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Jasper’s mouth twisted. “Niko… You almostdied.”
Our coach shot him a firm look. “But I didn’t die. We showed those gangsters we won’t be stopped that easily. From now on, we’ll just have to be even more careful.”
My jaw dropped with a lurch of my gut. “From now on? You want us to keep training?”
Niko chuckled. “Of course I do. The world needs your talent. This was only a minor obstacle along the way to your glory.”
“I’d hardly call this minor,” I sputtered with a frantic wave toward his hospital bed.
“In a few weeks, it’ll only be a memory,” Niko insisted. “You have a… a gift. I’m not letting anyone scare you away from sharing it.”
Jasper’s voice went rough. “You shouldn’t even be thinking about that right now. Not when we almost lost you completely.”
Niko gazed up at him, his expression softening. “I’m still here.”
My partner’s Adam’s apple bobbed. He blinked hard, a sheen of unshed tears coming into his stormy eyes. A flush crept up his neck to his cheeks, and he seemed to stumble over his next words. “And thank God for that. I—I’ll get you something to drink.”
He leaned in to give Niko a quick but tender kiss and then hustled for the door. As I glanced after him, I thought I saw him start to swipe at his eyes just before he disappeared from view.
I’d never seen Jasper get that emotional before. The poor guy didn’t know how to cope.
But then, could I blame him? I hardly knew how to holdmyselftogether after the trauma we’d just been through. Niko had gotten by far the worst of it—how could he still be so chipper?
When I turned back to our coach, his smile had deflated. His gaze lingered on the doorway after Jasper had left. I wished my partner could have seen how much our mutual boyfriend would rather have had him here, emotional or not.
Then Niko’s attention shifted back to me. He reached across his chest to grasp my forearm. “Don’t look so sad, Angel. It’s over now.”
I lowered my gaze. “But is it? We don’t know when my mom might send more people. We don’t even know for sure that you’re totally okay now.”
“We’ll—how do you say it—cross that bridge when we get there? You’ve found ways to deal with her before.” He paused and gave my arm a squeeze. “Enough about that. I need to tell you something.”
I met his gaze, an ache spreading through my chest. “What?”
His smile returned, delicate but brilliant all the same. “I love you, Lou. I don’t want to wait any longer to tell you that and risk losing the chance. And I’d get shot with a hundred more bullets just to watch you skate a few more times. So you’re not allowed to stop because of this or to feel guilty about it.”
My own tears blurred my vision. I set my hand over his, gripping his fingers tightly. “I don’t think I can help the guilt. But I love you too, Niko. So much. That’s why I’m so scared.”
He lifted his hand higher to stroke his fingers over my cheek. “You’re meant to be on the ice. And I think I’m meant to help you become everything you’re capable of. It’s simply destiny. You can’t argue with that.”
A laugh hitched out of me. I leaned in and gave him as much of a hug as I could without hurting him more. Niko tipped his head forward to brush his lips against my hair.
I eased up so I could claim a proper kiss, if a brief one. Then I met his eyes with all the conviction I had in me. “If it matters that much to you, I’ll keep going. For me and for you. But I’m also going to do everything in my power to make sure my mom can’t hurt anyone else.”
Even saying that sent a chill down my spine. How much power did I have compared to Mom’s empire?
But I had allies. I had the advantage none of her greater enemies had of knowing her well. If there was a way to stop her reign of terror for good, I’d find it.
Niko’s face glowed with affection. “You wouldn’t be my angel if you’d say anything else.”
The door squeaked open again. I glanced over, expecting Jasper to have returned, but the nurse poked her head inside. She murmured something to Niko in Japanese.
He nodded to her and gave me a regretful look. “She says visiting time is over. They don’t want me to push myself too hard when I’ve just woken up.”
I choked up automatically and did my best to hide it. “I wouldn’t want to wear you out when you need to be healing either. We’ll be back as soon as we can.”
He trailed his fingertips over my arm as I stepped away. “I’ll be looking forward to it. And Lou, could you do one thing for me?”
I stopped. “Anything you want.”
