Page 55 of Ice Contact

“That’s a preview for later,” he says as I gasp and give him a little smack on the arm.

He’s such a troublemaker, but God, do I love it.

Late into the evening, the room is packed with guests as I stand crowded around one of the larger high-top tables with Maggie, Hayes, and a few of his teammates. Boucher, Johansen, Taylor, and Volkov are here tonight, and I notice Maggie sizing them all up like a snake deciding which mouse will be her first victim. I give her a not-so-subtle‘be chill’look, and she proceeds to scratch her face with just her middle finger in retort. I roll my eyes back at her.Way to be mature, Mags.

I lean over to Hayes. “I’ll grab us some more drinks…keep an eye on Maggie while I’m gone. Make sure she doesn’t kidnap any of your friends.”

He chuckles, side-eyeing my friend and kissing my temple. “I don’t think that’s physically possible, but I’ll keep an eye on her.”

“You don’t know Maggie like I do,” I say, kissing his cheek as he laughs, not wanting to let go of my hand as I walk away. “I’ll be right back, Haysey-poo”

“Haysey-poo, huh?” I hear Bougie gasp, his teammates immediately razzing him about this little nickname. Smirking, I know my job is clearly done.

I amsooogetting punished later…and I can’t wait.

I check my phone while I’m waiting for our drinks when I hear someone talking beside me.

“Well, well, well; look who it is.”

My skin prickles at the familiar voice.What in the actual fuck?

“What the hell are you doing here, Cayden?” I glance over my shoulder, refusing to give the douchebag my full attention. “This party was invite only.”

“Enjoying some delicious bourbon, Livy.” He leans against the bar, crowding me as he shoots me what he assumes to be a megawatt smile.

It falls short, and my lips thin. “Don’t call me Livy.”

“And I have an invite. My roommate’s dad is a liquor distributor, and he couldn’t make it, so he gave us his tickets.”

Fucking fantastic.

Glancing back towards our table, I desperately try to use some sort of telekinesis to get Hayes’ attention to come and rescue me.Why can humans not speak to their fated mate through their minds like in my books?Out of the corner of my eye, I notice a skinny blonde with ginormous boobs, overly injected lips, and a head that seems way too big for her body approaching. Her extremely short dress gives off slutty Halloween vibes rather than the classy gala attire everyone else is wearing. She stops in front of me and places her arm around Cayden’s waist, who of course is wearing jeans and a blazer, and no tie to a freaking black-tie event.

“Cay-Cay,” she whines, “How long do we have to stay here? This is boring.”

Cay-Cay? Barf.

“Not much longer, Shay-Shay,” he replies, leaning over to grotesquely kiss her.

Cay-Cay and Shay-Shay? Double barf.I can’t hide the sneer twisting my lips.What did I ever see in this guy?

“Cayden, who is your friend?”

“Oh, this is Shay. We work together. She just started a few months ago.”

My eyes well with tears, rage coursing through my veins as the puzzle pieces fall into place. I’m guessing I’ve just met his distraction during the last crumbling bits of our relationship.

“Hi! I’m Shay; I work with Cay, and I’m also a personal trainer on the side,” she says, smiling brightly and reaching her hand out to shake mine.

I blink at her hand, my own curling into a fist.She has no fucking clue who I am.

“Olivia,” I say, forcing the words through my teeth and quickly shaking her hand.

“How do you two know each other, Cay-Cay?” Shay asks, glancing between the two of us.

“Oh, Livy’s just someone I used to hang out with, sweetheart.”

“Someone you used to hang out with?” I scoff, my eyes like ice as I stare the two of them down. “Not your former girlfriend? Real classy, Cayden. I wouldn’t expect anything more from you anyway.”

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