On his way to realizing his Olympic dream, Tom Alan Baranowski finds himself in the midst of a dilemma. His traditional Japanese coach is insisting upon an arranged marriage between his biological daughter Erika and adopted son Tom Alan, who are partners on the ice. Tom Alan loves Erika, and his coach literally saved his life, rescuing him from an abusive home. How can he say no?<br><br>Somewhat resigned to his “not so bad” fate, everything changes when Tom Alan meets British ice dancer Milo Fisher. The spark between them is almost hot enough to melt the ice beneath their blades, and the two fall into an affair.<br><br>What about Erika? What about loyalty? What about gold? For Tom Alan, the impossible throw quadruple jump is suddenly the least difficult thing in his life.

Quadruple Flip

“Not that. He burned me—for punishment, for kicks. He burned her. Put her in the hospital. She got out. She went back.” Tom Alan chewed his lip a few seconds. “Stupid cops. She told them it was all accidental, and they believed her, or else they didn’t, but what could they do?”


After a moment, Erika asked, “How’d she die?”


“He did it. How come you don’t know all this?”


She gave him a “Duh!” look he had to twist around to see.


“Oh.” Her hand was still on his body and he was still letting it be there.


“Sheltered,” Erika said. “Same home, different lives. Your words, you recall?”


“So…What happened to him—the guy who wasn’t your father?”


“Died in prison, supposedly. Never cared enough to find out for certain, but I heard it.”


Chapter 64