The Hockey Star’s Remorse

Chapter 156

With the day trip to the spa scheduled, I decided it was time to start packing, though my mind was weighed down by the heavy tension that had enveloped our apartment. Aria had been avoiding me ever since our fight, and I couldn’t help but feel like i was walking on eggshells.

I began folding clothes and carefully selecting toiletries to take with me when I heard a sharp knock at my bedroom door. Before I could answer, Aria barged in, a sheet of paper clutched tightly in her hand. The look on her face was a mixture of concern and anger, a storm brewing behind her eyes.

“What’s this?” Aria demanded, thrusting the paper toward me. I took it from her and my heart sank as I realized what it was the protective order Stella had filed against me.

–

“What are you doing with this?” I asked, my voice betraying my unease.

Aria’s voice was tight with frustration as she replied, “I found it on the kitchen counter, Evie. Why didn’t you tell me about this?”

I sighed, frustration bubbling up inside me. “It’s nothing. Aria. I didn’t want to bother you with my messy life anymore.”

Aria’s eyebrows furrowed as she studied me, clearly not buying my dismissive attitude. “It doesn’t look like ‘nothing. Evie. Stella filed a protective order against you. You should have told me.”

I turned away from her, feeling a mix of embarrassment and guilt. “I didn’t want to burden you with my problems, Aria, Besides, what could you have done about it?”

Aria’s voice grew exasperated. “What could I have done? Well, for starters, I could have been there for you, supported you. We’re supposed to be friends, Evie!”

I clenched my fists, my anger building. “Look, it’s my problem to deal with.”

Aria’s frustration boiled over, and she took a step closer to me, her voice rising. “I spoke to Lucas about the trip, and he told me that Stella had threatened you. You got him involved, but not me?

I threw my hands up in exasperation. “I didn’t want to make a big deal out of it. I thought I could handle it on my own.

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Aria’s anger flared, and she practically shouted, “Well, you can’t handle it on your own! Stella is clearly dangerous!”

I was at my breaking point, exhausted from the constant turmoil that had my life. “Aria, I’m not in the mood to fight with you right now.”

consumed

Aria’s eyes bore into mine, but there was a hint of hurt in her voice when she spoke. again. “Is that how it’s going to be, Evie? You’re just not going to speak to me anymore?”

the energy for this argument. My shoulders slumped, and I admitted defeat. “I

me alone with my thoughts and a heavy sense of guilt. I knew I should have confided in her about the order, but I had been so wrapped

the nagging worry that gnawed at me. I finished packing, double–checking that I had everything I needed for the spa trip. It was supposed to be a day of relaxation

for the spa trip. I

I stepped inside, and the scent of sizzling bacon and freshly brewed coffee enveloped me. Penny sat in a corner booth. nursing a cup of coffee, her expression peaceful. As I slid into the booth across from her, I could

a menu, but my appetite had vanished beneath the weight of my worries. “You won’t believe what happened today.” I began, my voice

filled with curiosity. “Spill it,

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surface. “Stella framed me for tearing up her wedding dress, Penny. She made

into a scowl, her anger mirroring my own. “That

weight on my chest. “May have

tapped her fingers on the table, deep in thought. “You know, Evie, Stella has made a lot of enemies over the years. She’s not exactly the most liked

considering Penny’s words. “But who would hate her enough to go to such lengths? Tear up her dress, have her frame me, and then file a protective order? It’s all so calculated.”

hates her right? And she was at the Hayes mansion that day when the dress was torn, and might have been there earlier

of Scarlett made my heart race. Scarlett’s sudden appearance had always struck me as odd. She had shown up and asked for my help specifically while also nursing an intense dislike

in my stomach. “I would hope it’s not

Scarlett had something to do with it? She might have a

her of something

Penny,” I replied, my voice uncertain.

her eyes. “Classy people are usually the messiest behind closed

a while. “Linda…I guess she would hate the woman marrying Timothy. She hated me just for working

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Chapter 156

rapidly, seeming more drawn to

more out of habit than hunger,

the silence, “I’ve

her coffee, her

for a moment, as if the very act of speaking the words aloud would make them all too real.

it down, her eyes,

to ourselves isn’t helping anyone, and looks so miserable. I can’t let him go through with that

you