Claimed By My Ex's Rival Hockey Captain

Bailey

The flight back to Michigan felt endless. My body was in the seat, but my mind was stuck in that bedroom in Chicago... the sounds, the smirk and the way Nolan looked at me like I was nothing.

Seven years of dating and three years of devotion. All reduced to an ugly joke in one afternoon.

I'd grabbed my bag, booked the flight with shaking hands, and didn't look back. There was nothing left to look back to.

By the time the plane landed, it was morning. I walked down the aisle with nothing but the bag I'd grabbed in my rush to escape.

Stepping out into the cool Michigan air, the familiar scent of home wraps around me. For the first time in months, I let myself breathe.

I hail a cab and give the one address I know will get me what I need... comfort.

Minutes later, I'm standing outside Talia's apartment, ringing the bell like my life depends on it.

The door opens fast and Talia blinks at me.

Her hair is disheveled and eyes still heavy with sleep.

"Bailey..." Her voice cracks as she takes me in.

I don't say anything.

I know I look like a mess.

I am still wearing the same clothes from yesterday, no shower, nothing. Talia doesn't ask. She just steps aside and allows me in.

"You look like you've been through hell," she points out behind me.

That's what breaks the dam. I sniff hard, fighting my tears back.

I don't want to fall apart in front of her, even though it's all I want to do.

"Can I take a shower?" I ask instead.

"Of course. You don't need to ask." Talia replies.

I take the familiar path to her bathroom, strip down, and step under the water. It streams over me, rinsing off the stench of heartbreak.

I press my forehead to the tile and let the tears I have been forcing back to finally slip free, muffling the sobs with my hand.

By the time I step out wrapped in her fluffy robe, my limbs are still trembling but I feel human again.

The smell of coffee pulls me into the kitchen. Talia is seated at the table with two mugs of steaming coffee waiting. She pats the seat across from her and I take it without another word.

Talia takes two sips before she sets her cup down.

"Bailey. What the hell happened? You were fine yesterday, excited about surprising Nolan. Why are you back already, looking like this?" She asked. I could feel the concern in her voice despite the sharp tone.

So I tell her. Every sickening detail.

By the end, my voice is shaking with anger and grief. Talia slaps the table so hard I feel it on her behalf.

"That prick did what?" she growls.

"I caught him balls deep in another woman. He didn't even look sorry and said I was suffocating him." I take a sip of coffee.

Saying it out loud, i realised it sounded even more ridiculous than it felt.

"Six months, Talial. Six months he's been with her."

That's the part that guts me most. He should have just ended it, if he didn't love me anymore.

He should have been man enough and spared us both the wreckage.

"Love?" Talia scoffs. "Men like him don't care what you offer them. They cheat regardless."

She'd warned me about him once and told me not to put everything into one basket. I never listened because back then, Nolan was my everything.

Maybe Talia saw it coming all along.

"I gave him everything, Tal. I moved cities for him." Just thinking about it makes me feel miserable.

"That fucking prick," she spits. "Somebody should mutilate his junk and hang it at the hockey rink."

I almost laugh, despite everything.

Talia's anger is its own kind of comfort.

"As satisfying as that sounds, it's illegal. I'm not going to prison for him." I replied.

"You don't have to do it yourself. We could find someone." She suggests.

I can tell that she is dead serious about her revenge plan but it's absurd enough that I just stare at her.

She sees the look on my face and grins.

"What? I'm brainstorming," she defends herself.

. "Quality revenge takes planning."

Something in her ridiculous suggestions cracks the weight in my chest.

She is furious on my behalf and protective in the way only Talia is.

I can also tell that underneath it, she is trying to pull me back to myself.

I set down my mug and meet her eyes.

"No, Talia. I'm not wasting another second on him. He doesn't get my time, my energy, or my tears. I've already given him enough." I point out. Seven years is way too long to end up with a broken heart and humiliation.

Her expression softens. "So what are you going to do?"

I take a breath, and for the first time in months, my head feels clear.

"I am going to focus on my life. Grandma needs me, and it's time I choose myself for once." I declare.

For years, my whole world revolved around Nolan. I thought we were building something together. Now I can see I spent it all on a man who never actually cared.

Talia's smile turns blinding. "There she is. I'm so proud of you."

She pulls me into a hug, and I let myself sink into it.

It's not too late, I tell myself.

Over the next three months, I throw myself into rebuilding my life.

I split my time between taking care of my grandma and bringing the dream of owning a bakery shop to life.

Talia helps me hunt for a perfect shop, and after making sure it met my standards, I put down a six-month down payment for the rent.

I polish the recipes that were half-developed and set on getting the menu ready.

" See! This is what happens when you choose yourself." Talia whispers as we stand outside the shop, lease contract at hand.

A smile paints my lips at that.

I seem to see the bakery bustling with customers, their faces glowing with delight at the first taste of my pastries

-and that vision alone tells me I'm exactly where I belong.

My healing journey was going well until I received an alarming call after a week.