Page 63 of Ice-Cold Obsession

The door unlocks, and we step out. For a moment, we don’t say anything, just watch the car disappear down the street.

“That was weird,” I say.

Gabriel nods. “Yeah. I guess he’s betting on my success.”

“Forget him. I’m betting on your success too, because I know you’ll make it.”

He looks at me, and a small smile crosses his face. “You really think so?”

“I know so. You’re the best player on the team, and you’re going to get scouted. Then you’re going to get drafted, and you’re going to make it to the pros.”

“What if I don’t?”

“You will.”

“But what if I don’t? What if I get injured? What if I’m not good enough?”

I grab his face in my hands and make him look at me. “You’re good enough. You’ve always been good enough. And yeah, maybe you’ll get injured. Maybe something will happen. But that doesn’t change the fact that you have the talent and the drive to make it. You’ve been playing under impossible pressure for years, and you’re still one of the best players. Imagine what you can do when you’re not carrying all that weight.”

His lips find mine, and I kiss him back. When we pull apart, he’s still smiling.

“Come on,” he says. “Let’s go celebrate.”

We head toward the restaurant, and we get a table in the back, away from the windows. Old habits die hard.

Gabriel orders a burger, and I get pasta. We talk about the game, his goal, and about Zyair almost getting into a fight with the other team’s captain. Normal things. Happy things.

“I can’t believe it’s over,” Gabriel says after a while. “I keep waiting for something to go wrong, and for someone to show up and tell me it was all a trick.”

“It’s not over,” I say. “Niccolò still exists.”

“Yeah, but it’s different. It’s not... I don’t know. It doesn’t feel like I’m trapped anymore. It feels like I have a choice.”

I reach across the table and take his hand. “Just promise me you’ll be careful.”

“I promise.”

I grin at him. We’ll be fine. I just know it.

Epilogue

SCARLETT

YEARS LATER.

I’m in the family section of the arena, surrounded by other players’ wives and girlfriends. They’re all wearing jerseys with their partners’ names on the back, just like me.

Gabriel’s first professional game is about to start, and I’m here to capture this moment for us.

I adjust my camera and check the settings. I’ve been hired by the team to shoot some behind-the-scenes content for their social media, but tonight is personal.

The players skate out onto the ice, and the crowd cheers. I spot Gabriel immediately. He carries himself with the kind of confidence that comes from knowing he belongs here.

I think back to the first time I saw him when I was convinced he was responsible for my sister’s death, and when all I wanted was revenge.

I was so wrong.

My sister wasn’t struggling because of Gabriel. She was struggling because the mafia had gotten to her too. They’d been using her and forcing her to do things, and when she tried to get out, they made sure she couldn’t.