“I’m not hiding anything.”
“You’re vibrating like a microwave.”
“Ignatius—”
He held up a hand. “I don’t need to pry. I don’t want to pry. But you need to understand something. Cole is walking into the biggest moment of his season today. He needs clarity. Confidence. Stable support.”
My throat tightened. “I know.”
Ignatius leveled me with a look. “If something is threatening you—or him—the timing matters.”
I swallowed hard. Everything I was trying to hide flooded back. The texts. Ricky's baby.
My hand balled in my pocket around the phone, white-knuckled. “It’s nothing I can’t handle,” I said.
“Phoenix.”
“It’s not Cole’s problem,” I said, sharper than intended. “He nearly died yesterday. I’m not dumping my mess on him today of all days.”
Ignatius’s brow furrowed. “This isn’t about dumping. This is about—”
The shower turned on down the hall. Ignatius lowered his voice. “Whatever this is, you don’t have to face it alone.”
I laughed under my breath. “I promise to talk to you when we get back from this competition.” And I would. We just needed to get through this game.
Ignatius sighed, frustrated. “Phoenix—”
"As soon as we get back from this. Please just let him have the All-Star first."
Ignatius was quiet for what seemed the longest five minutes of my life, but then he nodded sharply.
Footsteps in the hall. Cole reappeared wearing jeans and a snow-soft sweatshirt, hair damp, eyes bright—but with something fragile underneath. Like he didn’t quite trust this happiness. “Ready,” he said, breathless.
He was. God, he was beautiful like this. Soft and scared and hopeful. I was going to talk to Ignatius. I knew I had to, but not while the medical today then the All-Star was hanging over Cole's head. He had enough to think about. I needed to get the money to Ricky and stall while we got back.
Ignatius gave him a once-over. “Good. The driver’s waiting outside.”
Cole nodded, pulling on his coat. “Phoenix…will you come with me?”
His voice cracked slightly, like the idea of going alone was unbearable.
“Yeah,” I said instantly. “Of course.”
We stepped out into the hallway together. Cole adjusted his coat, fingers trembling slightly. I reached out without thinking and straightened the collar for him, thumb brushing the warm skin at the base of his neck.
He shivered.
“You okay?” I asked softly.
“Yeah.” He gave me a small smile. “Just…still getting used to the idea that good things can happen to me.”
I swallowed. My eyes burned. “Then maybe we’ll start small,” I murmured. “One good thing at a time.”
His smile grew. Small. Soft. World-ending.
“Thank you,” he said. Not for the collar.
For staying.For last night.For everything.
