Offside Hearts Novels & Stories

I fired. He froze like an antelope in headlights. "I can't seem to remember o." Harriet leaned closer with a smile on her face. I grinned. "October eight, two years ago?" He scratched his head looking confused. "Well, it was just a harmless mistake, it was for cruising and she got it all wrong." "Harmless? But you appeared harmful to the girl by shattering her heart into pieces." Harried chuckled so hard, slapping her thighs. "Well, I'm born again." He shrugged his shoulders.

I said and started to turn my back on him, already starting to leave, but then he spoke again. “I really hope you could bring Eliana Deere home, Hugo. Wasn’t that the plan all along? Getting close to her, making her trust you; fall in love with you, even. And then marriage would enter the picture. A clever plan by the way, brother. The merging of the Deere pack with us would give us more power. It would even give you the position of being the leader of the pack, wouldn’t it?” he said with a smirk on his face. Oh, how I want to erase it off of his face so badly. My blood is literally boiling right now. I feel like exploding on the spot.

She shifted uncomfortably, the bruises on her ribs making even small movements a test of endurance. She leaned forward, fingers steady as she inserted the flash drive into the laptop. The drive’s label—*Romano*—flashed across the screen, a cold reminder of the name she’d spent years chasing, a name that had become the bedrock of her vengeance. A name that was, even now, still a mystery.

With my one free hand, I quickly dialed a number on my phone. Before long, someone in a white coat appeared at the end of the hall. "Christopher Morris? He has a history of heart disease, right?" the doctor asked as he led us down the VIP corridor. Selena nodded quickly. "So, is it a relapse of his heart condition?" The doctor shook their head. "No, he got kicked in the chest during a fight." Selena had mentioned her brother before. From her words, I could tell he was a good man.

A nostalgic smile fills my heart. I'm going to miss this a lot; you all are my wolf boys. No matter where you are, you are mine, okay? Be as mine as I am yours. I am your partner, your alley, your ACE OF HEARTS in perfection. Don't look for me, don't take risks for me, and don't stop your lives for me. You all are the best thing I've ever had in my life. Don't forget to give Horus a kiss from me and tell him I love him so much too.

he was rumbling. Sighing, I placed my hands in my pockets to keep them from freezing off. “Honestly, it wasn’t a bother so there is no need for you to do that,” I answered. “Are you sure?” he asked again. “Very, cheers mate. Have a great night.” Then I turned and walked away without looking back and hoping that he wouldn’t call me back again. There was just something off about Ryan that didn’t sit well with me and I wanted to keep my distance as much as possible. Hopefully the next time he saw me, I was with someone and he wouldn’t approach because I didn’t want to have to be mean and tell him to fuck off.

I'm so screwed how do I tell him I forgot I had something like that in my possession and to think he came all the way here to get it. "It's fine if you don't have it yet, but make sure to get it ready by tomorrow. It's my favorite" He ends and walks away. I Puff in relief. How did he let me off the hook so easily? He turns around again and walks in my direction. My heart is almost bursting out of my chest. He pins me to the wall as soon as he gets to where I am standing and draws his face closer to mine, staring deeply at my eyes and I close my eyes trembling. What is he thinking?

Then he clears his throat like a professor about to deliver a lecture. “Alright. Offside happens when one team hogs the puck.” He exaggerates the word puck, chopping it into awkward syllables like he personally despises it. “They just keep going and going, trying to score, not letting the other team have a chance.” I stare at him. He keeps going. “It’s selfish, really. Completely unsportsmanlike behavior.” He nods firmly. “And hockey does not tolerate selfishness. Therefore… offside.” For three whole seconds, I try to hold it together.

The guy was a lot of things, but he was a man of his word. But then, everything changed in a heartbeat. The team started a scrimmage. It was high-speed, high-impact. Marcus was darting toward the goal when a defender from the second string—a guy who clearly had something to prove—went for a brutal slide tackle. It was messy. There was a sound—a sickening crunch—that echoed across the quiet morning air. Marcus went down. He didn't get up. He didn't even yell. He just clutched his ankle, his face turning a terrifying shade of white.

“Already in your inbox. And, Sophia? You’re getting close. Just… be careful whose radar you hit.” Her voice is light, but it lands heavy in my chest. We hang up, and I slide my coffee aside, opening the notebook I keep under Jamie’s spare-room desk. The paper is cream, thick enough that ink doesn’t bleed through. I write in block capitals, CHARITY—FINAL QUARTER. Then MARRIN CO. → OFFSHORE. Arrows, dates, amounts. The kind of trail you can trace with your fingertip. It feels safer here, on paper, away from whatever eyes might still be skimming my digital footprint. Claire’s voice echoes in my head. Be careful whose radar you hit. And I picture an invisible line somewhere out there, and me cre