ICY GAMES: My Brother's Rival

3.INTENTIONAL MISTAKES

Chapter 3: INTENTIONAL MISTAKES

~QUINTESSA~

His game against St Lakes ended on a 4-2 score, but it earned him a bruised rib when a one-on-one secret fight happened with Daniels.

I leaned against the clinic wall with both hands buried inside the pocket of my oversized hoodie, pretending I wasn't waiting for him.

The private ward door swung open a moment later, and Maddox appeared corridor with a small prescription bag dangling from one hand.

"Why the hell are you still here, Wren?"

I lifted one shoulder. "Had to make sure our captain didn't sneak out the back door while having private talk with his personal Doctor."

His gaze drifted to the bag before returning to me. "And if i did?"

"I'll make your life miserable."

A faint, mocking smile tugged at his lips. "You'll report me."

"If you keep ignoring your doctor's orders, absolutely." I folded my arms across my chest. "He also mentioned you've been skipping your follow-up appointments. What appointments though?"

His jaw flexed. "You really enjoy being a pain, don't you?"

"You could say that to your bruised rib."I gave a witty retort.

Before either of us could say another word, a loud metallic rattle echoed down the hallway.

I glanced over my shoulder just as two maintenance workers backed out of a storage room, struggling to control a cart stacked with heavy fire extinguishers. They didn't see me.

I barely had time to react before Maddox's hand closed around my shoulder and pulled me firmly to his other side.

The cart rolled past, missing me by inches.

His body remained between me and the workers until they disappeared around the corner, as though shielding me had been the most natural thing in the world.

Only then did he let go.

The warmth of his touch somehow lingered through the thick fabric of my hoodie, and I hated how aware I suddenly became of how close he had been.

I looked down at my smartwatch, pretending it had become incredibly interesting.

"We should leave," I muttered. "We'll miss the shuttle back to campus."

A dry chuckle escaped him. "You forgot you're riding with me."

He clicked a button on his key fob.

A sleek black SUV flashed its headlights a few rows away, making me sigh inwardly.

Sometimes I forgot Maddox Jakes wasn't like the rest of us. We were all college students, yet he moved through life with the kind of effortless wealth most people only dreamed about.

When we reached the vehicle, he walked ahead of me and pulled the passenger door open.

I stopped and looked at him. "Well... this is unexpected."

"What is?"

"You acting like a gentleman." I muttered.

"I know how to open a car door."

I smiled despite myself. "For someone who spends half his day annoying me, you're full of surprises."

He waited until I climbed inside before shutting the door with far more force than necessary.

There he is. The Maddox I know.

The ride back to Dawson Creek University was surprisingly quiet.

By the time we returned, our excuse was already prepared.

We'd supposedly driven into town to pick up replacement skate blades for him, and the equipment box sitting in the back of the SUV made the story believable enough that neither Mr. Dave nor the coaching staff questioned us.

I spent the rest of the afternoon hiding inside my coordinator's office, catching up on reports until dinner.

The dining room of the athlete's quarters buzzed with laughter before I even stepped inside.

"Maddox has collected more broken hearts than goals this preseason," George announced loudly.

The table erupted. Mr. Dave laughed as he shook his head.

"At this point, Ryder and Cole might be the only respectable men left on this team."

I smiled to myself while serving rice onto my plate, pretending I wasn't listening.

Even after only a short time with the team, I'd grown comfortable around most of the players. They treated me like one of them.

Except Maddox. He was impossible to figure out.

Almost as though he felt my thoughts, I looked up.

He was already watching me.

For the first time since I'd met him, there wasn't the slightest trace of irritation in his eyes.

He was smiling. Not the arrogant smirk he wore whenever we argued, but a real smile.

It was unfair how handsome he looked.

Heat rushed into my cheeks, and I quickly looked away, suddenly finding my dinner far more interesting than the hockey captain sitting across the room.

I finished eating as quickly as I could, returned my plate, and slipped out of the dining hall before anyone could stop me.

The laughter behind me faded into the corridor, replaced by the quiet hum of the athletic complex.

My phone vibrated in my hoodie pocket.

An unknown number.

A chill crawled over my skin as I glanced back toward the dining hall to make sure no one had followed me before walking toward the tunnel that connected the residence building to the sports arena.

It was empty, quiet enough that my footsteps echoed against the concrete walls.

I answered the call.

"Hello?"

"Good evening, Quintessa."

The sound of his voice drained every bit of warmth from my body. I knew the caller at once.

"How did you get this number?" I whispered. "And why are you calling me, Ethan?"

"We need to talk."

"There is nothing left to talk about."

"Tess—"

"Don't call me that."

Silence stretched between us before he spoke again.

"Dad misses you." The words struck harder than they should have.

"He isn't doing well, and he—"

I ended the call before he could finish.

The phone trembled in my hand as I fought against the tears threatening to spill over.

Dad.

Ethan.

I had spent years convincing myself they belonged to a life I'd left behind, yet hearing their voices was enough to pull every wound back open.

I pressed both palms against my eyes, letting the tears fall in the empty arena.

I thought coming to Dawson Creek University meant I could finally outrun my past.

I was wrong.

"Wren."

I lowered my hands at the sound of Maddox's voice.

He glided across the ice with effortless confidence, carrying a pair of white figure skates in one hand and two hockey sticks in the other. Even from a distance, he somehow noticed I'd been crying.

"What are you doing here?" I asked, forcing a smile.

"Training."

He lifted the skates.

"But I figured I could make it a lesson instead."

"I've never skated before."

"Then tonight's a good night to learn."

I knew I should have refused.

He was the captain. I was the intern assigned to him.

Every sensible part of me knew this crossed a line.

But another part of me desperately needed something to silence the ache Ethan's call had left behind.

A few minutes later, Maddox was kneeling in front of me, tightening the laces on my skates with surprising patience.

When I stood, my balance disappeared almost immediately.

He caught me around the waist before I could fall.

"Easy," he murmured. "I've got you."

His hands remained steady against my sides as he guided me onto the ice.

"Don't fight it," he said softly. "Just let yourself move."

I followed every instruction, trusting him more than I cared to admit. He skated backward while I stumbled after him, laughing every time I managed another awkward glide.

"I think I'm getting it. Let go."

"You think too soon." He humbled me. "You'll fall."

"I won't."

He sighed dramatically before releasing me.

I lasted less than two seconds.

My skates slipped, and I landed on my hands with an undignified yelp.

His laughter filled the empty rink. Or smug or cruel.

It was genuine and beautiful.

He offered me his hand. "I warned you."

"You enjoyed that far too much."

"I really did." I nodded, smiling off my embarrassment.

I accepted his hand, and he pulled me upright, his grip lingering at my waist as we started moving together again.

Then every light inside the arena went out.Darkness swallowed us whole.

"It's ten already," he muttered.

The automatic shutdown.

My phone sat on the players' bench, far beyond reach.

Within minutes the cold became unbearable, and I couldn't stop shivering.

Without saying anything, Maddox lifted my hands and wrapped them around his neck.

"Hold on."

Before I realized what he was doing, he picked me up and carried me through the darkness until he found the bench.

He started to pull away.

"I'm going to find the breaker."

"No." My fingers tightened around his jacket before I could stop myself.

"Please don't leave me alone."

He didn't move.

The darkness erased everything except the sound of our breathing.

I leaned closer, searching for warmth but in that moment, our lips brushed.

It lasted only a heartbeat..Neither of us spoke…Neither of us pulled away.

Finally, he cleared his throat.."We should go."

He helped me out of the arena and walked me all the way back to my room.

When we reached my door, he rested one hand against the frame as though stopping himself from leaving.

I looked up at him.

"We're really going to pretend nothing happened?"

His jaw tightened. "You think I planned that?"

"I think you kissed me." I blinked hard, hoping he wouldn’t see my tears.

"It was an accident, Wren."

"It was still my first kiss." The words escaped before I could stop them.

His eyes darkened.

For one suspended moment, neither of us breathed.

"You should stop looking at me like that, sophomore," he said quietly.

"Why?"

"Because I'm trying very hard to do the right thing."

Maybe it was the loneliness Ethan had stirred up.

Maybe it was the way Maddox had stayed with me all evening without asking questions.

Whatever it was, but I stepped closer and muttered against his face"So stop trying."

The restraint snapped in the moment.

His hand slid gently into my hair as he kissed me again, this time with unmistakable intention.

It was slow, warm, and devastating enough to steal every coherent thought from my mind.

When we finally pulled apart, reality crashed over me.

I was his intern. This could ruin everything.

I stumbled backward, unlocked my door, and hurried inside before I could lose my nerve.

He didn't follow. I listened to his footsteps disappear down the hallway before sliding onto the floor with my fingertips pressed against my lips.

What had I just done?

My phone buzzed.

A notification from The DCU Blade—a campus gossip page lit up my screen.

PRE-SEASON LEAK: ICE TITANS CAPTAIN MADDOX JAKES SPOTTED WITH MYSTERY LADY. EXCLUSIVE PHOTOS.

My heart lurched.

I opened the article. The first image showed Maddox holding open the passenger door of his SUV outside the clinic.

I was standing beside him, just not my face yet.

My sneakers were clearly visible in the first. Oh s**t.

With trembling fingers, I swiped toward the next photograph.

The image began to load.

20%. 50%. 80%. 95% and then my screen went black.

A dying battery icon flashed once before my phone shut off completely, leaving me alone in the darkness with no idea how much of our secret the world had already seen.