Emily James showed great promise as a figure skater, but has not been in the public eye in eight years, then when she stopped skating competitively without a public statement as to why. Now, she lives in Lakeville, Michigan, where she grew up, works as a waitress at Hildy's Gourmet Café owned by her deceased mother's best friend Hildy Perdy who has always been a second mother to her, and teaches group skating to children. Emily's decision to quit competitive skating was not because she lost her love for the activity, as demonstrated by the fact that she is at the rink every every morning before it opens, skating for her own pleasure, and by she always willing to help Dave Shelton, the rink/skate shop manager, with skating parties. One of her former child pupils, Nikki Lee, is where Emily was eight years ago: the face of figure skating future. A young man, Spencer Patterson, has just been hired as Nikki's new coach, he who is to take her to a gold medal at the upcoming regionals. If ...