“They were the pathetic ones! And hello, didn’t the last month prove that I really want to be with you? Come on. Please.”

“Maybe that was all a joke too.” The words were like ground glass on my tongue.

Theo flinched as though I’d slapped him. “You don’t really—” His voice broke, and he cleared his throat. “You can’t really believe that.”

“Why not? I should never have trusted you. You want to beat me. You want to win gold. Maybe it was all pretend.”

His mouth tightened into a thin line. “Seriously? You don’t believe that.” He shook his head. “No way you actually believe that.”

He was right, but I couldn’t admit it.

Theo flung out his hands. “Was it pretend in Torino when I bawled my eyes out in your arms? What, you think I was faking being sad about Mr. Webber? Hey, maybe I arranged his death and it was all part of a long con to seduce you out of gold. Never mind the fact that I’ve beaten you every time we’ve competed head-to-head for the last two seasons! I don’t need to fuck you to beat you, Henry. I have an extra quad, remember?”

“How could I forget?” I spat, desperate not to think about Torino or any of it. “This was a mistake. All of it.”

His anger seemed to vanish. He swallowed hard, Adam’s apple bobbing. “Please don’t say that. I’m sorry I got the story out of Anton. I know I broke a promise, but I was dying to understand. To know you. Every part of you. I want to love every single part of you.”

Love.

Blood rushed in my ears. That word seemed to hang in the air, growing huge along with the faithful elephants that had never left. I could only stare at him, my mouth dry and pulse pounding.

The door opened, Etienne jolting to a halt. He looked between me and Theo, his eyebrows lifting high. Glancing back into the corridor, he quickly closed the door behind him.

“Hey!” Theo smiled too brightly, even for him, on the edge of hysteria. “I was just checking on Henry. We’re friends. We’ve been training together, so.”

Etienne nodded, though he seemed decidedly dubious. “Theo, I think your mother is in the hall?”

Theo blanched. “My what?”

“Your mother?” Etienne looked to me with obvious concern.

I shouldn’t care if Theo’s mother was snooping. I shouldn’t give a damn if she knew he was in my room. What had been between us was over.

Perhaps if I repeated that lie to myself a few thousand more times it would feel true.

Theo was still shaking his head, sputtering at Etienne. “What? How? She’s not allowed in the Village. She can’t barge in here.” Nostrils flaring, his face went red.

“It’s all right.” I reached for him without thinking before snatching back my hand. I hated that his mother had no boundaries and upset him so much. I was surprised he hadn’t quit skating as soon as he was eighteen.