Page 31 of Fractured Faceoff

“Why would you do that?” Dominic Soric asked, unlacing his skates. “You don't even like her.”

“She belongs to me,” Kellan said. “Arranged marriage or no, she's still mine. I highly fucking doubt she'd want to see me with another girl. She'd probably lose her shit.”

Dominic scoffed. “You think?”

Kellan smirked, pulling off a shinguard. “I know. My girl's fucking jealous.”

“Your girl?” Weston Cole asked.

I clenched my teeth. Things hadn't gotten better between us; we just avoided each other now.

“Fuck yeah, she's mygirl,” Kellan replied.

“I thought she hated you,” Asher pointed out from across the room.

“Hate, love…” Kellan shrugged. “There's a thin line.”

“Especially when you force her parents to give you her in exchange for their debt,” Weston said, not even bothering to hide his amusement.

“Don't make deals with the devil,” Kellan retorted, his grin widening. "Especially ones you can't pay."

The guys chuckled, but my mind raced. There was something in what Kellan said—something that gave me an idea. If he could manipulate people to get what he wanted, why couldn't I? Ava had made her choice, but maybe she didn’t realize the consequences yet.

“Crowder, you coming out tonight?” Asher’s voice broke through my thoughts.

I looked up, meeting his eyes. “Yeah, sure,” I muttered, not really paying attention.

The locker room buzzed with the usual post-practice chatter, but my mind was elsewhere. If Kellan could play puppet master and get what he wanted through manipulation and brute force, then maybe it was time I stopped playing nice.

Chapter 9

Isla

Iarrived at The Snake Pit early that morning, the September cold biting through my coat as I trudged through the parking lot. Inside, the warmth welcomed me, but it did little to thaw the tension coiling in my gut. I headed straight to my office, settling in and trying to push away the memory of last night’s disaster of a dinner.

Jared had almost spilled everything. The way he looked at Ava, the way his voice shook with frustration—it was a miracle Kash hadn't caught on. Part of me wished he had let it slip. Maybe then Ava would finally see what she was doing, how she was hurting Jared and Kash. But another part of me knew that wasn't fair. Wishing for my sister’s downfall wasn’t exactly winning me any sister-of-the-year awards.

I glanced at the clock, tapping my pen against the desk impatiently. Nikolai Volkov was due any minute now for his session. I should’ve been focusing on how to help him improve his game, but my mind kept wandering back to Jared and Ava.

Ava had always had this knack for getting under people’s skin, including mine. It wasn’t just her treatment of Jared that bothered me; it was her casual indifference to everything that wasn’t about her. Jared deserved better than being an afterthought in her life.

I didn’t care about Jared.

Not really.

We butted heads from the start, his Southern charm grating on my nerves more often than not.

Like I’d fall for it.

But still, something about last night gnawed at me. Even now, I could see the flash of pain in his eyes. A pain I recognized.

What was going on with me?

My thoughts kept spiraling back to Jared and Ava, and the tangled mess they’d created. I needed to get a grip. Nikolai’s session was in a few minutes, and I had to be on my game. But the nagging worry about Jared wouldn’t let go.

The door creaked open, and I looked up, expecting Nikolai’s familiar figure. Instead, Jared stood there, his hair damp from practice, a towel slung over his shoulder. He looked every bit like some sort of cowboy all rough edges and dangerous charm.

“We need to talk,” he said, shutting the door behind him with a firm click.

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