AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Ruby made sure her phone was set for four in the morning and went to sleep smiling. A few hours and she would be back on the ice. She belonged on the ice.
Chapter Four
Ruby finished her coffee and muffin in the car, got out, and walked toward the arena, stepping into the pools of light offered by the huge posts. The small door had the standard brick wedged into it. She stepped inside and called out, “Hello?”
There was a distant clang, and she walked toward it. There was a sound behind her, and she turned to see Rayden waiting near the doorway. He dangled white skates from his fingertips on his right hand. His skates were draped over his shoulder. “You are punctual.”
“Yeah, well. Shall we?” She walked up to him. “Pardon. Good morning.”
He grinned and nodded. “This way.”
She followed him into the depths of the arena until they exited a hallway and were facing the smooth and recently Zambonied ice.
“Sit down, and we will try these.”
She folded a seat down and sat while he surprised her by pulling off her boot and working the skate open before putting it on. She braced herself and pushed, feeling her foot settle with a thud. “They fit.”
He nodded and laced her up. “Excellent. Next foot.”
He removed her boot, and the second foot was soon shod in a potentially dangerous blade.
She grinned and shucked her outerwear. The sweatshirt and long tunic were over insulated leggings. She looked at him and asked, “Can I just go?”
He laughed and worked on his hockey skates. “Yeah. Go.”
She hiked down thick rubber toward the ice and then heard a call, “Ruby!”
A look showed her Mr. Timlinson.
“Mr. Timlinson? You are still here? I thought you would have found somewhere warmer to work.”
The old beta walked up and cackled. “I love watching new kids discover their love of ice. It’s an addiction. You are back?”
“Well, I met someone yesterday, and he seems to be under the idea that I like skating because that is what I told him. Is it possible to get some music?”
“Aw, Ruby, I still have your warm-up.”
She grinned and gasped when he pulled out his phone, and music blared into the hall.
He snickered. “Your music is up next. You had better get out there.”
She nodded and made her way to the ice, loving the feel of the hard surface and the unlikely glide when she stepped on. She glided to the centre and tried to remember her warm-up. When the familiar tunes started, the beat pulsed across her skin. When it was right, she started to skate.
* * * *
Rayden watched her spring to life as she glided with increasing speed, turned her body, and glided around the edge of the ice. When she started to bounce and do short hops and spins, he was transfixed. She gained more speed between the jumps and spins, which was hypnotic to watch. His mind’s eye could see her true self as she glided, and her crystalline hair would whip as she whirled.
He watched her path and then joined her as she moved easily, changing direction and doing dancing hops as if she were going through a routine in her mind. She glided to a halt and grinned. “Thanks for this. I didn’t realize how much I missed this.”
“You obviously know the music.”
“I do. It was my warm-up routine before I started the proper workout and choreography. He still had it on file.”
“Well, I will get out of your way, so don’t run over me.”
She laughed, and the sound wrapped around his spine. “Okay.”
The music changed, and she picked up speed, and he started to recognize the choreography for thePatchwork Pixie. He was watching the run from the pixie village. He cruised around, and when it got to the point where she was facing the trolls, he moved to block her. She smiled and put on a frown to stay in character as she tried to dodge left and right, then got past him, and turned to watch him before she spun and darted away. They were on a chase across the ice, and she kept just out of his grasp until the end of the song, where he grabbed her arm and pulled her against him.
