Page 110 of Rival Darling

I was struggling to keep my emotions under wraps. This wasn’t the story Jeremy had told me at all. Of course, he was actually the bad guy in this situation. Deep down, I’d known he was just saying those things to get to me, but I’d let them wedge their way under my skin. I’d been too scared to take a leap of faith with Reed, so I’d welcomed Jeremy’s attempts to clip my wings. There was still one thing that didn’t sit right with me though.

“If that’s true, why didn’t Reed just tell me?”

Paige rolled her eyes. “I tried to get him to,” she said. “But he never talks about it with anyone. He really changed after what Jeremy and Natalie did to him. He shut almost everyone out and threw every piece of himself into hockey. The Darling Devil rumors started to build up, and he embraced them, claiming it was good for his reputation on the ice. But really, he was just hiding the real Reed Darling from the world so he wouldn’t suffer similar heartache again. That was until he met you.”

“What do you mean?”

“I’ve watched him come to life again these last few weeks, and I know it was because of you, Violet. Despite all the walls he puts up, you somehow got through to him, and he fell for you.”

As she spoke, my throat constricted, and a mix of conflicting emotions flooded my chest. It tore me up to learn Reed had experienced a similar heartache to me. But it felt even worse to know that while Reed had put his heart on the line and told me how he felt I’d been too scared to do the same. My instincts had urged me to flee at the first sign of danger, and I hadn’t been brave enough to stick around when there was even the slightest chance what Jeremy told me was true. And I’d foolishly believed this game was more important to Reed than I was.

“Whatever was going on with this fake relationship,” Paige continued. “I don’t buy it. I think you’ve fallen for him too.”

I knew I couldn’t deny my feelings any longer. They were growing and swelling inside of me, bursting out of the box I’d desperately tried to lock them in, as if they had a life of their own.

“Everything I felt for him was real,” I whispered.

Paige’s face lit up with a warm smile. “Then what are you waiting around here for?”

I hesitated. I felt like a baby bird standing at the edge of a precipice, trying to decide whether fear would hold me back or I would jump and try to fly.

“Trust me, Violet. Reed would never hurt you. Just give him a chance, and I know he’ll prove that to you.”

She bit her lower lip as I thought over what she’d said. Paige was right. After what she’d told me today, the least I could do was give Reed a chance. If he genuinely returned my feelings and he ended up losing his big game because I allowed my fear of being hurt to hold me back, then I would never forgive myself.

I refused to be scared anymore, and I felt my resolve strengthen within me. “Do you think we can still make the game?

“Yes.” Paige clapped her hands together with excitement. “If we leave now, we can get there for the final period.”

I glanced over my shoulder, surprised to find Nicole had emerged from the storeroom and was leaning against the door frame.

“Go,” she said as she caught my gaze. “Go get your guy.”

I shot her a grin before I turned to Paige. “Any chance I could get a ride?”

27

REED

My mind wasn’t focused on hockey as we hit the ice for our game against Sunshine Prep. I’d always been so good at compartmentalizing any distractions and ignoring whatever was happening in my life away from the rink. But today was different because hockey was the whole reason Violet had ended things with me.

It didn’t help that we were playing her ex-boyfriend today. Just the way Hoffman puffed his chest out as he skated only a few feet from me was enough to spike the hot adrenaline that was already pulsing through my blood.

“Don’t do anything stupid,” Grayson warned as we were warming up.

I was scowling across the ice at Hoffman, so it wasn’t hard to tell where my head was at.

“I hate that guy.”

“I know,” Grayson replied. “I do too, but don’t let your anger get the better of you today. I know you’d like nothing more than to smash his nose again, but let’s make him suffer where it’s going to hurt the most. Let’s just win the game.”

I nodded, knowing my brother was right. As much as I might hate the very ice Hoffman skated on, I wouldn’t be doing myself any favors if I allowed resentment to cloud my mind. I’d paid the price for that once before, and the consequences would be far worse if I made the same mistake twice. The Ryker Raiders wouldn’t be happy if I got suspended again, and I refused to have my college career derailed by anyone, let alone Jeremy Hoffman. If I wanted to wipe that smarmy smirk off his stupid face, the best course of action was to channel my anger into helping my team beat the Saints fair and square.

“I’m just glad hockey’s a contact sport,” I muttered as Grayson skated away.

I imagined Hoffman was thinking the same thing because he caught my eye across the ice and grinned. Yeah, this game wasn’t going to be pretty at all.

Unfortunately, as much as I tried, I couldn’t seem to harness my anger and redirect it into my warm-up. I was still tired and distracted, and no amount of visualizing myself checking Jeremy to the floor and scoring the winning goal could focus my mind. My muscles refused to cooperate as if they too were giving in to the agitation coursing through my body. I was making silly mistakes, letting my mind drift at key moments, and forgetting where on the ice I needed to be. Given the concerned looks Grayson kept sending me, I knew my poor performance wasn’t going unnoticed. The game hadn’t even started, and I was already acting like a total rookie.

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