Chapter 2
~Hudson~
Just before I reach the change room door, I stop and pull my phone from my pocket, leaning against the wall as I type the name into my Google search.
Riley Walters.
The guys are going to have questions about the new girl, and since I lied and said we knew each other, I better at least get the basics straight.
Her official International Skating Union page pops up first, with all her stats and competition results.
Birthday: April 19. Twenty years old. Place of birth: San Diego, California.
Competes for the United States. Seventh at the last U.S.
Figure Skating Championship, thirteenth at Skate America two weeks ago.
A bronze medal at a Junior Grand Prix event a couple of years back.
She’s good, obviously, but not top-tier. At least not yet, and maybe that’s why she made the move here. I might be biased, but I don’t think there’s anywhere better than Riverbend if you want to be the best.
Returning to the Google search results, it doesn’t take me long to notice a pattern. Any time she’s mentioned outside of competition results, there’s another name attached to hers, one that I’m much more familiar with: Trevor McDavis.
Trevor’s also an American singles skater, one I’m usually jockeying for standings with.
We’re both in the top twenty in the world, top ten on a really good day, and beating him has become a little bit of a badge of honour for me at each international competition where we face off.
Something about the way he carries himself, a sense of entitlement that I can’t quite define, rubs me the wrong way.
Apparently, he’s also Riley’s boyfriend.
Fuck.
It’s none of my business, but it sticks in my craw a little bit anyway, an uncomfortable lump in my throat that refuses to go away. Even when I shove the phone back in my pocket, the nagging feeling doesn’t disappear.
When Riley walked into the change room, something about the look on her face told me she was holding on by a thread.
Though it doesn’t happen to me as much anymore, I’ll never forget the way it feels to try to pretend you’re doing okay when you’re falling apart inside.
So, I stepped in, and now, I can’t help feeling a little responsible for her.
Why is she here on her own? Why did she change clubs in the middle of the season? Where the hell is Trevor in all this?
Since I have no way of answering those questions right now, I exhale my tension as much as I can and head back to the change room to finish getting dressed for the morning workout.
Inside, no one bothers being subtle about their curiosity.
“How do you know that girl?” Lewis asks. As one of my best friends, I know he’s trying to figure out why I never mentioned Riley before.
“She’s cute,” Ryder adds from across the room. “Did you guys ever date?”
She is cute. I’d be blind not to notice it. Brown hair the colour of dark chocolate that curls lightly over her shoulders, big brown eyes with thick lashes, skin a few shades darker than mine. Maybe it’s from the California sun, or maybe from some mixed heritage, I’m not sure which.
In the competition photos I saw in my quick internet search, she always has her hair pulled back tight, but off the ice, she lets it fall freely. It also smelled really nice when I leaned in to whisper in her ear.
That particular detail, I’m definitely keeping to myself.
“Nah, we never dated,” I reply, ignoring Lewis’ question about how I know her. “She’s with Trevor McDavis.”
The groan that follows from the rest of the room is almost enough to make me laugh. In the insular world of Riverbend, new faces are hard to come by, and there’s always an annoying amount of jockeying among the straight guys to see who can ask a new girl out first.
“Like any of you morons would have had a chance with her anyway,” James teases, sharing a laugh with his boyfriend at our expense. “You don’t think the other girls are going to warn her about you?”
I have no idea what the other women will tell her, but I’m certain they won’t be warning her about me. Everyone knows I don’t date. Gotta focus on training, I always say, but that’s only part of the reason.
Besides, none of the other skaters have ever really tempted me before, so my lingering discomfort over the idea of Riley and Trevor together makes absolutely no sense.
“While you’re all distracted, I’m going to get to work,” Keaton announces, cutting through the noise.
The top-ranked skater at the club, in the country, and last year, in the world, he never gets caught up in club drama.
He never has to, not when he could have his pick of any woman he wanted.
Fans follow him around everywhere, throwing him flowers at the end of his performances.
Some throw their phone numbers too, I’ve seen it.
I have a few fans too, sure, but not like Keaton. He’s a star.
As usual, we all fall in behind him, heading to the dance studio in pairs or groups of three. Lewis joins me, and he presses me again about Riley when we’re alone. “You never answered me: how do you know her?”
“I’ll tell you later,” I put him off as we cross the club’s lobby to the studio on the other side.
Every day at Riverbend starts with a meditation and motivational session before we begin the physical work.
The club’s management believes in a holistic approach to training, focusing on both the mind and body.
Some people are skeptical when they first arrive, but they soon figure out it works.
Since I started training here, I’ve become much more consistent in my performances.
Maybe I’m not challenging Keaton for the top spot just yet, but I’m a solid contender for the national podium and a threat at the Grand Prix level.
If I can get my quads reliable for my short program, I’ll be in the top ten at the world level consistently, and if anyone can help me get there, it’s the coaching team here at Riverbend.
A few of the women are already in the studio when we get there, the rest trickling in shortly afterwards and claiming spots on the floor as we all begin stretching.
Riley’s chatting with Hannah when she comes in, the two of them looking friendly with each other, I’m glad to see.
Riley catches my eye and gives me a smile and a wave as she walks by.
I didn’t even fully realize I was watching her until she waved. Weird.
Trying to shake off the strange reaction in my gut to the sight of her, I give her a quick nod back before returning to my stretches while she takes a place in the row ahead of me.
Her hair’s pulled back into a high ponytail and her workout clothes show off a lean, firm body that’s clearly built for skating. Beyond that, I force myself not to stare. She has a boyfriend, so friends are all we’re going to be, and friends don’t check each other out.
“Good morning.”
Madame Bouchard’s voice immediately halts all conversation, and the room falls into silence as she strides up to the front. The coaching staff takes turns leading the morning sessions, and today, our ballet mistress is in charge.
“You might have noticed we have a new skater joining us today: Miss Riley Walters. If you haven’t already, please make Riley welcome here.”
All eyes turn to Riley as she gives another cute little wave to the room before tucking an imaginary strand of hair behind her ear. If I had to guess, I’d say she looks a little nervous that she might have to introduce herself in front of everyone, but Madame Bouchard quickly moves on.
“Ten of you are heading to Cup of China this week, so this morning, while we’re doing our yoga workout, I want everyone to visualize the medals they’ll be bringing back with them.”
Although I’m not going to that competition, Lewis and his partner are, so I give him a nudge. “I’ll imagine a gold for you.”
“Stick to a bronze,” he replies with a laugh. “There’s visualization and then there’s delusion.”
From my place near the back of the room, I have a great view of Riley throughout the entire workout. Her ponytail swings as she stretches, and the way her body moves, so fluid and controlled, pulls my focus more than I want to admit.
To distract myself, I come up with a whole backstory about how we met as kids that I can tell Lewis later. Maybe she’ll think I’m crazy when I share it with her, and she wouldn’t be the first person who did, but what’s the point of living if you can’t have a little fun along the way?
Life has plenty of hard moments, ones that can’t be avoided, so you need to make an extra effort to enjoy the lighter moments when they come. That’s my philosophy, and the closer I get to the top, the more those moments of levity matter to me.
Maybe Riley’s the same?
I guess I’ll find out soon enough.