Ice Contact (Milwaukee Steel Riders #1)

36. Hayes

36

hayes

T he ride is quiet as I hold Olivia’s hand. I tell her to just relax, close her eyes, and we’ll work all of this out at home. And, like a good girl, she does just that. She just witnessed her ex spewing hate toward her, me hurling hate back in her defense, and I don’t know how she’s dealing with this. Shit…I don’t know how I’m dealing with it. I still have adrenaline running through me, like I just finished a playoff game that ended in double OT. I wanted to punch that fucker so bad, but I held back for Olivia. I quickly shake off the hint of worry that crosses my mind at Olivia seeing Cayden. I remind myself that she has no desire to go back to that trainwreck, and I know she’s mine. I trust her completely; she’s not Chelsea. So, I just hold her hand and let us both process. As we walk into my apartment, I turn around and pull Olivia into a tight embrace. Immediately, she begins to sob and my heart fractures in my chest.

“Siren, my sweet Olivia. That was a lot to take in. You okay, sweet girl?” I kiss the top of her head, my hand stroking her back.

She nods and sniffs as I lead her to the couch. We sit next to one another, and I gently pull her legs over mine, drawing her as close as possible. I want to hold her, but I also want to look into her sorrowful eyes as we talk.

“Olivia, talk to me. What’s going through that head of yours?”

She stares at me for a moment, her eyes full of tears and her expression full of worry and unease. Finally, she opens her mouth and rasps out some words.

“It is a lot to process. Before you walked over, Cayden basically confirmed he was cheating on me with the Triple B, big-boobed blonde, he was with tonight. I knew that’s what he was probably doing, but it still hurt to have it thrown in my face like that. I feel so stupid . How did I not see what a horrible person he was? I’m such a fool. How did I not see…” She freezes, her mouth snapping shut with an audible click. “Oh my God, Hayes. This is probably awkward as hell for you. I shouldn’t be telling you any of this. I’ll call Magg-”

“Olivia,” I interrupt, holding her face gently with my palm. “I’m here for you. I want you to tell me anything and everything. Just because you don’t want to be with someone anymore, doesn’t mean the hurt of them cheating is any less painful. I’ve been there, remember?”

She nods and sniffles back more tears, her fingers curling into the lapel of my tux.

“Olivia, you are not a fool. The only fool is the one who thought that Triple B was anything remotely close to the wonderful, amazing, thoughtful, kind person you are inside and out. I’m sorry if my emotions got the best of me tonight, but I have been wanting to punch that guy since Walt’s, and I got damn close to doing it tonight.”

She huffs a slight laugh, then narrows her eyes toward me. “What did he mean when he said he warned you I was clingy?”

Oh fuck. My stomach sinks with the realization I never told her about that conversation. “That night at Walt’s, when he sat next to me at the bar, he said some very unkind things about you. They are honestly not worth repeating, but the gist of it was you were so clingy he needed to go play ‘puck’ with his friends or something. I’m sorry,” I say scratching the back of my head, “I forgot about it until he brought it up tonight. If you want, I can tell you everything I remember about our conversation. But from what you’ve told me about your relationship, it’s nothing you don’t already know.”

“Yeah,” she scrunches her nose, resting her head against my shoulder, “that’s okay. I am ready to forget about that fucking douche.” She laughs, some of the tension finally leaving her body. “Hayes…thank you.”

I cock my head to the side, raising an eyebrow. “Thank you for what?”

It’s her turn to cup my cheek, her eyes tracing every inch of my face. “Oh, I don’t know, defending my honor, telling Cayden off, making it seem like you would flat out murder him if he ever looked my way again. And for somehow finding a way to flip the word clingy to be something positive.”

“Olivia, there is nothing more in this world I want than for us to cling to one another. That’s how we get through this crazy life…together.”

Her stunning eyes, tainted with streaks of red, stare up at me, her long lashes still holding the remnants of her tears. “I don’t deserve you, Hayes.”

“I don’t deserve you either, my sweet girl. But here we are, two people who don’t deserve one another, fighting to show the other how worthy they truly are.”

Olivia leans her head on my shoulder, and I wrap my arms around her as tight as I can. “What do you need tonight? I can run you a hot bath. We can cuddle on the couch. I didn’t make it home with the gift bag full of bourbon, but I do have some alcohol and some top-shelf vanilla ice cream. We could eat some dessert and watch a crime show where someone gets murdered.”

Olivia laughs, the sound filling my heart with warmth knowing I made her feel even one percent better.

“Ice cream and a murder show sounds perfect.” She settles back against me, a contented sigh relaxing her body. “I am sorry all this went down tonight, Hayes. I really wanted you to take me in that janitor’s closet or punish me when we got home. Now I just look like a puffy, crying hot mess.”

“There is no need to be sorry. I love your puffy, crying face as much as I do all your faces. The laughing one, the smart ass one, the one when you’re looking at me like you want to fuck me in the janitor’s closet, or the one you have right now where you’re trying not to laugh. It’s been a long night, and we both could use a little relaxing. But…don’t think that tomorrow morning won’t hold some consequences for calling me Haysey-poo in front of my teammates.” Olivia’s smile beams. “I can’t believe I forgot your ‘I’m in so much trouble but I’m not mad about it’ face.”

“I love you, Hayes.”

“Love you too,” I say, placing a kiss on her forehead. “Let’s change into comfy clothes and then we can relax. I’ll get the ice cream, you pick out the murder.”