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

“He grabs me, the husband, the creep, and throws me, and he throws her. I lunge for him. I tried…I hope I tried. I think I tried.” He wiped the tear from Milo’s cheek that wasn’t Milo’s. “He drags me, and I’m pulling away, but he’s always catching me. There must have been words, right? There must have been, but I don’t remember any. I know he’s taking me to the kitchen. And sure enough, we end up there. And, also…also sure enough, the knob is turned on…the stove is.


“He’s looking, throwing things, searching to find just the right tool. And I’m pulling, but maybe, because if I’m there, he won’t go after her, for once, I’m not trying to get away as hard as I could. He’s strong, the creep, and he knocks me down and yanks down my pants. He flips out. Flips the frick right out. He is madder than I have ever seen him. Ever! He goes for the…the potato masher thing that time. You seen one of those?”


Chapter 70