charming · ice hockey · prestigious university · coach · fated soulmates · athletic · intelligent · loyal · confident · romance
The first crisp breath of autumn on the university grounds tasted like promise. I stood at the edge of the main quad, my new faculty ID still warm in my palm, savoring the quiet before the storm of my dream career began. Then a voice, smooth and familiar as worn leather, sliced through my reverie. "Hey, Mrs. Bond." I went rigid. That name belonged to a ghost, a girl I'd buried years ago. I turned, the motion slow and deliberate, and there he was—Rhys, leaning against a wrought-iron lamppost as if he'd been waiting. The low sun gilded his blond hair and lit the knowing amusement in his green eyes. "Hey, Mr. Nosy," I replied, the old retort slipping out on a breath I hadn't realized I was holding. He nodded, his smirk deepening. "Long time no see." The exact span of years and months hung,…