SWNOVELS Splintered Ice: Chapter 18
Olivia Davis is in my head, she’s under my skin; she’s in my goddamn soul right now. I’m nowhere close to having my fill of her. She’s been in my bed, I’ve tasted every inch of her skin. I don’t know that I’ll ever be able to get her out of my system now. I thought I could fuck her out of it, but I was wrong… so terribly wrong.
I haven’t seen her since this morning and it’s been driving me absolutely insane. We’ve been talking and I’ve been trying really hard to not come on too strong. The last thing I want to do is scare her away. Olivia is constantly looking for an exit route just in case of an emergency, regardless of what it could possibly be.
And I can tell by the way that Olivia responds, she’s about to go into fight-or-flight mode at any given moment. Olivia doesn’t fight, she just fucking runs in the opposite direction of anything that could potentially be a threat.
Which includes me.
“Yo, you almost ready?” Logan calls over to me as I finish putting my gear on for tonight’s game. We’re getting closer to the championship games for the season, so we’ve really been working on our team structure and the way we play together.
“Yeah, I just gotta grab my stick and gloves,” I tell him as I rise up onto my skates. Logan is the last one left in the locker room as the rest of the guys already headed out to warm up before the game starts.
“Well, hurry the hell up,” he scolds me, acting like my goddamn parent. “You know Coach is going to be pissed if we’re all stuck waiting on your ass.”
I watch him disappear through the doorway as I slide my hands into my gloves and grab my stick. Walking on my skates, I head out into the tunnel and make my way to the rink. The arena is already full of spectators—most being friends and family or students from Wyncote. Our hockey team is pretty popular with the school since we’re the main sport the university is known for.
As I step out onto the ice, everyone is already warming up, shooting pucks at our goalie, Asher. Skating over to the other guys, I stretch my legs for a moment before grabbing my own puck with the blade of my stick. Pushing it back and forth with the front and back of my stick, I keep my eyes on the net and begin to skate toward Asher.
I continue to stickhandle it, attempting to fake him out as he drops down into the butterfly stance. Flicking my wrist, I shoot my shot and send the puck soaring into the top shelf of the net. Asher swears at me, rising back onto his feet as the other guys begin to send shots in his direction.
We practice for another few moments before it’s time to head over to the bench for the game to start. I take a seat next to August and Logan, who are both staring out onto the ice, waiting to head back out. They’re two of our best players, so they are usually the first ones out on the ice. I tend to come in during the second shift.
Since the shifts only last about forty-five seconds, it’s not like I have to wait long to get my chance out there, but any ice time is precious. You don’t take that shit for granted, regardless of how long or short it actually is.
Coach tells both of them to head out as the other team sends their players out. Asher is already at the goal as Logan makes his way to the defensive zone. I watch as August bends his knees, getting closer to the ice with his stick, ready to go as he lines up for the face-off with the opposing center player.
The ref drops the puck and they begin to fight over it, each of them battling against one another to win the face-off. August manages to get the puck away from the other player and sends it back to our zone, where Hayden catches it with the toe of his stick. He begins to skate toward the center of the ice, everyone following along with him as they make their way into the other team’s zone.
It doesn’t take long before it’s my turn to head out into the game. We didn’t score a goal so the puck ends up getting passed back and forth between our team and the other. As I step out onto the ice, I begin to skate until my legs are burning, heading over to where the play already is. I hang back, staying away from the middle pack as I slap the ice with my stick, calling for the puck.
Vaughn has it and his eyes find me through the group that’s around him. He manages to break free, passing the puck over to me when he gets the chance. The other team’s side is essentially open as they were all battling over the puck instead of playing the ice smart.
Pushing off with my skates, I move as fast as I can, stickhandling the puck as I slide effortlessly into the other team’s defensive zone. None of their defensemen are around and it’s just the goalie and me in this moment. This is my chance and I can’t risk fucking it up.
I will never compare to August or Vaughn and the way they play offense, but it’s my turn to get some recognition too.
The goalie gets into his stance and it only takes one deke to get him to go butterfly. He’s known for having a weak glove and I send the puck into the top shelf of the net. The horn blares through the speakers and all of the guys on my team instantly rush me as everyone is fucking pumped. I typically get some assists and score some goals during our games, but having the first goal that puts us on the board is a phenomenal feeling.
It’s time for our shift change, so I begin to skate over toward the bench again as August and Logan are climbing over the board. Lifting my eyes, my gaze finds the stands and I mindlessly look around, not looking for anyone in particular.
And then I see her.
And my entire world fucking freezes.
My throat constricts and it feels like a punch directly in my gut when I see Olivia sitting next to the same asshole I told her to get rid of. I didn’t invite her to my game, so I don’t know why the hell she’s here. Not to mention the fact that she’s here with another guy.
My mind is blown in this moment and I don’t realize that I’m standing in place until the guys begin to yell at me to get off the ice. The last thing we need is a penalty for too many guys on the ice, but I can’t seem to fucking move.
She’s not mine—we’re not together.
I try to keep reminding myself that, chanting it over and over in my mind like a mantra. It might be true, but I expressed my distaste for him. I’ve barely even touched her, but I can’t help but feel a sense of possessiveness when it comes to Olivia. She’s always been the one who’s been under my skin.
And this… this feels like a punch to the fucking throat.
“I swear to God, Sterling,” Simon growls at me from the bench as he leans over it. “Move your fucking feet before one of us carries you off the ice.”
My eyes meet his and I’m brought back to reality. My legs begin to move involuntarily as I skate over to the bench and hop over the boards before taking my seat next to my teammates. They’re all bitching at me, but I don’t even hear the words they’re saying.
The fucked up thing about reality is that Olivia is with that asshole.
And I don’t like it one bit.