up to the hunting lodge and out of the open.

"On three we will break away from each other and skate as fast as you can. One, two, three."

They took off towards the row of trees she was ahead of him. The next shot fired just missed Valerie. Something was bothering Nathan he was closer to the shooter why not take a shot at him instead of her? Then it dawned on him she was the intended target. He had to get to her he skated faster.