Page 28 of Goalies Don't Date Ice Princesses

We walked in silence for a while, our footsteps softened by the cushion of snow beneath our boots. The path before us was illuminated by the soft glow of streetlights, casting large shadows onto the ground.

“Who were you talking about, Archer?” I asked softly, breaking the silence.

Archer took a shuddering breath and looked at me, his face still tear-streaked and his eyes raw. He shook his head.

“I can’t,” he whispered, his voice barely audible. “I’m sorry, Bri. I appreciate you being here… But I can’t talk about it. Not yet.”

I slipped my hands into his and squeezed it in what I hoped was a comforting gesture. “You don’t have to.”

He kissed me gently, so soft and quick that I barely even felt it. “Thank you.”

nineteen

The cold airbit into my cheeks as I stood on the side of the rink, trying to stay my nerves. Down the hall, I could see Blair marking her way through her routine on the floor. She caught my eyes and gave me an encouraging smile and a thumbs up. I forced myself to smile back.

I wasn’t sure why I was so nervous about this. It wasn’t a competition, just a simple showcase, although everyone from the skaters to the crowd seemed incredibly excited about it.

“You’re going to do great,” a voice said from beside me. I looked up and saw Irina standing there, calm as ever.

“I’ve been messing up in every practice,” I said. “I’m going to fail.”

“You’re going to do fine,” she repeated, with slightly more force behind her words. I bit my lip and continued bouncing as much as I could on my skates.

The announcer’s voice blared over the loudspeaker, calling my name. It was time. I took a deep breath and smiled nervously at Irina one last time. She nodded reassuringly at me just before I stepped on the ice.

The crowd here was bigger than at any of our competitions so far this year, probably because of how many private schools had teams being represented here. I was a little overwhelmed by the sounds of everyone cheering and my breaths started coming in short gasps.

But then I caught Archer’s gaze. In the sea of people, he stood out to me like a lighthouse calling me home. A sense of calm washed over me as I focused on his eyes. I tried to pretend this wasn’t a performance after all. I was skating at night instead, with him being my only audience. I could do this.

I found my way to the centre of the ice and got into my starting pose. And when the music began, I gave the best performance of my life.

* * *

“You were amazing, Bri!” Archer said, picking me up and spinning me around. I squealed and tightened my grip around him. He put me down again and kissed me deeply. I giggled as I pulled away, blushing bright red.

“Thank you,” I said. I glanced around the hall to make sure nobody was looking our way, but we’d found a nice, secluded spot for just the two of us. I’d changed out of my colourful costume and skates, now dressed much more similar to how he saw me every night. “I think the team is having dinner tonight to celebrate, but want to meet up after?”

“Of course,” he said. “I’ll meet you at your room after curfew.”

“After curfew?” I asked. I waggled my eyebrows. “How scandalous.”

He laughed. “Just trying to make sure we can get around the bed checks. Not like we spend most of our time together during the day, anyway.”

I pecked him on the lips. “Just how I like it.”

Archer arrived at my door just after eleven that night. My roommate for the trip, Blair, had already snuck out, telling me she probably wouldn’t be back during the night. I wondered how many of the other figure skaters were doing the same. After all of our great performances today, I thought we deserved some fun.

“Grab a coat and come with me,” was the first thing out of Archer’s mouth when he came to my door.

“A coat?” I asked hesitantly. I didn’t want to go far from the lodge.

“A sweater,” he compromised. “Actually, scratch that. Put on a bathing suit first.”

“A bathing suit?” I asked incredulously. “Why?—”

“Just do it, Ice Princess,” he said. “I promise you’ll love it.”

I actually had brought a bathing suit since we were told in advance the lodge had some pools, but I was pretty sure they were closed right now. But even though I was unsure about his plan, I grabbed my one-piece bathing suit and changed into it. But the only clean pants I had with me were leggings and those were a pain to get on after getting wet, so I just grabbed the hotel-supplied fluffy bathrobe instead. When I opened the door again, Archer grabbed my hand and pulled me forward. He didn’t let go until we were outside behind the lodge, in the freezing cold air. He paused and looked around like he wasn’t sure where to go. I pulled my robe tighter around me and bounced on my toes, trying to stop myself from shivering.

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