All Chapters of A Rival for the Hockey Alpha : Chapter 261 - Chapter 270

Stiles. The walk back to my room was the longest trip of my life. Every step felt like I was dragging lead weights through deep mud. I had gone to Grey’s room hoping for a spark, a sign, a single crack in that cold doctor persona he was wearing. Instead, I got a door shut in my face and a heart that felt like it had been shredded. I opened the door to my suite as quietly as I could, but the palace was too still. "Stiles?" My heart dropped for a moment. "Hasima?” I called. She was sitting up in the dark. The moonlight hit the side of her face, making her look like a statue. I felt a sudden, sharp pang of guilt. "Hey," I whispered, my voice cracking. "You're here?” "Yes,” she said, smiling. “I didn't want to sleep alone today. I wanted to spend tonight here. With you.” I breathed. I knew what she meant by that. But me, I was not down for any of that — not now. And I don’t even think I'm ever down for that. “That’s ok,” I responded shortly. She watched me as I moved

StilesThe drive to my father’s house was a blur. I kept my eyes on the road, but my mind was stuck on the way Grey had looked at me just minutes ago. One step at a time.At least now, he has accepted to talk to me, even though it was as just friends. And even though he hasn't fully responded to the main problem, I was hopeful we may get there.Meanwhile, Hasima sat in the passenger seat, her bandaged arm resting in her lap.When we pulled into the driveway, my father was already on the porch. He looked okay, smiling on sight. I killed the engine and we both stepped out."Pops, you called us. We came as fast as we could," I said as we walked up the steps. I was still out of breath. "I was quite busy down there at the palace. You sounded like the world was ending."My dad nodded, his face now serious as he looked at me and then at Hasima. "I know, Stiles. But this wasn't something I could just say over the phone.""Why not?" I asked, wiping sweat from my forehead. "You had me thinking

Grey.The sun had barely peeked through the curtains when my phone started buzzing on the nightstand. I groaned, reaching for it with a heavy arm."Grey,” the voice on the other end called.Damn, it was Sky. I had barely slept.“You still sleeping, man? Wake up! We have the second fitting for the suits. If we’re late, my husband will be grumpy all day," Sky’s voice boomed through the speaker."I’m up, I’m up," I mumbled, even though I was still lying down.The morning disappeared in a blur of measuring tapes, expensive fabrics, and Riven complaining about how tight his collar felt, and how this and that didn't feel right.We spent hours standing still while the tailor pinned and tucked the wedding outfits. By the time we got back to the palace, the afternoon sun was starting to dip.We stood in the main hall, exhausted.Riven looked around, frowning. "Where’s Stiles? He was supposed to meet us here for the final check on the groomsmen's gear."Sky checked his watch and then his phone.

Grey.It was a day to the bachelor party.Riven and Sky decided they needed to work with their own hands to blow off some steam before the bachelor party.Instead of letting the servants do everything, they decided to just work on our space for the mini event.So right now we were moving boxes, sorting decorations, and clearing out old clutter. It was chaotic, but it felt good to move.Riven wiped sweat from his forehead and pointed toward a heavy cardboard carton in the corner. "Grey, do me a favor? Carry that box to the back storage room. It’s mostly old records and papers we need to sort through before the party starts. I don't want it taking up space in the hall.""Sure," I said, lifting the box. It was heavier than it looked.I carried it down the long, dim hallway to the storage room.As I got there, Sky was already there arranging the things that were being brought from the other place.I set the box down on a wooden table, about to leave so I could go back to helping Riven.Ju

Grey. The rain was still screaming around us, lashing against the stone benches and turning the garden paths into rivers of mud, but I couldn't hear it anymore. The only sound in the world was the heavy, jagged thumping of Stiles’s heart against my chest, a rhythm so violent that it felt like it wanted to break through his ribs and merge with mine. When he pulled me in, it wasn’t gentle. It wasn’t a soft invitation. It was a crash. It was a collision of two years of starvation, silence, and pain finally breaking apart under the pressure of a single moment. His lips hit mine, and the world simply stopped. The freezing wind died down in my mind, the thunder became a distant echo, and the only reality was the heat of him. It was everything I had tried to forget during those long, lonely nights in the East. His mouth was warm, a sharp contrast to the freezing rain that soaked our clothes to our skin. He tasted like home, like everything I craved but couldn't have, like a memory I h