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2026-10-16 20:01:40
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Falling For The Hockey Captain 95
Every fear I’d been hiding was now coming out of my best friend’s mouth.“It isn’t like that,” I said. It sounded empty even to me.“Then tell me what it’s like.” He took another step. “Because I see a guy who’s bored in Vermont and found my sister to play with. You’ll leave. Everybody knows you’ll leave. And she’s the one who’ll fall apart.”“That’s not fair!” Kira’s voice shook. I felt it through her grip on my jacket. “You don’t know anything about us.”“Really? I’ve watched you look at him, Kira. You’re in too deep, and he already has one foot out of the door.”That landed in my stomach like a fist. I wanted to tell him he was wrong. I couldn’t. I really was going back to Ashford. I’d always planned to.“That’s enough,” Marcus said, and now he sounded like the man who’d raised us. “Not here. Not tonight.”“Then when? After he’s gone and she’s in pieces? After he’s back to his real life and she was a fun side trip?”I had to speak. I had to say something strong. But my head was emp
Falling For The Hockey Captain 94
Ten minutes later, calm on the outside, I went downstairs. The living room was a mess of torn wrapping paper. Chloe squealed over every present, Ava poured coffee, and Dad filmed it all on his phone. Chase and Leon sat on the couch, laughing about something, as at ease as they’d always been.I sat on the floor beside Chloe.“Kira!” She threw herself into my arms and shoved a doll at my face. “Look what Santa gave me!”“She’s gorgeous.” I hugged my niece and breathed in the smell of shampoo and candy canes.Over Chloe’s head, my eyes met Leon’s. He smiled, small and private, meant only for me.I smiled back.We can do this. We could act normal. We could hide this fragile, complicated thing until he left and the distance made it easier.Or ended us for good.That was a problem for another day. Today was Christmas, my family was happy, and Leon was in the room. I’d take whatever I could get.After the presents and breakfast, I slipped out onto the porch for some air. The morning was cold
Falling For The Hockey Captain 93
“You don’t have to say it back.” I tried to smile. My face felt like plastic. “I just needed you to know.”“Kira...” His voice cracked.“It’s okay. Really.” I slid off his lap, because my legs needed to move. “I know you’re not there yet. I’m not pushing you. I only...”I didn’t know how that sentence ended.He reached for me, and I let him pull me back against his chest. But it wasn’t the same. There was an empty space where the words should have been.“I’m sorry,” he said into my hair.“Don’t be.” I made my voice light. “I meant it. It doesn&r
Falling For The Hockey Captain 92
LeonShe didn’t leave. I’d promised myself I’d send her back to her room in a few minutes, but when the time came, I couldn’t make my arms let go. Kira’s head rested on my chest. I lay still and counted her heartbeats until they slowed to match mine.I love her. There was no doubt left. It had probably been true for days. But tonight she looked at me as if I were worth something, and that turned a feeling into a fact.Kira Rivers. And I’m in serious trouble.“Stay a bit longer,” I said into her hair.“A bit longer,” she agreed, and nestled closer.We both knew how stupid this was. Chase could come home any minute. I didn’t care. She was warm, the room was quiet, and I wanted this to last.The words were right there. Three of them. A kid could say them.My throat shut, as always.It had been this way for as long as I could remember. I’m the guy who shows up. I lift the boxes, pay the bills, and drive three hours in a snowstorm. But I won't talk about it. I watched my father do the same
Falling For The Hockey Captain 91
Leon povMy alarm hadn’t gone off yet, but I was awake anyway. Kira lay turned toward me, her cheek on her folded hand, black hair scattered across my pillow. Gold light slid over her bare shoulder. I stayed very still so I wouldn’t wake her.Two days since the cabin, and my body had already rewritten its habits. I used to wake up bracing for pain, for the knee, for the missed games. Now I woke up thinking about her. Her vanilla shampoo was all over my sheets. Her paperback sat open on my nightstand where she’d dropped it.She opened her eyes before the alarm. She caught me staring and smiled slowly.“Morning, creep.”“You snore, by the way.”“I do not!&r
Falling For The Hockey Captain 90
We kissed hard, then remembered ourselves and kissed softer. He guided me back until my legs hit the bed, and we fell in a heap, laughing without sound.“Quiet,” I said.“I know.”“Leon, if he”“Hey.” He put a finger on my lips. “I’ve got you.”I believed him. That was the dangerous part.I’ll keep most of that night to myself. I remember small things. His hands trembled on my buttons, and I loved that, because it meant it still mattered to him. I remember him pulling the blanket over our heads like a tent. I remember pressing my face into his shoulder so I wouldn’t make a noise, and the way he held on like he was afraid I’d vanish.Afterward we lay still, our hearts racing, listening to the house.“That was” I began.A door clicked down the hall.We both turned to stone. Footsteps padded across the floor outside. The bathroom door shut. Water ran.Chase.Leon wrapped his arm around me, hard. Neither of us breathed. The toilet flushed. The footsteps went back. A door closed.We counte
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