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We had it in the bag. I could feel it. We were sosoclose.
Keep your head in it, Kessel,I ordered myself.
We had one more jump to go– a throw triple loop– and then we were finished with the program, and we’d probably be in the lead. The only issue was that my legs were starting to feel like jell-o. No matter how many times you practiced a program run-through, you could never fully prepare your stamina for a competition day program… because your heart, brain, and muscles were just not functioning the same as usual on competition days.
I breathed steadily and pushed into our last stretch of footwork. I glided into the edge roll seamlessly, and I could feel Andy’s hands go around my waist in preparation for the throw jump.
Okay, glide into position, knee bounce, tight back edge, launch up, pull in…
And…
Landed.
I could hear the crowd erupt. We just hit a clean program.
My smile was making my face hurt, but I couldn’t help it. I was so incredibly happy. We finished out our last spiral sequence easily and did one last lift we could practically do in our sleep…
Then we stopped mid-ice, I twirled into him, and then laid sprawled out on his knee like I was dead– for the whole Juliet character thing.
The crowd erupted again, and I couldn’t help but smile, even though I was still technically pretending to be a dead Juliet.
When Andy pulled me up out of our ending position, he lifted me into a hug.
“Great job. We nailed that,” Andy whispered into my hair, and I could hear the smile in his voice.
“We really did,” I confirmed.
I loved our partnership. We both respected each other as athletes and people, and we had great chemistry. It also helped that we were on the same page about our main goal: the 2026 Winter Olympics.
Andy took my hand and twirled me out to take a bow, and that’s when I finally made eye contact with Duke. I could easily pick him out in the crowd because he was in the middle of a little sea of hockey men. He was standing up and cupping his hands around his mouth to yell. I blew him a kiss as I waved to the crowd.
“You see your man up there?” Andy whispered to me.
“Yeah,” I couldn't help but let out a little giggle.
“That’s nice he showed up with his friends,” he said as we turned to bow in the opposite direction. It was custom to bow in all four directions when competing in large stadiums like this one.
I loved this little moment on the ice because it was the “after” part that you dreamt of for weeks leading up to the actual competition. I could practically feel all the nerves and adrenaline leaving my body, and I was already mentally planning my victory dinner. I’d ask Duke to take me somewhere with truffle fries and tasty cocktails.
“Yeah, it was nice of them to come.” I bit my lip, trying to contain my giddiness as I looked up at Duke in the stands again. He shot me a wink, and we kept eye-contact as Andy and I glided off the ice holding hands. “I’m gonna marry that boy one day,” I whispered.
Coming soon
-Our Breakaway:
Ice League Book 5 (Addie’s story)
-Our Alumni Game
Turn the page for a sneak peek of
Our Breakaway: Ice League Book 5
Prologue
“I can’t do this!” Claire burst out. She looked at me with wide eyes. “Fuck it, Addie, I’m out.”
I watched her kick off her heels, gather up her poofy white skirts, and start bolting to the door.
