Page 25 of Losing an Edge

The coaches and equipment guys had rigged up a walker specifically for her last year. It had skis on the bottom, and they strapped her into the contraption to help her keep her balance while she built her core strength.

“You skate?” Cadence asked, perking up. “So do I.”

“Are you a hockey player, too, like Levi? I’m gonna play hockey.”

“Nope. I’m a figure skater.”

“She’s not just any figure skater,” I said. “She won a gold medal.”

“Wow.” Sophie’s jaw dropped to her chest. “A real gold medal?”

“In the Winter Games. Same as where Babs got his.” She knew most of the guys by their nicknames, not their real names, so I was careful to use them with her. She called me by my given name, but I was the only one.

“But his is for hockey,” Sophie said.

“They have lots of sports you can compete in,” Cadence said.

“You wanna come skating with me tomorrow?” Sophie asked her. “You can come with Levi.”

“Yeah?” Cadence raised a brow in Sophie’s direction. “You’re sure that’d be all right with you?”

“It’s okay. But don’t help me skate. I wanna do it all by myself.”

“Got it.” Cadence winked at me. “I’ll find out when and where, and I’ll be there.”

I supposed that meant I was going skating tomorrow, too.