Page 98 of Cold Carnage

I walked in without waiting for an invitation, closing the door behind me with more force than necessary. Gideon looked up from his desk, eyebrows raised in mild surprise but otherwise unreadable.

"You can't fire her," I said, my voice rougher than I intended.

He gave me a long look, his eyes searching mine. The silence between us stretched, thick and heavy.

"Isn't that what you wanted this whole time?" he finally asked. "Her fired?"

I looked away, unable to meet his gaze. "It's complicated."

He scoffed, leaning back in his chair. "No shit." He studied me for a moment longer. "Explain."

I stayed silent, my thoughts a tangled mess.

"How am I to understand?—"

"Idon't understand," I admitted, cutting him off. "I…"

"You… love her?" Gideon asked, his voice softening. "I've already spoken to her about it. She's insistent she'll leave if it means you stay on. Very self-sacrificing, but…"

"But?" I prompted, my heart pounding in my chest.

He locked eyes with me, his expression serious. "She cares very deeply for you," he said slowly. "I'm in no position to give advice?—"

"So don't," I interrupted.

"But if I were," he continued, ignoring my interjection, "I'd tell you that people like Paige Adams don't come around very often, if at all."

I swallowed hard, the weight of his words pressing down on me. "Would there be a way to let her stay and for me to…" My voice trailed off, unable to finish the sentence.

"I suppose we'll see," he said with a sigh.

Before he could say anything more, my phone rang. I glanced at the screen and saw my father's name flashing across it. A freshwave of anger surged through me, but I ignored the call, shoving the phone back into my pocket.

He raised an eyebrow but didn't comment on it. Instead, he leaned forward, resting his elbows on his desk. "Ryker," he began carefully, "you need to figure out what you want and who you want to be in all this."

His words hit harder than any punch I'd taken on the ice. I nodded slowly, feeling the enormity of the situation settling over me like a heavy blanket.

"This isn't just about you or her," he said. "It's about the team too, whether you want to admit it or not."

As I turned to leave his office, my mind raced with thoughts of Paige and the mess we were in. I needed to talk to her.

"Where is she?" I asked when I reached the door, my voice barely masking the urgency I felt.

"Speaking to Jared Crowder," Gideon replied, leaning back in his chair with a nonchalance that grated on my nerves.

I turned sharply, confusion and frustration boiling over. "What? Why?—?"

"If she can sign him," he interrupted, his tone calm but firm, "I'm going to let her keep her job."

I waited for more, for any additional information that would make sense of this chaotic mess. But Gideon stayed silent, his eyes fixed on mine.

"Don't look at me," he finally said, shrugging. "You need to sort out your dirty laundry with her."

Before I could respond, my phone buzzed again. I pulled it out and saw Derek's name flashing on the screen. I answered it quickly, stepping out of Gideon's office.

"Yo, man, I did some digging?—"

"Just tell me," I cut him off, impatience lacing my words as I walked down the hallway.

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