On Thin Ice

A kiss that shouldn't have happened. A love that can't be denied.
A choice that could ruin us both.

Sinclair Whittier kissed me once—and then promised it would never happen again. But that kiss
was a lie. Or maybe it was the only truth we've ever known.

He offers to pay for my future. I'm still paying for my past.

I shouldn't trust him. But then we start to talk. To take long walks in the warm late summer
evenings. To sit across a chessboard and see each other clearly for the first time. And every time
he looks at me like I'm his, I forget why I ever hated him.

When we fall into each other's arms, it feels inevitable. Like we were never meant to be anything
else.

But loving him also feels like betraying everything I've ever known—especially my father. And
when he takes me to the ballet and introduces me to his powerful family, I can feel the fairytale
cracking at the edges.

Because no matter how much I love him, I know how our story ends.

On thin ice, every step is a risk. And this time, I might fall too far to ever climb back out.