Page 116 of Interference
I’m happy she’s here with me, though. I only had one year left at the college, but Irina started her own rink like she said she would, and I was her first client. Her unwavering belief in me is one of the reasons I made it. Brett’s support is the other.
“Thank you,” I tell her.
She gets serious once again. “Are you ready?”
“One way to find out.”
Leaving my designated area, I move toward the rink. While I wait for the judges to call my name, I scan the crowd. When I see them, I can’t help but smile.
Brett, Alissa, Wyatt, Beckett, Peyton, Grace, Clay, Cora, Kellan, Mama James, and my parents all sit together in the stands, ready to cheer me on. I never would have expected them to come over to watch me, but they wouldn’t hear otherwise. The guys said that they owed me one for always coming to watch their games. The only one missing is Wyatt’s girl, but that’s okay. She’s been blowing up my phone all week with words of encouragement and apologies for her absence. I forgive her. Traveling while eight months pregnant isn’t an easy feat.
Alissa is sitting on her Uncle Wyatt’s lap, bouncing like crazy. I can’t help but laugh as I watch the two of them. My girl loves her uncles, but she shares a special bond with Wyatt. Since the day she was born, those two have been thick as thieves, and I love it. I love that she has them.
That she has family.
Something she would have never had if it weren’t for the friends Brett made along the way.
“And now from the United States of America, Emery Woods.”
As my blade hits the ice, everything around me goes quiet. The world stills. When I hit the center of the ice, I take one last look at my husband and daughter.
Alissa is jumping and clapping like mad. My eyes move to my husband, who offers me a nod of encouragement.
Smiling, I dip my chin to my chest and take my position.
My heart races as I wait for the music to start and when it does, I move.
As my wife takes the ice, my knee begins to bounce with nerves.
I feel like I’m about to vomit, and I’m not even the one out there right now.
“You need to chill the fuck out or you’re going to give yourself an ulcer,” Clay tells me.
Discreetly, I give him the middle finger as I itch the side of my face, making him laugh.
“Daddy, look! Mommy’s out there!” Alissa claps, making my heart clench.
Daddy.
Even after three years of hearing her call me Daddy, it hasn’t gotten old. I fucking love it. My little girl is the spitting image of her mother but with my eyes. She’s fucking beautiful, and I hate to think of the day she grows up. The guys like to remind me that there are going to be a lot of sleepless nights in our future while we wait up for her.
I just pray to God she takes after her mother and is a good girl and nothing like me.
“And now from the United States of America, Emery Woods.”
My breath catches as I watch my wife take the ice. Her shoulders are back, and she looks calm. Almost as if she doesn’t have a care in the world. Right when she hits the center of the ice she looks up at me, finding me easily in a crowd of thousands.
I nod. Silently telling her that she’s got this.
She smiles as she drops her chin to her chest, getting into position. When the music starts, she takes off like a rocket. Unlike the short program, there are no mandatory elements in the free program. It’s up to the skater do what they want and to showcase their skills and artistry to the best of their ability.
My breath catches when she goes into her first jump. When she lands, the crowd loses their minds.
“Holy shit, did she just do a quadruple jump?” Beckett asks with awe.
“Fuck yes, she did. Go, Emery, go!” Peyton yells.
Quadruple jumps in women’s skating aren’t typical. When I asked Emery why, she explained that it’s because women’s hips are wider than men’s, and it slows them down when they are rotating in the air.
