Page 15 of Second Sin

There’s a bruise blooming across her cheekbone. A cut splitting her bottom lip. Swelling along her jaw, angry and uneven.

Everything in me locks up. Then ignites.It’s like something tears loose inside me. Every calm thought I had on the ice snaps.

The hallway stretches between us, but I cut the distance fast—pulse loud in my ears, every step heavier than the last. My imagination’s already running wild. What the hell happened to her? A fall? An accident?

Or something worse.

Something I’ll want to break someone for.

Her eyes find mine, wide at first—then narrowing slightly. Her shoulders draw back. Chin lifts just a fraction. Calm on the outside, but I can see it—the way she steels herself. Like she’s gearing up to deal with me.

“I’m fine, Sebastian,” she says quietly. “It’s not as bad as it looks.”

“Well, it looks pretty fucking bad.”

The bruises are fresh, skin darkening beneath her eye and along her cheekbone. The cut on her lip is still open, swollen. Her jaw’s puffy—the kind of swelling that says it hurts to talk.

And she’s standing there like it’s nothing. Like I’m supposed to look at that face andbelieveher.

“What happened?” I demand, low and hard.

I don’t know why it hits me like this. Why I feel like I’d put someone through a wall just for touching her. I tell myself I’d feel the same if it were someone else—one of the trainers, a teammate’s wife, anyone on staff.

But that’s a lie.

Because it’s not someone else.It’s her.

And seeing her like this—banged up and trying to act like it’s nothing—does something to me. Something I don’t fucking like. Something I don’t know how to shut off.

“It happened fast. I handled it. I’m okay now.” Her voice is steady, but her hand lifts—fingertips brushing the cut on her lip. She winces.

That’s when I notice.

The ring she’s always fidgeting with, like it grounds her?—

Gone.

And suddenly my thoughts are spiraling.

Was it her husband?

Did he put his hands on her?

Did she finally take it off because of him? Or did he rip it off before he left a mark?

The rage that coils in my gut is sharp. Immediate.

I shouldn’t care. Not like this.

But fuck, I do.

“Did he do that to you?” The words come out sharp. Feral. Dangerous.And instantly, I want to take them back—or at least soften them. But it’s too late.

Her brows pull together. “What?”

Before I can push again, Kane steps up beside me, brow furrowed. “Ouch.”

Olivia offers him a small smile. “Just a run-in with a very angry sidewalk. You should see the other guy.”

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