Page 78 of Power Pucking Play

I have a choice to make. The biggest of my life, probably.

I could take Sophie's information, bury the story about Gio and me. Save my career, my reputation. Go back to being Lexi Brookes, hard-hitting sports journalist.

It would be the smart thing to do. The safe thing.

But as I look at Gio's face, remembering the feel of his arms around me, the sound of his laugh, the way he makes me feel more alive than I have in years...I realize something.

I don't want to be safe anymore.

But how? After everything that's happened, after what I said to him...would he even want me back?

There's only one way to find out.

I need to talk to someone who understands the weight of my choices, of putting career before everything else. Someone who's been where I am, who's made the hard decisions and lived with the consequences.

I need...him.

My hand hovers over my phone, heart pounding. This could blow up in my face spectacularly. I haven't spoken to him in years, not since he missed my college graduation for a big story. He might not even pick up.

But if there's even a chance...a chance that he could help me see clearly, help me figure out if what I'm feeling for Gio is worth risking everything for...

Before I can talk myself out of it, I hit call.

The phone rings once, twice, three times. I'm about to hang up when suddenly…

"Hello?" His voice, so familiar yet so strange, fills the line.

I take a deep breath. "Dad? It's me. Lexi. We need to talk."

Chapter 25

Gio

The ice has always been my sanctuary. A place where everything else fades away, where the only thing that matters is the puck, the stick, and the goal.

But today? Today it feels more like a prison.

I skate harder, pushing myself until my lungs burn and my legs scream in protest. But no matter how fast I go, I can't outrun the memory of Lexi's face as she walked out of my life.

I thought I had it all figured out. I thought I could balance a relationship and my career, but when it came down to it, the choice was made for me.

I can't even blame her. She warned me from the beginning that this was how things would end up. But I was too selfish, too focused on my own desires to listen.

And now here I am, alone on the ice with nothing but my fucking thoughts and regrets.

"De Luca!" Coach's voice cuts through my haze. "Take five. You're gonna wear yourself out."

I nod, skating to the bench and grabbing my water bottle. As I catch my breath, I can't help but scan the stands. Empty, of course. But part of me still hopes to see a familiar blonde head, notebook in hand.

Fuck, I'm pathetic.

"Yo, Gio!" Plopping down beside me, Jacob's voice breaks through my brooding. "You planning on rejoining us mere mortals anytime soon?"

I force a grin. "Just focused on the game, man. Buffalo's not gonna be an easy win."

Jacob eyes me, taking his helmet off his sandy-brown hair. "Motherfucking BS. Seriously, dude, what's going on with you? You've been off ever since..."

He trails off, but I know what he's not saying. Ever since Lexi.

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