The door swings open, and Cole steps inside, leaning against the frame. “Well, isn’t this cozy?”
The spell breaks instantly, and I step back, putting much-needed space between us.
“Jesus, Cole,” Kyle mutters, dragging a hand down his face. “Have you ever heard of knocking?”
“Didn’t think I needed to,” Cole says easily, his gaze flicking between us. “Though I’ve got to say, you two might want to work on your poker faces before the next press event. Cameras pick upeverything.”
He’s teasing, but the reminder hits too close.
“Cole,” Beau warns from the hall.
Cole lifts his hands in mock surrender. “What? I’m just saying. Apparently, I’m not the only Hendrix with a thing for Timberwolves staff.”
Kyle glares, but Cole only smirks wider, like he’s poking the bruise on purpose. “Relax, kid. I’m only kidding… mostly.”
“Right. Funny.” I force a laugh, but my heart is thundering in my ribcage. All I can think about is how quickly the story could spiral if anyone else sees what Cole does.
“You’re not helping.” Kyle turns on his brother, voice low.
“Maybe not.” Cole’s grin fades just slightly, replaced with something almost protective. “But you can’t hide this forever, either.”
“Watch me,” Kyle mutters.
His words sound like a promise that could ruin us both. Something inside me stirs, the same dangerous, fluttering hope I’ve been trying to smother since last night. It presses against my ribs, begging to be believed. It’s stupid, but part of me wants to believe he really would fight for this, even if there isn’t an us to fight for yet, but I can’t afford hope. Hope is a luxury that belongs to people who don’t have everything to lose.
So, I swallow hard, force my shoulders straight, and bury that flicker deep where no one can see it. If Kyle Hendrix really means those words, if he tries to make them true… he won’t just destroy his reputation. He’ll take me down with him.
“Coop’s waiting.” Beau clears his throat, nodding toward the hallway.
The reminder is enough to send another surge of panic through me. I can practically feel the weight of Cooper’s anger pressing down from behind the conference room door.
“You did nothing wrong.” He softens instantly, his voice gentler when he looks back at me.
“You keep saying that as if it makes it true.”
He takes a step closer, and for a heartbeat, I thinkhe’s going to reach for me. Instead, his hand drops to his side, fisting it at his thigh. “Then I’ll make it true.”
He turns before I can answer, following his brothers down the hall. The door shuts behind them.
I grip the podium, breath trembling out of me as the reality settles like ice in my bones. The footage is out there. The rumors are probably forming. The fallout is already chasing me. And for the first time, I don’t know which terrifies me more: losing my career… or losing him.
Chapter Fourteen
Kyle
The door slams behind us, rattling the frame, and for a second, it sounds like an ending. Cooper’s office has always felt too neat. Every pen lined up, every file squared away. It’s the kind of room that makes you feel like a mistake just for breathing wrong.
He doesn’t say a word at first, just stands behind his desk with his arms crossed, watching me with that look that used to mean,What were you thinking, kid,but now means,How bad is this going to get?
I can feel my pulse thudding in my ears; the adrenaline hasn’t left my system yet. It’s still tearing through me, sharp and unsettled. And underneath it is the image of Alycia in that press room. Her face when I walked back in, the fear in her eyes, the anger, and the hurt I put there. It hits harder than anything Cooper could throw at me.
Beau takes his place against the far wall, quiet and unreadable, the way he gets when things are about to go sideways. Cole spins the chair in front of the desk onceand drops into it backward, acting casual, but I can feel him waiting to see if I’m about to implode or hold the line. I stay standing because sitting feels impossible. My whole body is buzzing like there’s electricity under my skin and nowhere safe to put it.
Cooper finally exhales. It’s not a sigh, but a warning. “Do you have any idea what kind of PR nightmare you just handed me?”
I can still hear the reporter’s smug laugh and see Alycia’s face pale when I snapped.You don’t get to talk about her like that.I could sit here and say I regret doing it, or that nothing will happen again, but that’s a lie. I’d do it again in a heartbeat. But now, I sit here in my coach and big brother’s office, defiance burning alongside panic that knows she’s the one who’ll pay for my temper.
I swallow hard, forcing myself to meet his stare. “I was defending her.”
