Chapter 136: A Beat of Normalcy

NORA’S POV

The red end-call icon faded from the screen, leaving the glass dark. Around us, the wind whistled through the bare maples bordering Kendall Hall.

Now that Drew’s voice was gone, the adrenaline that had carried me through the last fifteen minutes suddenly drained away.

A violent shiver racked through my shoulders, the chill sinking straight through my wool coat.

"Well," Priya’s dry voice cut through the wind beside me. "That was certainly a masterclass in small-town entitlement," she remarked, pulling her coat collar tight. "Now unless you two plan on freezing to death on this curb," Priya added, "unlock the doors."

Knox hit the key fob, the amber lights flashing as the locks clicked open.

He pulled open the rear door, letting Priya scramble into the back seat out of the biting wind.

Then Knox turned to me.

Without a word, he caught me around the waist, lifted me easily onto the front seat, and climbed into the driver’s side.

The doors sealed shut, locking out the wind and wrapping us in sudden stillness.

Knox cranked the heater dial, sending warm air rushing across my knees before taking both of my numb hands into his. His palms were broad, rough, and radiating heat as he rubbed his thumbs firmly over my knuckles.

"Look at me, Nora," Knox said softly.

I lifted my gaze to meet his.

His gray eyes were completely calm, stripped of the icy detachment he had used to cut Drew down. "You were incredible." His voice carried a quiet reverence that made my throat tighten.

"I was angry," I admitted softly.

"You stood in front of that truck and owned every single piece of your life," he countered gently.

He lifted my hand, brushing his lips across the cold skin of my knuckles.

"Did you mean it?" he murmured, holding my gaze. "What you told Miller about us? That it’s real?" he added.

A soft smile touched my lips, chasing away the last trace of the quad’s frost. "I meant every word, Knox," I said, curling my fingers into his palm. "Standing there telling him the truth felt like finally locking a door I should have closed years ago."

Knox studied my face, his expression softening completely. He leaned across the center console, resting his forehead against mine as his thumb brushed my cheek.

"Nobody puts you on a shelf, Nora," Knox whispered against my temple. "Ever."

He pressed a lingering kiss to the corner of my mouth before pulling back just an inch. "We’re going to clear this on Monday," he promised. "Together."

From the back seat, Priya leaned forward between our headrests, letting out a long breath as the heat washed over her.

"As deeply moved as I am by this Hallmark moment," she drawled, "angle one of those center vents back here, or my toes are going to snap off."

I let out a breathless laugh, resting my head back against the headrest as Knox chuckled softly.

"And Sheridan?" Priya added, adjusting her glasses with an unimpressed look. "You owe me a latte for standing in that wind through Drew Miller’s dowry proposal without telling him to choke on a puck."

Knox shifted the truck into drive and pulled away from Kendall Hall.

"Did you get the registration in before Miller called?" Priya asked, leaning forward against the console.

"Submitted," I said proudly, pulling up my browser tab. "Entry number fourteen. Sugar and Spice is officially in the wildcard division."

"Damn right," Knox said, his hand finding mine over the gear shift. "We’re going to Emerald Pines, and we’re going to watch your mom get the stone deck she deserves."

—

Ten minutes later, Knox pulled into the gravel driveway of the SinBin.

The moment Knox unlocked the front door, the rich aroma of sizzling butter and melting cheddar hit us instantly.

Knox shut the front door. "Barrett?"

"In the kitchen!" Bear’s booming voice echoed down the hall. "Wipe your boots, Sheridan! I just mopped!"

Knox knelt to untie my boots, set them on the drying mat, and led us down the hall into the kitchen.

Inside, Bear stood over a double griddle flipping thick sourdough grilled cheeses beside a pot of boiling penne.

Jake sat at the far end of the counter nursing chocolate milk, while Milo leaned against the fridge eating chips from a family-sized bag.

The second Bear saw me, his spatula paused mid-air.

"Where are your gloves, Bennett?" Bear demanded in an exasperated rumble.

"I... I left them in my dorm," I stammered.

"Unbelievable," Bear grumbled, flicking off the burner. "Four-point-oh GPA and walks around in November without gloves."

He slid a giant ceramic mug across the granite in front of an empty barstool.

"Sit down," Bear ordered, pointing a spatula at the stool. "Lemon ginger tea with honey. Drink it before your throat freezes."

Bear turned toward Priya with genuine reverence. "Counselor, mug of tea on the left. Sourdough on the right."

"Barrett," Priya said, taking a stool beside me, "you are the only civilized man in this entire house."

Knox brought over thick cabin socks and his number nineteen fleece, sliding the socks over my feet and the fleece over my sweater.

The fleece swallowed me whole, warm and smelling of Knox.

Milo whistled from the fridge. "Look at the captain playing domestic."

Knox didn’t even look up. "Open your mouth again, and you’re running twenty stadium stairs with pads on Monday."

"I’m fueling," Milo protested, holding up a chip.

"So?" Jake asked, leaning forward. "How did it go with Chloe?"

"She didn’t confess on paper, but she slipped up," Priya answered smoothly, taking a bite of her sandwich. "She specifically shouted that nobody forced Knox and Nora to leave their terms in Knox’s bedroom nightstand."

Bear slammed a loaded plate in front of me, holding two perfectly browned, gooey grilled cheeses. "Eat, Bennett," he said gently. "The blog post never mentioned a bedroom."

"Exactly," Knox said, leaning against the counter beside me. "She placed herself in my room on October twenty-second without us even asking. Then she panicked and slammed the door."

Jake shook his head with a grin. "Arrogant and stupid."

"And then Drew Miller called," I added, taking a warm, buttery bite.

Milo choked on his chip, coughing.

"Wait," Milo wheezed. "Drew Miller? The State captain called Nora?"

"Yeahhh. He saw the post, saw Sugar and Spice on the promissory note, and asked why I didn’t come to his family for an emergency loan."

Milo burst out laughing. "To his family? What is he, an eighteenth-century duke offering a dowry?"

"Did his voice crack?" Milo added eagerly. "Tell me his voice cracked when Knox answered."

"Knox took the phone," I smiled.

"Told him to stay focused on his games," Knox said calmly. "Keep his nose out of my business, and stay away from my girl."

Bear let out a booming rumble of approval from the stove. "Good man."

—

For the next forty minutes, the storm outside seemed to fade away.

We sat in the bright kitchen while Bear boiled another batch of pasta and tossed it with garlic butter and grilled chicken.

Knox made sure I finished both halves of my sandwich, sitting right beside me with his knee pressed against mine under the counter.

We talked about hockey drills, Milo complained about an upcoming quiz, and Jake argued with Bear about NHL playoff chances while Priya corrected their legal logic.

It was loud, chaotic, and completely ordinary.

For the first time since that screenshot dropped at O’Malley’s, I wasn’t an honors student under investigation. Knox wasn’t a captain fighting for his sweater. We were just college kids having lunch in a messy kitchen.

When the food was cleared, Knox led me into the living room, pulling me down onto the deep leather sectional by the stone fireplace.

Priya set up her laptop at the dining table with Jake to review the campus student conduct codes.

I curled my legs beneath me, leaning back against Knox’s chest as he wrapped an arm securely around my waist.

"You look tired, Bennett," Knox murmured, resting his chin lightly on my head.

"I am," I admitted softly, sinking into his warmth. "Everything moved so fast today."

"Close your eyes for an hour," he urged gently. "You’re safe here. Pierce can wait until Monday."

A contented sigh escaped my lips.

For a brief, shining moment, I actually believed we had carved out a pocket of peace. Then, the sharp ping of a notification shattered the quiet.

Across the room, Jake pulled his phone from his pocket, his casual expression instantly freezing.

"Jake?" Knox called out, his tone sharpening. "What is it?"

Jake stood up from the armchair, his knuckles pale around his phone as he walked over. "Chloe just posted," Jake said grimly.

"What do you mean, she posted?" I asked, sitting upright.

Jake turned the screen toward us.

It was a screenshot from an Instagram story, posted minutes ago to a private campus account with thousands of followers.

A blurry photo showed Knox, Priya, and me standing in the narrow hallway of Kendall Hall outside Room 214.

Above it, bold white text read:

Just got cornered and aggressively intimidated outside my own dorm room door by Briar’s hockey captain and his ’tutor’ girlfriend trying to bully me into silence over their contract scandal. Is this how athletics treats female students who speak the truth?

#HoldThemAccountable #BriarHockey

A cold spike of disbelief punched through my gut.

"Intimidated her?" I gasped, blood rushing to my ears.

"She’s the one who took the photos!" I snapped. "She screamed at us through the door!"

Knox’s jaw tightened, his gray eyes hardening. "She’s playing the victim. She knows she slipped up about the nightstand, so she’s trying to make this about athlete intimidation before we report her."

"If this reaches Student Affairs or Dean Hastings," Jake warned quietly, "an intimidation complaint against an athlete triggers an immediate campus ban pending investigation."

"It’s a textbook smear," Priya stated, marching over from the dining table with her jaw set. "She knows she’s legally cornered, so she’s weaponizing public sympathy."

Suffocating dread filled the room. Backed into a corner, Chloe was ready to burn everything down to save herself.

Before Knox could stand, my phone buzzed against the cushion beside my hip. It was a direct message on Instagram from an unknown handle: @madi_carter.

My breath caught in my throat as I read the preview line:

Hey Nora. It’s Madison, Chloe’s roommate.

I tapped the notification, opening the full text on the screen for Knox and Jake to see.

I just saw Chloe’s story playing the helpless victim. Don’t stress.

I was sitting on my bed two feet from the door when she opened it, and I heard her scream at you about Knox’s bedroom nightstand.

Three girls from down the hall were standing by the lounge and heard it too.

She’s full of shit, Nora. I’m sick of her drama and her lies.

If she tries to take this to Housing or Compliance to get you guys in trouble, I’ll testify to exactly what she said.

Call me. We need to talk.

Knox and I stared at the screen as the room went quiet.