All Chapters of Beneath The Ice: Falling for the captain : Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

“Congratulations.”My voice warm as I hug Adrian tightly, clapping his back.“You know I’m happy for you,” I added quietly near his ear. “But if you ever hurt him, I will personally leak pictures of you crying in the locker room after that playoff loss.”Adrian snorts against my shoulder.When we pull apart, his fiancé—Leo Vale, my younger brother bursts out laughing.“You’re unbelievable, Noah.”The restaurant is glowing with soft golden light. Adrian rented the entire place for tonight’s celebration. Teammates from the Aurora Wolves, their partners, and a few of Leo’s music industry friends fill the room with laughter and music.Leo is radiant tonight.His dark hair is styled neatly, and he’s wearing a cream-colored blazer that makes his warm skin glow under the lights. The engagement ring on his finger sparkles every time he moves his hand.Seeing him this happy makes something warm twist inside my chest.For years, it was always the two of us against the world.Now someone else is

NOAH“Relax your arm.”Luca exhales slowly as I guide his shoulder through another rotation test.His muscles are tight under my hands.Not surprising.Professional hockey players push their bodies past the breaking point every season.“Pain?” I ask.“A little.”“Sharp or dull?”“Depends.”I glance up.“On what?”His mouth curves.“Where you’re touching me.”My expression goes flat instantly.There it is.The Luca Vance I remember.Charming. Arrogant. Completely inappropriate.I remove my hands and step back.“Let’s keep this professional.”He raises his hands innocently.“Of course, Doctor Hart.”I hate when he says my name like that.Like we’re still something, Like he has the right.Three years ago, I would’ve melted under that smile.Three years ago, I thought I loved him.Then I walked into a party and found him kissing someone else.In front of half the university.The humiliation burned for months.“Your shoulder rotation is limited,” I say, returning to the clipboard. “You’ll

NOAH************The arena is already alive when I arrive Friday night, pulsing with energy, a sea of silver and deep blue jerseys shifting under the flashing lights. Music pounds through the speakers, vibrating through my chest as if the entire place shares one heartbeat.Leo is already seated when I make my way down, balancing a pretzel in one hand and a beer in the other.“Hey,” I say, dropping into the seat beside him. “Sorry. The line was insane.”It’s a lie. I circled the arena three times before I even got in line, trying to calm the restless tension in my chest.Leo doesn’t respond right away. His gaze drifts slowly over me, then settles—very deliberately—on my back.My shoulders stiffen.“You’re wearing a jersey,” he says finally, his tone unreadable.I take a huge bite of the pretzel just to avoid answering. It tastes like cardboard.“It’s not what it looks like,” I mutter.“Lean forward.”“Do you ever think about traveling again?” I deflect quickly. “You’ve been stuck in t

STEFAN **************** I do not know when it started getting this complicated. Somewhere between the game, the bar, and that kiss that was never part of the plan, something shifted, and now I cannot seem to get my head back in the right place. I should be focused on the ice. I should be thinking about plays, about strategy, about leading my team the way a captain is supposed to. , my mind keeps circling back to Noah, to the way his lips felt against mine, to the look in his eyes when I pulled away, equal parts shock and something I am not ready to name. He is not my type. He has never been my type. I do not go for quiet, controlled men who pretend they do not feel anything. I go for easy, uncomplicated situations that end before anything real can start. So why him? Why now? I exhale sharply, dragging a hand through my hair as I stand at the edge of the rink during practice. The cold air should clear my head, but it does not. Nothing does. It would have been e

NOAHThe "honeymoon phase" of our fake relationship was officially over, replaced by a suffocating blanket of public scrutiny.Everywhere I went in the arena, people whispered. I was no longer just Noah Vale, the Physiotherapist. I was Noah Vale, the man who tamed Stefan Kovacs.I hated it."You're doing it again," Stefan’s voice rumbled.I looked up from my tablet. We were in the private recovery lounge—a perk of his captaincy that we were using more often just to get away from the prying eyes of the locker room. Stefan was sitting on the edge of the massage table, his jersey discarded, showing the fresh bruising along his ribs from the last game."Doing what?" I asked, my voice tighter than I intended."Thinking too loud. Your eyebrows do this little twitchy thing when you're stressed." He reached out, his thumb hovering just inches from my forehead before he caught himself and dropped his hand.The air in the room shifted. That was the problem with Chapter 10—the "fake" touches wer