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She looks over at me. "And you give me whiplash. I think that makes us even."
My lungs deflate. Everything between us is becoming a mindfuck anymore these days. It's a struggle, trying to mind the invisible line drawn between us. We've crossed it too many times that it's difficult to distinguish it anymore. "I suppose so."
We reach my sister and Wes. "This is Aria. Aria, this is my sister Charlie and her boyfriend Wes."
"Hi!" She smiles brightly at the two of them as she shakes their hands. "It's nice to meet you both."
My sister smiles at her as she releases her hand. Wes wraps his arm around Charlie's shoulders and pulls her flush against his side. "I've heard a lot about you."
I cut my eyes at my sister and Aria raises an eyebrow at me. I can’t read her expression but it sounds like there’s a touch of curiosity in her tone. "Oh really?"
I don’t know why the hell Charlie said that. Sure, I’ve expressed my frustrations about working with Aria. I’ve also denied any personal involvement with her. My sister doesn’t know what has happened between us, but she does have her assumptions.
"I've only told her about the unfortunate circumstances about how we've come to skate together."
Aria nods and gives me a knowing look as everyone turns in the direction of the door. "Yes, it's such a shame, isn't it? I never imagined I would end up stuck skating with someone like you."
My jaw falls open and my eyes widen slightly. Her words weren't necessarily mean, but there was a hint of contempt lingering in her tone. I can't blame her. She was right. I can be an asshole and I haven't been the nicest to her.
"Oof, okay," Wes chimes in as the four of us walk toward the exit. He glances at my sister with mischief dancing across his features. "I think I like her."
Charlie looks back at me with a smirk. "Me too."
Well, this is just what I need.
My sister’s approval of the woman who is slowly prying my rib cage open and making a home inside my chest…
CHAPTER TWENTY
ARIA
My feet leave the ice and my face is set in determination as I begin to spin through the air. Time is momentarily suspended and my arms are drawn across my chest and my ankles are crossed as my body whips around three times. Releasing my arms as gravity begins to pull me down, I get into position for my landing. At the last moment, my foot shifts and I miss by a fraction of a second. My skates abruptly slide out from underneath me and I land on the side of my thigh before sliding a foot or two across the frigid surface.
What the fuck.
I've been landing this jump for years without any issues. Every once in a while, there's always a random fall, but that's to be expected. It is ice, after all, and we are moving around on the thinnest blades of steel. This is the first time I have fallen three times in a row in years. Probably since I was first learning this jump.
Leo skates over to me, sliding to a stop as he points the toes of his skates toward one another. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” I assure him in a clipped tone. Avoiding his gaze, I plant my hands against the ice and push up onto my skates before brushing the snow off my pants. Saying I’m embarrassed is an understatement. It’s one thing to have this happen when I’m alone, but not when I’m in the middle of working through a routine with my partner.
Leo closes the space between us just as I go to move in the opposite direction. He catches me off guard as he grabs my wrist and turns me back to him. “I don’t mean about your fall,” he says softly as his eyes search mine with a tenderness I’m not used to seeing in him. “What’s going on?”
I pull my wrist free from his grip. I stare at him, ignoring the magnetic pull he has on me. “I’m just having a bad day, okay? It's nothing."
It has nothing to do with you fucking with my head.
"Hey," he says quietly as he tilts his head to the side. "Why don't we call it a day and we can just start fresh tomorrow?"
I raise my eyebrows at him as confusion washes over me. I can't help but feel like this is some kind of a joke or something. "Who are you and what have you done with Leo Wells?"
A chuckle rumbles in his chest as the sound encapsulates me. "Don't worry, I'm still me." His lips slowly curl upward into a smile that causes my heart to skip a beat. "You're having a bad day. I might be an asshole sometimes, but I don't want to make your day any worse than it already is."
"Does this mean you're going to be less of an asshole now?"
"Probably not," he tells me as he winks. "Might as well enjoy it while it lasts."
I can't stop the smile that dances across my own lips. "I like you like this," I tell him with honesty as the words fall from my lips before I get the chance to swallow them back.
