Free Love and Other Games by Kara Leigh Miller Aria Kane Melinda Dozier Ana Blaze

volunteer, she was ecstatic. She’d get that final experience she needed in order to work for the Olympics committee. Now, her dream job was a second thought. She wondered what her dad would say if he saw her having so much fun instead of getting down to business. His last words to her before she left home were, “No skipping corners, Nadia. Do what you have to do to make it to the top.”
    Adam rambled on about the scores in the event and how Ty was at the top, but her thoughts wavered back and forth between her commitment to the games and her obvious deepening feelings for Ty. Juggling both seemed almost impossible. Weren’t they?
    Waiting for Ty’s final run had Nadia’s nerves spent. She had sat down for the last six competitors, the weight of the torch in her inside jacket pocket against her chest. Silly legend, she thought. Ty didn’t need any luck. It was obvious he was the best in his sport.
    After five more minutes, her phone vibrated in her pocket. She pulled it out to answer. “Hallo?”
    “Nadia, it’s your father.” His demanding voice rang in her ears, the Swiss German tugging her back to reality.
    She sucked in a deep breath. Her father always had a sixth sense. It was as if he knew every thought she had in the past ten minutes. “Papi. Why are you calling? Is mum okay?”
    “She’s fine. It’s you who is not.” His voice strained sending goose bumps up her arm. She knew this voice. He used this one when she rarely got into trouble at home as a child. He wasn’t happy.
    “What happened?” She looked up and Adam lifted an eyebrow. She shook her head, leaning down to try to make her conversation private, palming her hand over the speaker to block out the crowd.
    “I just saw you on television. At a snowboard event of all things and holding a US flag. Kissing the athlete? Where is your allegiance, Nadia? What are you doing?”
    “Papi, wait … ”
    But he continued anyway. He wasn’t used to interruption. “Aren’t you supposed to be working to finalize your recommendation? Don’t you know I have been good friends with Mr. Sorenson for many years, and still you go and do this? How could you throw away an opportunity like this? Gottverdami !”
    “It’s not all what it seems, Papi. I’m working hard.”
    “Then show it. If you ruin this, I disown you. I don’t want to see you on television like this again.” Then the dial tone sounded.
    She shook her head and bit her lip. Her relationship with her dad had always been strained. She had hoped her success at the Olympics would change his mind and open up his eyes to her maturity.
    Adam watched her. “Everything okay?”
    “Yes.” She nodded her head. Finally, Ty appeared on the screen. His last run. She was thrilled for him, but the conversation with her father weighed in the back of her mind.
    With each jump, each trick, the crowd oohed and aahed. Adam said every four-letter word she had ever learned in English and held his flag up high as Ty made his way down the half-pipe. His final trick had the crowd screaming in disbelief.
    “A triple cork, ladies and gentlemen. Ty Madsen nailed it. I think we have our Gold medalist, folks.” The announcer boomed over the loud speaker.
    Adam hugged Nadia and Kristen hugged her other side. They all stood huddled together when Ty ran over and picked Nadia up, kissing her as if he’d never kissed her before. “I freakin’ did it!” He screamed. High fives and fist pumps surrounded her and soon she forgot about her father’s phone call and got caught up in Ty’s moment. It was perfect. Fun. What she wanted in that instant. What she needed.
    But as soon as Ty stepped off that block with the Gold medal around his neck, they had to replace the torch. Replace their fun. Get back to normalcy. Back to why she was in the Olympics in the first place.
    ***
    Ty walked around in a daze. He had a freakin’ Gold medal around his neck, people interviewing him left and right, and fans asking for him to