Page 118 of Shattered Souls
Royce meets my eyes, his grin widening.
“Looks like they want more,” he teases, nodding toward the screen.
I laugh, feeling a rush of warmth despite the coolness of the rink. “Guess we can’t disappoint them, can we?”
Still grinning, I lean in, and Royce meets me halfway. The kiss is sweet and brief, but the crowd goes wild, the noise almost deafening. Aurora claps her hands, squealing with laughter between us, clearly delighted by the attention.
As we pull apart, Royce ruffles Aurora’s hair, and she beams up at us, her happiness infectious. I can’t help but smile as the camera finally moves on, but the moment lingers, a bright spot of joy amid everything else weighing on my mind.
“Mommy,” Aurora tugs on my sleeve as the team skates back onto the ice. “Is Lo winning?”
I glance at the scoreboard. The two teams are currently tied. “He’s doing his best, sweetie. But even if he doesn’t win, he’s still our hero, right?”
Aurora nods vigorously, her eyes shining. “Right! And heroes get milkshakes!”
“Is that right?” I chuckle. “Just heroes?”
Her eyes widen as if she just realized her mistake before she shakes her head vigorously. “Little girls do, too.”
The game continues, and I try to set my concerns for Grayson aside, for Aurora’s sake and Logan’s. Whenever Logan gets close to the boards near us, he glances up, searching for Aurora’s face. And every time he does, she squeals with delight, her hands waving frantically to get his attention.
Royce nudges me again, a knowing look in his eyes. “He’s playing for her tonight,” he says quietly. “You can see it.”
He’s right. The score may be tied, but Logan is a force to be reckoned with on the ice. He’d told me before how having me in the crowd motivated him, and I guess the same can be said for Aurora.
But despite the sweetness of the scene, the fact Grayson isn’t here with us sits wrong with me. I try to focus on the game, Logan, and Aurora’s joy, but my thoughts keep drifting back to him. He’s been quiet since the funeral yesterday. Distant. I just hope he truly did go into the office to catch up on work and not to drown his grief in the bottom of a bottle.
So when Royce’s phone lights up with a call from him, I encourage him to take it.
He shakes his head. “I’m not leaving you here.”
Rolling my eyes, I gesture toward the scoreboard. “There’s less than fifteen minutes left. Just call him back and check he’s okay.”
“Exactly, there’sonlyfifteen minutes left. Whatever he’s calling for can wait.”
“He buried his Gran yesterday and has been holed up in his office all day, alone—probably to drink. I know you’re as worried about him as I am, so will youpleasejust go talk to him?” I plead. “We’ll be right here.”
“Ry.” He exhales, shaking his head before he grimaces. “Why do you make it so hard to say no to you?”
I smirk. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
He snorts. “Sure you don’t.” The moment of levity gives way to a frown. “Stay here. I’ll probably have to go outside to hear him, but I’ll text Logan in case I’m not back before the end of the game.”
“Stay here—Got it.”
He rolls his eyes, a smirk quirking the corners of his lips before he presses a quick kiss to my cheek and stands, shuffling down the row of people and disappearing up the stairs.
“Mommy,” Aurora says a moment later, and I can tell by her tone that it’s urgent. “I need to pee.”Yup, of course.
“Baby, the game is nearly over. Can you hold it?”
She shakes her head, staring at me like she’s two seconds away from peeing her pants.
Sighing, I gather her things. “Okay, let’s go.” I glance across the rink, but Logan is deep in the game, so he doesn’t see us leave. Holding her much smaller hand firmly in mine, we climb the stairs out of the stadium and along the hallway until I spot a sign for the women’s bathroom.
“In here, sweetheart.” The bathroom is otherwise empty, and we squeeze into a stall, Aurora doing her business before I dump our belongings at the sink and help her wash her hands.
“Go dry your hands.” I point to the hand dryer as I grab our coats and bag from the floor. I’m bent over, my back to the door, as the sound of the hand dryer drowns out all other noise. That’s why I don’t realize someone else has entered the bathroom. Not until I stand up with our belongings in hand and turn to find Bertram holding my little girl hostage.
