Page 93 of Wilder

“How are things going at the rink?”

“It has been busy since Thanksgiving. It’s like once people discovered it, they started talking about it.”

“Do you need more help there?”

“I’m not sure. It seems to be working okay as it is. I’m not sure about the café and the skate rental, though. You’d have to talk to Luke and George about that.”

“And how are you doing with training while also working?”

Lexi debated what to say. She didn’t want to say anything that might jeopardize her job there. While she did havesomesavings, she needed the money she earned at the rink to cover her rent and her not-so-cheap meal prep.

“It’s going pretty well.”

“Tiring, I suppose.” Kayleigh’s look was sympathetic, and Lexi worried it was going to be leading up to Kayleigh letting her go under the guise of giving her a break.

“Training always is.”

Kayleigh stared at her for a moment before nodding. “I have a proposal for you.”

“A proposal?”

“Yep. We here at Remington wish to get behind you in your bid for the Olympics.”

Lexi frowned. “What does that mean?”

“It means that Alexander wants to sponsor you. He wants you to be able to focus solely on your training, so he’ll pay your expenses in exchange for you doing some promotion for the Remington hotel line.”

“He wants to tie his company’s name to me?” Lexi shook her head. “I’m not sure that’s a good idea. Given the controversy in my past.”

“He knows all about that and still wants it.”

“What do you and Hudson think?”

“I understand your concern,” Kayleigh said. “From a strictly business standpoint, I’m not sure it’s the best decision. However, we know that sometimes things aren’t so black and white. The bottom line is that the controversy was your father’s, not yours. No one would likely even know your name had you not been a high-profile athlete.”

That was true, and there had been lots of times Lexi had wished she’d had that anonymity.

“I think this is a good opportunity for you to separate yourself from your dad and his controversy. And if Alexander is throwing his support behind you, others will be less likely to come after you.”

“Do I have to leave here?”

“Nope. You can still use the rink for your training, as long as you’re willing to work around the hours there. We’ll hire another skater to work your shifts. Maybe offer Talya additional shifts, so your afternoons will be free for whatever you need to do to train.”

Lexi exhaled heavily, feeling a weight lift from her shoulders. Maybe she could do this after all.

It wasn’t until that moment that she realized how overwhelmed she’d been feeling. “Thank you. Thank you.”

“You can thank Alexander. He’s the one that made the final decision.”

“What’s the best way to thank him?” she asked.

“You can do it in person this weekend. He’s flying in with the family for a couple of days of skiing.”

Some might be nervous about meeting someone of Alexander’s caliber, but her dad had taught her from a very young age how to interact with the wealthy and famous. After all, until two years ago, they’d belonged to that world.

Her mom was still in it with her wealthy husband. But in all honesty, Lexi was glad she’d left it behind. Except she hadn’t, not entirely.

“We’ll arrange a dinner here at The Steakhouse on Saturday so that you can spend some time with him.”

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