I change into my skates and step onto the rubber mat, my gaze lifting toward the ice. My heart starts to race, not from fear but anticipation.
For Parker. For this moment.
Moving toward the boards, my fingers brush the cool surface as I exhale wondering if he’ll show. Maybe he changed his mind. This is where we fix things between us.
Or where it shatters like glass into a million pieces.
The door to the rink opens behind me. I spin on my blades, and I can hardly breathe while everything stops.
Because it’s not just Parker standing there.
THIRTY-FIVE
PARKER
There are moments in your life when you know, without a doubt, everything is about to change. My hope is that Annika feels empowered and will help hold her father accountable for his actions.
Standing at the entrance to the rink, with crisp air breezing over my skin, I feel my muscles tighten and my nerves race through my body.
This will change their lives forever, but I can’t help but wonder if I should have given Annika a heads up. Blindsiding her might be the part where she decides she doesn’t want me in her life.
Annika stands at the boards, just inside the sheet of ice, fingers trailing the edges like she’s grounding herself.
I get that. What comes next isn’t small. And I’m the one who’s doing the surprising this time.
I shift my weight, glancing down for a second, then looking back up. Nadia stands just behind me, her hand resting on her daughter’s shoulder. The preteen fidgets,her skates tapping softly against the rubber flooring, eyes wide as she takes everything in.
She has Annika’s eyes. Expressive with deep layers. I noticed the first time I saw her picture.
I take a few steps toward Annika, and the door shuts behind us with a soft click and Annika’s head spins toward the noise. The second her eyes land on me, the air shifts.
Relief?
Hope?
Nerves?
Then confusion sets in. Her gaze reaches Nadia then drops to the girl beside her.
I don’t give her time to spiral, crossing the space between us and stopping at the boards. With a wall between us, we can work through this.
“Hey,” I say, my voice, low and full of crackling nerves.
Her lips part but no words come out. Her eyes flick back to mine, searching.
“What… is this?” she asks, a hint of strain in her tone.
Slow and easy, I breathe out. “I know you thought it would be just me,” I say, keeping my voice steady, “but you’re not alone anymore and I… wanted to be here when you met her.”
Her eyebrows pull together, a film of tears sit on the edge of her lids.
“I don’t know how to do this. I’ve been alone for so… long.”
I can’t help but brush her hair from her face. “You already know the truth and now she needs to know that she has a sister,” I add in a whisper.
Her breath stutters.
I nod to Nadia and she steps forward. She whispers to both of us. “She only knows we skated together. I haven’t told her about your shared dad, and we don’t need to right now. But you matter and I wanted her to meet you.”
