Frozen Between Us

The first thing I noticed was the noise. Thousands of fans packed into Frosthawks Arena, their cheers shaking the glass walls of the media box. The second thing I noticed was him. Liam Hayes. Captain. Superstar. The face of professional hockey. And the man who had shattered my heart five years ago. I stared down at the ice, my fingers frozen above my keyboard. It shouldn’t have affected me anymore. Five years was a long time. Long enough to move on. Long enough to forget. Long enough to stop feeling like my chest was being squeezed every time I saw his face. Apparently not. Because the moment Liam skated onto the ice, my entire body betrayed me. The crowd erupted. Fans screamed his name. Children held signs. Women pressed themselves against the glass hoping for a glance. Meanwhile, I sat in the media section trying to remember how breathing worked. God. He looked different. Older. Broader. More dangerous. The boy I had fallen in love with at twenty-two was gone. This man was thirty. A champion. A household name. A walking headline. His dark hair peeked out beneath his helmet while his sharp jaw was covered by light stubble. The giant C stitched onto his jersey gleamed beneath the arena lights. Captain. The title fit him. Maybe it always had. The announcer’s voice thundered through the arena. “Ladies and gentlemen, your Frosthawks captain…” The crowd exploded. “LIAM HAYES!” I hated how my stomach flipped. I hated it. Five years. Five years of silence. Five years without hearing his voice. Five years without seeing him in person. And somehow one glimpse was enough to drag me backward. Back to late-night drives. Back to cheap apartments. Back to promises whispered in the dark. Forever. What a joke. “Ava?” I blinked. My editor, Rachel, stood beside me. “You look pale.” “I’m fine.” She raised an eyebrow. “You sure?” No. Not even remotely. But I forced a smile anyway. “I’m just tired.” Rachel snorted. “Good. Because you’re about to spend the next six months attached to hockey’s golden boy.” My smile nearly cracked. Right. The assignment. The assignment that had ruined my entire week. The assignment I couldn’t refuse. Follow the Frosthawks during their championship run. Exclusive interviews. Behind-the-scenes coverage. Travel access. Locker room access. Everything. Any sports journalist would kill for it. Unfortunately, that sports journalist happened to be me. And the star of the story happened to be Liam. My ex. The one person on earth I never wanted to see again. “You’re lucky,” Rachel continued. “Do you know how many journalists wanted this?” Lucky. Sure. That was one word for it. The buzzer sounded. The game began. I immediately buried myself in work. Statistics. Player notes. Observations. Anything to avoid looking at him. Unfortunately, Liam Hayes made that impossible. Because every time he touched the puck, the entire arena reacted. Every time he scored, the crowd lost their minds. And every time he smiled— I hated myself a little more. The game ended with a Frosthawks victory. Three goals. One assist. One game-winning shot. Guess who. I closed my laptop. “Let’s go,” Rachel said. “Post-game interviews.” My stomach dropped. Interviews. Meaning I would have to speak to him. Wonderful. Absolutely wonderful. Twenty minutes later I stood outside the locker room holding a recorder and a notebook. Players streamed past. Coaches barked orders. Reporters fought for positions. The usual chaos. Then the room suddenly went quiet. I didn’t need to look up. I already knew. Liam. The captain emerged from the locker room wearing a tailored charcoal suit. The same suit every sports magazine would spend the next week obsessing over. My pulse stumbled. Five years. Five years and he still had that effect on me. Liam stopped. Not moving. Not speaking. Just staring. Straight at me. The crowd around us disappeared. The reporters disappeared. The noise disappeared. For one terrible second, it felt like we were twenty-five again. Then reality returned. His expression hardened. Cold. Indifferent. Like I’d imagined the entire thing. Good. That was good. I preferred hatred. Hatred was easier. The media manager pointed toward me. “Hayes, exclusive coverage this season.” Liam’s gaze never left mine. The manager continued. “Ava Bennett. She’ll be traveling with us.” Silence. One second. Two. Three. Then Liam laughed. The sound held absolutely no humor. “Will she?” Every muscle in my body tightened. The manager looked confused. “Problem?” Liam finally looked away from me. “None at all.” Liar. The manager clapped his hands. “Great. Let’s start with an interview.” Wonderful. Just kill me now. The manager walked off. Leaving us alone. For the first time in five years. Neither of us spoke. The silence stretched. I swallowed. Professional. Be professional. I clicked on my recorder. “Liam, congratulations on the win.” His eyes dropped to the recorder. Then back to me. His face remained unreadable. “Thank you.” Formal. Cold. Like strangers. The way it should be. I cleared my throat. “Three points tonight. How are you feeling heading into playoffs?” “Confident.” Short answer. Of course. I scribbled notes. “Your chemistry with the first line looked strong.” “Mm.” Seriously? I looked up. His gaze was already on me. Watching. Studying. Like he was searching for something. Or remembering. The air suddenly felt too warm. I forced myself to continue. “Any concerns about injuries this season?” His jaw tightened. “No.” Another short answer. Fantastic. This interview was going wonderfully. I clicked off the recorder. “We’re done.” “Are we?” My breath caught. The question sounded wrong. Too personal. Too loaded. Too familiar. Slowly, Liam stepped closer. Not enough to touch. Just enough to remind me how much larger he was now. How intimidating. How impossible to ignore. The hallway suddenly felt much smaller. My pulse hammered. Five years ago I would have reached for him. Now I stepped back. The movement didn’t escape him. Something dark flashed in his eyes. Gone almost instantly. “You look different,” he said quietly. I hated how my heart reacted. “I could say the same.” A humorless smile touched his mouth. Neither of us believed that. Because despite everything. Despite five years. Despite fame. Despite heartbreak. I would recognize Liam Hayes anywhere. His gaze lingered on my face. Then he said the one thing I never expected. “You still wear that necklace.” My hand immediately flew to my throat. The tiny silver pendant. The one he’d given me years ago. The one I had never managed to throw away. Damn it. Damn it. His eyes followed the movement. A strange expression crossed his face. Not victory. Not satisfaction. Something far more dangerous. Hope. My stomach twisted. No. Absolutely not. Whatever this assignment was going to be, it could not become that. Because I knew exactly what happened when Liam Hayes got too close. I fell. Every single time. And this time? There was no way I’d survive the landing.