‘He was talking about you as a player, trash-talking like they do before a game to rile players up. That’s what I got from it. Seriously, all they care about is what you do on the ice, and your skill as an athlete has nothing to do with who you are as a person, Ward. Don’t get confused again. Remember that’s why you were so adrift in the first place, unable to step into your own shoes. Off the ice, Prince or Sumner don’t own you. As long as you can perform, that’s all that matters. And you can and you will, I know you will. Back better than ever, isn’t that what you want too?’

‘I don’t know …’ They reached the Gapstow bridge and moved to cross it, arms still linked. Glancing at Ward as they turned in the faint light, Hannah could still see so much uncertainty written on his face.

He paused in the middle of the humped stone bridge, staring down into the inky water, and as she stepped back, she shivered a little, the evening chill now starting to seep into her bones.

Ward noticed and immediately took off his jacket, wrapping it around her. ‘Here.’ His hands rested on her arms for a little longer than was strictly necessary and unable to stop herself, Hannah moved ever so slightly closer to the warmth of his body.

Because of the cold or … something else.

The atmosphere suddenly changed then, emotion still heightened, but in a different, more charged way and she could feel the weight of his gaze on her face.

Afraid to meet it, she looked back at the cityscape, the beautifully illuminated Beaux Arts hotel building like a postcard amid the trees in the near distance. She couldn’t help but imagine how picture-perfect they must look now in silhouette, two figures standing so close in the darkness in the middle of the humped stone bridge, the twinkling Manhattan skyline spread out behind them.

‘The important thing is, you’re on the way back to doing what you love,’ she told him, scrambling to get back onto safer territory. ‘Exactly what you wanted. That was the game plan, remember. It doesn’t matter what they say or do from now on. They can’t change you as a person, and if they try, I’m here now, remember? Those two don’t scare me and I’m certainly not going to stand by and let them undo all our hard work. You haven’t yet seen me when I’m angry.’ She chuckled, trying her utmost to lighten the mood, but Ward’s still-downcast expression suggested that he remained unconvinced. ‘Make no mistake, I’m still here to keep you on the straight and narrow.’ Hannah turned back to him then and stared at his face, now urging him to meet her gaze. ‘I’m right here,’ she insisted gently.