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"I guess that's a good thing, then?"
"For them it's awesome. And it's really okay that they're not here. I get enough cheering from the fans."
She reache
d out and touched his hand. "But you miss your family being here."
He'd reconciled himself to his mom and dad not being there the first time. It was enough that they wanted to come. He knew the realities of their lives. He'd lived his childhood through the rough times, all the times only one parent--or sometimes neither--had showed up at his hockey games. It had become a part of his life. And they'd always supported him, encouraged him and made sure he could do what he loved. He would never make them feel guilty for the choices they made. "It is what it is. They're making what they feel are the right choices for themselves."
"I suppose that's true. Sometimes I wish my mother hadn't been at some of my events."
"A little overbearing?"
She laughed. "She can be at times. Which is why I love being here at the village."
"So you can hide out from her?"
She offered up a serene smile. "It's magical here. I'm on my own. I can make my own decisions without being told what to eat, what to wear, what time to go to bed and who I can or can't see."
"Come on. Surely she's not that bad."
"She's that bad. I know it comes from a place of love. She's a former dancer. She understands discipline and what it takes to be a winner. But sometimes . . ."
She didn't finish the sentence.
"Sometimes you'd just like her to back off and be your mom instead of your coach?"
"Something like that. Aren't your parents the same way?"
He laughed. "Honestly, not at all. My parents taught me a work ethic. You get up in the morning and you show up when you're needed. No one's going to make a success of yourself but you. If you want to win, you push hard. That kind of thing. Hockey is in our blood. My dad played in high school, and my little brother and I were on skates as soon as we could walk. But if I'd wanted to be an accountant or a doctor or anything in between, my parents would have been fine with that, too, as long as we worked hard at whatever we chose, and as long as we loved what we were doing."
Amber dragged in a breath, then let it out. "That's really sweet. To have that kind of support, to know they're always going to have your back, is everything."
He leaned back in his chair. "So what if you decided to give up figure skating like tomorrow, Amber? What would your mother think about that?"
She gave him a straight stare. "I . . . well, I wouldn't give it up. It's just not possible."
"Why? Because you love it, because it's in your blood, or because it's what your mother wants?"
She continued to look at him and he could see her mind working, could feel the emotional knot of tension balling up inside of her.
Finally, she picked up her phone. "Oh, I need to go get ready. It's almost time for me to get on the ice." She stood.
He got up, too. "Sure."
She grabbed her coat. "The run was great. Thanks for coming with me."
"Anytime."
"So, I'll . . . see you later?"
"Yeah. See you later."
She gave him a sweet smile and walked away. He watched her, more curious about her now than ever. He wished she'd opened up more about how she really felt. But she didn't know him well enough to trust him with her feelings yet. He understood that. To her, he was just some guy she'd had breakfast with, that she'd run with. She likely thought he was some random dude--probably one of hundreds she'd met--that was trying to get into her pants.
But he wasn't that guy. He liked her and he could tell she was a ball of tension and nervousness. If she could just let go and be who she wanted to be, she'd be a lot happier.
Then again, who the hell was he to tell her how to live her life? It wasn't like he was some goddamn expert. He really knew nothing about her.
Why did he even care? He'd never cared before about any of the women he met here. Hell, they'd been mostly hookups. Satisfying ones on both sides, but it wasn't like they'd ever delved deeply into their backgrounds. The games were for winning at your sport, and when you weren't competing, you were out having some fun.
So why was he so into Amber? Okay, the why was obvious. She was beautiful. But there was a haunted quality about her that intrigued the hell out of him, too. Admittedly, he was interested in the physical side, for sure. But there was an emotional side to her that he wanted to tap into and get to know. And for Will, that was a damn first.
He should probably bag it and concentrate on the hockey and leave women with baggage alone.
He made a mental note to do just that and grabbed his coat, determined to focus on competing and fun. Nothing more.
FIVE
AMBER STRETCHED, MAKING SURE TO GET HER FULL extensions while she was on the carpet and before she ever put on her skates.
"Did you run this morning?" Valeria asked.
"Of course I did." Her trainer was always on top of her physical routine.
"When was the last time you skated?" Yegor, her coach, asked.
"In Colorado, with you, right before I flew over here. So . . . three days ago?"
Yegor waved his hand in disgust. "Bah. You'll be rusty."
She rolled her eyes. What was she supposed to do? Ice up the aisle on the plane? She loved her coach, but sometimes the man was ridiculous.
"I won't be rusty. I'm never rusty."
"Get on ice," Yegor said. "We'll see."
Now it was her turn to wave her hand. "As soon as I'm done stretching."
"Yes," Valeria said. "Go away, Yegor. We're not finished here."
Yegor glared at Valeria. "And who is in charge?"
Valeria glared back. "Right now? That would be me."
Amber fought back her grin at the two of them arguing. Yegor and Valeria had been married for twenty-five years. They'd been her trainer and coach since she was ten. She loved them both and they were like her second set of parents. In fact, she'd spent more time with Yegor and Valeria than she had with her own parents, so she was used to the two of them bickering with each other, typically over training versus skating. She'd also seen them cry and embrace each other when she won an event.
She adored them, even if on occasion they did get on her last nerve.
She lifted her head and thought about that. Yeah, they really were like her parents.
"Lie down," Valeria said. "We need to stretch your hamstrings."
She lay on her back on the carpet and lifted her left leg, letting Valeria give her a full stretch. "Was it like this for the two of you in Ukraine?"
"Like what?" Valeria asked.
"Always arguing?"
Valeria laughed. "When we skated together, it was even worse. Always the arguing. And you know Yegor, he has the loud voice."
She looked up at Valeria. "Did he make you cry?"
Valeria smirked. "No, he made me yell louder."
Amber laughed. She could see that. Valeria was no shrinking violet. Though she was petite, she possessed both an inner and an outer strength, and Amber had never once seen her back down to Yegor when she thought she was right, especially where Amber was concerned. Valeria watched Amber like a hawk, and when she thought Amber was injured or tired, she'd pull her off the ice for a break or a rub down.
She couldn't have gotten this far, especially the past four years, without either of them. When she'd told them both she wanted to compete again, neither of them hesitated. They had both been completely supportive of her decision. She trusted them implicitly. She knew they had her back, and if either of them felt she wasn't up to the task, either body-wise or talent-wise, they would have told her. That had given her the confidence to take another shot at winning the gold. And both had helped her get ready for the grueling competition.
After Valeria finished, Amber felt limber and ready for the ice. She put on her skates, her adrenaline pumping despite this being nothing more than a practice skate. But it was on the competition ice, and to her, that meant step one in readying herself for this race for the win.
As she laced up her skates, she looked around, sizing up her competitors. Tia was already there, listening to her c
oach talk to her. There was also Olena Brutka from Ukraine, who had come in second in the Worlds last year. She was damn good and Amber had been keeping an eye on her.
Besides, Tia, though, Amber's fiercest competition would be Sasha Petrova of Russia. She had seen Sasha's routine. It was nearly perfect. Sasha was an ice queen who rarely, if ever, made mistakes. She was eighteen, in her skating prime, and everyone was talking as if this was her year.
Amber intended to prove everyone wrong. All she had to do was skate her best, because her routine was without flaws. It was also tough as hell. But if she could pull it off, she stood a solid chance at winning the gold.
The announcers told them to take the ice and her heart skipped a beat.
It's just practice, Amber. Relax.
"Go on," Yegor said, making flapping motions with his hands. "Skate."
She nodded and stepped out onto the ice, gliding along with the other skaters. There was no music, there would be no routines performed today. Instead, she'd limber up and get the feel for the arena, for the way the ice was set up. She started off skating the entire circumference, measuring it in her head so she'd know how much room she had when she performed her routine. Measurement-wise it was the same as any other ice arena she'd performed in, but until she familiarized herself with this one, it was foreign to her. So she went around and around several times until she acclimated, until she could do it with her eyes closed, mentally counting every step.
Once she'd done that, she started to twirl, to skate backward, to ease into her comfort zone. She ignored the other skaters around her as she went into her first jump, a double toe loop, getting a feel for the landing, how the ice felt under her skates.
She felt comfortable. Solid. Secure. That initial jump had felt good, so she tried a double axel and eased out of it with no problem. She didn't perform any of her routine, just glided along the ice and occasionally worked into a jump at various parts of the ice to gain some familiarity.
When it was her turn to get off, she did so reluctantly. She could have spent hours on the ice and she so wanted to work her routine, to see how it felt. But they could only allow six skaters on the ice at a time, so she skated to the base of the gate and stepped off easily.
"How did it feel?" Yegor asked.
She gave Yegor a confident smile. "Like I was at home."
Yegor nodded. "Good. Good. Tomorrow you'll go through routine. Then we'll see."
"How do you feel?" Valeria asked.
"I feel awesome. Limber. No aches or pains."
