Page 95 of In My Hockey Era
And I’ve never hated silence more.
• • •
Everything is wrong.
It’s been three days since Lucy walked out of my apartment, and I haven’t heard from her since.Not a single text, no snarky quips on social media, not even a post about the Stampede’s last game.
She’s gone radio silent.
And I absolutely hate it.
I skate harder than I should at practice, pushing my body past the point of exhaustion like that will fix anything.Like if I make my legs burn enough, I’ll stop thinking about how wrecked she looked standing in my living room.How it physically hurt watching her shut down, shut me out.
I’ve never played a game with an injury, but I imagine this is what it feels like—pushing through something torn and aching, pretending it’s fine.
Spoiler alert: It’s not fine.
Regret claws at my chest, sharp and unrelenting.I knew I should have told her about Holly, I had a dozen chances to bring it up.But I never thought it would feel likethis—like I betrayed her.
“Again,” I grit out, shoving my stick into the ice.
Chase, Ford, and a few other guys glance at me like I’ve lost my mind.Coach blows the whistle, calling the drill to an end, but I ignore it, scooping up a loose puck and taking off down the ice.
“Jeez, Wilder,” Chase mutters as I wind up for a slapshot.“Chill the hell out.”
I don’t chill.
Instead, I take the shot so hard, the sound of the puck smacking the glass echoes through the arena.
Ford snorts.“You aiming for a new exit?”
“Leave him,” Chase says, rolling his eyes.“Let the man work out his feelings.”
I snap my head toward them, scowling.“I don’t have feelings.”
Chase justlooksat me.He doesn’t say anything, just lifts a brow like he’s waiting for me to admit what we both know.
I pull off my helmet and rake a hand through my hair, breathing hard.
Coach finally skates over, not looking thrilled.“Wilder, you’re done for today.Hit the showers.”
I bite my tongue.The last thing I need is to get benched because I’m acting like a lunatic.So I force my skates toward the bench, and yank off my gloves, still burning with frustration.
As I make my way toward the locker room, Chase falls into step beside me.
“You gonna tell me what’s up, or do I need to guess?”
I chuck my helmet at my locker, jaw tight.“Nothing’s up.”
“Right.”He scoffs.“That’s why you nearly took out the boards back there.Becausenothingis wrong.”
I grit my teeth, refusing to engage.
Chase isn’t having it.“Look, man.I don’t know exactly what happened between you and Lucy, but I do know you’ve been an insufferable asshole ever since she stopped coming around.”
I shove my gloves into my locker.“Thanks for the insight, Dr.Phil.”
He just smirks.“She dumped your ass, huh?”
