Page 117 of The Christmas You Crash

I hate it.

“Baby.” I drop my gloves and reach for her as she lurches toward the tunnel. At the sound of my voice, she looks up, and my chest constricts. Lexi looks at me like I’m her salvation. The only safe place she has left. And I willnotlet her down. Pulling her into my arms, I shield her from the gawking fans and the flashing cameras. I’ll shield her from the whole fucking world if I have to. Her body convulses with sobs against my chest and her knees wobble.

“I’ve got you,” I murmur as I sweep her into my arms bridal style. She presses her face into my sweaty neck, trusting me to get her out of there. Trusting me to take care of her. “I’ve got you, baby. Everything is going to be okay.”

The dull roar of the arena fades as I carry my devastated girlfriend down the tunnel toward the locker room. Her soft cries and the relentless pounding of my heart are the only sounds.

“I’m so sorry,” I whisper. “I’m so sorry you had to hear that, Lexi. Your dad is a fucking asshole. And he’s the one missing out, not you.”

I know that’s not really true. Losing a father is something I’m intimately familiar with. And while my loss may differ from Lexi’s in its circumstance, it doesn’t change the fact that, as of today, both of us are fatherless. Because there’s no coming back from this for Arthur Cross. Not even if he wanted to.

So, yeah, I firmly believe that Coach is the one missing out, but Lexi is the one mourning.

The locker room is empty when I carry her in. Heading over to my locker, I sit down on the bench and cradle my crying girlfriend against my chest. My hands smooth up and down her back, my fingers ghosting over my last name embroidered there.

Mine. Alexis Cross is mine. Someday soon, I’m going to marry this incredible woman. And if she wants to ditch the last name that has brought her nothing but pain, she can have mine instead.

“I’m sorry,” she chokes out. “I’m so sorry, Ryder.”

Gently gripping the hair at the base of her skull, I give it a light tug, silently asking her to look at me. “What the hell are you sorry about, Alexis? What could you possibly have to apologize for?”

“I ruined your career,” she cries, new sobs racking her body. “I never wanted you to have to choose between me and hockey, but it happened, anyway. I’m so sorry.”

“Oscar.” The word rumbles out of my chest like an earthquake. One capable of toppling all these feelings of unworthiness Lexi has been battling since she was a little girl. “I swear to god, if you apologize for something that is not your fault one more time, I’m going to lose my cool and go take a hockey stick to your dad’s car.”

Lexi’s eyes widen, but a watery giggle slips from between her lips. The moment is short-lived, though. Her face quickly crumples again. “You heard my dad. He’s going to ruin your career now. That’s my fault.”

“No, OTG. It’s not. It’s Coach’s fault. It’s his fault he’s a raging misogynist. It’s his fault he’s so fucking selfish that he couldn’t see how lucky he was to have your mom as a wife and you as a daughter. He did this, not you. And my career isn’t ruined yet. I’m not giving up without a fight.”

The sound of voices and the thump of skates heading toward the locker room begin to filter over to us. Lexi tenses in my lap. I hold her tighter.

“I’ve got you,” I tell her again.

Her quiet reply almost undoes me. “I know.”

I brace myself for Coach’s arrival, but it’s our team captain who strides through the locker room doors, looking downright murderous. Maddox’s expression softens when he sees Lexi cowering in my arms.

“Coach got kicked out of the game. Don’t worry, we won’t let him in the locker room.”

The guys cluster around Lexi and me, all of them looking concerned.

“Are you okay, Lexi?” Sebastian asks, crouching down, so he’s at eye level with her.

She sniffles. “Not really. But I will be.”

Our assistant coach, Mike Fry, strides into the locker room, and everyone tenses. His warm brown eyes scan the room before landing on Lexi in my arms. His full lips turn down in a frown, and he runs a hand over his close-cropped black hair.

“All right, team. I know tonight was a shit show, and there are a lot of questions about what happened and how this will affect the rest of our season. I don’t have any answers for you yet.” Fry sighs. “Unfortunately, everything he said was caught on camera. And it’s already on the way to going viral.” That has him grimacing as he meets Lexi’s gaze. “I’m sorry, Lexi. I can’t imagine how you must be feeling right now.”

My arms tighten around my girl. She simply offers a half-hearted shrug.

“Unfortunately, that means the press room is packed to the gills. They’re going to expect to hear from the first line.” Fry looks at me. “And Ryder. Think you guys can handle this without throwing more fuel on the fire?”

“Of course,” Maddox says, answering for all of us. “But no one is answering questions about Lexi. This is her fucking personal life being blasted all over right now. Are we agreed?” He looks around the locker room. Every single player nods.

They’ll have our backs.

“Is there anything you want me to say, baby?” I ask Lexi.

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