Hands Off The Ice King novel Chapter 35

Chapter 35

Chapter 35

Levi’s POV

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I couldn’t believe that this woman-with innocent eyes and a face that looked like she wouldn’t even hurt a fly-had somehow managed to convince Coach Dennis, and even worse, Delaney, to get me to stop playing for the next two weeks.

I only gave her that challenge yesterday because I knew it was nearly impossible. Coach Dennis never listened to anyone once he’d made up his mind, and Delaney was worse.

Yet somehow, Hope did it.

And now, she was asking me to do another impossible thing for her.

She wanted me on the cover of Apollo, even after I’d explicitly told Beth I was done with advertisements after that godforsaken underwear campaign.

Her cheeks were flushed a deep pink as she tried to maintain eye contact with me, only to fail every few seconds. Her fingers twisted together in front of her while she bit down on her lower lip anxiously.

Fuck.

The moment my eyes landed on her lips, that memory hit me again.

Usually, the mere thought of kissing someone disgusted me. I hated being close to people. I hated the feeling of someone in my space, touching me, breathing near me.

Still, my brain kept replaying our first kiss against my will. The softness of her lips. The tiny sound she made that I still remembered too clearly.

I dragged my gaze away from her mouth and tilted my head slightly before looking back into her eyes.

“You already want me to stop playing for two weeks,” I said slowly. “That’s the longest I’ve gone without playing hockey in years.”

Her shoulders stiffened slightly.

“And now,” I continued, “you want me to do a photoshoot when you already know I hate doing those things.”

She pursed her lips, but to her credit, she didn’t back down.

“That’s one way of getting Apollo to stay,” she explained carefully. “Mrs. Tundra already said they’re thinking of pulling out as sponsors if they think you’re not going to be in your best shape this season.”

“Well, once they get to know that you’re not playing for two weeks, people are obviously going to speculate.” She spoke faster the more passionate she got. “Rumors spread quickly, especially with you.”

No shit.

“The best way to calm everyone down,” she continued, “is if you appear on their cover. Apollo only chooses the best athletes, and you already achieved that at such a young age.”

Her tone brightened near the end, and I almost scoffed. She was trying to flatter me. Unfortunately for her, praise had stopped affecting me years ago.

Still, it was entertaining watching her try.

I leaned back slightly, studying her.

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Chapter 35

“Do you know why I hate those photoshoots so much?”

She paused for a second, genuinely thinking about it before slowly shaking her head.

I looked away briefly before answering.

“It’s a day where people touch me freely without me having much say in it.”

Her breath visibly hitched, and understanding flashed through her eyes.

Most people didn’t get it. Or maybe they just didn’t care enough to try.

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“The fitting,” I continued flatly. “The makeup artists. Stylists fixing my clothes every five seconds. Photographers repositioning me.” My jaw tightened slightly. “It’s exhausting for someone who doesn’t like being touched.”

I rarely admitted that aloud.

It wasn’t some deep secret. The team already knew. The management, too. They all did. Some of them just conveniently ignored it whenever sponsorships and money were involved.

I watched Hope carefully, waiting for the usual reaction. People normally didn’t know how to react once they realized just

how serious I was about it.

However, Hope’s expression only turned thoughtful. Her brows furrowed slightly as her mind worked through the problem. Then suddenly, her face lit up.

“Well, then I can come with you that day.”

She smiled, appearing pleased with herself for solving the issue.

“I’ll make sure nobody touches you unnecessarily,” she said quickly. “And I can help with the makeup too.”

I raised a brow.

“You?”

“Yes!” she said. “My best friend Freya does makeup professionally sometimes. Weddings, events, photoshoots-stuff like that. She used to ask me to help her all the time, so I learned a few things.”

There was excitement in her voice. Her nervousness from earlier was slowly fading beneath determination.

“I can do it for you,” she continued. “Or at least help enough so the makeup artists don’t need to touch you much. And I’m sure Apollo would adjust things if we explained properly.”

Again, she looked so ridiculously hopeful while talking about this.

Hope.

Maybe her parents named her that for a reason. I nearly chuckled at the irony.

“So,” she asked carefully, “what do you say?”

She looked at me with those wide eyes full of sincerity, like she genuinely believed she could solve all my problems if she tried hard enough.

“And if you do this,” she added softly, “there won’t be any issues with the team’s sponsor anymore.”

I stared at her quietly. I leaned forward slightly, making her tense.

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Chapter 35

“You’re willing to do all that for me?”

Her cheeks turned even redder, but she nodded right away.

“Yes,” she said without hesitation. “For the team.”

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