Mikhail doesn’t like that answer. “She will still choose family.”
“Iamher family.”
His teeth grind. “You lie.”
“The only person lying here is you. And if you fuck with Winter any more than you already have, I will make sure your entire season is fucked. And if you try to get in my way, I’ll break my contract and leave before you even come close to a championship. Because, inevitably, that’s what you want more than a healthy relationship with your daughter.”
He stares at me. “You would break your legally binding contract for her?”
Winter. Not Emaly. “I would.”
His jaw moves back and forth, the vein in his forehead pulsing. “You disgust me.”
“The feeling is mutual,” I inform him bitterly.
A throat clears beside me. “Everything okay?” Clarkson asks hesitantly, looking between the team owner and me.
I’m about to say “no” when my father-in-law offers the captain of his team a smile. “Yes. We were discussing future plans and where Moskins sees himself on the team.”
Clarkson seems a little tense, which means he must hear the slime in his tone the same way I do.
“Come on,” my captain says quietly, tugging on my elbow. “Let’s go back. We have a few more people to see.”
I start to shake my head, but Mikhail pins me with a stare that halts me from arguing. My stomach dips when he says, “If you don’t want me to drag her into this, I suggest you go back and make your fans happy. There is very little you can do to get out of the contract you signed.”
I want to point out that there’s always a way, but I don’t. I also don’t bother saying the fans won’t be happy watching me sit on a bench, but I don’t waste my breath. Because as much as I want to shove those words down his throat, I know they won’t help.
Not when he’s threatening Winter.
He knows he has me right where he wants me, and that smile spreads on his face.
“How does it feel?” I ask him as Clarkson starts pulling me back to the meet-and-greet table.
Mikhail looks at me dubiously. “How does what feel?”
This time, I smile. But it’s empty. Void of any emotion, even hatred. “To know that you’re going to lose everything because of this? You think you’re in control, but you’re not.”
Clarkson’s grip tightens. “Let’s go,” he warns under his breath.
My father-in-law’s eyes flash with rage, but he doesn’t get a chance to respond before my captain is yanking me away.
“Care to explain what the hell that was about?” Clarkson asks once we’re back at the table, where Dawson is entertaining a group of kids with some cheesy magic trick he tried showing us at practice one day.
I finally meet my captain’s eyes. “No. Not particularly. Can we just get this whole fucking thing over so I can go?”
Clarkson studies me. “Who was he talking about?”
I swallow. “Somebody who doesn’t deserve what’s about to happen to her. All because I was dumb enough to fall in love.”
His eyes soften for a moment. “If you need to leave, I’ll cover for you.”
As much as I want to bolt out the door, I know Mikhail will stick true to his word. He will find a way to screw Winter over, and I refuse to allow it.
“After,” is all I say.
After, I’ll make this right.
I’ll find a way to fix it.
