Total pages in book: 145
Estimated words: 141425 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 707(@200wpm)___ 566(@250wpm)___ 471(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 141425 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 707(@200wpm)___ 566(@250wpm)___ 471(@300wpm)
“What’s that, man?” Chad asks, all convivial as he plays leader of the pack.
I want to march right up to him and wring his neck. But there’s a time for words and a time for deeds. This is a time for words.
I step closer, raise my forefinger. “You are the biggest fool I’ve ever met. You had the most incredible, wonderful, amazing woman ever, and by some twist of luck or fate, she agreed to marry your lying, cheating ass. And then you had the gall to treat her like she was an accessory. A means to an end. A path to a fucking bonus. You don’t deserve VIP seats. You don’t deserve nice things ever. And she always deserved better than you. I’m so damn glad she figured that out before she wasted another second on you.”
“Dude, burn!” one of the other guys says, the one drenched in Ocean Forest Mist Dragon Sword Slayer spray.
What a great friend.
Chad just sputters, his eyes bugging out. “Who are you to talk to me like that?”
I take one step closer and I tower over him. “I’m the guy who knows how to treat a woman.”
“Well, you certainly don’t know how to treat a VIP or my daughter.” That’s her father, his voice strong, menacing as he cuts in.
But I’m ready for him. I’ve always been ready for assholes like him. I turn away from Chad Huntington, facing David Snow—the real enemy. Chad is just a figurehead. David Snow is the king on the throne of awful parenting.
No idea if Sabrina’s here or not to witness her fantasy. But it’s now or never. “You don’t get to act like you were some supportive father. You ripped your daughter apart every chance you had, including on her wedding day. And including the other day,” I say, stalking even closer so he can feel threatened, like he made his daughter feel every damn day growing up. “Do not ever come to our house again,” I say, going out on a limb with the ours because I want my home to be hers as well. “Do not ever set foot on our property. And do not ever act like you have a single say in her life. You made her feel like she wasn’t good enough,” I say, then take a breath, gearing up to give him the full piece of my mind.
But the prick cuts in, hissing: “Who do you think you are to talk to me that way? I paid good money for these seats and to treat our clients. You can’t get away with this.”
“But I can, and I will. And I will cover the cost of your seats and donate it to charity. You don’t scare me. I know men like you. I was raised by a man like you. And you lost out on an amazing, kind, caring woman as your daughter. It’s your fault. Yours. You don’t deserve to be a father. But thanks to you, if she’ll have me, I will never stop making sure Sabrina Snow knows how much she is worth—and that’s everything.”
I take a breath, expecting him to try to butt in once more.
But the next voice I hear is feminine. And as strong as ice. “I believe it’s time for you to leave. And don’t ever come back.”
I spin around as Sabrina delivers the send-off message, like she’s heave-ho-ing this pair of assholes and their moron henchmen off the plank.
And maybe I wasn’t making it up earlier about the team escorts, since Rowan, and Ford, and Miles and Max, and Wesley and Asher are all right behind me, standing guard, just in case.
“We’ll see them out,” Miles says in that no-nonsense captain voice of his.
Like a hockey mafia, my teammates—who are pretty much family one way or another—escort them to the exit, while Leighton disappears down the hall, giving us space.
I’m alone with Sabrina in the tunnel before the game. Her lips are parted. Her eyes are shining. She’s…speechless, and I fucking love it.
“Did you hear everything?” I ask, my heart beating so fast.
“Every word,” she says, like she’s drunk on them.
Good. I think I am too. “I meant it all,” I say, including the three words I should have said a while ago, but no time like the present.
But the moment shatters before it starts when Everly races down the hall, beelining for me, her shoes clicking loudly. “Did you just kick out our VIPs?”
I can see my player just caused a PR disaster in her big brown eyes.
I shrug. “I did, but one of them was a cheating asshole and the other was king of the assholes. So I don’t feel bad.”
“He was standing up for me,” Sabrina says, like she’s thrilled to back me up. Like we’re a team. “They were honestly pretty awful, and he did the right thing by getting rid of them.”