She couldn’t speak for several moments. ‘But after all that work you put in.’

‘I’m going back on the surf tour. Thanks to you, I’ve got friends again. And sponsors. I reckon I’ve got a few more good years left in me.’

‘Oh . . . Well, that’s . . . great,’ she said hesitantly. Her heart twitched like a caged bird.

‘Yeah.’

‘So you’ll be travelling a lot then.’

‘I’ll pick and choose the events . . . but yeah.’

They did a whole circuit without speaking. She’d almost forgotten she was moving now. The feeling had become familiar, his rhythm beside her automatic. But the fear of falling was nothing to the fear of never seeing him again.

‘Kit, why are you here?’ The words burst from her, almost as a plea. She’d spent the past two weeks in a state that could only be described as grief. And now he’d come here just to tell her he was leaving?

‘I needed to know something.’

‘Okay.’

She waited, anxious, and he was quiet for a bit, as if gathering his thoughts. ‘Why did you go? Why did you do all that stuff for me . . . and then just leave?’

‘What? You thought I’d hang around and wait for your fury?’ She felt shocked he even had to ask. ‘What happened with Amy and Cory and you – it was private. And I went and told the world. It might have been the right thing to do, but I still knew you’d hate me for it.’

His hand gripped hers hard suddenly. ‘I don’t . . . hate you . . . You know I don’t.’

‘No, I don’t know!’ she cried. ‘I don’t know anything about what you feel. You don’t trust anyone. You don’t let anyone in. It’s you against the world. Against your dad. Against Cory. Against me.’

She felt him speed up suddenly. She felt his hand let go of hers, both his hands on her waist, spinning her and then a sharp dig of his blades into the ice, coming to a stop. She bumped against his chest, facing him, his hands holding hers again. She wasn’t sure what had just happened. There hadn’t even been time to gasp.

He looked down at her. ‘Because I can’t find a centre with you.’ His voice was low. ‘I think you’re against me and then I discover you put everything on the line for me . . . No one’s ever fought for me before. I’m not . . . it’s not what I know . . .’ His eyes were burning. ‘But then you were gone, without a word, and I was left with these . . .’

He didn’t finish. But she knew what he couldn’t say. Feelings scared him far more than the oceans or the mountains.

She stared at him, waiting.

‘Nothing felt right without you.’

‘. . . So then I won’t go again,’ she said simply.