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“She took her own life,” I breathed, mysterious pieces of the past falling into place.
Something dark and terrifying moved through Duncan’s gaze. “Yes, quite the abrupt end to our engagement.” Ruth had been engaged to Duncan and killed herself to escape it? It was a dark and terrifying thought, if true.
I stepped back, needing air. I felt like I was suffocating. Whatever the dark shadow that the Fitzgerald family had cast over our lives, I needed to free us from its grip.
“It’s getting late. You should go. My mom will be here soon, and she doesn’t like you,” I stated bluntly, dropping all pretense of being polite. Fuck this guy.
Duncan chuckled. “She doesn’t, does she? She always was a good judge of character. Think about what I said, Winter. Your dad, his business, and his health…you could affect all of it if you stopped fighting fate, and the best-laid plans of twenty years. Don’t be selfish.”
With that, he turned and walked away, leaving me in pieces.
I texted Asher when my mom returned and sent me home. She was worried about me; I was so tired I was swaying on my feet.
His reply was immediate.
I’m outside. I’ll take you home.
I stepped out of the hospital, and there he was, waiting at the curb on his bike. I got on and hugged his back hard the entire way home.
Inside, the house felt quieter than usual. Asher came in with me.
“Did you eat something?” he asked.
I shook my head. “Don’t worry about me. You should go. You’ve got practice in the morning.”
He studied me. “You’re really bad at this, aren’t you, Ice Queen?”
“What?” I asked numbly.
“Letting people in. It’s okay, don’t worry…I know what you need,” he said, and shook off his leather jacket.
Just then, the doorbell rang. I frowned at the clock. Who could it be at this time?
Asher left the kitchen and went to open the door, I guessed. It was night, and there were no staff on site. The silence that had fallen over the place was broken by the sounds of voices coming from the hall.
“I’ve put instructions on the top of each one. How to heat them in the microwave. But the oven is better, honestly.”
“Mom. You know we’re going to zap it. Give it to me, it’s too heavy.” It was Eve’s voice.
“Beckett can carry it for me, can’t you?”
“Whatever you want, Melly. I’m the favorite son, after all.”
Lily appeared first. The daughter of the hockey team’s coach arrived in the kitchen and gave me a shy smile. Her boyfriend, Cayden, appeared next, draping an arm around her shoulders.
“Hey, Winter. Where can I put this stuff?” he asked and lifted a bag full of what looked like soda and junk food.
I stood as the rest of the Ice Gods came into the kitchen, as well as Eve, Isabelle, and Melly Martino. The matriarch of the Martino family wasted no time bustling over and enveloping me in a hug.
“You poor girl. It’s so hard. How are you?” She rubbed my back.
Tears welled at the corners of my eyes. I shook my head, unable to speak for a moment.
She nodded and kept rubbing those warm circles on my back. “I know, I know. You shouldn’t be alone right now. Let your friends keep you company…it will help.”
She pulled back and went into the kitchen to direct the placement of various Tupperware dishes into the fridge.
“Rest assured, these are all cinnamon free,” she called. Unshed tears punched me in the throat.
