Page 131 of Wilder

“I don’t have a YouTube channel,” she said.

“Not yet, you don’t. But you could, and it would be a way for you to continue to share the beauty of your skating without having to travel or compete. You could also do some coaching videos.”

“You’ve thought this through,” Lexi said, pleased that he’d been thinking about her even though they hadn’t been talking.

“I have,” he agreed. “You have a talent that you should share with the world, and I have the ability to help you make that happen.”

Lexi slid down against her pillow, pulling her comforter up over her shoulders. All the strain of the day—of the past few weeks, actually—slid away. She couldn’t do anything for Mik right then, but maybe she could figure out a piece of her future.

“So you’re proposing we collaborate on YouTube?” she asked.

“Yep. I think we’d make a great team.”

She wondered what he meant exactly. Was he strictly talking about doing videos together? Or was there something more? Could there be something more?

“How would you video me if you’re not here?” she asked. “Would I have to find someone to take the videos, and then you’d edit them?”

There was a pause on the other end of the line, then Wilder said, “Actually, I’m probably going to be spending more time here now.”

“You’re going to quit traveling?” Her heart leapt at the thought of him being around more than just the winter months.

“Not entirely. I’m still going to try to spend three or four weeks at the orphanages during the summer, but I think maybe it’s time to scale back on my traveling around the world for the other months.”

“Wow. I didn’t think you’d want to do that.”

“I think it’s what God wants me to do,” Wilder said. “It’s funny how something that was once so important to a person can fade when something of more importance comes along.”

“I sort of understand that,” Lexi said. “That’s how I feel about competing. It was once my world. My total focus. But I just don’t want to do it anymore. I’ve reached the pinnacle, so I don’t have anything more to prove. I still want to skate, but competing is just not that important now.”

“Are you going to coach?”

“I’d like to continue to coach the girls, if they want that, and possibly pick up a few more students. Right now, I’m not looking for anything too intense. Maybe I’ll see if Kayleigh will give me my job back.”

Wilder chuckled. “I’m sure she will if that’s really what you want to do.”

“To be honest, it’s not my favorite thing, but it gives me access to good ice, and it pays the bills.”

“That it does.”

Silence stretched between them, but Lexi didn’t find it awkward. She was just happy to know that there was someone who cared on the other end of the line.

“I hope Mik isn’t too badly injured,” she said as her thoughts circled back around to him. “He’s been so upset and angry since we started skating together again.”

“Given how his programs were going with his previous partner, I’d wager a guess that he was already upset and angry. He brought his bad attitude with him into your partnership.”

“If he’s not able to skate at Worlds, he’s going to be livid.”

“If that’s what happens, I guess it puts to rest the question of whether you should continue to skate or not.”

Lexi didn’t think that Mik would give up on trying to convince her to go another season, especially if they didn’t make Worldsbecause of his accident. He’d say he had time to recover from his injuries and would be ready to go by the next season.

Lexi just couldn’t see it working out for the two of them, and if he was badly injured, he would need to focus on recovery rather than on her. Because she knew with confidence and peace that her path was leading her away from competition.

CHAPTER THIRTY

Wilder left the house earlier than he needed to in order to make his shift at the ski shop, but it was necessary. When he pulled into the parking lot of the rink, he wasn’t surprised to see Lexi’s Audi there already. In fact, he’d counted on her being there.

He’d had a feeling that even if Mik was still in the hospital, Lexi would be at the rink. He was pretty sure that she found solace on the ice when things were unsettled in her life.

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