บททั้งหมดของ Puck My Sins On Ruthless Ice: บทที่ 1 - บทที่ 9

Gianna's POV The air inside the Vanguard Arena always smelled the same. It was a sharp mix of frozen water, heavy cooling vents, and the metallic tang of the steel barriers. For six months, that smell meant nothing but trouble. Today, it was just a place to hide.I stood at the edge of the rink, my fingers dug into the cold wooden gate. I closed my eyes and drew in a long, shaky breath, letting the freezing air burn my throat.New name. New life. Just survive.I repeated the words silently. Six months ago, I was Gianna Rossi, America’s top figure skater, locked in to go to the winter games. But a beautifully set-up doping scandal, cooked up by my coach to cover his own missing money, ruined my career in a single afternoon. By the time his lawyers finished lying to the news, everyone thought I was a fraud. I ran from the reporters, the lawsuits, and the wreckage with nothing but a single duffel bag and a fake ID file.Now, I was Gianna Cole. A quiet freshman transfer student at Black

Gianna's POV Ryker didn't move from the wall. He just stood there, completely shirtless, letting his gray eyes slowly track the line of my throat down to where my fingers clutched the strap of my bag. The dark tattoo of the breaking storm on his arm shifted with the slight movement of his muscles. He looked completely at home, while I felt like I was standing on a fault line."There's been a mistake," I said, my voice tight. I forced my eyes to stay locked on his face, refusing to look down at the hard contours of his chest. "The housing office said this was an emergency placement. I'll go back and make them change it.""Go ahead," Ryker murmured, a small, arrogant tilt to his lips. "But unless you're planning on sleeping in the equipment shed, you're stuck here. The whole campus is locked down over that flood."He stepped away from the wall, and walked into the small kitchen, his bare feet silent against the hardwood floor. He pulled a carton of milk from the fridge, took a long dri

Gianna’s POV The pitch-black room felt smaller now, crowded by the sound of our breathing. I sat on the cold floor, my knees pulled tightly against my chest, while Ryker stood over me like a shadow. The blue glow from his phone screen cut across his sharp cheekbones."What do you mean?" I asked, my voice barely a whisper. "What code?"Ryker didn't answer right away. He tapped the screen of his phone, scrolled through a page, and then turned the display toward my face. "Read that."I blinked against the sudden light, squinting at the bold text of a major sports gossip site.*“BARRETT’S LAST STRIKE? NHL scouts question the maturity of Blackwood’s star captain after a viral locker-room brawl leaves a teammate hospitalized. Sources say the athletic board is preparing an ultimatum: clean up his act, or lose the captaincy and the draft.”*Underneath the text was a blurry screenshot of Ryker pulling his fist back in a concrete hallway, his eyes wild with anger.I looked up from the screen,

Gianna’s POV The noise inside the Vanguard Arena was deafening. Thousands of students and local fans packed the steep bleachers, a sea of gold and black jersey shirts screaming as the pre-game music boomed through the floorboards. The smell of cold grease, stale beer, and the sharp bite of the ice rink filled the air.I stood at the top of the concrete stairs, my hands stuffed deep into the pockets of a tailored black leather jacket. Underneath, I was wearing a brand-new, crisp white hockey jersey. Plastered across the front was the Blackwood crest. On the back, a massive black 88 sat beneath the name BARRETT.It felt like a target on my spine."Is that her?" a sharp voice whispered to my left.I didn't turn my head. I kept my chin up, eyes fixed straight ahead, walking down the narrow aisle toward the center VIP box. But I could feel the heavy weight of a hundred stares tracking my movements. Groups of girls in shorter jerseys were huddled together by the steel railings, their eye

Gianna’s POV I did not look away from him. I kept my face blank and my voice flat. "Your contract is already messy, Barrett. If your ex-girlfriend is going to jump on you in the halls between games, it will ruin my image. The school board is looking for an excuse to kick you off the team, and a big public fight with your ex is exactly what the web blogs want."Ryker’s eyes darkened. His hand was still on the metal locker next to my head. He made a tight fist, and the metal wall made a rattling sound behind my ears. He did not look mad at me, he just looked annoyed by the whole situation."She means nothing to me, Cole," he glared. "I did not invite her down here. I did not want that kiss. It will never happen again. My mind is on the game, not on the past.""Good," I said, looking straight into his gray eyes. "Because if a student or a camera catches her doing that, they will know our relationship is a total lie. I signed that paper to stay hidden and safe. I do not want to get dragg