Page 52 of Jesse and the Ice Princess
"Charlie..." He swallowed heavily. "She's going out with Damien. He even told her you gave him permission."
A curse flew out of his mouth. "That girl..." He rubbed his eyes. "Her mother is going to kill me."
"Well..." Jesse slapped the rulebook down on the desk. "If she's already going to kill you..."
"Spit it out, kid."
"I think we need Charlotte to beat Venice."
"Jesse... she was never going to be able to spend enough time teaching the guys to make a difference in that game."
"No." He leaned forward, forcing Coach to meet his eyes again. "We don't need her to coach. We need her to play."
His eyes widened as the meaning struck him. "She can't. Her mother—"
"Would get over herself once she saw how happy it made Charlotte."
"Happy? Son, my daughter is not a hockey player. She trains every day for figure skating. That is where her immediate future lies."
"But why? You saw her, Coach. Can you honestly say you've ever seen her have that much fun on the ice? Does she smile that wide when she lands her jumps or completes each rotation on her spins?"
"There's nothing wrong with the sport she has chosen."
"Of course, there isn't. She's talented, and when she skates, it's the most beautiful thing I've ever seen. But sometimes, it's not about beauty. Sometimes, it's about love. I saw her face that day at practice. She loves this sport."
A soft chuckle shook Coach's shoulders. "When I first married Charlotte's mother, I wanted a boy to follow in my footsteps, someone I could teach to love this as much as I did. Charlotte was the only kid in the stars for us. When she came, it no longer mattered to me what gender she was. I just wanted her to be happy. But I've failed at that, haven't I?" His shoulders dropped.
"Not yet. Let her play. Let her join the team."
He sighed. "Even if I could defy my wife in this, the Venice game is the same day as Charlotte's competition. I'm sorry, Jesse. There's just no way."
Jessie stood, leaving the rulebook on Coach's desk. "There's always a way."
He just hadn’t figured that part out yet.
14
Charlotte
Charlotte had barely spoken to her parents since their lecture a few days before. She went to training each morning, performing each move her mother requested. They were at the part of their schedule where she could run through her entire long program with little input from her coach. It suited them well.
Her dad was a different story. He didn't back off like her mom had. Instead, he started coming home from work early to eat dinner with her. He'd stare at her as if trying to figure out a complicated problem.
But Charlotte wasn't ready to forgive either of them. For the first time in her life, she wanted to break away from the image they'd created of her.
"Are you sure you want me to do this?" Hadley stared at her in the mirror, her eyebrows drawn together.
Charlotte sat on the stool in front of her vanity studying her appearance. She'd barely grown in years, which suited her for figure skating. But the rest of her looks—her hair, her clothes—those hadn't changed either. She had a routine, one that kept her focused. Each morning, she put on an outfit that differed little from her others before French braiding her hair in the style she'd worn since she was ten.
She met Hadley's eyes in the mirror, envying her friend’s willingness to change. "Yeah, I'm ready."
"And it's not just for Jesse? I mean, he's a good reason for a little change, but your mom is going to freak."
She shook her head, one corner of her mouth curving up. "No, this is a hundred percent for me."
Hadley grinned. "Well, then I approve." She lifted a pair of scissors from the vanity top. "Don't worry, I've been cutting my own hair for years."
Charlotte wasn't worried. "It's only hair, Hads."
