LOGINChapter 165MaxThe first thing I felt when consciousness dragged me back was Ace’s arm heavy across my waist, his breath warm and steady against the back of my neck. The second thing was the buzzing. A constant, angry swarm of notifications that made the nightstand sound like it was trying to drill through the wood.I cracked one eye open. The dorm room was still dark, the digital clock glowing 6:47 a.m. Ace was dead asleep, face slack in that rare, peaceful way he only got after a championship win and a night of slow, thorough sex. His new platinum ring caught the faint light from the window and sent a little spark through my chest.Fiancé.The word should have felt warm. Instead, the buzzing grew louder.I reached for my phone with the hand that wasn’t pinned under Ace. The screen lit up like a explosion. 347 new notifications. Instagram. Twitter. TikTok. Group chats. Coach’s number. Mom. Sofia. Unknown numbers. News alerts.My stomach dropped before I even opened anything.The
Chapter 164AceThe arena had gone dead silent.Twenty thousand people holding their breath at the same time. The only sound was the faint hum of the lights and the rapid thud of my own heart slamming against my ribs. Max was on one knee in front of me, right in the center of the ice, sneakers soaked from the cold surface, eyes shining with tears and absolute certainty as he held up that small black box.The platinum band inside caught every overhead light like it had been forged just for this moment.Even though we've spoken about marriage in the secret, it still all feels surreal to see him doing this.Max who used to be so ashamed of showing us in public, is now on his one knee.I couldn’t speak. My legs gave out before my brain caught up. I dropped to my knees on the ice, pads hitting the frozen surface hard enough to send a jolt up my spine. We were eye-level now. Close enough that I could see every tear track on his cheeks, every tremble in his fingers as he held the ring out
Chapter 163MaxThe arena was electric, the roar of the crowd vibrating through the boards and straight into my chest. I stood behind the glass near the bench, heart hammering like I was the one on the ice instead of Ace. He had shown up every single day. Six a.m. sharp, just like Coach demanded. No complaints, no excuses, even when his body had to be screaming from the way we’d spent the nights before—tangled, sweaty, and desperate like the world might try to steal us again. I’d watched him drag himself out of our bed before dawn, kiss my forehead, and head to the rink. Hours on the ice, hours in the gym, pushing until sweat soaked through his gear and his shoulders shook. And every night he came home to me, exhausted but glowing, pulling me into his arms like I was the only reason he kept going. Today it paid off. Ace was a goddamn force. He scored the first goal in the opening minute— a blistering wrist shot that ripped the net before the goalie even reacted. The crowd
Chapter 162AceWe didn’t make it out of bed for another hour.After the first brutal round, I stayed buried inside Max, both of us slick with sweat and cum, breathing hard against each other’s skin. My cock gave a lazy twitch every time he clenched around me, milking the last drops from my spent dick. He looked wrecked in the best way—lips swollen, neck covered in fresh hickeys, stomach painted with his own cum, and my load slowly leaking out around where we were still joined.“Fuck… you’re still inside me,” Max murmured, voice hoarse and satisfied. His fingers traced lazy circles on my back, nails scraping lightly over the sweat-slick skin.“Exactly where I belong,” I growled, pressing a slow, deep kiss to his mouth. I rolled my hips once, grinding my softening cock deeper into the messy heat of his ass. He gasped, oversensitive but still pushing back for more.We kissed lazily for a while, tongues sliding together, tasting salt and sex. Eventually I pulled out with a wet sound, b
Chapter 161AceI stared at Max, completely stunned. The wooden swing creaked beneath us as the weight of what he’d done sank in.“You spoke to my coach?” My voice came out rough, almost disbelieving. “When the hell did you do that?”Max’s cheeks flushed, but his eyes shone with quiet pride. He shifted in my lap, straddling me more fully on the wide porch swing.“While you were making lunch,” he admitted, a small smirk playing on his lips. “You were busy cracking eggs and humming that awful off-key tune. I slipped out here, called him. Told him you had a family emergency, that it was my fault you missed practice. I begged him not to bench you... reminded him that you’re the best player he’s got and it’d be fucking stupid to throw that away over one mistake.”My throat tightened. No one had ever fought for me like that.He kept going, voice softening. “He wasn’t happy at first. Yelled about discipline and team rules. But I kept talking until he agreed you could still play the upcomi
Chapter 160AceMax leaned back against my chest, his head tilting so he could look up at me. The morning sun caught in his hair, making it glow. For a moment he was quiet, thinking, his fingers tracing lazy patterns over my forearm.“I want you to get signed first,” he said finally, voice steady but warm. “You’ve worked too hard on hockey to lose it. Get the contract, get on the ice where you belong, then we’ll talk about rings and vows and all of that.”I blinked, surprised. “You sure? I don’t mind waiting, but...”“I’m sure.” He turned slightly in my lap so he could face me better, one hand resting on my chest. “And why did you miss practice? We both know you need to play the game, Ace. Hockey is your future. It'll break me to see you not play hockey.”His words landed heavy. I swallowed, remembering the phone call that had started this whole mess.“When your father called me few days ago,” I said quietly, “I thought he wanted to talk about you. About us. I thought… maybe it was my
Chapter 96Max"What?" I repeated, my hands were gripping the edge of the seat so hard my knuckles were turning white."I think..." He paused and ran his hand through his hair and I could see him struggling with the words. "I think there's a possibility that your parents might not be your biologica
Chapter 97MaxWhat about all the memories I had of them and all the moments we'd shared and all the times they'd told me they loved me?Had any of it been real or had it all been built on a foundation of lies?What about late grandpa. Was he also aware I wasn't his grandson?The thoughts are so pa
Chapter 89AceThe funeral was the next morning and I arrived at the church early because I'd barely slept and I didn't know what else to do with myself.The parking lot was already filling up with cars and I found a spot near the back and sat there watching people file inside dressed in black and
Chapter 87Ace Mr. Rivera sat in his chair in the front row and accepted condolences with a solemn nod and I watched person after person approach him to shake his hand and tell him how sorry they were for his loss.I wanted to scream at all of them that he didn't deserve their sympathy because thi







