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He could break up with Annie as her father demanded, protecting his career but losing the woman he was falling in love with. He could defy Duncan Burke, risking everything he’d worked for professionally. Or he could try to find a middle path—one that might keep both Annie and his career safe.

But first, he needed to understand more about who Annie really was.

He opened his laptop and began searching for information about the Burke family. Most articles focused on Duncan’s business empire and philanthropic work.

There were photos of him with his wife at various events, but surprisingly no mention of other children, outside of Julian, his eldest child. Of him, however, there were lots of mentions and pictures.

The man was in his early thirties, but it didn’t seem that he had settled down yet. At least not in his personal life.

According to the gossip sites, Julian had had a string of short-term relationships, and from what Cole read, he was currently dating the daughter of a famous actor and actress.

He certainly wasn’t keeping a low profile. If anything, his actions amped up his visibility. Clearly, Duncan had no concerns for his older son’s safety. Or perhaps Duncan had tried to impose his will on Julian, and this was Julian’s response.

Moving on from Julian, Cole continued to hunt through search results. It was hard to believe that there was no more information on Duncan’s other kids. Even the one site that usually had all the information on people didn’t list any children for Duncan beyond Julian.

It just reinforced the depths of Duncan’s reach. He’d essentially wiped all the information of his younger children—and the twins’ abduction, apparently—from the internet.

It was frightening to be in the crosshairs of such a powerful man.

Despite extensive searching, Cole found no discussion of Duncan Burke’s other children, nor anything about the kidnapping. It had either never been released to the public, or he had the power to have it all scrubbed.

If it had happened twenty-plus years ago, Duncan might not have been wealthy enough to make him or his family of news interest to people. He could have also kept the details of the kidnapping and Annie’s release under wraps, not wanting to give anyone any ideas for the future.

Cole sat back, running his hands through his hair in frustration. He wanted to verify Duncan’s story about the kidnapping. But there was nothing. Was the man making it up to control his daughter?

But if it was true, it would explain much about Annie—her hesitancy in public, her preference for quiet evenings at home rather than nights out, her careful way of navigating relationships.

Unfortunately, it didn’t explain why she hadn’t trusted him enough to share this part of herself.

His phone rang, startling him. It was Marcus.

“Hey man, everything okay? You disappeared after the game.”

“Yeah.” Cole closed the laptop. “Just some business stuff with management.”

“Nothing serious, I hope?”

Cole stared at the blank screen, Duncan Burke’s threats echoing in his mind. “I’m not sure yet. Listen, I’ve got to go. I’ll see you on the plane.”

After hanging up, Cole left his laptop and walked to the window, looking out at the city lights.

He was confused about how to move forward. What had seemed like a pretty straightforward relationship—even if it was long distance—had now become very, very complicated.

How was he going to sort it out without revealing his meeting with Duncan Burke? Though he wasn’t firmly decided on what he wanted for his future with his contract ending, he really didn’t want to be forced out of the sport.

Cole didn’t know what to do. If he stuck with Annie, he’d lose his career, and there was still a chance things might not work out for them.

But if he ended the relationship without a good reason, he’d hurt Annie. And himself, as well. They were long past being able to end things without inflicting heartache.

They might not have said they loved each other yet, but Cole knew that he had never felt for any other woman how he felt for Annie.

Please, God. Give me the wisdom to know how to move forward with Annie. Help me to do the right thing.

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

Annie cupped her hands around the mug of hot chocolate she’d made for herself. Snow had been falling steadily throughout the day, adding to the light layer they’d had earlier in the month.

Staring out the kitchen window, Annie took a sip. She was glad she didn’t have to go anywhere because the roads were undoubtedly a mess.

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