Page 166 of Offside Devil

One leaked photo.

One woman who lowers all of my defenses and lies straight to my face.

“I almost forgot he was here,” Carson protests innocently. “He’s been nothing but a waste of space today, anyway.”

Without warning, I shove off the boards and throw myself at Carson.

He topples over, his helmet smacking off the ice. I pounce onto his chest. The air whooshes out of his lungs as I shuck my gloves off and reach for his neck.

“You fucking piece of?—”

There are hands on my shoulders, yanking me back, but I shrug them off and lunge for Carson again.

He takes swings at me, but they’re clumsy and panicked. The asshole was ready to fight, but only on his terms. He didn’t think I’d be stupid enough to fight back.

Unfortunately for him, I am that stupid.

I wedge my hand against his Adam’s apple, and he makes a satisfying choking sound… just as Jace and Davis haul me away.

“Let me go!” I roar.

“Stand down!” Jace orders.

I elbow-check him and wrench one arm free, but Davis skates around in front of me and shoves me back. “You don’t wanna do this, buddy.”

Wrong. I’m fucking dying to do this.

I’m about to plow through him, too, when a string of angry Russian curses slices through the chaos.

“Goddamn children!” Coach spits. “Children on a fucking playground. That’s what you all are.”

Nathan holds out a hand to help Carson off the ice, but Carson swats him away and crawls to his feet. His face is red and his eyes are narrowed on me.

“Whitaker! Deluth!” Coach points to the locker rooms. “Fuck off for the day. Don’t come back until you know how to solve your problems like adults.”

I want to argue, but I’m no good here, anyway. So I snatch my gloves off the ice where I tossed them and skate for the far exit—the one furthest from Carson.

“Z!” Jace chases me down. “What the fuck is up with you, man?”

“Nothing.”

“Yeah,” he snorts. “Looked like ‘nothing’ while you were trying to murder Carson in front of the entire team.”

“He plowed into me!”

“Because he’s an asshole who’s trying to get a rise out of you,” Jace says evenly. “If you were thinking straight, you would’ve walked away. So I want to know why you aren’t thinking straight.”

There’s no point in telling him. There’s nothing Jace can say that will clear this up.

The only person who can answer the questions swirling around in my head is Mira… and right now, I don’t think I’d trust a single word out of her mouth.

“Whatever it is,” Jace says finally, “figure it out and come back tomorrow ready to make nice with Carson.”

“Not going to happen,” I grit out.

He throws up his hands. “Fine. Then come back ready to not kill him. How’s that?”

It’s still a high bar, but I nod and shove through the double doors.

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