A FEW MOMENTS earlier
“KRISTA, KRISTA!” I repeated into my phone, and I swore when I saw the call had been disconnected. She had made a scared little noise right before I heard a thump, and then everything went dead.
I needed an address.
The cab’s windshield wipers were on high, but they were ineffective against the downpour of rain that sluiced on the windshield.
The driver spoke, “Miserable night, hey?”
Ignoring him, I scrolled through my phone. It took precious moments to find the number to the main switchboard of the hospital. Then I had to wait while I was transferred to the maternity ward. I wanted to punch something when the nurse put me on hold to go get Krista’s mom.
“Come on, come on!” I growled into my phone.
The driver continued to talk, seemingly oblivious to my agitation. “I heard that half of Victoria has lost power. Most people have generators, but you can’t use most of them when it’s this windy.”
“Hello?” Bea’s voice sounded on the other end of the line.
“Bea.” I worked to even my tone. “This is Levi, and I don’t have time to explain, but Krista is in trouble. I need your home address.”
“Don’t be ridiculous,” she snapped. “Who is this?”
“Levi. Krista’s husband. Your soon to be ex-son-in-law,” I shot back. “Tell me your address.”
“Now listen to me—”
I cut her off. “Bea, do you want to bitch at me or do you want me to save her life?”
I could hear her suck in her breath on the other end of the line while she processed that.
“The address, Bea. Now,” I blasted at her.
“7942 Grouse Lane. Tell me what’s going on.”
I hung up on her and spoke to the driver. “7942 Grouse Lane. This is an emergency.”
He didn’t seem to hear me. He peered through his windshield. “I heard the storm will blow over later tonight.”
I leaned forward. “I’ll give you five hundred dollars if you get me there in the next five minutes.”
The driver looked at me in his rearview mirror, hearing me for the first time. “Why didn’t you say so?”
“I’m telling you now.”
“Put your seat belt on.”
He made it there in six minutes, and I tossed him the money before I bolted through the rain up the steps of the house.
The front door was ajar, and the entire place was dark.
“Krista?” I called out as I stepped inside.
I listened but heard nothing.
I turned on the flashlight of my phone and started towards the kitchen when I heard a thump above me.
“Levi,” I heard her voice above me. A second later, I heard heavy footsteps pounding down the back steps.
I didn’t even debate going after whoever was fleeing the scene. My only concern was finding Krista safe.
“Krista,” I yelled as I took the front steps up to the top landing. I found her sitting just inside a bedroom.
I touched her face, her head, her shoulders. “Are you okay?”
Her entire body was trembling. “Eduard attacked me.”
My entire body went still as I thought about all the ways I would damage the man.
“He took off.” She coughed. “After I hit him in the head with something.”
I reached into my back pocket. “I’m calling the police.”
I knew it was serious when she didn’t even try to stop me.
AN HOUR LATER, I stood on the front lawn. Krista sat in the back of the police car as an officer asked her questions.
Another cop walked by carrying a box of something from the house.
“How much longer?” I asked him.
“The house is clear, and the power’s gone back on. You can go inside and start cleaning up if you want.”
I didn’t give a shit about the house. “Any idea where Eduard is?”
He shrugged. “We put a BOLO on the ferries and the airports. He won’t get far.”
I turned my attention back to the cop car, where Krista sat talking.
I wanted to kill Eduard.
Finally, the police car backed out of the driveway, and Krista walked towards me.
Without speaking, she stepped straight into my arms and leaned against me. My heart squeezed hard when she let out a big, shuddery breath.
“Krista,” I said with emotion.
“I don’t want to talk about it.” Her voice was muffled against my chest.
I rubbed her back and felt her shiver. “You’re cold. We should go back inside.”
She lifted her head and rested her chin adorably on my chest so she could stare up at me. “Why are you in Victoria?”
“Tonight, Brody told me during a fight that he wasn’t responsible for releasing the video.”
She blinked at me. “And you believed him?”
“He seemed shocked that I thought it was him. I figured it had to be Eduard. When I found out you were here for the birth, I figured he’d be here too. I needed to make sure you were okay.”
She held my gaze before she spoke. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” I never wanted to let go of her again.
Then she said slowly, “Eduard didn’t release the video.”
I didn’t believe that for a second. “How do you know?”
“He was ranting about how he found out about our marriage while watching the news, and he wasn’t happy about it.”
That made no sense. “Are you sure?”
I ignored my pinging phone.
“What is it?” she demanded, sounding more like herself.
I glanced at my phone before putting it away. “Buffalo figured out I’m no longer in Vancouver.”
She stepped out of my arms. “You didn’t tell them you were coming here?”
I shrugged. “Whatever.”
“Levi, what are they saying?”
They had figured out I had left Vancouver and wanted to help me rejoin the team. I knew they were bending over backwards for me, but I couldn’t seem to give a shit. “They’re trying to arrange a flight for me from Victoria so I can meet up with them in Edmonton.”
She let out a long breath. “You have to go.”
Everyone had their limits. And I’d reached mine. I was done living apart from Krista. “Do I?”
She stayed silent.
“I never should have gone to Buffalo.”
“You had to.”
I shook my head slowly. “No, I didn’t. And I regretted that decision from the moment I got on that plane.”
“You can’t throw away your career. You’re just getting started.”
“I did it to help you, but leaving you was a mistake.” I was trying and make her understand how I felt about her. “I never should have signed those divorce papers.”
Pure emotion washed over her face. She lifted her fingers to my lips to hush me. “Stop.”
I kissed the tips of her fingers. “We have to talk about it.”
Tears filled her eyes and threatened to spill. “Not yet.”
I grabbed her hand. “I want to move back. I want to be with you.”
“I refuse to be part of killing your dream.” She sounded stubborn.
Frustration rolled over me. “You’re more important than hockey.”
“You say that now, but how do I know you’re going to feel like that five years from now?”
I stared at her in bewilderment. “My feelings aren’t going to change.”
She pulled her hand from mine and crossed her arms. “If you get back with the Vancouver Wolves next year, I’ll be here.”
I jerked back at her terms. “That’s harsh. You only want to date me if I’m a hockey player?”
“No! I want you to have options.”
I hadn’t anticipated that she’d refuse me again, now that I’d returned to her side. I struggled to bolster my argument. “What about Eduard?”
“What about him?”
“The guy’s deranged, and he’s running loose.”
She angrily wiped her wet cheek with the back of her sleeve. “I’ll handle it.”
“Not without me.”
She lifted her chin. “I can handle him.”
I couldn’t bear the thought of leaving her again. “Why don’t you come with me?”
She hesitated, and I knew she was tempted, but then she shook her head. “I’ve got my own stuff to take care of.”
I knew her well enough to know that these were her terms. I could like them or leave them, but I wasn’t going to change her mind. I hesitated before my next question. “Do you even want me to come back?”
Her gaze held mine, and her lips trembled before she spoke. “Yes—very much so.”
That was good enough for me. I snaked out one arm and yanked her hard against me. Her silky, smooth mouth felt like a treasure, and the taste of her made my desire skyrocket. My hands squeezed her perfect butt so I could grind into her.
She made a provocative noise that had me deepening our kiss.
My phone started to ring. The sound made her pull back, but my mouth just followed.
She pressed against my chest. “Answer your phone.”
“Krista,” I complained.
She grabbed my face with her hands. “Let me do this my way. Please?”
I couldn’t resist the pleading look on her face. “All right.”
I STOOD and slowly knocked on the side of Mark Ashford’s door. He looked up from his desk and took off his reading glasses.
“Levi. I thought Buffalo left this morning.”
“They did.” I looked around his office. “Mind if I come in?”
He motioned for me to sit at his desk. “What’s going on?”
I lowered myself to a seat across from him. “I need to ask you a question.”
“Go ahead.”
“After seeing me play for Buffalo this season, would you consider making me a Wolf?”
He didn’t hesitate. “Not a chance.”
It was hard to hear, but I knew it was the truth. “Because of the fighting?”
“I don’t mind fighting, but I need to know my players have the discipline to remain in control when they fight. And when I look at you, I see an out-of-control player who does what he wants on the ice with little thought to the consequences or the rest of his team.”
Shame burned in my gut. I didn’t have a response to that. I knew I had shown very little restraint while skating for Buffalo.
“I have discipline.”
“Is that why your team has left and you’re still here?”
“Krista was attacked last night.”
His brow furrowed. “Is she okay?”
“She’s okay, and she’s staying with Mica and Charlie.” Those had been my terms, and I refused to leave until I had accompanied her to their home. She hadn’t protested much, which told me she was scared. Her fear made my gut harden. “I don’t know how to keep her safe. She’s insisting I go back to Buffalo, but how can I do that when she’s still in danger? She won’t come back to Buffalo with me either.”
He sat back in his chair and studied me. “Who attacked her?”
“Her ex, Eduard.”
He looked surprised. “You’re kidding.”
I stared at him with a dead look. “Do you have any idea how I can help her when I’m not here?”
“Talk to Mica. He knows a guy.”
He knows a guy. I imagined Eduard being dragged into some dark alley to have a chat with some guy’s fists. Well, if it couldn’t be me, that was the next best thing.
Mark cocked one eyebrow at me. “I’m not talking about that kind of help. Mica’s friend runs a security firm that deals with… keeping people safe.”
“Do you think Krista would go for that?”
Mark gave a rueful laugh. “That part’s up to you.”
I stood up. I had a flight to catch, and I didn’t want to deal with the consequences of missing it. “Keep your eyes on me. I’m going to show you discipline.”
“We’ll see.”
The disbelief in his tone only made me more determined.
TWO DAYS LATER, I was walking out of practice when my phone rang. It was Krista.
I smiled as I answered. “How are you?”
“Are you kidding me?”
I knew exactly why she was calling, and I had been anticipating her protest. Still, for my own entertainment, I pretended to be obtuse. “Want to elaborate?”
Fire sparked in her tone. “There is a Russian man named Viktor standing at my door, and he refuses to leave. He says you hired him, and that if I have an issue with his presence, I need to take it up with you.”
“He’s a licensed security guard, and he won’t let Eduard get near you.”
“I’m not—”
I interrupted her. “I could always fly home and camp in front of your door. Trust me, I have no problem doing that.”
She fell silent.
“Viktor will allow me to concentrate on my game instead of worrying about you,” I added.
She let out a long sigh. “For the record, I completely object to your interference.”
That had gone better than I had hoped. I tried to keep the smile out of my voice. “Noted.”
“How long do I have to put up with this?”
For as long as it takes to get Eduard behind bars. “Let’s give the police some time to locate Eduard.”
“Fine. Bye.”
“Hold up,” I said, stalling.
“What?”
“Is that it?”
“Is there more?”
“You know, the pricklier you get, the hotter I get.”
She took a moment to digest that. “What happens if I suddenly became super sweet and agreeable?”
“That’s hard to imagine.”
She punched out a laugh. “What are you saying?”
“I guess that I want to get you naked and tie you to the nearest bed.”
Her breath hitched. “You wouldn’t dare.”
“I will now. Let’s review our plans to get you naked.”
I could hear her smile. “I’ll talk to you soon.”
