Skating on Thin Ice

it was late-long after the rest of the arena had emptied into the cold night-and Declan Asher was still on the ice, carving silent, razor-edged lines through the leftover fog. he skated the way he breathed: sharp, controlled, unrelenting. the kind of focus that made noise fall away.

he only noticed her when he slowed to a stop.

standing by the boards, hands tucked into the sleeves of an oversized jacket, was the coach's daughter. the girl everyone talked about. the one the rookie line tripped over their words around. half the team tried to impress her; the other half pretended they didn't. she was sweet-at least that's what people said-but there was something else about her, something quieter, something that made even the loudest guys soften their voices.

and Declan hated that his eyes always found her first.
he wasn't supposed to care, he was only supposed to be focused on the game.
his future. that was the entire reason he came to the us from the uk

Maddie tested him, pushed his buttons like no one else and he fucking hated that.
but she knew there was more to him than the new, tough british hockey guy.
she got under his skin and he couldn't stand it.