“Finn drove me,” she says.
Finn’s head snaps toward her like he wasn’t expecting her to admit it.
My pulse hammers once—hard enough I feel it in my palms.
“You drove her?”I ask quietly.
To anyone else, it sounds like a simple question.
Both of them react like it’s a test.
Wren looks down at her clipboard.“I didn’t want to walk alone.”
Finn clears his throat.“I happened to be near her place.”
“Near?”I echo.
He stares at me, and for the first time since I’ve known him, his expression is closed.
Guarded.
Like he has something worth hiding.
A slow, hot pressure spreads through my chest—not anger, not jealousy, but something older and more dangerous than both.
“She was safe with me,” Finn says finally.
The way he says it—steady, proud, protective—hits me like a blade to the sternum.
Because I believe him.
And I hate how much that matters.
Wren steps back, hugging the clipboard to her chest.“I’m going to grab ice packs before warmup.”
My instincts scream to follow her.
Finn’s instincts scream the same—he shifts like he’s about to.
But I move first.
“I’ll help,” I say.
She flinches.
And it’s tiny—maybe no one else would see it—but I see everything she tries to hide.
I stop in my tracks.
She notices.Her throat bobs in guilt.“Kael, I didn’t mean—”
“It’s fine,” I say flatly.“Go.I’ll see you on the ice.”
She nods.Walks away quickly.
Finn watches her go, eyes soft.Too soft.
My chest tightens again.
