And this time, I was too weak to run.
6
LUCA
The drill was simple. Breakaway practice, two-on-one scenarios, shit we'd run a thousand times. I was moving through it on autopilot, my mind still stuck on last night.
Reina in that bathroom. Her mouth on mine. The way she'd tasted like chocolate and desperation. The way she'd run.
Again.
"Vale, you're drifting!" Coach's voice echoed across the ice.
I snapped back to focus, adjusted my positioning. The puck came my way and I fired it into the net with more force than necessary. The goalie didn't even try to stop it.
"Jesus, Captain," one of my wingers muttered. "Save some of that for the actual game."
I was lining up for another drill when the commotion started.
Voices at the entrance. Security moving quickly. And then I heard it, a voice that made every muscle in my body go tight.
"I'm here to see your captain. Move."
Jaxon fucking Roarke.
I turned just in time to see him walk onto my ice like he owned it. No gear, just jeans and his Steel Wolves leather jacket, hands shoved in his pockets like he had all the time in the world.
The entire practice ground to a halt. My teammates were staring, confused and tense. You didn't just walk onto another team's ice. That shit didn't happen. Not in practice. Not ever.
I skated over, my stick gripped tight enough that the composite might crack.
"What the fuck are you doing here, Roarke?"
He stopped a few feet from the boards, that signature feral grin already in place. "Came to see you, Vale. Thought we should talk."
"We have nothing to talk about."
"No?" He leaned against the boards, casual as hell. "Not even about Reina?"
Her name hit me like a physical blow. I went completely still, every sense suddenly on high alert.
Jaxon's grin widened. He'd seen my reaction and was savoring it.
"Yeah, that's what I thought. She's back in town. In case you hadn't noticed."
My jaw ticked. "Get off my ice."
"Why? We're just having a friendly conversation between captains." He shifted, his body language pure predator. "Saw her yesterday. She photographed the Steel Wolves. Looked real good behind that camera."
I was moving before I could stop myself, skating right up to the boards. Close enough to see the satisfaction in his eyes.
"Looked even better when I had her pressed against a wall."
My hand shot out, grabbing the front of his jacket and yanking him forward against the boards. "You fucking touched her?"
"More than touched her, Captain." His voice dropped lower, intimate and deliberately provocative. "Made her scream my name. Had her dripping on my fingers in an alley while she begged for more."
Red flooded my vision.
