LOGINOrion POVThe air was cold and clean. It cut through my lungs as I stood at the line of the big outdoor rink. The rink was on the grounds of the Kael Estate. My hands were deep in my heavy wool coat pockets.The afternoon sky was clear and blue. There was no smog or city noise.Ten years ago, my life was different. I was in stadiums with lights. There was a lot of pressure from contracts and loud crowds.Now, the only sound was the scrape of steel blades on the ice.“Look at me, Dad! Watch my glide!”Little Leo skated across the line. His cheeks were red from the cold. He was five years old and full of energy. He wore a Winter Wolves jersey. The jersey was a bit big for him. He held his hockey stick loosely. His dark hair was under his helmet. He had my eyes. His jaw was like his father's.“Keep your knees bent, Leo,” Lucian said. He skated backward in front of Leo. He moved easily.Lucian moved across the ice with the smooth balance that I loved watching on his first day on my top li
Orion POVThe thick rubber of the yoga mat felt cold beneath my palms as I kneeled beside Lucian. I was adjusting Lucian's posture for the pelvic drill when Lucian's entire body suddenly went rigid. A sharp gasp left Lucian's throat, his fingers instantly clawing into the foam mat.Before I could ask Lucian what was wrong, a rush of clear liquid soaked straight through the fabric of Lucian's white maternity pants, spreading across the blue mat. Lucian's water had officially broken.The entire gymnasium went dead silent. The fifteen local couples stopped their breathing drills, their eyes widening as they stared at the circle on the floor. The young instructor dropped her clipboard, the plastic clattering loudly against the hardwood.My protective instincts instantly kicked in. A territorial heat rushed up my neck, and my cedar wood scent spiked through the room like a wave heavy with alarm.“Lucian?” I dropped lower, my hands hovering over Lucian's waist. “What is it, sweetheart ?”“T
Lucian POVThe blacked-out windows of our luxury SUV did nothing to hide our arrival.Outside the local community wellness center, the street was a scene of total chaos. We were in the middle of our high-profile paternal sabbatical, so our head of security had insisted on a full convoy. Three identical black vehicles moved in a tight line, packed with four pairs of massive bodyguards in sharp suits.The convoy pulled up to the curb. On the sidewalk, ordinary citizens stopped in their tracks. People pulled out their phones and began to whisper to one another.“Look at that convoy,” a teenager on the street shouted, pointing at our guards. “Who is that? Is that a royal family? What major global celebrity comes into a regular community center with that many bodyguards?”The doors of the lead and rear vehicles flew open at the exact same moment. Eight burly security guards stepped onto the concrete. They formed a tight, impenetrable moving wall around our door. The sheer size of our detai
Orion POVThe digital tablet on the mahogany desk showed the draft of the league constitution. I sat back in my leather chair. Read the fine print of the document. The morning sun was shining through the cedar trees outside the study window. For four months, people were wondering where the captain of the Winter Wolves had gone. Now, they had their answer.I did not spend my time off resting. I used my time to build something that no one could ever break. The big estate was where the Virek Foundation for Athletic Equality was working for now. My father, Alistair, was sitting on the couch across from the desk. He had a glass of ice water. Looked serious as he watched me check the money.“The last votes from the board are in,” Alistair said. He put his glass down on the wood table. “The International Hockey Federation has to do what we want. The companies that give us money will not work with them if they do not change the rules about biology.”“Let them think about it,” I said. “The Kae
Lucian POVThe sun was setting over the city, casting a glow over our penthouse. I stood by the window, watching the cars move slowly below us. It was hard to believe that a few months ago, our lives were so different. The hockey league, the media, they were all so overwhelming. Now, we had our peace.It had been four months since our wedding. Four months since Orion had stood up to the league, giving us the freedom to live our lives. I was so grateful to him. I looked down at my belly. I could not help but smile. I was pregnant. It was a beautiful thing.My body had changed much. I was no longer the athletic man I used to be. Now, I was round and soft with a belly. I looked like a man who was about to become a father. I was happy about it. I felt like a nurtured Omega, with a sense of happiness inside me.I moved slowly, my hands under my belly to support it. It was heavy. My back ached. I was safe, and that was all that mattered. Orion had built a sanctuary for me, a place where I c
Lucian POVThe big windows in the dressing room were wide open. Outside, the green trees of the cedar forest went up high into the afternoon sky. Below the terrace, lots of white vanilla orchids were blooming in stone beds. The two smells mixed together in the wind, floating through the glass to fill the quiet room. This was our smell. The exact smell that connected my life to Orion's, free from the bad memories of the arena.There were no news trucks hiding in the trees. No big satellite dishes pointing at the clouds. No sports people waiting with microphones to talk about my past. The big media network did not exist on this estate. The Kael security guards locked down the area before dawn, making sure our pack was safe.I fixed the cuff of my jacket. The special linen felt soft on my skin. It was a change from the heavy, hard plastic of my old hockey gear.I looked down at my reflection in the mirror.My suit had fabric in the front to fit my stomach. At this point, my pregnancy was
Orion POVThe boardroom at the league headquarters smelled like leather and panic. Rain was over the high glass windows that looked out over the city. It made the yellow taxi lights below look all blurry. Thomas Vance was sitting at the end of the long mahogany table. His tie was loose. His fingers
Orion POVThe room at Kael Enterprises smelled like coffee and computers. My family's lawyers sat at a table, tapping on their tablets. Nobody said a word. The only sounds were the computers humming and the stock prices changing on the screens.Arthur Vance rubbed his eyes, his glasses slipping dow
Lucian POVThe small black chairs on the stage were not very big. I pulled my white team jersey straight, the fabric catching on the edges of the microphones. The tabletop was cool under my hands. There were five hundred men and women sitting tightly in the rows in front of us, their faces shadowed
Orion POVThe doors at the end of the hallway started shaking. Footsteps came marching down the hall, loud and in sync. It was not the sound of hockey players in their gear. It was the click of fancy shoes and heavy boots.I stood in front of our locker room. My big frame blocked the doorway. Lucia







