Cold as Ice: A Curvy Girl Hockey Romance (Playing for Keeps) by Nichole Rose

Author:Nichole Rose [Rose, Nichole]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Nichole Rose
Published: 2023-06-19T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Seven

Kelsey

I come awake slowly, drifting toward the surface in increments. Something feels different, but I can't tell what it is. A smell, like warm summer days and home, seeps into my subconscious, heating me.

Kris.

The events of the day come rushing back in a blur.

My eyes fly open.

The light in my room has shifted, morning giving way to afternoon. I've been asleep for hours. Kris is seated in a chair beside the bed, his head hanging. He looks…wrecked. Like I wrecked him.

"Kris," I whisper, struggling to sit upright.

He lifts his head. His crystalline eyes meet mine.

"You're still here."

"Where else would I be?" he asks, holding my gaze. "You're here."

My heart squeezes in a vise again.

"You shouldn't… You can't…" I huff out a breath, pushing my hair back from my face. "I don't want you to…"

"You don't want me to what? Care about you?"

"That's not what I was trying to say."

"Good because that ship sailed a long fucking time ago, elskan mín. I've been doing shit your way for two years, hoping you'd eventually figure out that you can trust me with your heart, but I realized while you were sleeping that I fucked up," he mutters. "I should have been pushing you instead of waiting you out. That's what you needed. Me in your space, forcing you to do it my way. Maybe then you wouldn't have been going through this shit alone."

"That was my choice to make."

"Why'd you make it then, Kelsey?"

"Because…because…."

"Because you didn't want to bother anyone," he growls, fire flashing in his eyes. "You didn't want anyone to worry about you. You didn't want to upset anyone. It's the same reason you're trying to quit now. You'd rather face this alone than let anyone take care of you."

"I can take care of myself. I'm a big girl."

"You have me," he growls. "You have the team."

"They have a Cup to win, Kris. They shouldn't be worrying about me."

"You think they don't worry about you anyway?" He shakes his head, rising to his feet. "You think they aren't beside themselves right now, worried about you, and why you quit? It's all I can do to keep them from showing up over here right now."

My heart stalls. "They know?"

"Not yet." He tilts his head to the side. "Not all of them. I told Wes. You can be pissed if you want. I'll even apologize if it makes you feel better, but I did what needed to be done." He paces toward me. "They deserve the chance to support you, princess."

"I'm fine, Kris."

"Liar."

"They have a Cup to win. That's what they need to be focused on." I tilt my face up to him, refusing to back down on this. "I won't be the reason they lose the Cup, especially when it'll be the last chance for a lot of them."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"I…"

"Six weeks ago, you told me we'd never happen. Why didn't you just tell me the truth?"

"I felt fine then."

"Kelsey."

"I didn't start feeling bad until a couple of weeks ago.

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