Chapter 5 Chapter 5

Rose's Pov

"No way!"

A shriek ripped out of my throat before my brain could even register the insanity playing out in front of my eyes.

Scott practically catapulted himself off the bed, clutching his crumpled hockey jersey over his torso and taking slow steps toward me like I was a wild animal about to bite his head off.

My head was spinning so fast I felt sick. I had only come up to this stupid floor because my dad sent me instead of Alexa. The hotel was overflowing with hockey players, and I sure as hell hadn't wanted to bump into a single one of them.

But Alexa didn't know that—if she had, she would’ve dived headfirst into the opportunity to fetch Dad’s forgotten playbook from the room. I was certain this was the exact room number he gave me.

"Rose, wait! I can explain," Scott stammered, his face bright red, his knuckles white against the fabric of his shirt. "It's not what it looks like, okay? It’s a total misunderstanding!"

I scoffed, a bitter laugh escaping my lips. "A misunderstanding? You two are buck naked on a bed!" I pointed a shaking finger back and forth between them. "Are you both gay?!"

"Fuck no!" Scott yelled instantly, his voice cracking.

Behind him, Ervis finally rose from the bed, he was totally unbothered, moving with a lazy grace as he pulled his shirt back over his head. "It's complicated, Roza," he said smoothly, his dark eyes fixed on mine.

It's complicated…right. Great choice of words.

The irony of it hit me like a freight train because the two guys I had somehow fallen head over heels for were actually fucking each other?

My mind started spiraling out of control, as part of my brain was numb with shock—because, honestly, who wouldn't think this was some crazy fanfiction dream come true? But then the reality slammed back in.

What if every single thing was a lie? What if the spark with Scott in Boston, the late-night skating with Ervis, the soft smiles, the deep kisses... what if all of it was just fake? What if they were both just using me as a cover, a convenient female distraction to hide their sexuality from the rest of the world?

I backed up toward the doorway, my chest heaving, staring at the two of them while my entire world tilted on its axis.

But before I could even take another step backward into the hallway, Ervis was suddenly right in front of me, closing the distance so fast it made my breath hitch.

Even with his hair a mess and his shirt thrown on inside out, he looked every single inch of handsome, like I hadn’t just walked in on him in bed with another guy. The nerve of him to look this good while my entire brain was crashing was infuriating.

He reached out, his long fingers gently catching my jaw to pick my chin up. "Roza," he murmured, his voice dropping into that smooth, intoxicating tone that usually made my knees weak. "I need you to understand that this is... complex… with time, I'll explain. And no one can ever know what you just saw in this room."

"I—I..." My voice failed me as I tried to pull back, but I was paralyzed, my chest heaving against the tight knot in my throat.

Ervis just pressed a finger right to my lips, cutting off my stutter. "Shh. You don't need to overthink it right now."

"We can't just let her go like that!" Scott snapped from behind him, his voice laced with panic as he pulled his pants on with frantic hands. "Ervis, think! What if she tells someone?"

I scoffed under my breath, my mind racing. Tell someone? I’d have to be out of my mind. No one would even believe me. If I walked up to anyone and said I caught the infamous Russian hockey star and America's golden-boy sweetheart drilling each other in a hotel room, they'd laugh in my face and say I was just another crazy fan chasing clout.

But I wasn't chasing clout.

This was real. This was fucking real, and I was standing right in the middle of it.

Ervis looked down at me, his eyes dark and locked onto mine. "Are you going to tell anyone, Roza?"

I just shook my head, more paralyzed than I'd ever been, he had this ridiculous hold over me, and in that split second, I wondered if he had that exact same twisted hold over Scott.

I suddenly snapped out of the trance, pulling my chin away from his touch. "I need to go."

"Rose, wait!" Scott called out behind me, but I didn't turn back. I bolted down the hallway, taking the first cab I saw back to our apartment, not even caring that I forgot my dad's playbook.

The second I slammed my tiny bedroom door shut, I let out a loud curse, dragging both hands through my hair. I pulled out my phone with shaking fingers and started searching both of them.

I scrolled through Scott’s pages—girl after girl, standard golden-boy athletic royalty. And there wasn't a single rumor about him liking guys while Ervis was way more private, leaving me with barely a scrape of information online.

Feeling sick, I stripped down and stepped into the shower, letting the hot water hit my face. But when I closed my eyes, their faces surfaced immediately.

I imagined them together. Kissing with their hands sliding over wet skin. And then, in the haze of the steam, they turned to me, offering for me to join them. And I did. I could practically feel their touch as my head fell back involuntarily as imaginary hands and lips trailed down my neck, my chest, my stomach.

A moan ripped from my throat as my hand slipped between my legs—and the second it did, reality literally slapped me in the face.

I yanked my hand back, opening my eyes wide, gasping for air. "Fuck, what was that?!"

Just then, banging echoed on the bathroom door, making me jump so hard I almost slipped on the tiles.

"Rose! Are you dying in there?!" Alexa yelled from the hall. Apparently she’d been knocking for five straight minutes while I was completely lost in my own sick fantasy.

"A minute!" I yelled back, grabbing a towel.

When I unlocked the door, Alexa flashed me a dirty glare before brushing past as I dragged myself into the confinement of my bedroom, throwing myself face-down onto the bed with a groan.

I couldn't believe myself. How disgusting could I get?

I squeezed my eyes shut, making a promise right then and there: I was going to stay far away from both of them. I’d avoid them if it was the last thing I did on this earth—before whatever that stupid, filthy thought was, actually happened in real life.