Page 41 of Misconducts & Temptation

My father’s voice echoed in my head, as persistent as ever:Keaton, you have responsibilities. You need to think about your future.

My future. What future was that? One dictated by someone else’s expectations? Living out a plan I had no say in?

The puck slid across the ice, and I lunged for it, channeling my frustration into a perfect slap shot that echoed through the empty rink. The sound was satisfying but short-lived.

I slowed down, catching my breath, my thoughts drifting back to Elodie. Would she even consider leaving with me? She had her own struggles, her own battles to fight. Was it fair to drag her into mine?

The memory of her scent—vanilla and roses—lingered in my mind. There was something about her that made me believe things could be different.

But believing didn’t make it true.

I came to a stop near the boards, resting my stick against them as I leaned forward, trying to catch my breath and clear my head.

If I walked away from hockey now, if I accepted my fate as heir to the Douglas empire... would that be enough? Would it satisfy my father and free me from this engagement with Lola?

Or was that just what was expected of me?

The answers eluded me as much as Elodie did.

With a final glance around the rink, I knew what needed to be done next: meet Elodie at the River Styx and figure out if she’d take this leap with me.

It had to work.

I would fucking make it.

Chapter 13

Elodie

Icouldn't stop thinking about my encounter with Keaton in the locker room. It was so unexpected, so surreal. There I was, just trying to clean up and get through my day when he came in. The star defender on the hockey team. Everyone knew him, but no one really knew him, if that made any sense.

But he recognized me.

I had tried so hard to keep myself small, to ensure I didn't draw any unwanted attention to myself that night.

But he…

He saw me.

Strange.

The thought replayed in my mind as I walked through the hallway. It wasn’t like I did anything to stand out. I kept my head down, focused on my studies and my work, blending into the background as much as possible. Nobody really paid attention to me here, and that was fine. I wanted it that way.

But the masquerade changed everything.

And now he wanted to meet me at River Styx to talk about marriage. Marriage! The whole thing felt like some strange dream, the kind you wake up from and laugh about because it’s too absurd to be real. But this wasn’t a dream.

And even if I said no, life wouldn't—couldn't—be the same. It just… it couldn't.

I paused by one of the tall windows overlooking the courtyard, where students lounged on the manicured grass. Crestwood felt like a different world sometimes—a world where people like me didn’t belong. And yet, Keaton had pulled me into his orbit with that one look and those few words.

There was something undeniably exciting about it all. As much as I tried to focus on the practicalities, the thought of meeting Keaton intrigued me more than I wanted to admit. He was an enigma wrapped in layers of confidence and control, but there had been a flicker of something else in his eyes when he looked at me.

I shook my head, trying to clear the confusion that swirled in my mind. What did Keaton see in me? Why would someone like him—someone with so much power and presence—want anything to do with a scholarship student who spent her days scrubbing locker room floors?

Not that I felt sorry for myself. There was great pride in hard work. But…

This was marriage, and he didn't know me. I wanted to understand his thought process.

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