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Her mouth firmed and minutes ticked by as they crawled up the hill.
Bringing the buggy to a halt before large studio doors, he stopped her as she went to get out. ‘I don’t like it when you’re quiet. If there’s something on your mind, spit it out.’
Dull blue eyes met his. ‘I thought you didn’t like it when I used my smart mouth?’
His gaze dropped to the plump lips in question and heat dredged through him. ‘I’m finding that I prefer it to your silence.’
She froze. They stared at each other for several charged seconds, the atmosphere growing thick and sultry, until she broke the connection and jumped from the buggy. ‘Be careful what you wish for or I may never shut up again,’ she said over her shoulder.
Deciding that it wasn’t a scenario he was completely dissatisfied with, Draco followed her into the facility. The main feature was the enormous ice rink, around which several specialist gyms and sports-health centres had been installed. He found Arabella in the weights room, inspecting the state-of-the-art equipment.
She looked up as he entered. ‘I’m in charge of my own training this weekend so the bench press is out of the question.’
‘What are you swapping it with?’
‘Free weights.’
He shook his head. ‘You can’t switch this far into the training.’
‘It’s only for this weekend. I talked it over with my trainer.’
‘A small change can go a long way to hurt you. If you don’t need to change it, don’t. I’ll spot you.’
Her eyes widened. ‘Don’t you have other stuff to attend to?’
‘They will be dealt with. But not at the risk of neglecting your training.’
She blinked at him, her mouth dropping open to form responses that never emerged. Again he felt the gravity of unspoken words.
When minutes ticked by, he gritted his teeth. ‘Are you happy with that?’
A shrug lifted her shoulders. ‘Sure. If you want.’
As they left the gym the sound of blades cutting across ice filled the hall below. They both paused and watched as Carla, dressed in a white leotard, glided across the frozen surface.
She moved with effortless grace, years of practice making her fearless as she executed jumps and pirouettes that had seen her rise to the top of her game.
As he watched her, the wretched pain that came with wondering what Maria could’ve been slammed into him. Gripping the railing, he stared at the figure below and saw the image of his sister, her wide, infectious smile lighting her face as she did the only thing she’d ever dreamt of doing.
‘She’s breathtaking.’
He heard the voice from afar, lost as he was in tormenting memories. ‘Yes, she is,’ he breathed, still unable to take his eyes off the figure. Draco wasn’t sure how long he stood there, wishing he could change the past. Knowing he couldn’t.
When he resurfaced, Arabella had moved a short distance away, facing away from the railing with her arms folded. Her face was averted, but he caught the pain etched deep into her profile.
About to call her name, demand that she tell him what was wrong once and for all, he froze as a dark tingling seized his nape. A door slammed shut at the far side of the rink and he watched a figure glide to where Carla had stopped in the middle of the ice.
Every nerve in Draco’s body tightened as he recognised the man.
‘Draco?’ Rebel’s voice came from a tunnel of darkness.
‘Hmm?’
‘Are you okay?’
‘No,’ he bit out.
‘What’s going on?’
‘That man Carla’s talking to. That’s Tyson Blackwell.’
Arabella turned around, glanced down at the ice. ‘Did you know he was going to be here?’
‘No. Olivio chose not to inform me of that fact.’ His grip tightened around the smooth railing, the urge to rip it from its moorings clawing at him.
‘Right. As devious as that sounds, unless you intend to stare Tyson to death, can we get out of here, please?’ Her voice trembled, her features pinched in misery.
Without waiting for an answer, she vaulted out of the door and rushed down the stairs.
He emerged into sunlight, fury still burning in his chest. Draco had never felt inclined to cause bodily harm. Not when his trainer had sent him down a path that had ruined his dream. Not even when he’d surfaced from his nightmares to find his sister’s life equally ruined.
But seeing Blackwell here, preparing to sink his teeth into yet another victim, Draco had to fight hard to resist the urge to march back in and rip the man to pieces.
Instead, he forced one foot in front of the other. Reaching the buggy, he slammed on the ignition, wishing he had an engine far more powerful than a battery-packed one.
