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?”

this argument. My shoulders slumped,

my thoughts and a heavy sense of guilt. I knew I should have confided in her

gnawed at me. I finished packing, double–checking that I had everything I needed for the spa trip. It was supposed

I made my way through the dimly lit streets of downtown. After packing my suitcase for the spa trip. I had arranged to meet Penny for a late–night breakfast at the nearby diner. The promise of comfort food and her company offered a

the scent of sizzling bacon and freshly brewed coffee enveloped me. Penny sat in a corner booth. nursing a cup of coffee, her expression

the weight of my

at me intently, her bright eyes filled with curiosity. “Spill

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took a deep breath, my anger bubbling just beneath the surface. “Stella framed me for tearing up her wedding dress, Penny. She made it look like

my own. “That conniving

lowered my head, feeling a heavy weight on my chest. “May

in thought. “You know, Evie, Stella has made a lot of enemies over the years. She’s not exactly the most liked person in town. Maybe someone else had

to go to such lengths? Tear up her dress, have her frame me, and then file a

her right? And she was at the Hayes mansion that day when the dress was torn, and might

Scarlett’s sudden appearance had always struck me as odd. She had

nodded slowly, a sinking feeling settling in my stomach. “I

something to do with it? She might have a vendetta against Stella, and this would be the perfect way

spine. Accusing her

Penny,” I replied, my voice uncertain. “She seems classier than

eyes. “Classy people are usually the messiest behind closed doors, but says it’s

in a while. “Linda…I guess she would hate

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Chapter 156

nodded rapidly, seeming more drawn

surface sticky with the residue of countless meals. I stabbed at my hash browns with a fork, more out of habit than hunger, while Penny sipped her black coffee, her eyes darting around as

breaking the silence,

her coffee, her eyebrows furrowing in concern. “Tell

as if the very act of speaking the words aloud would make them all too real. “He needs to know about Stella

against the saucer as she set it

toward her. “Keeping it to ourselves isn’t helping anyone, and looks so miserable. I can’t let him go through with that knowing that that woman

you want to do