THE ICE CAPTAIN’S RETRIBUTION

Chapter Three

Chloe's POV

Before he could tease me further, the heavy gold elevator doors slid open, and the frantic shouting of the press echoed down the hallway. A mob of reporters and paparazzi burst through the ballroom doors, their camera lenses pointed directly at us.

Flashbulbs exploded in a blinding rhythm, capturing my ruined makeup, my wet dress, and the billionaire hockey captain shielding me with his body. Dominic aggressively shoved me into the elevator, stepping in right after me to block the cameras from catching any more footage.

The ride down to the underground parking garage was entirely silent, the heavy tension in the small space making it incredibly difficult for me to breathe. Dominic led me straight to his sleek, matte-black sports car, opened the passenger door, and practically poured me onto the leather seat.

He climbed into the driver's seat, fired up the roaring engine, and peeled out of the hotel garage before the security guards could even react to the media chaos. He drove with a terrifying, precise speed, cutting through the heavy midnight rain like a man who owned the dark streets.

Once the luxury hotel was a safe, visible distance behind us, Dominic slowed the car down, pulling over beneath the glowing lights of a closed storefront. He rested his large hands on the steering wheel, turning his head to look at me in the dim light.

"Where am I dropping you, Chloe?" he asked, his tone completely business-like, stripping away the playful mockery from earlier. "I doubt you want to head back to the apartment you shared with that pathetic excuse for a fiancé."

"Just find a decent hotel nearby," I replied, staring out the passenger window as a fresh wave of exhaustion threatened to pull me under. "I'll check in there for the night and figure out the rest of my life tomorrow morning."

I reached down to grab my small evening purse, intending to check my credit cards, but my hands froze mid-air as a cold realization struck me. My designer handbag, containing my wallet, ID, and the encrypted hard drive my father left behind, was still sitting in the VIP suite back at the engagement party.

Dominic must have sensed the sudden, rigid uneasiness in my posture, because he leaned closer, his silver eyes narrowing as he studied my pale face.

"What's wrong? Did you leave something behind?"

"My bag," I whispered, panic finally leaking into my voice. "Everything is back in that hotel room. My money, my keys, my identification... I don't have a single cent on me right now."

Dominic let out a low, dry chuckle that sounded almost like a growl, shifting the car back into drive.

"Relax. You're not sleeping on the streets, and you're definitely not going back to face the Houstons tonight."

"Then what am I supposed to do?" I asked, turning to glare at him, my defenses instantly flaring up.

"You're staying at my penthouse," Dominic stated flatly, navigating the car toward the upper-class district of the city. "I have a secure building. I'll have one of my personal security details retrieve your properties from the hotel first thing in the morning."

I swallowed hard, my mind screaming at me to refuse his offer. Ever since Brandon brought me into his circle, he spent every single day reminding me how much he loathed Dominic, painting him as a heartless, arrogant player who chewed women up and spat them out.

I knew Dominic's reputation; the sports blogs were constantly filled with pictures of him leaving clubs with different supermodels every weekend. But looking at my ruined dress and realizing my utter lack of options, I knew I had to swallow my pride and accept his protection.

The penthouse was exactly what I expected: massive, minimalist, and dripping with wealth, overlooking the entire rain-slicked skyline of the city. Dominic silently showed me to a luxurious guest bedroom, handed me a clean t-shirt to sleep in, and closed the door without making a single inappropriate comment.

The next morning, the harsh sunlight piercing through the floor-to-ceiling windows woke me from a deeply fractured, nightmare-filled sleep. I sat up, rubbing my pounding temples, when the bedroom door abruptly swung open.

Dominic stood in the doorway, dressed in a simple black hoodie, holding a tablet in his hand with a grim expression hardening his sharp features.

"You need to see this, Chloe," he said, tossing the tablet onto the silk sheets right in front of me.

"Your prince and his public relations team have been very busy while you were sleeping."

I snatched the tablet, my eyes widening in pure horror as I read the massive, bold headlines dominating every major entertainment and news website.

> HEARTBREAK ON THE ICE: CHLOE BETRAYS BRANDON HOUSTON WITH RIVAL HOCKEY CAPTAIN DOMINIC ON ENGAGEMENT NIGHT!

>

The entire truth had been violently, expertly twisted. The articles claimed Brandon had caught me in a secret, illicit affair with Dominic in the Royal Suite, and that my public breakdown on the stage was just a desperate, manic attempt to cover up my own disgusting infidelity.

I scrolled down to the comment sections, and a suffocating wave of nausea hit me. Hundreds of thousands of people were flooding the internet with vile, hateful comments, branding me a gold-digging slut who ruined a perfect family.

Even Dominic's massive fanbase was in absolute shambles; his official social media accounts were losing millions of followers by the minute as fans expressed disgust over him sleeping with his cousin's fiancée.

A white-hot, impulsive fury completely consumed my common sense as I stared at the screen. I threw the tablet against the mattress, swinging my legs out of bed and standing up to face Dominic, my chest heaving with rage.

"They are trying to completely destroy me," I breathed out, my hands clenching into tight fists. "They want to make me a social pariah so no one will listen when I expose what they did to my father's project."

Dominic crossed his arms, his silver eyes completely unreadable as he watched my meltdown. "The Houstons play dirty, Chloe. I told you that."

"Then let's play dirtier," I said, a dangerous, reckless idea instantly taking root in my mind. "Since the entire world already believes the narrative that I'm with you, let's give them exactly what they want. Be my fake boyfriend."

Dominic raised an eyebrow, a flicker of dark amusement dancing in his eyes. "And why exactly would I agree to ruin my reputation even further by playing along with your little revenge fantasy?"

"Because you hate them just as much as I do," I challenged, stepping closer to him until I could feel the intense heat radiating from his body. "I've seen the way you look at Brandon's father. You can use this massive media scandal to completely drag the Houston family name through the dirt and destroy their corporate standing."

Dominic let out a low, dark sound from the back of his throat, his gaze dropping to my lips before rising back to my eyes. "You're asking for a lot, Chloe. Why choose me to team up with?"

"Because the only person in this entire city that Brandon genuinely fears and hates at the same time is you," I smiled coldly, my voice dripping with absolute conviction. "And you are the only man ruthless enough to permanently put him in his place."

The moment the words left my mouth, the atmosphere in the room shifted entirely, turning heavy, thick, and suffocatingly predatory.

Dominic lunged forward with blinding, inhuman speed, his large hand wrapping around my waist and violently dragging my body flush against his hard chest. I gasped out loud, completely taken aback by the sudden, overwhelming display of dominant strength as my hands automatically pressed against his shoulders.

"What the hell are you doing?" I whispered, my heart hammering wildly against my ribs as I tried to pull back from his suffocating grip.

Dominic didn't let go; instead, he tilted his head down, leaning his face into the crook of my neck until his warm, heavy breath fanned across my sensitive skin. A fierce, electric tingling sensation shot straight down my spine, paralyzing my muscles as his lips brushed against my earlobe.

"Aren't we supposed to be a devoted couple now, Chloe?" Dominic murmured, his deep, velvety voice carrying a dangerous, dark promise that made my blood run hot. "If we're going to fool the entire world, we should probably start mastering the act right now.”