Page 14 of On Ice

“Are you for real?” I ask disbelievingly, studying his pinched face. He’s like a butterfly trying to arm wrestle a lion. Does he not understand how insignificant he is in the scheme of things? Does this dumbass actually think he has power? He doesn’t, but I need to get control of him fast. Ultimately, he won’t win against me no matter how hard he fights, but he sure as fuck could cause me a lot of trouble.

“I’m not letting you use my team for anything illegal.” His body is trembling, showing he’s scared, but I have to admire he’s not backing down. It irritates the shit out of me, but I have to respect he has guts.

“I don’t need you to be a part of this,” I say coldly. “If you don’t play ball, you’re expendable.”

His breathing quickens. “Meaning what? You’ll kill me or something?”

I lift one shoulder. “I’d rather not have to resort to violence. I’d rather you just play your part like a good boy and we can all get very rich.”

“I make plenty of money already.”

I glance around the tiny kitchen. “Wouldn’t know that from this place. I know you make above the league’s minimum salary. Why do you live in a shithole like this?”

His face flushes and he avoids my gaze. “It’s none of your business why I live here. Nothing I do is your business.”

I’m not sure why he’s being cagey about where all his money goes, but it’s neither here nor there in the scheme of things. “That’s where you’re wrong. I’ll be keeping a close eye on you for a while, Evan. At least until I know I can trust you to do what I need you to do.” I sip my coffee, noticing how the pulse races at the base of his throat. I remember kissing that little sweet spot last night. I remember everything about last night. I wish I didn’t, but I do.

He meets my gaze, his frustration radiating off of him. He’s staring at me like he wants to rip open my brain and read my thoughts. “Why can’t you pick some other team? Leave us alone. I’m sure there are plenty of unscrupulous team captains who’d be fine with your little plan. I’m not one of them.”

“It’s too late. I already bought this team,” I respond in a bored tone. “You’ll feel a lot better about things once you start getting compensated for your cooperation.”

Anger sparks in his eyes. “I don’t want your money. I care more about my honor than I do getting rich.”

“Honor.” I say the word like it disgusts me. “What does that even mean ‘you care more about your honor’?”

He licks his lips. “It means I’m not willing to sell my soul for a profit. It means I care about my team more than I care aboutmoney.”

“Well, that’s just pathetic.” I sneer. “I bet if I made this offer to Noah or Deck they’d be on board.”

“You’re wrong.” His voice wobbles.

“I don’t think I am,” I murmur.

“We’re not like you,” he says gruffly. “We believe in something other than ourselves.”

Irritation spikes through me. “You know nothing about me. Who the fuck are you to judge me?”

“I know you’re a lowlife crook,” he growls, crossing his arms across his bare chest. “I can’t believe I thought you were a good guy. I can’tbelieveI thought you might be good for the team.”

“I will be good for the team. I’m just what you need.”

He narrows his eyes. “Bullshit. You aren’t going to help us. You want to make us into a joke.”

“Not at all.”

He hesitates and then says coldly, “You want us to throw games, right? Isn’t that how this works? Isn’t that how you make your money off of us?”

“I don’t want you to throw all the games. Just some strategic ones.” I smirk, pushing my hands into my pockets. “You have to win too, to keep people guessing.”

His mouth thins. “I’m not a crook like you, Luca. I won’t do it. I don’t care if you kill me, I won’t play along with you. I won’t let you destroy my team.”

The pure disdain in his words drips over me, and my face warms. I have no idea why his bitter words bother me. It’s not like I haven’t been called worse names by a lot of enraged people. When you threaten people into doing stuff they don’t want to do, or you take things from them they don’t want to give up, people tend to let a lot of angry crap fly. Why would I care what Evan says?

To give myself time to calm down, I sip my coffee, holding his furious glare. The liquid has gone cold while we’ve been arguing, and it tastes disgusting. I choke it down, trying not to show how revolting it tastes. I set my cup down, making sure there isn’t even the slightest tremor in my hand. He needs to fear me. He can never know his words have gotten under my skin. That’s unacceptable.

“The beauty of buying a team like the Ice Hawks is that it allows me to do a lot of different stuff,” I say, as if he hasn’t just told me to go to hell. “There’s inside information rackets, money laundering, high-stakes betting events. The list goes on and on.”

He narrows his eyes. “I told you, we’re not going to be a part of your plan.”

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