S3

"Kiss me?"

Val’s coffee nearly hit the floor. He gripped the mug until his knuckles turned white. Across the table, Mariana didn't even flinch. She just kept scrolling.

"You're obsessed with Finn Reyes," Mariana said. Her voice was flat. Final. "It’s been years since the injury. You’re acting like a pup who lost his tail."

"He called me 'Bayside Beta' for a decade, Mariana. He’s a territorial prick." I set the mug down. Hard. "He’s a star. I’m a ghostwriter for a sports rag. We don’t exactly share a frequency."

"He’s been out for a month. Head injury." Mariana finally looked up, her eyes sharp as glass. "The Miami Ice Dome is making it to the finals. He’s watching every tape, every play. He’s bored. You need a lead. Ask him to talk you through the shift-slang."

"I’d rather chew silver."

"You like your condo? You like eating?" Mariana stood up. Grabbed her keys. "He’s at the Reyes Oceanfront Villa. I’m driving."

"Mariana—"

"Get in the car, Val."

The drive was silent. The Miami heat pressed against the windows, thick and wet. Twenty minutes later, she pulled up to a fortress of glass and salt-sprayed stone. The Villa.

"Go," Mariana said.

"I'm going. Relax."

I stepped out. The mist from the private infinity pool caught the light. I walked to the door. I reached for the handle, but it swung wide before I could touch it.

Finn Reyes stood there.

Shirtless. Barefoot. His jeans hung low, clinging to hips that looked carved from granite. He smelled like ozone and old growth pine—the scent of a True Alpha.

"Lost, Cruz?"

His voice was a low vibration that skipped down my spine. I couldn't stop my eyes. They dropped. Traveled down the line of his stomach to the heavy, unmistakable ridge behind his zipper.

Hate fuck. Mariana’s voice echoed in my skull. I wanted to strangle her.

"I'm here about work," I snapped. My voice sounded thin. Weak.

"Is that right?" Finn stepped onto the porch. He crowded me. The heat coming off him was a physical weight. "You want to talk about my 'hot moves' for your little columns?"

"I want to learn the game." I stepped back, hitting the railing. "The rules. The new enforcer rotations. Since Lucas is on the road, I thought—"

"You thought you'd come to the source." Finn grinned. It wasn't friendly. It was hungry. "Hard to believe an Ice Dome scout's brother doesn't know a power play from a penalty box."

He reached out. His fingers brushed my shoulder, flicking a stray raindrop off my shirt. I shivered.

"I remember you at fourteen," Finn murmured. His eyes darkened, locking onto mine. "Buying that vintage band tee. I can't believe it still fits those shoulders."

"You remember that?"

"I remember everything, Val." He stepped back, gesturing to the pool behind him. "It’s a heat wave. I’m going for a swim. Come in. Cool that fire."

"I don't have a suit."

"I've got a pair of trunks in the study that'll fit."

"I'm not wearing some puck-bunny's leftovers."

Finn laughed. It was a dark, jagged sound. "Fine. Naked it is."

He didn't wait. He unzipped his jeans and kicked them off. I gasped, my lungs seizing. He was down to black boxers, the silk straining against him.

"Don't worry," he said, walking to the edge of the water. "I've got some modesty left. But if you're staying, we need to talk terms. Quid pro quo."

"What do you want, Finn?"

He stopped at the edge. He turned, his golden eyes burning through me.

"I'm sidelined until the all-clear," Finn said. "When I get back on the ice, I need a training partner. Someone who knows my rhythm. Someone to spot my blind side."

"A partner?" I shook my head. "I don't skate anymore. Not since the fall."

"You will for me." He stepped off the ledge, a perfect dive into the blue. He surfaced a second later, shaking water from his hair like a beast. He swam to the edge, his hands finding my ankles. He gave a soft, teasing tug. "That's the deal, Val. You get your story. I get you back on the ice."

I looked at him. At the scars on his chest. At the raw power in his grip. "Anything else?"

Finn pulled himself out of the water. He stood over me, dripping, his shadow swallowing me whole. He reached out, his thumb catching my bottom lip, dragging slow and heavy.

"Yeah," he whispered. "I get to kiss you whenever I want."