Knot me on ice, Captain(BL) Chapter 81: A shroud of Secrets

Kayden

"The contraceptives," I began, staring at the sky and avoiding Rhys’s gaze on . "They were the reason for the stomach bug and the fall on the ice," I admitted, letting out a sigh of relief knowing that I had finally told Rhys the real truth about what happened to .

Then I looked at him, trying to find a shred of the man who said he wanted to make everything better.

Why did he have to make everything a ga? We could have been inside, sitting on the sofa with Starlight and having a conversation like two normal people. Instead, I was pinned against the edge of the pool, naked and shivering—not from the cold, but from the way my body was responding to his proximity.

I was already turned on by the sight of him and, goodness, his pine scent was everywhere, making it impossible to think clearly. It felt like I was on the path of a humiliation ritual. He had spent days tearing down with his words, calling a liar, and yet here I was wanting him again simply because we were both naked.

When I trailed off and Rhys noticed, his grip on the lock of my hair tightened. Slowly, he trailed his hand down to my face, raising it to et his eyes. "Is that all, Kayden? You’re hesitating..." he murmured and scoffed. "You know the rules. If you’re going to avoid the rest, bring your hand down. Start touching yourself for . Let’s see how much you want to hide the truth versus how much you want to please ."

That sounded tempting. I really did want to touch myself in front of Rhys. I wanted to be vulnerable in front of him, and the thought of it was making my heart race fast in my chest. Part of was tired; part of wanted to grab my hard cock. It would be so easy to just give in to the command, to let him watch and end the ntal interrogation, but I forced my voice to work. I was not going to surrender to his commands just yet.

"I didn’t have a choice, Rhys," I added, my voice gaining a flicker of defiance. "Leo... he ran tests and told the reason why the reaction was so bad was because we were, uhm..." I smacked my lips together, pausing for a mont.

"Uhm, what?" he demanded. "We were what?"

"Compatible," I answered, smacking my lips again.

Rhys’s brows knit together, his thumb tracing my lower lip. "Compatible? What the hell does that an?"

"I am an Oga Primus," I whispered. "And you being a True Alpha makes us compatible... it’s like a lock and a key."

Rhys paused and shifted beside . He raised his hands and then dropped them in the water. "Oga Primus? Pardon , but I don’t know much about Ogas. What does that even an?"

I picked up my glass and drank from it before speaking up. "In the hierarchy, an Oga Primus is a rare, high-tier evolution of the Oga dynamic. While a standard Oga is also built for compatibility, a Primus is specifically coded to match the intensity of a True Alpha. Our bodies are designed to withstand and balance the overwhelming power and aggression of a True Alpha’s knot and pheromones. And also..." I trailed off, rubbing my brows. "Oga Primuses are high attractors to True Alphas."

The look of confusion on Rhys’s face deepened as he stared at , trying to make sense of what I was saying. Even I didn’t understand it at first when Leo explained it to .

"In simple terms, Oga Primuses are the locks to a True Alpha’s key. On rare occasions, they could be a True Alpha’s fated soulmate."

Rhys let out a laugh and shook his head. "That’s a lie, because soulmates don’t exist. They never did. It’s just a made-up fiction by people who want a happy ending and..." He stopped when he saw frowning. "Alright, whatever you say, but I am still not buying it," he told . Then he leaned in again until our foreheads touched, and I could feel the heat of his body against mine.

Why the hell was he so close again? I thought. Can’t he speak without this proximity?

"An Oga Primus," Rhys mused, the words vibrating against my skin. He was too close—so close that I could feel his cock rubbing against my stomach. "Built for a True Alpha. And yet, you have been spending every day trying to kill that part of yourself with these pills." He shifted again, his hand moving to cup the back of my neck.

"Why, Kayden? Why go through all of this? The pain, the lies, the risk of your secret getting out and ruining your life... why do you want to be a hockey player so badly that you suffer through all of this trouble?"

I blinked, not expecting him to ask such questions. There was no malice or contempt behind it this ti; it was just out of genuine curiosity.

"The ice is the only place where I can breathe, where it doesn’t matter what I was born as," I said, my voice cracking slightly. I was opening up to him, letting him know more about because, behind his cold mask, Rhys did care.

"In the real world," I continued, swirling the glass in my hand, "an Oga—especially a Primus—people look at and see a prize. They see sothing to be protected, or owned, or bred. They don’t see ."

I felt a tear prick my eyes, but I refused to let it fall, refusing to let Rhys see at my weakest. "I started practicing to escape my father," I muttered, looking away from him.

"He made living unbearable for , and the ice is where I could finally be myself. It’s the only ti I feel powerful, where I am truly free, Rhys. If I have to poison myself to keep that freedom, I’ll do it a thousand tis over."

Rhys went silent as his thumb traced the line of my jaw. He stared at for a mont before whispering, "You are a maniac." There was no disrespect in his tone like I expected. "I have never t anyone as crazy as you are, to risk your health for a ga." He paused, rubbing my lips again. "You really are built like an Alpha, even if your biology says otherwise," he told , then pulled away to grab his drink.

He took a sip and turned to face . "What about your father? Where is he now?"

"Long gone," I replied shortly, closing my eyes for a beat.

"Where, Kayden?" Rhys pressed, his voice dropping into that low, investigative tone. "Is he dead? Locked up, or what?"

I shook my head, the wet strands of hair flicking droplets against my face. "My father is not soone I want to talk about."

"You are deflecting," he pointed out.

My heart started racing fast as I braced myself, expecting him to point toward my cock, but instead, Rhys let out a sharp breath and moved closer to again. He wrapped his hand around and smiled. "Don’t worry. I don’t force anyone to say what they are not comfortable with, and I won’t make you touch yourself for that one."

I let out a sigh of relief, thinking it was over, until he spoke up again.

"What about your mother? Did you ever even know her?"