Page 45 of Icebound Hearts

Sophia clings to Kat for the rest of the day. I don’t know how it happens, but one second, Kat awkwardly tolerates it first,and the next minute, she’s completely taken in by my sister. Sophia bombards her with questions about skating, insists on seeing old videos, and eventually convinces Kat to spin her around the living room floor. Sophia shrieks with laughter as Kat twirls her. “Again!” Kat chuckles. “You’re a little demanding, huh?” Maria sips her tea, watching with an amused expression. “She doesn’t warm up to people this fast, you know.”

Kat glances down at Sophia, who’s now sitting in her lap, playing with the sleeve of her hoodie.

“Really?”

Maria nods. “Trust doesn’t come easy for her.” I stay silent on the couch, arms crossed, just watching. Kat doesn’t know the half of it. Later, after dinner, Maria is in the kitchen chatting with Will, and Sophia is curled up in my lap, fighting sleep.

Kat sits across from us, her expression more serious than usual. She hesitates before speaking, her voice quiet.

“She’s sick, isn’t she?” I tense. The question shouldn’t catch me off guard, but it does. I exhale, running a hand over Sophia’s back. “Yeah.” Kat watches me before speaking again.

“How bad?”

I don’t answer right away. I don’t want to say it out loud again. But eventually, I force the words out. “She’s fighting it for the second time.” Kat stills. “Leukemia,” I say. “First diagnosed when at four years old. She went into remission, but it came back last year. She’s been in and out of treatments ever since.”

Kat glances at Sophia, then back at me. She looks like she’s searching for the right thing to say, but what can you say to that?

“Will and I…” My throat tightens. “We’re both matches for her. But the doctors still aren’t sure if the transplant will work. We’re just… waiting. Hoping.” Kat nods slowly, eyes softening.

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be.” I meet her gaze. “Just—don’t treat her like she’s made of glass, okay? She hates that.” Kat tilts her head, considering. Then she nods. “I won’t.”

I study her for a long moment, searching for any hint of pity, but there’s none.

For once, I don’t feel like making a snarky remark.

And for once, neither does she.

Chapter twenty - two

KATERINA

The energy in the arena is powerful, the kind that makes the hair on the back of my neck stand up. The next round of qualifiers. Another chance to prove that

Alexei and I belong here. I exhale slowly, bouncing on my skates as I watch the pairs before us. Their routines blur together— good, clean lines, solid jumps, but nothing that scares me. Alexei nudges me.

“Relax, Malyshka. You look like you’re about to stab someone.”

“Maybe I am. If you don’t land our throws today, you’re first on my list.”

He smirks. “Ah, my favourite kind of motivation. Death threats.” Before I can snap back, my eyes land on Aiden. His presence is like a shift in gravity, and suddenly, I’m hyper-aware of every breath, every inch of space between us.

“What do you want, Knight?” I say without looking at him, my nerves already getting the best of me.

“Just checking to see if you’re about to flake under pressure.” I do turn then, meeting his annoyingly smug expression.

“Oh, please. The only thing I flake on is showing up when you expect me to care.” I snap. His smirk deepens. “Sure, Angel Face.” I roll my eyes.

“Stop calling me that.”

“No.” I glare at him, then an idea pops in my head. I’m a genius.

“Then I’m calling you Aidy.” His jaw twitches.“Oh, what’s the matter?” I coo. “Not a fan?”

“Angel Face,” he says, voice dropping low, teasing. “You don’t want to start something you can’t finish.”

Before I can retort, Alexei throws an arm around my shoulder. “If you two are going to flirt, can you at least wait until after our program?” I shove him off.

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