Page 82 of Unleashed

Truth was? Nothing felt fixed. The knee might work, but everything else? Shattered. Like someone had taken a wrecking ball to the foundations I’d built my life on.

The breeze kicked up, string lights swaying. The motion snagged my attention—just like they had that night when she’d sat across from me as a storm blew in, all sharp intelligence and hidden vulnerability. Before I knew what she’d do with those moments of trust.

Before I knew how much losing her would hollow me out.

The string lights blurred with motion overhead, memories hitting faster than I could block them. Every moment we’d shared at this table—her quick mind challenging mine, that spark in her eyes when she knew she’d gotten under my skin in the best possible way.

For a minute there, I’d wanted to build something real. Keep her close. Under my skin, in my bed. In my life.

Enough.

Time to go home. Tomorrow was another day of figuring out who Jack Vignier was without hockey.

Without her.

Fuck that.

I shoved up from the table, knee holding steady.

Strategic thinking had kept me alive in the NHL—knowing when to push through pain and when to fall back. Right now? Strategic thinking screamed to get the hell out before I drowned in what-ifs and could-have-beens.

The bar’s string lights faded behind me as I moved down the familiar sidewalk. My knee felt good—solid in a way that felt almost foreign after so long. But my head? That was a whole other kind of fucked up.

I blamed the restlessness for my feet choosing this path. Three weeks of following doctor’s orders, of careful protocols and measured progress. But walking into Dick’s on Sixth wasn’t some accident. Neither was turning onto her street.

Her building looked exactly the same. Modern mixed-use development trying too hard to look vintage. The kind of place that charged way too much for way too little space. Just the sort of spot where a woman rebuilding her career might land.

My fingers moved before my brain caught up, muscle memory punching in her unit code. The security panel’s glow illuminated my own stupidity. What the hell was I doing here? She’d made her choice. Taken her shot at career redemption, uncaring of the wreckage she left behind. The scent of citrus and spice ghosted through my mind, a sucker punch of memory I should’ve seen coming.

Maybe she wasn’t home. Maybe she was with Malone in some California conference room, planning to torpedo some other schmuck’s career. Climbing that industry ladder she’d wanted so badly. While I stood here like an idiot, staring at a keypad like it held answers.

A crackle of static. Then an unknown woman’s voice: “Hello?”

Reality slammed back. I turned away from the call box, bitter laughter catching in my throat. What the hell had I expected? That she’d still be here? That everything since her last episode aired was just some bad dream? Austin was a stepping stone for Lily Sutton. Of course she’d bolted the instant she’d wrapped upUnleashed. Left me with nothing but memories and the ghost of her perfume haunting my sheets.

The walk back felt longer. Each step a reminder that some things couldn’t be fixed with surgery. Couldn’t be rehabbed or strengthened or rebuilt.

My phone buzzed—Riley’s goofy grin lighting up the screen. The kid had appointed himself my personal recovery cheerleader, showing up with food and terrible jokes ever since I got home from the hospital.

“What’s up, Puppy?”

“You eaten yet? I’ve got Chinese and—” A car whooshed past me, the headlight catching my screen. “Where are you? That’s not your place.”

Smart kid. Too fucking smart sometimes. “Just walking. Testing the knee.”

“At night? Alone?” His voice carried that mix of concern and determination I’d gotten used to lately. “Doc said no solo adventures yet. Stay there, tell me where you are and I’ll pick you up.”

“Riley—”

“Nope! Not taking no for an answer. Since you’re officially retired, you can’t pull rank on me, either. My captain powers now supersede your old man wisdom. Those are the rules.”

“Since when do you have captain powers, rookie?”

“Since I made them up just now. Silver taught me that move—make up rules that work in your favor. He said he learned it from you, so technically this is your fault.” His voice carried that particular mix of sass and worry that only Riley could manage. “Where exactly are you?”

I gave him cross streets, knowing arguing would just waste energy. Kid was like a force of nature once he got an idea in his head. A half an hour later, we sat in my living room. “Been thinking about your uncle’s offer.”

“The partnership thing?” Riley’s eyes lit up. “That would be sick! You and Hoss in the same building?” He swallowed another mouthful before adding, “I mean, as long as I get dibs.”

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