My Hockey Alpha by Eve Above Story PDF

Chapter 0480

Enzo

The air in the gym was thick with the stench of sweat. The fluorescent lights beamed down from the ceiling, casting a whitish hue over the various machines and free weights that occupied the room. The soundtrack for that day was the usual mix of grunts and sparse conversations, the clatter of iron against iron, and whatever was currently blasting through the sound system-at that moment it was a hit rap song, but I wasn't listening.

I was in the midst of my third set of bench presses, my fingers wrapped tightly around the barbell. The cold steel felt reassuring, grounding even, as I inhaled deeply and lifted it off the rack. My muscles strained under the weight, each rep a battle of will as much as it was of strength. I was going hard, much harder than usual.

"Damn, man, are you trying to lift the whole gym or what?" Matt's voice broke through the haze of my concentration.

I lowered the barbell back onto the rack with a grunt, sitting up to look at him. Matt was leaning against the wall, water bottle in hand, his expression a mix of admiration and concern.

it," forcing a wry chuckle as I wiped my

a moment, concern flickering through his eyes. "You've been hitting it

years. He wasn't just a friend, but a confidant, a Beta, and an apprentice of sorts when it came to hockey. He knew when I was holding back. And it was more than just the weightlifting-it was like I

on my mind," I

let me in on what's been bugging

"Nina thought she

that...is that

to process the question, my gaze drifting to a far corner of the gym where a couple was

just getting my career to where I want it to be. The timing would've been difficult. On

eyes softened, the lines of his face easing into a more contemplative expression. "That's a whole lot to handle,

the part where I was actually, you know, a tiny bit excited about the idea of being a dad. It's strange, Matt. I never