Not me.
I don’t know if I’ll ever get something like that again.
Grabbing my drink, I swallow down half of it in one quick gulp.
I hate thinking about that.
About her.
What we had burned bright.
And we went up in flames just as fast.
It’s why the only things in my life are football and family. I don’t need anything else.
Because once you’ve had the love of a lifetime, nothing else can compare.
I guess I’ll just grow old and wrinkly on my own.
ChapterTwo
AUDREY
Wind whips around me as I swish down the mountain.
This is what I live for. It feels like I’m flying. Nothing is in my way as I twist my body to hit each gate.
With the snow last night, it’s the perfect run as I sail across the finish line.
“Great time, Audrey. Keep doing that and you’ll be a shoo-in for the games.”
Pulling off my helmet, I shake my hair out. “Don’t jinx it.”
Even though I’m feeling better than ever after a knee injury, I still have a few weeks of rest and rehab to go.
Runs like today though, where I make the mountain my bitch, feel good. Great, even. At the ripe old age of thirty-five, I know my days in this sport are numbered.
It’s getting younger and faster. I only hope that I’m putting in the work to qualify for one more Olympics.
Heading back to the training center, a flash of a camera blinds me. Dark spots blur my vision.
“Audrey. How is your training coming? Think you’ll qualify for the games?”
Trent, an obnoxious reporter from one of the sports rag magazines, shoves a recorder in my face.
“No comment.” I grit my teeth, trying to get away from this guy and his camera. No matter which way I turn, he’s there.
Been there since I started rehab on my knee all those months ago.
He’s like a dog with a bone—won’t stop until he gets the tiniest bit of scoop. And then he’ll run with it for months.
I hate this guy.
“Are you not going to represent your team?”
“I said no comment.”
“That’s no way to treat the team that’s been so good to you all these years. Quitting right before the games?”
