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“No, Mom. It’s true. Neither of you trust me to do this on my own. You both think I need a therapist or one of you hovering over me so I don’t screw up. But I don’t need help. There’s a champion in me and she’s bringing her A game today. Nothing is going to stop me. Nothing is going to distract me. I’m going to get out there and win. And when I do, you will accept Clint.”
With that, I give them each a hug, then kiss Clint right on the lips.
He smiles down at me and whispers, “You’ve got this. That gold is waiting for you.”
I walk away from the three of them, head held high, knowing he’s right.
I am the last to skate today, so when the song ends, I don’t have to wait to find out if I am a champion. I will find out in about one minute. I stand on the ice, panting as flowers are tossed onto the rink. The scores aren’t up yet, but I’m already crying tears of joy, because even if I don’t win, I’ve just completed a perfect program. I’ve never flown so high or been so graceful in my life as I was in the last two minutes. I landed every jump, I gave it everything I had, and for the first time, it was enough. I know it.
I skate around and pick up the bouquets, waving to the crowd before I step off and sit down next to my coach. It’s like everything is happening in slow motion as I hear my score being called out and I see them appear on the television screen in front of me. Pierre sits next to me, crying and laughing and shouting, “Gold! We did it!”
Tears spill out of my eyes and down my cheeks as I sob, exhausted and filled with joy. He hugs me and I hug him back, then pull away so I can stand and wave to my parents. They’re both crying and hugging each other and waving to me. I blow them kisses and then search for Clint. I realize that I don’t know where he is, and I start to feel a bit panicky because I can’t wait to celebrate with him. Then I hear his voice behind me.
“You did it, Dani. I’m so proud of you.”
I turn to him and throw my arms around him. We kiss wildly and he lifts me up in his arms. I know that the TV cameras must be broadcasting this back home and that this will be huge news, but I don’t even care. In fact, I’m thrilled about the world knowing he’s mine.
When he pulls back, I say, “I couldn’t have done this without you.”
“As much as I’d like to take credit, it was all you.”
That night, we go for dinner with my parents and the rest of the team to celebrate. Tasha won bronze, and Brooke got nothing, so she spends most of the evening pouting in the corner. Clint sits next to me, his hand on my thigh as we eat. My parents are so thrilled about my win that they’re actually talking to Clint and being nice which gives him the perfect opportunity to not only redeem himself, but to impress them with what a thoughtful and smart guy he is underneath that cocky façade.
When we leave the restaurant, we walk them back to their hotel. We stand outside the lobby for a moment and my dad turns to Clint and says, “I may have been wrong about you, Clint.”
“Thank you, Mr. Cruz. I totally understand why you were upset.”
“Call me, Tom.”
“Tom?” Clint stifles a laugh with what I’m pretty sure is everything he’s got.
My dad rolls his eyes. “Yeah, I know, I know. The actor.”
My mom shud
ders in the cold night air. “We should let these two get some sleep. Clint has an important game tomorrow.”
“Oh, right. I was so excited about Dani’s win that I forgot we’re going to kick some Canadian butt tomorrow.” Clint squeezes my hand.
Later, as I climb into bed, I see a small black box sitting on my pillow. “What’s this?”
“It’s just a little something to seal the deal we made a week ago.” Clint, who was already in bed, props himself up on one arm and smiles at me.
“Is that your lame-ass way of proposing?” I give him a sassy look.
“No,” Clint, says, kissing me softly on the lips. “This is. Danika Cruz, I have never loved another woman the way I love you. I know it’s fast and it’s crazy, but I also know it’s right. Will you make me the happiest man on the planet and say yes to being my wife?”
I nod, tears filling my eyes. “I will,” is all I manage to say.
He kisses me long and deep and soon he’s inside me, our bodies moving together in the perfection that is us. The world floats away and I lose myself in his eyes and in the promise that tomorrow brings. When we come, this time it’s different. Our eyes are locked on each other and it’s full of a tender passion that makes me want to weep. Neither of us say anything about it, but we don’t bother with the condom this time and I know it’s because Clint wants to make this the start of our forever every bit as much as I do.
When it’s over, he finally opens the box and shows me the ring. It’s an enormous round diamond set in a band of diamonds.
“Wow. I gave the right answer,” I say, then try to contain my excitement while he slips the ring on my finger.
The flight home feels fast to me. That’s because I’m sitting next to my future husband. We both go home with gold medals, except I have two of them, so I get to tease him about only having half as many golds as me. We snuggle together in the seats and watch movies, then sleep wrapped in each other’s arms until we land at L.A.X.
We’ve already figured out that I’m going to move in with Clint, which should work out nicely, since Hunter is moving out, having found love with a reporter. My parents aren’t thrilled that I’ll be moving in with Clint, but I think they can see how perfect we are together and they’re starting to trust that he has the very best intentions when it comes to their little girl. Well, mostly…
