Where The Ice Gives Way Chapter 123

**Blake**

After dinner, Mum ushers Charlotte over to one of her Christmas puzzles that’s out on the coffee table in the living room. Dad and I got it for her last year. She said it looked peaceful. Dad said it looked like a nightmare with too many blue pieces. Mum told him that it was because he lacked patience. Charlotte sits on the floor with her legs tucked under her, hair falling over one shoulder, while she helps sort the pieces. I sit on the couch behind her, my knees bracketing her shoulders. Dad takes the armchair with the remote, and Charlie drops onto the other end of the couch. The sports channel flickers across the television, voices low under the soft clack of puzzle pieces.

 Charlotte reaches for a piece, and her sleeve slips up a little. I catch a strand of her hair and let it slide between my fingers. Her hair is soft from the shower this morning, pale strands warming under my hand. I comb my fingers through it carefully, working out tiny knots near the ends. She leans back slowly until her shoulder rests against my shin.

Dad mutters at the screen when a player misses an easy shot. Charlie answers him with his mouth full of leftover bread. Charlotte smiles down at the puzzle, and my chest goes warm. This is the kind of night people don’t think about until they don’t have it—a fire low in the grate, Mum humming under her breath, while Dad swears softly at sport. Charlie is eating like it’s a personal calling, and Charlotte is settled between my legs, letting me play with her hair. Lex settles so deeply inside me that it’s a rarity when he stops pacing.

When the game ends, Dad stretches and sets the remote down. “Alright,” he says, standing. “Everyone off to bed. Big day tomorrow. I want us up early, and I want everything ready for the fundraiser after the game.”

Charlotte places one last piece before she stands. She looks down at the half-finished cupcake picture, fingers brushing the edge of the table. “We can finish it tomorrow?” she asks Mum.

Mum smiles up at her. “Of course, love.”

I stand and hold my hand out, and when she places hers in mine, I lead her upstairs. Charlie’s footsteps go toward his room, and Mum and Dad speak low in the kitchen for a moment, then their voices fade.

My room is warm when we step inside, the lamp already on, throwing soft light over the bed. We shower quickly, brushing past each other in the steam, shy at times and smiling at others. Charlotte steals my hoodie from the chair before I can offer it. It hangs too big on her, sleeves covering most of her hands, but damn it looks perfect. I brush my teeth beside her while she stands at the sink, hair damp around her face. She catches me staring in the mirror and nudges my hip with hers. “What?”

I spit, rinse, and smile at her. “Nothing.”

Her eyes narrow. “That was a suspicious nothing.”

“It was a good nothing.”

She shakes her head, but she’s smiling when she turns away.

I pull the blankets back for her, and she climbs into bed, exactly where I want her. I get in after her, and she wriggles straight over and against my chest, tucking herself under my chin. The warmth of her settles over me. My arm wraps around her waist, brushing the skin where her shirt has ridden up. Her fingers rest against my chest, right over where I feel the bond, and Lex lets out a quiet, pleased sound inside me.

For a while, neither of us talks. The snow taps softly against the window. The house creaks once, then settles. Charlotte’s breathing evens out against me, and I let my fingers trace slow lines over the back of her hand. “Are you excited for the game tomorrow?” she asks quietly.

“Of course I am.” I press my mouth to the top of her head. “I’m even more excited to have my girl in the stands cheering me on.”

She tilts her head back to look at me. “Your girl? I like the way that sounds.”

I grin. “Yeah. Me too.” Her cheeks go pink, and I swear I feel the heat of it through the bond. “That reminds me,” I say. “I got you something.”

Her brows pinch. “You did?”

I smirk and reach over the side of the bed, where I tucked the surprise away this afternoon after practice. I pull out the jersey and hold it between us. Same colours as mine. Same number. Same name. Only smaller. Charlotte gasps and sits up fast, taking it from my hands. Her fingers run over the lettering across the back. Atlas. She stares at it for a long moment. “Blake,” she whispers. The sound of my name in her mouth nearly ruins me. I sit up too and reach for her chin, turning her face gently toward mine. “It would make me the proudest guy in the world to have my name on your back tomorrow, Lotty.”

Her eyes shine as she looks at me. Her thumb traces the number again, careful and slow. “I love it,” she says. Then she squeals. The sound is so bright and sudden that I laugh as she launches herself at me, arms wrapping around my neck. I catch her easily, falling back against the pillows with her on top of me and the jersey crushed between us. “You really like it?” I ask.

She lifts her head, smiling so wide it makes my chest ache.

“I love it,” she says again. “I’ve never had anything like this.”

I tuck her hair behind her ear. “You’ll have a lot of things now.”

Her smile softens as she looks at me with unshed tears. “Blake.”

“I mean it.”

She looks down at the jersey between us, then back at me. “I’ll wear it to every game.”

My whole body goes warm. “Yeah?”

She nods. “Yeah.”

I pull her down and kiss her, slow and soft, one hand spread over her back and the other tangled gently in her damp hair. She melts into me, and for a few seconds, there is nothing else. No rogues. No fundraiser. No warning, crawling under my skin. Just Charlotte in my arms, my name in her hands, and tomorrow waiting on the other side of the dark.

When she finally settles back against my chest, she keeps the jersey tucked close beside her. I hold her until her breathing slows, and Lex stays quiet, but I know he’s awake. So am I. Outside, the snow keeps falling. Inside, my mate sleeps against me, wearing my hoodie, with my jersey held under one hand. For one perfect moment, the world gives me exactly what I want. I close my eyes and hold onto it.