Claimed By My Ex's Rival Hockey Captain

show up

Bailey’s POV

Talia is already awake when I walk into the kitchen the next morning.

She is sitting at the counter, sipping coffee and scrolling through her phone. The smell of pancakes fills the air.

“Morning,” I mumble, rubbing my eyes. I slept like a baby last night after I arrived from the event. I didn't even realise when Talia came home.

She looks up and gives me a smile.

“Good morning, beautiful. You are glowing today. If I didn't know any better, I'd think you've fallen in love.” Talia teases me.

I roll my eyes and reach for a mug.

“ Fallen in a ditch maybe.” I snicker and Talia chuckles.

“So, are you going to tell me what exactly happened yesterday? Or do I have to check social media for it?”

I almost groan at that question.

I sigh and lean against the counter. “ What's there to tell? Orion took me to one of those events they always attending.

We came across Nolan. No, I should say, Orion dragged my ass there because he knew Nolan would be there.”

Now that I think of it, I realise that everything about Orion has to be calculated. The proposal, that party… I'm starting to think even our meeting was pre-mediated.

“ Why? To remind you of your pain?” Talia asks, her voice dropping.

“ Not really. To taunt Nolan.

That bastard tried to act like his usual arrogant self, but Orion…” I stop, realizing that for some weird reasons, I am smiling.

Talia catches it immediately. “But Orion…?” she probes, raising a brow.

I shake my head, pretending to be unaffected. “He just put Nolan in his place, that’s all. It was honestly satisfying to watch.”

Talia sets her cup down, her expression turning smug. “You should see your face right now. You literally smiled when you said his name.”

“I did not,” I say too quickly.

She chuckles. “Oh, you did. Don’t even try to deny it. Bailey, are you starting to like him?”

“What? No!” I laugh, but it comes out nervous. “This whole thing between us is fake, remember? It’s just for show.”

Talia gives me that knowing look. “Sure. But fake dating or not, feelings have a way of sneaking in. Maybe you’re just catching real ones without realizing it.”

I grab a pancake from the plate to distract myself. “You’re reading too much into it. Orion’s just… good at playing his part. That’s all.”

Talia smirks. “Playing his part, huh?

I saw your pictures together. You looked rather intimate…was that part of the act too?”

I freeze mid-bite. My mind flashes to that one picture he coerced me into taking.

He had wrapped his arms around my waist like a protective lover. And me, I had my eyes on him, maybe looking like I was worshipping him.

Then came the elevator ride, that moment his breath unevened and my thighs clenched, then his teasing voice in the car, how close he leaned in, the way my heart wouldn’t stop racing.

“It was nothing,” I mumble, staring at my plate.

“ He is a good man but I am not taking that path again.”

“Again?” Talia presses gently.

I meet her eyes and sigh. “Nolan taught me what happens when I let my guard down. I’m not ready to go through that again, Talia.”

She knows better than anyone else how much of a wreckage Nolan left me after that breakup.

I sometimes wonder if it can be considered one.

Nolan didn't show even the slightest remorse or concern after he did me dirty.

Talia softens, her voice quiet. “I get it. He really hurt you. But don’t let that stop you from feeling something real when it comes.”

I don’t answer. Instead, I stare out the window. The morning sun catches the glass, and I think about the way Orion looked at me last night—like he saw something no one else did.

And maybe he did and that already terrifies me.

Talia nudges me with her elbow. “Just… Don't fight it too hard, okay? Even if it starts as fake, maybe it’s not all fake.”

Her words stir something deep inside me. Orion has been genuine to me these past days. My guard is still up but a traitorous part of me still wants to see how far he can go on playing the caring boyfriend. I shrug and take a sip of my coffee.

"Enough about me. Tell me about yourself. How is your ass CEO and you getting along lately." I probe. She is always complaining how much of a dickhead that guy actually is.

Talia suddenly looks down, her cheeks tinting a soft pink. I narrow my eyes. “What’s with that look ?”

She fiddles with her mug, trying to hide a smile. “Nothing.”

“Nothing? Doesn't look that way to me.

Spill it.” I lean forward on the counter.

Talia bites her lip, her voice lowering like she’s about to confess to a crime. “The CEO asked me to join him on a business trip to Vegas next week.”

I blink. “You mean Mr. Stone-Face himself? The one you said you couldn’t stand?”

She laughs nervously. “Yes, that one.”

I gasp dramatically. “And you said yes?”

She shrugs, trying to look casual but she fails terribly.

“It’s just a trip. I’m handling client relations, and he said it’d be good exposure.”

I smirk. “Oh sure, exposure. That’s what we are calling it now?”

“Stop!” she laughs, throwing a napkin at me. “It’s not like that. He’s just… been nicer lately. Less bossy and definitely more human.”

I tilt my head, grinning.

“People change, right?” I tease.

“Exactly,” she says, though her smile betrays her.

I can’t help but laugh. “Look at us—one fake dating a hockey captain, the other maybe catching feelings for her CEO. We are the perfect ingredients of disasters.”

“Speak for yourself,” Talia says, chuckling. “At least my disaster involves Vegas.”

Talia later leaves to run some errand and I head to the bakery.

With my grandmother's surgery paid and done, I don't need to keep working at the bar.

I decide to pick up my unfinished dream.

The opening is set to happen anytime soon and I would be lying if I say I am not excited.

Running a bakery was always my dream, and even though Nolan had laughed at the idea and said it wasn’t “ambitious enough”—I am willing to make it happen.

“ A bakery is such a lousy business. Your baking skills are good but they only belong to me.”

Those were his exact words. In the past, I thought he cared about me and being possessive.

Looking back, I can't help but laugh at how stupid and ignorant I really was.

By evening, I manage to paint almost the whole shop but exhaustion slowly creeps in.

I’m wiping my hands when the doorbell chimes.

“Sorry, we’re not open ye…” I stop mid-sentence when footsteps stop not far away.

Orion stands in the doorway, hands in his pockets.

He looks completely out of place in a space that smells like sugar and paint.

He is wearing a dark hoodie, cap pulled low, like he is trying not to be recognized. But I’d know that stance anywhere. It's funny how fast I have managed to imprint everything about him in my mind.

“Hey,” he says, his voice low but teasing. “Didn’t know you could hold a brush.

You missed a few spots on that wall.” he observes, pointing at the already painted walls.

I roll my eyes. “ There's a lot I can do you don't know.” I retort.

What's his comment supposed to mean anyway? That I am lazy?

He glances around, eyebrows raised. “You didn’t hire anyone?”

“i can’t afford to yet,” I admit, wiping paint off my wrist with a rag. “So, it’s just me.”

Something soft flickers in his eyes. He steps inside, letting the door close behind him.

“Then you’re doing it wrong,” he says, walking over and taking the roller from my hand.

I blink, now irritated. “Excuse me?”

He dips the roller into the paint tray. “Because now you’re not doing it alone.”

My irritation melts and my heart skips a beat. I should stop him, tell him that I can handle my s**t just fine.

Instead, I just stand there, watching him paint, a stupid smile tugging at my lips.

Maybe Talia’s right. Maybe sometimes, people don’t just change.

Maybe they show up.