Chapter 2

JOURNEE'S POV

The rink smelled like popcorn and cold metal, and for the better part of an hour I'd been watching the game without actually seeing a second of it. My eyes kept finding him instead, a flash of dark hair cutting across center ice, gone before I could decide if I was angry or something worse. Every time the crowd roared I flinched like it was aimed at me, half convinced the whole building already knew what I'd walked in on days ago.

His voice kept circling back, quiet and infuriating: "Not a chance, little spy." I hated that it was the only thing loud enough to drown out the noise around me. I told myself I was only watching the clock, only counting down the minutes until I could disappear into the crowd and forget his face existed. I almost believed it.

The final whistle blew across the ice rink, and I let out a long breath I didn't realize I'd been holding.

The hockey match had ended in a solid win for Kingston's team, as expected, but I could barely focus on the celebration happening on the ice. My eyes kept drifting toward him despite how much I tried to stop myself.

Since he stepped onto the rink earlier, he'd barely even glanced in my direction. Part of me felt relieved. But after what happened in Mrs. Cross's classroom and the way I ran out, I expected some confrontation.

The silence from him felt worse. I busied myself packing away the computer equipment we used for stats and timing. My hands moved quickly, unplugging cables and stacking laptops into their cases. The sooner I finished, the sooner I could escape.

"Journee, what the hell is going on?" Marley asked, walking over with a confused frown.

I turned to look at her. "What do you mean?"

She nodded toward the ice. "Them. They've been staring at you all night and whispering."

My stomach dropped when I followed her gaze. A few of the hockey players were huddled together, shooting glances my way and snickering. And I just knew I was their topic of discussion. Kingston stood slightly apart from them, drinking from a water bottle, and he wasn't laughing. In fact, it was like he didn't notice his teammates beside him.

Dominic called out from the group, loud enough for half the rink to hear. "Hey, Journee! You doing private tutoring sessions these days? I heard you're very ... available."

Laughter erupted between the team members, and Kingston's head snapped up, and his eyes found mine in an instant before turning to stare at his friends.

My face went hot instantly. "What did you just say?"

"Just asking a question," Dominic said, grinning. "Heard you're popular now."

They knew. Of course they knew.

I shot a look at Kingston, searching his face for any sign he was behind this. That he told his teammates to make a mockery of me and whatever they were on about, but his jaw was tight. His cold eyes, this time, were not on me but at Dominic.

"Shut up," Kingston said quietly, and the laughter died immediately. Of course he would be obeyed because he was an Alpha.

Dominic held up his hands in surrender, his face still trying to hold back the laughter. "Just joking, man. Chill."

"I said shut up."

The command in Kingston's voice was so unmistakable that even I felt the urge to look away. Dominic mumbled something and turned back to the group. The others followed suit, suddenly very interested in their equipment.

I stood there, frozen, watching Kingston, but he didn't look at me. He just walked toward the locker room without another word.

"What the hell was that?" Marley whispered. "When has Kingston ever tried to defend you? What is going on?"

"I don't know," I admitted, but that little act he did stayed in my heart for the entire day.

* The next few days blurred into a nightmare of small but vicious whispers. My books kept winding up in strange places. Notes appeared in my locker; not threatening exactly, but they were cruel and suggestive of something dirty.

"Professor's pet."

"Kingston's little stalker."

"Go back to your own pack."

The worst part was not knowing if Kingston was behind it. He wasn't directly attacking me as usual, but it didn't mean he wasn't the one playing these petty tricks behind the scenes. I hadn't seen him recently laughing at me or joining his friends to make a mockery of me, but there was no way he couldn't be behind it. They were his friends and he wasn't stopping them. It was like he was permitting them to continue the harassment with his silence.

Three days later, I stepped out of the dean's office feeling completely overwhelmed. He'd asked me directly what happened in Mrs. Cross's classroom that day. I lied through my teeth, saying I saw nothing important.

Marley waited right outside the door, bouncing on her toes with worry. "Oh my God, what was that about? You never get called to the dean's office."

"It's nothing serious," I said, forcing a smile. "Just some computer issues they needed help with."

Her eyes narrowed, but she didn't push it. "Come on, let's go and eat. My treat. You look like you need it."

We made our way to our usual restaurant just off campus. The moment I stepped inside the familiar warm space, I felt most of the tension in my shoulders ease. We had barely sat down and ordered when the door opened again and a group of hockey players walked in.

Kingston was among them.

Why the hell do we keep running into each other?

He didn't see me at first. He looked tired with dark circles under his eyes, his hair messier than usual and sat with his back to me, his shoulders tense.

"Ignore them," Marley said quietly. "Just eat."

I tried. I really did, but then my phone started exploding with notifications.

"What is going on?"

Marley's face paled as she stared at her own screen. She took a deep breath, looking up at me with a stiff smile. "It's nothing. We should eat."

I grabbed my phone before she could stop me and my heart stopped with the things I was seeing on my screen.

Someone had posted flyers and messages all over social media and group chats. My tutoring ad now had my phone number listed under a fake escort service.

"Available for private sessions. Very discreet. Call Journee for a good time."

My vision turned red and I stood up so quickly that my chair scraped loudly against the floor. I stormed toward the hockey table, my hands shaking.

"Did you do this?"

The table went silent, and Kingston turned in his chair, his green eyes finding mine. He looked at my phone, then at my face with his confusion in his eyes.

"What are you talking about?" he looked tired but he could be pretending and acting innocent. This was the height of it. I wasn't going to take it anymore.

"This!" I yelled. "Someone here posted this. You let them bully me for days, and now this? Just to make sure I keep my mouth shut?"

He took the phone from my hand without arguing, and began scrolling through the posts. His expression darkened with each word. "I didn't do this."

"Oh, I do believe you're not responsible for this." I said sarcastically. "You'll rather take it out on me, but you're not stopping your friend for all these!" My voice cracked. "You're just standing there, letting them destroy me, and you won't even look at me like I'm a person!"

Without thinking I picked up the plate of pasta from the guy next to him and smashed it right into Kingston's face. The sauce slid down his face staining his white shirt as gasp erupted around us.

He stood up slowly, towering over me, until everything that had poured on him slid to the ground. The other players watched with wide eyes.

"Dominic," Kingston said, turning to his group of friends, his voice low and dangerous. "Did you do this?"

Dominic's face went pale. "I-man, it was just a joke-"

Kingston's hand shot out and grabbed Dominic by the collar, slamming him against the nearest wall and the restaurant went completely silent.

"A joke?" Kingston's voice was as cold as ice. "You think ruining someone's reputation is a joke?"

"I didn't mean-"

"Take it down. Every single post. And if I find out you or anyone else touches her again, I'll make sure you're off the team and out of this pack before sunrise. Do you understand me?"

Dominic nodded frantically, and Kingston released him and turned back to me. His expression softened slightly, making his dark circles more visible.

"I have handled it," he said quietly. "I'm sorry."

"You're unbelievable," I spat, my eyes burning painfully as I grabbed my bag. I stormed out of the restaurant before anyone could stop me.