The rink lights had been dimmed to their lowest setting, casting long silver shadows across the ice that made the entire arena feel like a dream half-remembered. I should have gone back to the house after our stolen moment against the glass, but my legs refused to carry me away. Instead, I kept skating slow, lazy circles in the center, each glide pulling at the deep bruises along my ribs like a reminder that yesterday had been real. Kane’s hits. Lila’s ghost. Coach’s cold calculations. Caleb’s mouth on mine.
The side door clicked open again.
I didn’t need to turn to know it was him. The shift in the air was immediate—thicker, warmer, charged with the same electricity that had crackled between us since the first day I stepped onto his ice. Caleb glided out of the shadows, helmet tucked un
