Where The Ice Gives Way (Charlotte and Blake) novel Chapter 234

Chapter 234 Four Letters

Jessica

“I’m telling you, I’m done. So done with men,” I tell Annabelle as we head towards the rink.

I have a routine to perfect and a competition to win at the end of this season, which is touch more important than any silly little heartbreak.

“Are you sure?” Annabelle asks, dragging out the words. “There isn’t even a small chance that maybe…”

My phone buzzes, cutting her off mid-sentence, and I watch her eyes snap to it.

I have to fight with my own eyes not to drop to my glowing pocket.

“Nope,” I say, lifting my chin. “Not doing it. He wants to play games? Well, I’m not playing.”

My phone buzzes again, and Annabelle presses her lips together.

“Don’t.”

2

“I didn’t say anything.”

“You thought something.”

“I have a very loud face.”

I pull my phone out just as it buzzes again, and I grit my teeth as I dump it into my bag without looking. “There. Problem solved.”

“That is not how problems work.”

“It is today.”

We are in the middle of getting changed into our skating outfits when Charlotte enters the room and drops her own bag next to mine.

“Sorry I’m late,” she says, a little breathless.

I shrug, pulling my hair up tighter. “It’s your time on the ice you’re wasting, not mine.”

Charlotte grabs my arm as I go to move around her. “Hey, Jessica. Look, my brother might be a dick sometimes, but that has nothing to do with us, okay i

am still one hundred percent willing to dunk his toothbrush into the toilet if you ask me to.”

I try not to smile, but I just can’t help it.

“Sorry,” I say, shoving her arm lightly. “It’s just, you have the same sort of face, you know?”

Charlotte gives me a deeply offended look and points at her own cheekbones “I thought you liked this face”

“You know she does,” Annabelle whispers as she cuts past us

I grab my guards and follow her out before Charlotte can make that smug little face wolse

3:51 pm P P P

Chapter 234 Four Letters

Thurs up, newbie, or you’ll miss the good stuff!” I call over my shoulder.

I step onto the ice and push off, letting my blades glide. One lap. Then another. Then another. My body always knows what to do even when my head is busy being ridiculous. Left edge. Right edge, Crossovers around the corner. Knees soft. Chin up. Breathe.

For a few minutes, it works. Charlie Pierce cannot ruin my day if I am too busy being brilliant.

At least, that is the plan.

Then Ms Matthews glides onto the ice, followed by Charlotte, who looks annoyingly graceful for someone who has only recently joined us. Her white blonde hair is pulled back, her cheeks flushed from the cold, and she has that quiet focus she gets when she is trying to pretend she is not nervous.

“Alright, everyone line up!” Ms Matthews claps, the sound cracking across the rink. “We have competitions to prepare for and no time for slacking off. This season, we are starting partner work, so I want everyone to pick a partner. You will work with this person,” Ms Matthews continues. “Learn them. Know

them. Trust them. You will eat, sleep, and bleed with this person.”

“I’m not sure that’s entirely legal,” Annabelle mutters.

“So pick wisely,” Ms Matthews finishes.

Girls glance at boys. Boys glance at girls. Everyone tries to look casual while very obviously making quick decisions that might ruin their lives for the next

few months.

I don’t move right away.

Because partner work is different. Singles skating is about control. Your body, your timing, your nerves, your mistakes. If you fall, you fall alone. If you mess

up, it is your mess. Partner work is letting someone else into the rhythm. It means trusting someone to catch you when your feet leave the ice.

And I am not in a very trusting mood.

“Jessica,” Ms Matthews says, skating past. “You and Mason. Annabelle, take Noah. Charlotte…”

Charlotte looks up.

Ms Matthews studies her for a second, then points toward a tall boy near the boards. “Eli. He’ll make a reliable partner for your first season.”

Mason skates over to me, brown hair falling into his eyes and a grin already on his face. “Partner.” He inclines his head.

ľ

Ms Matthews starts us with basic holds, nothing dramatic, which is both sensible and deeply annoying. Hand to hand. Hand to waist. Mirror steps. Side by

side crossovers. Matching speed without yanking each other off balance.

“Do not fight the lead,” she calls as I correct Mason’s timing for the fourth time.

“I’m not fighting it,” I call back.

Annabelle coughs. “Liar.”

I glare at her, and she grins as Noah nearly skates into the boards

We work through the drills, again and again until my thighs burn and the skin around my ankles aches Charlotte starts out pretty stift, but once bli stops looking terrified, they move better. Not perfect, but better. Annabelle laughs through half of hers and somehow still makes it look pretty

2:4

3:51 pm PPP

Chapter 234 Four Letters

And Die?-

I focus.

I let the edge of my blade carve clean lines into the ice. I count beats in my head. I fix my shoulders when they tense. I stop thinking about my phone sitting in my bag. I stop wondering if Charlie has messaged. I stop remembering the way his face looked when I said I wouldn’t chase him.

Mostly.

By the end of practice, my lungs burn and my legs feel like they belong to someone else.

“Better,” Ms Matthews says, which from her is practically a standing ovation. “Next session, we start lifts”

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABELVerify