Page 52 of Skating Towards Danger

It isn’t the same, but it’s close enough.

Five nights in a row, I’ve sat here in silence, trying to control my thoughts and failing miserably. I’ve not said one word, but after five days and my mind running in circles I need my questions answered and the only way for that to happen is to open my mouth and let the demon come out of the shadows.

“I feel lost,” I whisper into the night sky. “For weeks, I was finally happy. I felt like I found my home, but it was all a lie, wasn’t it, Daddy? My whole life was a lie, and your death was kind of all my fault despite everyone telling me otherwise. You should have just sold me because then you’d be here, Momma would be here and Royal. Why didn’t anyone tell me? Why wasI kept in the dark?” I sniffle “I get I was drowning but didn’t anyone seem to realize just having this information could help me heal because these were things that were out of my control. It wouldn’t have mattered if you came to my practice or not, you were always going to be attacked, I was always going to be attacked…”

Tears fall and soak my cheeks, and I look down at my lap when I hear rustling as thousands of little sparks fill me, and I sniffle, peace finally taking over me despite the pain I feel that he lied to me.

“Finally making yourself known, player?” I whisper before I feel him sit beside me, his warmth instantly comforting me.

For the past five days that I’ve come and sat here, I’ve felt him, but he’s stayed out in the shadows. I knew he was watching me, so I always felt safe staying until the early hours of the morning, evening falling asleep most times.

We may have been a lie, but he kept me safe when I had a gun held to my head.

A gun.

Dante sighs and leans his back against my mother’s headstone.

“If you wanted to run and disappear, little fairy, coming here was the wrong move,” he whispers, and I look up at the sky again.

Ohio City, Colorado, where my momma wanted to be buried near her parents, her hometown before she moved to New York to be with Daddy.

“Dante, you clocked me as soon as I walked out of that house,” I admit to him, “As soon as I stood up, even though you didn’t look at me, you knew, which is also probably why your brother’s men didn’t stop me at the gate after I lied to them.”

“I knew you needed space, baby. You had a lot dropped on you, and I knew you needed to run, but that doesn’t mean I wasgoing to allow you to run alone,” he replies. I nod slowly and ask, “What about hockey?”

He snorts, “Paige, I was ready to hand in my skates to keep you safe. Coach knows I’m here, and when you sleep in that shitty motel room, I leave a guard on your door and practice… The next game is in two days, and we are determining if we head to the semi-finals so I’ve kept up with it.”

“Is that why you’ve made yourself known now?” I ask quietly.

He sighs, “No, baby. I made myself known because you've spoken for the first time in five days, and your dad can’t answer your questions. He can’t talk back and tell you how wrong you are, but I can.”

I huff and look at him, “How wrong I was? They all lied to me. You lied to me, Dante.”

We lock eyes, and sadness engulfs me because all I want to do is climb into his lap, cry, and beg him to tell me he really does love me and that everything is just a joke, but he doesn’t.

“I didn’t want this life, Paige,” he admits, and I furrow my brows. He sighs, “Growing up, all I wanted to do was play hockey. I knew Roman was going to take over from our father, so I knew he’d have to start his training earlier than me, or I hoped, I guess,” he gives me a sad smile, “I was forced to kill someone when I was eleven as punishment for not going to my Dad.”

My mouth parts in shock, and worry etches off him as he admits, “I don’t want you to fear me, little fairy, because I’ll never hurt you. I just need you to know the truth, which is for years, I’ve been fighting against being Roman’s second. Hockey and pussy were all I cared about.”

I swallow hard and mumble, “You mean ass…” And he chuckles and admits, “Yeah baby, ass until you, that is,” he looks at the night sky, “When Rocco came to my game, he begged me to look out for you because as far as the Cartel were aware, youdied in that car crash. They didn’t check you for a pulse, Paige, and the tribute will be televised.”

“Daddy was still alive, wasn’t he?” I ask quietly, something inside me pulling that he was.

“I’m not going to give you all the details, Paige, but yeah, he was. Your mother wasn’t, and neither was Royal, but yeah, your dad was, and he suffered, but that is all you need to know.”

Sobs wreck my body, and I place my hand on my stomach, hoping it will ease the ache.

He was alive, and he was tortured, is what he doesn’t want to say. If everything I’ve read, my father suffered…

“I didn’t know you existed,” he continues, “When Rocco begged me to watch you, I had no idea Peter had a family. I knew he had a wife, and he didn’t want her to be part of our world but not kids, and I wanted to say no, I won’t lie to you, baby. I did want to say no. Not long beforehand, Roman and my dad demanded I retire from hockey and take over from David as his second, and fuck, I was angry. I spent my whole teenage years ensuring Roman got to do everything he wanted, having his back, and he turned on me six months after taking over from our father.”

I look at Dante to see him looking at me, “Hockey and ass, little fairy, until you.”

He leans forward and cups my cheek, and his whole body relaxes like my touch centers him—or at least that’s what my mind has decided to stupidly believe.

“I know you think I used you,” he says, and I flinch, but he ignores me and continues, “I know your mind is going wild coming up with scenarios of how we weren’t real, how my feelings weren’t real but Paige, I spent days trying to mess with your time at the rink because I hated you,” I flinch again, his words killing me.

They’re like a dagger to my chest.

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