Knot me on ice, Captain(BL) Chapter 203: No more Fighting

Kayden

Seeing Rhys standing at my front door brought an instant, traitorous smile to my face. I had been waiting for him ever since my phone started blowing up with his calls. I had been so tempted to pick up every single ti it rang, my thumb hovering over the screen, but I held back.

When the calls finally stopped, regret hit hard. I had wanted him to keep trying, to prove he cared enough to fight for us. Instead, silence. Then Soren and Leo started calling, and I ignored those too, knowing they were probably on his behalf.

All I had really wanted was for Rhys to keep calling until I felt ready to forgive him. And now here he was, exactly as I had pictured — standing right in front of my door.

A deep, satisfied smile spread across my face as I turned away, pretending to walk back inside.

I couldn’t stay mad at him for long. I knew that about myself.

"I don’t want to see you," I lied, injecting as much hurt into my voice as I could manage while waiting to see how he would react.

My smile widened when I heard his footsteps rushing after . He caught up quickly and wrapped his arms around from behind in a tight hug.

Goodness, I had missed this — the solid warmth of his chest against my back, the way his arms fit perfectly around . The shiver that ran through was almost enough to make drop the act and tell him I wasn’t really angry.

But he needed to grovel a little first for keeping secrets. So I kept up the dramatic front, pretending I was still deeply hurt.

"Kayden, please listen to . I’m sorry," he said, his voice soft and pleading in a way that made my heart squeeze.

I wanted to laugh at how gentle he sounded.

Who would have thought the team captain of the Northern Avalanche — the guy everyone called the Ice Prince on the rink — could sound this soft and vulnerable?

"Let go," I replied, struggling half-heartedly against his hold even though I secretly wanted him to squeeze tighter. "I don’t want to be part of any of this. I don’t know why you’re showing up at my house this late after everything you did tonight."

Rhys let out a heavy sigh. Then, with one smooth turn, he spun around so I was facing him. The mont my eyes t his bright blue ones, I saw the raw hurt and sadness in them. It made want to drop everything and tell him I wasn’t angry anymore. But I didn’t. Instead, I lowered my head, staring at the floor between us.

"I’m sorry for keeping what Damian Fernandez used to an to ," he said quietly.

At the ntion of that na, I groaned. It brought back the sharp mory of the parking lot — the red Ferrari, the way Rhys had lied to over text.

"I’m sorry that I lied to you," Rhys continued, his voice steady but laced with regret. "But trust , Damian and I ended things years ago. We are no longer together."

I slowly raised my head to et his eyes again. "So..." I stuttered, the words getting tangled. "Oh, fuck this," I muttered.

I grabbed his hand, pulled him toward the nearest wall, and slamd him against it. I stood right in front of him, tilting my head up to stare into his eyes, my chest heaving as I searched for the right words.

Rhys blinked, then reached up and placed his hand gently on my cheek, his thumb brushing away the dried tears still on my skin.

"Have you been crying?" he asked softly.

I scoffed and folded my arms, saying nothing. My silence was enough to let him believe it. The truth was the tears weren’t from heartbreak — they were from the ridiculously spicy food I had ordered a few hours earlier.

The spice level had been rated eight out of ten, and instead of wallowing, I had decided to punish my taste buds. The tears had stread nonstop, but I wasn’t about to admit that right now.

"I’m sorry, Kayden. I should have told you when the gas started and—"

"And why didn’t you?" I cut him off, pointing a finger at his chest. "We both agreed that whatever happens, we would always talk about it. No more secrets, rember? And yet you..." I sighed, the frustration bubbling up again.

"I saw the way he stared at you on the ice. Then I followed you to the parking lot and watched you get into his Ferrari. When I texted you, I expected the truth, but you lied to ." I paused, stopping my pacing long enough to glance toward the entrance.

Soren was standing there against the wall with his arms crossed, watching quietly. I had completely forgotten he had co with Rhys. He had stayed silent the whole ti, not inserting himself.

When our eyes t, he just gave a small, knowing smile.

I smiled back and continued. "If you had told the truth, if you had explained why you were with him, I wouldn’t have misunderstood you, Rhys. I trust that you wouldn’t betray . I know that. But you lied to . After everything we’ve been through, after we promised each other we would always tell the truth, you lied. And that hurts badly."

I heard Rhys’s footsteps behind . His familiar pine scent filled the air as he approached and wrapped in a back hug, his arms strong and warm. "I’m truly sorry," he whispered against my hair. "Please don’t hate ."

I sighed and turned around in his arms, hugging him back tightly. "I don’t hate you. I never could, Rhys. Well... unless you did sothing really bad like sleeping with soone else or kissing them..." I paused when I felt his body tense at the ntion of a kiss. "Wait..." I pulled back just enough for our eyes to et. "You kissed him?" I shouted.

"No... no, I didn’t," Rhys said quickly, shaking his head. "I would never do that to you. I didn’t kiss him — he kissed ."

I let out a painful gasp. "That bastard!" I cursed under my breath, grabbing a handful of my own hair in frustration. "He kissed you? How dare he?" My fists clenched tight at my sides. "He—"

Rhys ca behind again and pulled into another hug, his voice calm and steady. "It was a forceful kiss. I could never do anything to hurt you, and I made him understand that clearly."

I sighed heavily, trying to let the anger simr down. I shouldn’t be mad at Rhys — he had been the victim in that mont — but I still couldn’t understand why he had willingly gotten into Damian’s car in the first place. "I need you to be completely truthful with , Rhys. Why did you get into his car? If you wanted him to stay away from you, why did you follow him?"

"Because..." Rhys sighed and rubbed his forehead. "He said he had a secret about you. I had to follow him to find out what it was."

He had done it because of . Rhys had followed Damian to protect , to keep my secrets safe. I didn’t know whether to feel grateful that he cared that much or frustrated that he had been naïve enough to fall for the trap.

"So what did he say about ?" I asked.

"It was just a trap to lure out," Rhys admitted. "I regret going with him, and that’s why I’m here begging you to forgive ."

I rolled my eyes but couldn’t fight the small smile tugging at my lips. I hugged him tightly again. "I can’t stay mad at you for long. I was hurt at first, and I ca here to clear my head, but I’m over it now. I trust you, Rhys. I love you."

Rhys smiled softly and caressed my cheek again with his thumb. "What happened to your face? Your eyes are still red."

I chuckled, the tension finally easing. "Just a little sothing from eating ridiculously spicy food earlier. Don’t worry about it."

Rhys chuckled too and pulled back into his arms, holding close.

"No more secrets," he whispered.

"No more," I agreed, rubbing his back gently.

From the entrance, Soren clapped his hands slowly. "Well, I believe my work here is done. You two handled that better than I ever did with my own lover."

I chuckled and looked over at him. "Hey, Soren."

Soren rolled his eyes dramatically. "Oh, you’re just noticing now?" He laughed. "Anyway, I’m glad you both figured it out. Healthy relationships really are the best." He gave us both a thumbs-up.

I lifted my head from Rhys’s chest and looked up at him. "You look exhausted, Rhys. We had a hell of a ga today, and we still have more to win. Let’s head to bed."

Rhys nodded without arguing, his shoulders finally relaxing.

"Alright, I’m leaving. Good night," Soren announced, heading for the door.

"Good night. Thank you for tonight, Soren," Rhys called after him.

Soren nodded and stepped outside. We watched as he climbed into the G-Wagon and drove away.

Once we were finally alone, I took Rhys’s hand and led him toward the bedroom. We lay side by side for a mont in comfortable silence. Then Rhys pulled closer, and I rested my head on his chest, listening to the steady beat of his heart.

"I don’t want us to fight anymore," I whispered into the quiet.

" too," he responded, pressing a gentle kiss to my forehead. "No more secrets. No more fighting."

"No more fighting between us," I agreed. "But after what Damian pulled tonight, we need to win that Cup."

"And we will," Rhys assured , his voice full of quiet confidence. "I trust everyone on the Northern Avalanche. We’re going to win it."