Chapter 38: The Heart Pier
Rhys
I didn’t wait for Kayden to argue or refuse. I caught the eye of a passing taxi and stopped it. When the cab pulled to the curb, I opened the door and ushered him inside, my hand never leaving his. It felt as if I let go, even for a second, he’d vanish back into that club and back into Leo’s arms.
We slid into the back seat and I slammed the door shut behind us. The air in the car was warm and smelled faintly of old peppermint, but I didn’t care about that.
𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚
I told the driver where we were going and as the car started, I looked at Kayden.
"Where the hell are we going, Rhys?" Kayden demanded again. He was pressed against the far door, his chest heaving as he glared at me. "What is this place? If this is a place you love to be alone, why the hell are you taking me there?"
"Because I want to talk to you in a place where we wouldn’t be disturbed and you are going to like it," I muttered, looking straight ahead so I wouldn’t have to face the fire in his eyes just yet.
"What about the others?" Kayden asked. "Wouldn’t they look for us? We can’t just leave them."
I turned my head then, my gaze dropping to his mouth before snapping back to his eyes. "They are grown men, Kayden. They’ll find their way home." I shifted closer, the leather of the seat creaking under my weight. "Just focus on me for once and forget about anything else."
Kayden went quiet for a moment and turned to look out the window as we sped through the neon-lit streets of Lake City. Then he spoke up again, this time slowly. "You could take me anywhere; why does it have to be your secret spot?"
"You’ll find out soon," I told him, and then turned to my side of the window. Once we got to a red light, the taxi slowed and I heard Kayden gasp.
Immediately, I turned my attention towards his side and followed his gaze to a promotional banner for the upcoming brand magazine for the Voltrex brand.
It was a different one from when we had arrived on the first day in the city. This one featured us playing on ice; it was a short video looping over and over again.
I couldn’t help it; a small, dry smile spread at the corner of my mouth. "We look good together," I commented.
Kayden didn’t even hesitate and he let out a mocking scoff. "I don’t think so," he snapped and looked away from the banner.
I felt the rejection in my gut and heaved a deep sigh, closing my eyes for a second as the car started moving again.
The rest of the drive was in silence and finally, the taxi pulled over at a gravel turnout where the road finally gave up. I paid the driver and stepped out into the biting chill air. The wind whipped my hair so hard I could feel the strands hit my face.
Kayden followed after me and complained, hugging his body. "Oh goodness, this place is cold," he commented. "Where did you bring me?"
I said nothing and started walking, beckoning to him to follow. I led him toward a shoreline where a long, narrow dock stretched out into the black mirror of the water. Above the main platform was a single bright lamp casting a golden circle of light towards the end of the dock.
Kayden suddenly stopped at the start of the planks, looking around him. "You brought me to a lake?" he gasped, his eyes widening as he took in the massive silhouette of the mountain and the water.
I let out a low chuckle and spread my arms around. "This is the Heart Pier," I said, looking out at the horizon. "It’s the oldest one in Lake City and most people forget it even exists, especially at this hour." It was probably midnight, since we left the club almost an hour ago.
I started walking down the wooden path, the boards creaking familiarly under my boots. "Every time we have a game in this city, I come here alone. It’s the only place that’s actually quiet. There is no press, no expectations. It’s so peaceful here that I have fallen asleep countless times on the benches."
Kayden walked toward the edge and then gasped as he looked down at the deep, dark water before turning back to me. The yellow light from above caught the sharp lines of his face and he was frowning hard at me. "Seriously, Rhys, why did you bring me here? What’s the actual reason for this? You don’t just share a place like this for no reason."
I didn’t answer right away. I just walked to the end of the T-shape of the pier and sat down on the weathered wood, my legs dangling over the edge toward the water. Then I patted the space right next to me, looking up at him.
"Sit down, Kayden," I said softly. "As I said, I brought you here for a reason. Also, it gets warmer when you are close to the lake. "
I patted the space beside me again, the wood cold beneath my palms, but I didn’t care because once I spent a few minutes here, it would become warmer and the cold would fade away.
"This better be worth it," Kayden scoffed as he lowered himself beside me, but kept a sliver of space between us.
The water roared below as if it understood the tension for us and for a moment, I said nothing, thinking about how I was going to start. Then I stared at my hands, inhaled deeply, and then spoke up.
"First," I started. "I want to apologize for everything I said to you that night, Kayden. I said a lot of bad things to you and I deeply regret them."
Kayden scoffed and turned to face me. "I don’t need your apology, Rhys. I have heard enough of your speeches this past few days that your voice bores me now."
"Wait," I raised my hand in defeat. "Please," I pleaded, reaching out as if to grab his hand before catching myself and pulling back. "I am bad at apologies, Kayden, and I have never gone through this length to apologize to anyone, but I did for you."
"And I am supposed to be happy because the Ice Prince is apologizing?" he asked.