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067

Author: FRANKOPHONE
last update Huling Na-update: 2025-09-18 05:59:24

Maya's POV

"I'm fine," I lied. "I just... we need to be more careful. Professional."

Something flickered across his expression – hurt, confusion, maybe disappointment. "Professional," he repeated slowly. "Is that what you want?"

No, I wanted to scream. I want to run away with you. I want to forget about pack politics and family complications and psychotic ex-best friends. I want to choose love over fear for once in my life.

Instead, I nodded. "It's what's best for both of us."

Twelve hours.

Back in my dorm room, I lay awake staring at the ceiling while my roommates slept peacefully. Tomorrow night's campus mixer loomed like an execution date. I'd already composed the speeches in my head, the public rejections that would cut Jaxon and Ronan to pieces while protecting them from Lyra's wrath.

I'd tell Jaxon that our family connection made any romantic relationship impossible, that I could never see him as anything more than a stepbrother. I'd watch the light die in his dark eyes and kno
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  • LOVING MR HOCKEY STAR   182

    Maya'sPOV"I'm not done," I said gently. "But I'm choosing to prioritize my own growth and healing. And if any of you really love me, you'll understand why that's necessary.""How long?" Jaxon asked, his voice breaking. "How long until you're ready to consider us again?""I don't know," I admitted. "Maybe a semester. Maybe a year. Maybe never. I can't promise you a timeline because that would just be another form of waiting instead of living."Ronan nodded slowly. "You're right. This is the right choice, even though it hurts.""It does hurt," I agreed, tears spilling down my cheeks. "Because I care about all of you. But caring about you doesn't mean I should sacrifice my own development to be what you need."I wiped my tears away. "Jaxon, I hope you take this time to rebuild your relationship with your father, or at least figure out your own identity outside of being someone's son or someone's boyfriend. You're more than your sacrifices."Jaxon nodded, unable to speak."Ronan, I hope

  • LOVING MR HOCKEY STAR   181

    Maya's POV "Ronan, you resigned from your position today. You gave up your career, your reputation, everything you worked for. For me.""For myself," Ronan corrected quietly. "I chose to live authentically instead of safely.""But would you have made that choice if I didn't exist?" I asked. "Would you have resigned from Blackstone and chosen uncertainty over security if you weren't in love with me?"Ronan hesitated, and that hesitation told me everything."You made a brave choice," I continued. "But I don't want to be the reason someone restructures their entire life. Because what happens if we don't work out? What happens if the reality of us doesn't match the fantasy you've built?""Maya, every relationship is a risk..""But not every relationship starts with one person giving up everything," I interrupted. "Ronan, you romanticize me. You see me as this catalyst for change, this hurricane that disrupted your safe existence. But I'm just a person. A messy, complicated, still-figurin

  • LOVING MR HOCKEY STAR   180

    Maya's POVThe sunset painted the chapel in shades of gold and rose as I approached. My hands were shaking. My heart was racing. And my mind was spinning with everything that had happened over the past few months.Victoria was gone, expelled and facing legal charges. The Sterling family's threats had crumbled when seventeen different video recordings proved their daughter had staged everything. Dean Matthews had quietly resigned after the leaked files exposed his corruption. And my name, my reputation, was finally clear.I should have felt relieved. Victorious, even. Instead, I felt terrified. Because now that the chaos had settled, I had to face the choice I'd been avoiding. The choice between three men who had all fought for me in different ways. The choice that would define not just my romantic future, but the kind of person I wanted to be.Jaxon was already waiting at the chapel steps, his expression serious. Twenty feet away, Ronan stood beneath an oak tree. And further back, nea

  • LOVING MR HOCKEY STAR   179

    Ronan's POV "Today," I said. "This afternoon. I'm meeting with Chancellor Morrison at two. I'm going to thank her for restoring my reputation, then tell her I'm stepping down.""And then what?" Maya asked."Then I figure out what comes next," I said. "Maybe I will write the book I've been planning for years. Maybe I will start a private practice. Maybe I will teach online courses. I don't know yet. But I know I won't regret choosing to be honest about how I feel."Maya stood up, and for a moment I thought she was going to leave without another word.Instead, she walked around the table and hugged me. I wrapped my arms around her, breathing in the scent of her shampoo, feeling her heart beating against my chest."You're either the bravest person I know or the most foolish," she whispered."Can't I be both?" I asked.She laughed, pulling back to look at me. "I need to figure out what I want. Not what everyone else wants for me, not what's easiest or safest, but what I actually want. I'

  • LOVING MR HOCKEY STAR   178

    Ronan's POV "You're not responsible. I'm choosing this." I squeezed her hand gently. "Maya, they're offering me my job back on the condition that I stay away from you. They didn't say it explicitly, but we both know that's the deal. Professional boundaries. Appropriate distance. Pretend what's between us doesn't exist.""Then take it," Maya said desperately. "Take the job, Ronan. You've earned it.""At what cost?" I asked. "Spending every day seeing you in the hallways, in classes, around campus, and pretending you're just another student? Watching you with Jaxon or whoever else you might date, knowing I gave up my chance because I was too scared to choose?""It's not about being scared. It's about being smart.""Maybe I'm tired of being smart," I said. "Maybe I want to be reckless for once. Maybe I want to choose love over career advancement and see what happens."Maya pulled her hand away. "You're romanticizing this. In six months, when you can't find another teaching position beca

  • LOVING MR HOCKEY STAR   177

    Ronan's POVThe email from Chancellor Morrison arrived at 7:03 AM on Monday morning.Professor Thorne,In light of recent revelations regarding the systematic harassment campaign against student Maya Cross, the university administration has completed its review of your conduct. We have determined that the accusations of favoritism and inappropriate conduct were based on falsified evidence and malicious intent.Your suspension has been lifted, effective immediately. Your position as Dean of Healing and Herbalife is hereby restored, along with full back pay and benefits. Furthermore, the university would like to issue a public apology for the damage to your reputation.Please schedule a meeting with my office at your earliest convenience to discuss your return.Sincerely, Chancellor Patricia MorrisonI should have felt relieved. Vindicated. Triumphant, even.Instead, I felt hollow.I'd gotten my career back, my reputation cleared, my position restored. Everything I'd worked years to bui

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