Início / Romance / SHATTERED ICE:One rink, bound by betrayal / Capítulo 91 - Capítulo 100

Todos os capítulos de SHATTERED ICE:One rink, bound by betrayal : Capítulo 91 - Capítulo 100

179 Capítulos

91.

Anthony’s POV Samantha froze for half a second, just long enough for me to notice. Then she smiled that press-friendly smile, the kind that didn’t quite reach her eyes. “It’s a big field this year,” she said, calm and diplomatic as ever. “Everyone’s bringing their best. We just focus on our own skating.”The perfect non-answer.Logan, of course, couldn’t resist. He leaned into his mic, his smile just shy of a smirk. “Oh, come on, Sam,” he drawled, voice smooth and oily. “Don’t be modest. You love a little competition.”A few reporters laughed, the kind of low, eager chuckle that said this was the moment they were waiting for, blood in the water.I turned my head slowly, locking eyes with Logan. My voice came out low and steady. “We love fair competition.”The laughter died almost instantly.He blinked, still smiling, but his jaw tightened just slightly. I leaned back in my seat, letting the silence stretch before I spoke again, loud enough for the microphones to pick up every word.“

92.

Anthony’s POVCeleste was the last person I expected to see that morning.At first, I thought I was imagining things , maybe it was the glare from the overhead lights, the nerves twisting my stomach before the conference. But then she moved, graceful and deliberate, threading through the rows of chairs like she’d never left this world, like she hadn’t spent the last few months in physical therapy learning how to walk again.I saw the faint shine of her auburn hair, the same familiar tilt of her chin she used to give me before a jump , confident, teasing, sure of herself. She adjusted her press badge and took a seat in the front row, crossing her legs neatly beside another reporter. Her posture was calm, professional, detached… but I knew that mask. I knew her too damn well.I blinked once. Twice.What the hell was she doing here?Celeste Archer , my ex-partner, and I meant it in every sense, the girl who used to lace my skates before every competition , sitting there like she b

93.

Anthony’s POVIsaac nudged me lightly. “Dude,” he murmured, “you seeing what I’m seeing?”“Unfortunately, yeah.” My voice came out tighter than I intended, the words pressed between my teeth.Across the room, I watched Celeste. I could already see cameras starting to shift toward her, reporters perking up as if someone had just announced free coffee. Typical.Isaac followed my gaze, his brows raised. “She looks good,” he said cautiously, like he was testing the air for mines.“Yeah,” I muttered, eyes still fixed on her. “She always does.”It came out before I could stop it, that automatic admission that hung between us like something I shouldn’t have said out loud. I wasn’t going to give Isaac the satisfaction of calling me out for it, though.He tilted his head, smirking just a little. “You think she’s here for you?”“I don’t know,” I said, forcing a dry laugh. “You think she’s now a reporter?” My voice was flat, maybe too sharp. “I really don’t care. I do know she’s here for a story

94.

Anthony’s POV I swallowed the sharp retort that rose up. Samantha didn’t seem to notice; she was busy nodding politely to another question about choreography and team chemistry. But I caught the way Celeste’s eyes lingered on her, assessing, dissecting,like she was already writing the headline in her head.Another reporter piped up, sensing the tension. “Celeste, since you’ve mentioned the new teams,how do you feel seeing your former partner compete again, this time with Samantha Meadows?” she asked.Celeste’s lips curved into something that might have passed for a smile if you didn’t know her. I did. And that wasn’t a smile, it was the calm before the storm.“Oh, Anthony’s always been adaptable,” she said lightly. “He adjusts quickly. Doesn’t waste time looking back.”I felt Samantha shift beside me, her posture stiffening. The jab was subtle enough to slip past most people, but not her. Not me.I forced my voice steady, offering the cameras a tight grin. “That’s the point of compe

95.

Anthony’s POV Samantha let out a slow breath beside me, finally letting the mask slip just a little. “She’s good,” she muttered.“Too good,” I said, rubbing the back of my neck. “She knew exactly what she was doing.”Cole leaned forward, lowering his voice. “Let her play her game,” he said. “You just focus on yours.”I nodded, but my stomach was still knotted. Because as much as I wanted to believe Celeste was just playing her usual games… there’d been something in her tone when she said she was watching.Something that told me this wasn’t over ,not by a long shot. I don’t know how many seconds passed until I felt someone’s elbow on my side.“Anthony,” Samantha nudged me again under the table. “They’re asking about our new short program.”Right. Focus. The short program.I cleared my throat and leaned toward the mic. “We’re excited about it,” I said, voice steady, even though my pulse was nowhere near calm. “It’s a bit darker than our previous programs. More experimental.”A few came

96.

Anthony’s POV The photo hit harder than I expected ,me, leaving the hospital parking lot, dressed down in clothes I thought would make me invisible. Sunglasses. Cap pulled low. Shoulders hunched like I was trying to disappear. I remembered that day ,the way the sun had felt too sharp, how every noise seemed to stab at the edges of my head. The way I’d just wanted to get home before anyone saw me.Guess that had worked out great.Then another photo flashed up. Me again ,standing beside my car, in another cloth, phone pressed to my ear, exhaustion written all over my face. I looked pale, older, like the weight of the world was hanging off me. And in a way, it was.So they had followed me twice to the hospital. Damn! How the hell had I not noticed someone trailing me. I could swear that I had been very careful.The sound in the room changed ,no longer polite curiosity, but something heavier. Whispers. Shuffling. The low hiss of people trying to make sense of what they were seeing. Ever

97.

Anthony’s POVAfter the last photo op, I’d been ready to leave, ready to disappear into the nearest coffee shop and pretend, for just ten minutes, that I wasn’t living under the microscope of a hundred flashing cameras and a dozen sponsor reps breathing down my neck. My cheeks still ached from smiling, my jacket felt like a noose, and all I wanted was caffeine strong enough to make me forget I’d spent the last hour being paraded like a show pony.But then, out of the corner of my eye, I saw her.Celeste.She stood near the exit, looking almost identical to how I remembered her, except colder. Her hair was styled in sharp, immaculate waves, her suit pristine, her posture perfect, as if the months off the ice had polished her into something harder, not softer. A tall man in an expensive gray suit stood beside her, holding a briefcase, his expression unreadable.I froze mid-step. The din of reporters and chattering skaters faded to a dull hum.I hadn’t seen her since… that day. The da

98.

Anthony’s POVThe words stung. More than I wanted to admit. “That wasn’t the plan,” I said tightly. “Samantha was just, available. She fit the program, Isaac chose her not me. The timing worked.”Celeste arched a brow. “The timing,” she repeated, her voice soft, mocking. “Right. You always did have impeccable timing.”My pulse thudded in my ears. “You’re twisting this,” I said, taking a step back before I said something I couldn’t take back. “You’re mad because you can’t control the story anymore. You think I’m trying to replace you, but I’m not. I never could.”For a second, just a second, her expression shifted. Something sharp flickered across her face before she smoothed it away.“Then why does it look like you already did?” she whispered.The question landed between us like a blade dropped point-first into ice; silent, but lethal.I swallowed hard, jaw tightening until it ached. I didn’t have an answer for that, not one that wouldn’t make everything worse.Because the truth was…I

99.

Anthony’s POVHer words stung more than I wanted to admit. Pretending. That’s what she thought this was, that every press conference, every competition, every breath I took beside Samantha was just some performance designed to erase her. Before I could even form a reply, Celeste stepped closer, her voice low and shaking with anger.“Well, this just made things easier,” she said, her tone dripping with venom. “At least now I won’t feel bad about ruining you and your fake career with your little birdie… just like you ruined mine.”I blinked, disbelief cutting through the anger rising in me. “Ruined your career? You got injured, Celeste. It wasn’t me who took you out of competition, it was bad luck and a mistimed landing. You told me to keep going. You told me not to wait.” I muttered.She let out a bitter laugh, sharp and humorless. “And you took that as permission to forget me.”I shook my head, trying to steady my voice, but the frustration bled through anyway. “You think this is ab

100.

Anthony’s POV “That’s not fair,” I snapped. “You asked me to keep skating. You told me not to throw away a season because of you.” My chest tightened, the memory sharp and bitter. “I did what you asked. I listened to you. So please Celeste, stop making things up.”Her eyes flashed, just for a second, that old fire breaking through the practiced calm. “You think I made it up?” she said, her voice tightening. “You think I don’t verify my sources?”I laughed then, humorless. “Sources?” My voice dropped, low and accusing. “Don’t insult me, Celeste. I know exactly what that was. You fed a blogger pretending to be a journalist and had him throw medical accusations at me on camera.” My pulse kicked up, anger finally overriding shock. “You really teamed up with some hack to say I hid an eyes condition? To ruin me because you couldn’t stand seeing me skate again?”She didn’t flinch, but her jaw locked. Just enough for me to know I’d hit truth. “You think I’d sabotage myself just to hurt you

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