A conversation with Oliver.
Knox beelines for the tunnel, already stripping off his gloves, ready to move on with his day.
I wait until most of them are gone before pushing away from the crease.
“Hey, Van Doren,” I call out. “You mind hanging back for a second?”
“Sure.” Oliver slows, his grin still firmly in place as he coasts in a lazy circle near the boards. “What’s up?”
The rink suddenly feels cavernous. Too open and too quiet without the constant clatter of sticks and voices to fill the space.
He studies my face, amusement turning into curiosity. “You look like you’re about to tell me you got traded.”
“Might be worse than that.”
He snorts. “Come on. Nothing’s worse than that. Well, maybe retirement.”
I draw in a steady breath and brace myself before blurting, “I asked your sister to marry me. And she said yes.”
He stares at me for half a beat before laughter bursts free from him. It’s loud and unrestrained, echoing off the empty seats. After a moment, he skates close enough to clap a gloved hand against my shoulder. “When’d you become such a funny fucker? For a second there, you almost had me.”
When I don’t smile, his laughter dies mid-breath. “Oh shit.” He searches my face for any hint I’m screwing with him. It doesn’t take long for his humor to drain away, replaced by something harder. “You’re actually serious.”
“Yeah,” I answer evenly. “I am.”
His brows slam together. “What the hell, Lennox? She just started working for you.”
“I know,” I say. “It wasn’t something either of us planned. Things just… moved quickly.”
“That’s not quickly,” he snaps, straightening to his full height on skates. “That’s warp speed.” He shakes his head once. “And it feels reckless. This is my kid sister’s life you’re messing with.”
I straighten my shoulders and meet his stare head-on. “Reckless is the last thing I am. I can promise you that.”
“Then explain it to me. Because right now, I don’t understand how something like this even happens.”
I hesitate. Not because I don’t have an answer, but because I’m not sure he’ll understand the only one I can give him. “She feels like home,” I admit. “She steadies parts of me I didn’t realize were still shaking. And I do the same for her.”
The words hang between us. Oliver doesn’t respond right away. He just stares at me long and hard, like he’s weighing something heavy. Something that matters.
“You know none of this makes a damn bit of sense, right?” he finally mutters.
I dip my chin. “I can see how it would look that way, but nothing could be further from the truth.”
“And this is what Kia wants?” His tone sharpens, turning protective. “You’re not pushing her into marrying you?”
“Not at all.” I don’t hesitate. “She wants this. She chose it. And if I thought for even a second that she had doubts, I wouldn’t go through with this marriage.”
Silence stretches through the empty rink until it feels like it might snap. I have no idea if he’s about to shake my hand or punch me in the face, and I can’t help but brace for either reaction.
“Well, I guess congratulations are in order.”
Relief hits, but it barely has time to settle before he points his stick at my chest. “Just know that if you hurt her?—”
“I won’t.”
His jaw tightens. “I’ll come for you, Lennox.”
I nod once. “Fair enough.”
