All Chapters of SHADES OF ICE AND ASHES : Chapter 11 - Chapter 20

39 Chapters

Chapter 11: Not Her

ZANE’S POV I woke up before the sun and stared at the ceiling until the sky outside turned gray. Sleep never came. Every time I drifted off I saw Lila standing in the middle of my living room clutching that stupid notebook like it could protect her from me. I saw the exact second my words landed. The way her shoulders folded inward and her eyes went bright with tears she refused to let fall. I hated myself for it. I hated her more for making me hate myself.I rolled out of bed and padded barefoot to the kitchen. The marble floor was cold and the quiet pressed in hard. I brewed coffee I didn’t want and stood at the window watching the city wake up. My phone sat on the counter like a loaded gun. I kept checking it like she might text first but she never did.Jake showed up at seven thirty with the tablet and the same cautious look he wore every time I looked like I might bite someone’s head off.“Good morning, sir,” he tried.I grunted as I took the coffee from his hand before he c

Chapter 12: Crash Landing

LILA’S POV I pushed through the revolving door of Apex Media and the whispers hit me like a wave. Two interns at the coffee machine stopped talking the second they saw me. A group by the printers turned their backs too fast. Someone coughed into their sleeve and another phone screen went dark the moment I walked past. My stomach dropped straight to the floor. They knew. Someone knew everything. My skin burned under every stare.I kept my head down and speed-walked to my cubicle. The walk felt endless. I heard my name float behind hands and monitors. Harper. Callahan. Thrown out. Penthouse. My pulse hammered so loud I barely heard the chairs roll as people leaned out to watch me pass.I dropped into my seat and stared at the black monitor like it could save me. Sarah appeared over the divider before I even caught my breath.“Oh my god, Lila,” she whispered, eyes huge. “Have you heard?”“Heard what?” My voice cracked.“Madison got escorted out of Zane Callahan’s building yesterday. Lik

Chapter 13: Fallout

Zane’s povI saw her the second she walked into Le Bernardin. Lila stood frozen just inside the door in a cheap black coat with her hair twisted up like she was trying to hide inside it. She looked small and lost and furious all at once. I knew she would come. I made sure of it. One call to her boss this morning and the trap snapped shut. She had no choice. Neither did I.Sophia Lang swept in ten minutes late smelling like money and entitlement. Red dress, diamonds at her throat. Her lips were so full they looked borrowed. She smiled at the room like every camera belonged to her. I stood long enough to pull her chair and sat again. My skin crawled the moment she opened her mouth.“Did I keep you waiting for so long?” she asked, voice sharp enough to cut glass. I drank my water and said nothing.She kept going, talking about the merger, her parents, the board pushing her to marry, how perfect our babies would look, how I needed to stop acting like a child and start acting like the m

Chapter 14: Blurred Lines

Lila’s POV I stumbled out of the cab and the cold air hit my face hard enough to make the world tilt. My phone kept buzzing in my bag but I ignored it and leaned against a brick wall to catch my breath. Snow fell soft and quiet around me and the streetlights blurred into halos. I knew what waited if I looked online. My name was everywhere. My face next to Zane’s with headlines screaming mistress and homewrecker and gold-digger. Tomorrow would be hell but tonight I just needed to forget.I pulled out my phone with numb fingers and called Mia.“Hey, it’s me,” I said when she picked up. “Meet me at Rusty’s. I need a drink.”“On my way,” she answered without asking questions. That was why I loved her.I made it to the bar first and slid onto a stool near the back. The bartender knew my face and poured two shots of Patrón without me asking. I threw the first one back and the tequila burned a path straight to my stomach. The second followed quickly and warmth spread through my chest.Mia

Chapter 15: No Turning Back

ZANE’S POV Her hand squeezed again and I nearly ran a red light. The feel of her palm pressing against my cock through the fabric sent fire straight up my spine. She was drunk as hell and giggling like this was all a game but every stroke of her fingers made my vision tunnel. I bit down hard on my lower lip to trap the groan building in my throat. It didn’t work as the sound escaped low and rough. “Fuck,” I muttered under my breath. She laughed softly and filthy as she kept moving her hand slowly up and down. “You like that?” I gripped the wheel tighter and accelerated through the green. “Lila. Take your hand off me.” “No.” She shifted closer and her breath hit my neck hot and tequila-sweet. “You’re so hard and it feels so good.” My pulse pondered. She wasn’t wrong. I’d been half-hard since the restaurant and now I was throbbing against her palm like a teenager. The alcohol talked through her mouth but the want in her voice was real. I knew that want, I felt it every time I look

Chapter 16: Walk of Shame

LILA’S POV I woke up to sunlight slicing through the unfamiliar blinds and a body that felt thoroughly used. Every muscle ached in the best and worst way imaginable, between my legs throbbed with a dull sweet soreness that brought last night rushing back in vivid color. Zane’s mouth on me as his hands pinned me down. The way he filled me over and over until I forgot everything but his name. I rolled over and reached out blindly but the sheets beside me were cool and empty. There was no Zane. Just the faint scent of him on the pillow and the ache he left behind. I sat up slowly as the room tilted a little all thanks to the tequila hangover that hammered behind my eyes. I was naked, my clothes were scattered across the floor like evidence. My bra hung off the lampshade and my panties were nowhere in sight. My phone rang loudly from the nightstand and I grabbed it fast. It was Meredith. I swallowed hard and answered. “Lila, I hope I’m expecting good news from you today?” My stomac

Chapter 17: Game Day

ZANE’S POV I walked into the locker room as the noise hit me like a wall. Guys shouted over each other as music thumped from someone’s speaker, the air smelled like sweat, tape, and adrenaline. I dropped my bag on the bench and started stripping down. My shoulder still ached from yesterday’s practice but I ignored it because pain was part of the deal. The coach clapped his hands sharply in the middle of the room as everyone quieted fast. “Listen up. Tonight we play Toronto. They’re fast and they hit hard. Callahan, you’re on the first line with Reyes and Thompson. I want you finishing checks and screening the goalie. No pretty plays tonight, just grind.” I nodded and pulled on my base layer. Reyes bumped my shoulder as he passed. “Ready to carry us again, Princess?” he said sarcastically. I flipped him off without looking but the other guys laughed like it was supposed to be funny. My head wasn’t here to catch the joke. It was still in that conference room watching Lila try to a

Chapter 18: A Marriage With Thorns

LILA’S POV Zane pulled away from the curb and drove through the snow without another word. The city lights blurred past the windows and the heater blasted warm air that did nothing to thaw the chill inside me. His words echoed loud in my head. You’re not marrying him. It is now. He said it like he owned the decision, like he owned me.I stared at his sharp profile, it was unreadable in the dashboard glow. He kept saying things like that as if declarations fixed everything. As if he could snap his fingers and erase four million dollars and a family that saw me as property. Men always talked big when they wanted something. And Zane wanted sex—not just any sex—great and mind-blowing sex. Despite having his own fiancée waiting somewhere or at least the expectation of one, he still claimed my body. I know Sophia Lang wasn’t going away quietly. I wasn’t stupid enough to believe he meant anything more.The Rover turned into his underground garage after we grabbed something to eat and he

Chapter 19: Rain and Regret

ZANE’S POV I followed her because I knew Ethan. I knew how he treated things he thought belonged to him. I knew the look on his face when he felt ownership slipping. And I knew Lila wouldn’t back down easy, which meant things could turn ugly fast. Victoria called me on my way to the rink. She sounded pissed and worried at the same time. She said Ethan and his mother had summoned Lila to La Grenouille for a lunchtime meeting to discuss the wedding. I made a U-turn without thinking twice and broke every speed limit getting there. I walked in just as Ethan raised his hand again. The first slap still echoed in the air and Lila stood frozen with her cheek red as tears shone in her eyes. The whole restaurant looked like it was a theater. I didn’t even think. I just moved. “Get your hands off her.” My voice cut through the murmurs. Ethan froze mid-swing. His mother’s wine glass paused halfway to her lips. Lila looked at me like she couldn’t believe I was real. I crossed the room fast

Chapter 20: Downward Spiral

LILA’S POV I rode the bus home in soaked clothes and ruined makeup with blisters burning on both heels. The driver kept glancing at me in the rearview mirror but said nothing. I sat in the back row and stared out the window watching rain streak the glass while my body shivered from cold and shame. My dress clung to my skin like a second layer of regret. Every bump in the road jolted the soreness between my legs and reminded me of Zane’s hands and mouth and the way I’d begged for more. I hated myself for it.When I finally reached my stop I walked the last three blocks in barefoot because my heels hurt too much. I had blisters split on my feet and the rainwater didn’t help with the pain. But I didn’t care because pain felt deserved.I climbed the stairs to the apartment and let myself in quiet. I dropped my bag on the floor as I started peeling off the wet dress, it landed in a heap with a soft wet slap. I left the heels by the door and padded barefoot to my room.I collapsed on the

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