Rhys

I stared at Damian, the weight of his ultimatum hanging between us like a bad penalty call.

A few months ago I would have folded. I would have swallowed my pride, agreed to whatever he wanted just to keep the peace and protect the love I had with Kayden.

But I was done letting people manipulate me. Tired of being used as a pawn in someone else’s game. So instead of answering, I burst into laughter loud enough to echo inside the Ferrari.

Damian gave me a sharp, questioning look, clearly thrown off by my reaction. "What’s so funny?"

"Really?" I asked once the laughter died down, my voice still edged with disbelief. "That’s your big move? Blackmail me with some blurry photos and dangle the Cup like it’s a bargaining chip?"

"Really what?" he snapped, impatience bleeding into his tone. "Do you agree or not? Because if you don’t—"

I grabbed him by the collar again, pulling him close so he could see exactly how serious I was. "No. I will never agree to this. And honestly? I don’t care if you release those pictures. I’ll just tell the world you forced the kiss on me. Everyone loves a scandal, especially when it paints the big bad rival as the villain. Tell me — which story do you think they’ll believe faster? Yours or mine?"

Damian’s smirk didn’t falter. If anything, it grew. "What about Kayden? Do you really think he’ll believe you? You’re out here with me right now instead of him. How do you think that looks?"

My grip loosened just a fraction at the mention of Kayden’s name. The confidence I’d felt a second ago wavered.

Would Kayden believe me? Would he trust that the kiss wasn’t wanted, that I had been trying to shut Damian down the entire time?

There was no way he could think I’d willingly kiss my ex... right?

Damian saw the hesitation flicker across my face and laughed. "Look at you. Your eyes are already darting around like you’re scared. You’re terrified that once he sees those photos, whatever little happiness you two have built will crumble. How do you think he’ll feel when he finds out you were alone with me in my car? That’s why you need to agree to my terms. Why you need to—"

"Shut up!" I yelled, tightening my grip on his collar until my knuckles turned white. "I know Kayden better than you ever will. I trust him. He won’t believe some sleazy photo of you forcing yourself on me."

Damian tried to speak, but I didn’t let him. I held him there, my voice rising with every word. "Listen to me. There is no way in hell I’m letting you come between me and Kayden. I love him. That’s why our relationship is public — because I’m not ashamed of it. The reason we never worked was because of my grandfather pulling strings behind the scenes and because of you. Your constant need to control everything, to own me. I wouldn’t let you, so we ended. Also, the Rhys you knew back then is gone. I’m not that person anymore."

I finally released his collar so he could breathe, but I wasn’t finished. "And about the Stanley Cup? You don’t need to hand us anything. We’re the Northern Avalanche. We’ve won it two years in a row for a reason. We don’t need your pity or your fake sacrifice to take it again."

I shoved him back against his seat, breathing hard.

Damian straightened his jersey, still wearing that infuriating half-smile. "Are you sure you won’t regret turning me down? I’m only trying to help you out here."

I scoffed and looked away. Talking to him was pointless. He would never understand. He only ever saw things his way — whatever got him what he wanted.

"I already warned you, Damian. This is the last time you ever pull something like this. Stay out of my life."

He didn’t reply. Just adjusted himself in the driver’s seat and started the engine again.

"I don’t want to see you in my life again," I said firmly as I reached for the door handle.

I stepped out onto the side of the road, the cool night air hitting me through my hockey gear. My skates scraped awkwardly against the pavement.

"How the hell are you planning to get home?" Damian shouted after me, leaning across the console.

"I’d rather walk than stay another second in your car."

He scoffed and climbed out, following me. His hand closed around my wrist, spinning me around. "Don’t be ridiculous. You’re still in your skates. There’s no way you’re making it all the way back like that."

I yanked my arm free. "Don’t touch me."

He raised both hands in mock surrender. "Fine. I get it — you don’t want anything to do with me. But at least let me drive you home. There’s no ride service out here at this hour."

I pulled out my phone to prove him wrong, but the battery icon flashed red — only five percent left. "Fuck," I muttered through gritted teeth. "This is all your fault. Kayden would probably be home by now. I could have called him to come get me if my phone wasn’t about to die."

Damian gestured toward the Ferrari. "Look, I promise I won’t try anything. No more games. Just let me take you home safely."

I glared at him for a long moment, weighing my options. Walking in full gear and skates sounded miserable, and my phone was useless.

With a heavy sigh, I turned and got back into the car. "Drive," I muttered once he slid back into the driver’s seat.

The ride was silent except for the occasional direction I gave him.

I stared out the passenger window the entire time, my mind racing with how I was going to explain any of this to Kayden. I would start from the beginning — the parking lot confrontation, the blackmail, the forced kiss. I just hoped he would listen. Hoped he would believe me.

I never should have gotten into that car tonight. That much I knew for sure.

When we finally reached my house almost an hour later, I stopped him before he could pull up to the gate. "This is far enough."

"I hope the memories we shared don’t get tainted by what happened tonight," Damian started, his voice softer than before. "I—"

I didn’t wait to hear the rest. I climbed out and headed straight for the gate.

The security guard recognized me immediately and opened it. As soon as I was inside the property, I skated as fast as I could toward the front door, my heart pounding with a mix of exhaustion and dread.

I unlocked the door with my thumbprint and stepped inside, the familiar warmth of the house doing nothing to calm my nerves.

"Kayden!" I called out, voice echoing through the entryway. No answer. The living room was empty. I rushed down the hall and pushed open the bedroom door. Still nothing. "Kayden! Soren!"

Soren emerged from his room a moment later, yawning widely while cradling Starlight in his arms. When he saw me, he glanced behind me as if expecting someone else. "Where’s Kayden? I left the arena right after the game ended. I figured you two would come back together."

"He didn’t come home?" I asked, my stomach dropping when Soren shook his head.

I groaned and ran a hand through my damp hair. "Oh no... oh goodness." I pulled out my nearly dead phone and hurried to my room to plug it in, my fingers shaking as I dialed Kayden’s number. It rang once, twice, then went straight to voicemail.

Soren followed me in and stood at the edge of the bed. "Did something happen? Why isn’t Kayden here with you?"

I didn’t answer. I just kept dialing, each unanswered ring making my chest tighter.

When it went to voicemail again, I checked my social feeds with trembling hands. Nothing yet — just fans praising the team’s shootout win. No leaked photos. Not yet.

"What is going on?" Soren asked again, concern clear in his voice. "Do you need me to try calling him? Is his phone not going through?"

"I..." My voice cracked. Instead of finishing the sentence, I dialed Miller’s number. He picked up on the second ring, sounding annoyed.

"I’m in the middle of something. This better be important," Miller groaned.

In the background I could hear soft moaning — definitely Leo. They had clearly left the arena together and were... busy.

"Is Kayden with you?" I asked quickly.

"Kayden? Isn’t he supposed to be with you? He left the arena right after you did," Miller replied.

There was an argument on the line, then Leo’s voice cut in, sharp and demanding. 𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

"So you were with Damian Fernandez? I heard you two used to be boyfriends. I swear if you hurt Kayden—"

"Thank you. I already got what I needed," I cut him off before he could finish the threat. "And no — nothing happened between me and Damian. It was all a misunderstanding."

"It better be!" Leo yelled before the line went dead.

Soren set Starlight down on the bed and placed a gentle hand on my shoulder. "Rhys... what happened?"

I looked up at him, tears burning at the corners of my eyes.

My voice came out small and broken. "I messed up."

Kayden must have seen me leaving the arena with Damian. Miller must have told him about our past.

It was why he wasn’t home.