Chapter Ninety Four
Venessa's POV
The morning after the game was a slow, painful repeat of the day before, only this time, the injuries were real. Khalid’s body was a roadmap of the violet war he had endured on the ice. The dark, angry stitches tracking across his hairline looked even more fierce in the daylight, and a massive, deep purple bruise had bloomed across his ribs where Julian’s stick had caught him from behind.
I had spent hours helping him move through his recovery routine. I filled the ice bath, ran the massage gun over his aching muscles, and carefully cleaned around his bandage. He was incredibly quiet the entire morning, his mind clearly replaying the game, but his eyes followed me around the room with a deep, silent gratitude that spoke louder than any words.
By the t
