“It concerns my life,” I replied. “Dean stays.”
A colder edge entered his expression then, subtle but unmistakable. “You understand the amount of attention this has generated.”
“Yes.”
“And you understand what that attention may cost.”
I held his gaze. “I understand exactly what you’re implying.”
The hallway went very quiet after that.
Kovac folded his hands in front of him, studying me with the careful patience of someone accustomed to waiting people out. “Your conduct reflects directly on Velkarya.”
I nodded. “Then your response will reflect on Velkarya too.”
I saw the shift in his expression, the uncertainty.
“There will be formal discussions before we leave for home,” he said after a moment. “The federation expects your full cooperation.”
“I’ll cooperate with legal representation present.”
Dean turned toward me, and Mila’s lips twitched before she buried it.
Kovac’s composure slipped a little. “That won’t be necessary.”
I arched my eyebrows. “It will if statements are being requested regarding my career or future.”
Another silence followed, longer this time.
Farther down the corridor, a group of athletes passed by, laughing loudly, and the sound echoed through the hallway before fadingagain, a reminder that the rest of the world continued moving while my entire life rearranged itself inside this doorway.
Kovac glanced toward Dean again, then back to me. “We’ll continue this discussion another time,” he said, enunciating carefully. “Get some rest tonight, Luka. I strongly advise you to think clearly before making emotional decisions.”
The words almost made me laugh.
Does he really believe tonight happened on an impulse?Years of silence and fear and exhaustion had led directly to that podium.
I set my jaw. “I’ve done enough thinking.”
Uncertainty flickered once more across his face, there for only a moment before vanishing beneath a layer of professionalism once more. The officials stepped back, Mila shut the door behind them, and the lock clicked into place.
The second I heard them disappear down the corridor, my legs gave out beneath me, and Dean caught me, one arm braced hard across my back while adrenaline drained from my body, leaving my hands shaking against the front of his jacket.
“You okay?” he murmured.
A breathless laugh escaped me before I could stop it. “You keep asking the same question.”
“That’s because I need to hear the answer.”
I shuddered out a breath. “I just told them no.”
Mila let out a low whistle from across the room. “You absolutely did.”
I held onto Dean and closed my eyes while exhaustion crashed over me in waves. For years I’d imagined this moment ending with shouting, ultimatums…disaster.
The hallway was empty.
Kovac had walked away.
