Chapter 18
VINCENT
Long story short: I didn’t die.
I did, however, want to die by the time Coach was done reaming us out.
“I can’t believe you’ve been keeping this a secret from me for a month.” He paced the living room, his body trembling with unsuppressed anger. “Do you know how bad this looks? The fact that my captain is shacking up with my daughter? Jesus!”
He scrubbed a hand over his face. A vein throbbed in his forehead, and his complexion had morphed from cherry red to a concerning purple. I wondered, somewhat inappropriately, if I’d narrowly escaped starting a house fire only to kill my coach with a heart attack minutes later.
Brooklyn and I had hastily explained the situation, reassuring him that we weren’t romantically involved and that I was paying rent like a normal tenant, but he wasn’t having it. The more we talked, the deeper his scowl got.
Brooklyn sat on the sofa while I stood by the front door, my shirt back on and my muscles rigid with tension. I’d taken my top off because it’d reeked of smoke, but the universe clearly had it out for me. Coach’s timing couldn’t have been worse.
“This is why we didn’t tell you.” Brooklyn sounded frustrated. “We knew you’d freak out.”
“With good fucking reason!” Coach roared. “This is a complete violation of our no-fraternization policy, not to mention it’s…it’s just wrong!”
Technically, we hadn’t violated Blackcastle’s no-fraternization policy because we weren’t romantically or sexually involved. The bet fell into a grayer area, but Coach didn’t know about it and neither of us was stupid enough to tell him.
Is it because of the bet?
Not everything is about the bet, Brooklyn.
I pressed my lips together. If the kitchen situation had played out a little differently before the fire, Coach’s concerns might’ve had merit.
I’d come so close to giving in. When I’d walked in and saw her sitting there, it was like taking a sucker punch to the gut—completely unexpected and almost brutal in the way she took my breath away.
I hadn’t expected the bet to go this far. I’d imagined something fun and light, an entertaining way to flex my seduction skills while competing with Brooklyn. If it ended in me satiating my curiosity about how she tasted, then that was even better.
A low-stakes bet. That was it.
It wasn’t supposed to make me yearn for her this much.
And it damn well wasn’t supposed to hurt.
I just wanted to make sure you weren’t trying to emotionally manipulate me into kissing you.
My chest pinched.
“The policy doesn’t forbid us from being flatmates.” Brooklyn’s argument brought me back to the living room. “But of course the club is what you’re worried about.”
Like me, she’d started out trying to appease her dad, but his refusal to see reason had worn her down, and her tone had taken on a defiant, almost combative edge.
Coach stopped pacing long enough to glare at her. “What is that supposed to mean?”
“It means the only thing that matters to you is football. You find out your daughter is living with one of your players, and your first thought is official policy.” Brooklyn’s knuckles whitened around the edge of the sofa.
“We’re not breaking any club rules, and a normal father would be concerned about other things. ”
I flinched on Coach’s behalf.
I didn’t know much about their relationship.
He’d been happy when she joined Blackcastle, and she’d never said a bad word about him.
However, it hadn’t escaped my notice that they didn’t interact much outside of Blackcastle.
This was certainly the first time I’d seen him at the flat since I moved in.
Coach’s breath gusted out in shock. His shoulders sank as some of the indignation seeped out from his body, and his mouth opened and closed like he couldn’t decide which response to land on.
Brooklyn’s voice softened. “I’m sorry we lied to you, but this is a temporary situation. We’re not going to live together forever.”
Her dad’s glare had lost some of its edge, but his voice remained tight. “How temporary?”
“I’ll be out by the new year,” I said.
Brooklyn’s eyes flitted toward me, her surprise evident.
I’d pulled the time frame out of my ass, but I’d wanted to step in before their argument spiraled again.
I’d find a way to make a hotel work. I couldn’t let their relationship deteriorate further because of me.
Coach examined me. It was the first time he’d focused on me since he arrived, and I felt like an insect under a microscope.
“Have the police caught your intruder?” His voice flattened with eerie calm.
“No.”
“Do they have any leads?”
I winced. “No.”
“Then how do you know you’ll be out of here by the new year if your alleged reason for moving in is still a threat?”
I’d walked right into that one.
“I guess I don’t. But given the current circumstances, sir, I’m happy to relocate to a hotel until the threat has been neutralized.” Apparently, when I was nervous, I talked like a bad side character from a Nate Reynolds movie.
The thought of moving home still sent my nervous system into overload. I’d considered renting another place in the city, but there were too many unpredictable variables. I didn’t want to rent a random house in a random neighborhood from a random person.
At least hotels had security, and I could blend into the crowd a little more.
“You’re not moving into a hotel,” Brooklyn interjected.
“It didn’t work out the first time for a reason.
It’s so much more public, and people can find out where you’re staying as easily as they can search up your address online.
You’re already settled in here, and you pay rent, which is very helpful, by the way.
There’s no reason for you to uproot yourself. ”
She laid out her reasoning with impeccable precision. I couldn’t tell if she actually wanted me to stay or if she was trying to spite her father. Either way, my pulse spiked more than it should.
Coach’s scowl returned. “I can think of at least one good reason.”
“Which is?”
“The inappropriateness of all this.” He gestured around the flat.
The smoke was gone, but its acrid stench lingered.
“Bloody hell, Brooklyn, I’m trying to look out for you.
It doesn’t matter if this is a platonic setup.
If people at work find out you’re living with DuBois, they’ll never take you seriously again.
It’s already hard enough when—” He stopped short.
“When what?” Brooklyn’s cheeks flushed. “When I’m the only woman on the nutrition staff, and people already look at me funny because I’m your daughter?”
“That’s not what I said.”
“That’s what you meant.” She set her jaw. “If people want to talk, let them talk. And while I understand why you’re uncomfortable with the situation, Vincent and I are adults. You can’t tell us what we can or can’t do outside of work.”
“You’re my daughter. I can absolutely weigh in on your life inside and outside of work.”
Brooklyn’s eyes flashed, and I instinctively braced myself for indirect impact.
“Really? That’s hilarious, considering you haven’t been there for most of my life.
I’ve lived here for over a year, and we never connect unless I take the initiative to plan something.
When we do talk, it’s almost always about football.
You have no idea what’s going on with me, and now you’re trying to steamroll over me without even attempting to see things from my perspective.
Respectfully, Dad, I get that you have an image and a reputation to maintain.
But don’t pretend you’re a concerned father who cares about his daughter’s personal well-being when your past behavior has indicated otherwise. ”
Her words landed with the force of an atomic bomb. Silence mushroomed, the heft and weight of it making my skin prickle.
Brooklyn angled her chin up, her mouth tight but her eyes suspiciously glossy. The sight cleaved through me.
I desperately wanted to cross the room and pull her into my arms, but this was a family problem. I was the one who’d inadvertently triggered the explosion, and comforting Brooklyn right now would only make things worse.
So I stood there, fingers digging into my palms and chest aching, while Brooklyn and her father stared each other down.
Coach’s nostrils flared. “We’ll discuss this later when we don’t have company.
” His voice was tightly controlled. He didn’t look at me, but I felt his searing condemnation from ten feet away.
“Whatever your opinion about my parenting skills, you have to admit I’m right.
This will get out eventually. If you want a serious future at Blackcastle, Vincent has to move out. Immediately.”
“You don’t have to worry about that because I’m not accepting the job offer.”
My gaze flew to her face. What the fuck? She’d been hesitant, but she’d never indicated she would actually leave Blackcastle.
A second vein pulsed in Coach’s forehead as his carefully calibrated calm cracked in half. “You’re accepting the offer.”
“No, I’m not.”
“Why the hell not?” His voice slowly rose to the decibel of a shout.
“Because I don’t want to work in an office where I’m constantly living in your shadow. It doesn’t matter if Vincent stays or leaves. People will always find a reason to doubt me. If I want to be taken seriously, I have to leave the club.” Brooklyn sat straight and proud, her expression resolute.
My stomach knotted. I’d grown so used to seeing her at work that I couldn’t fathom the idea of her absence.
Blackcastle without Brooklyn.
I felt a little sick.
Coach gritted his teeth. “Where exactly are you going to work if not at the club?” he demanded.
“I’ll figure it out.”
“In other words, you don’t have another offer lined up, but you’re turning down a sure thing.”
“Yes.”
“Goddammit, Brooke. If you’re doing this to spite me—”
“I’m not.” The fight bled out of her, and she suddenly looked exhausted.
“Not everything is about you, and you’ve been ‘hands-off’ my entire internship.
You can’t just swoop in at the last minute to tell me I’m making the wrong decision.
I’m declining the offer, whether you like it or not. I’ll make it official tomorrow.”
“You—I—” Coach spluttered. He was breathing so hard I almost called 999 in anticipation of a heart attack.
I cleared my throat. “With all due respect, sir, I think we should all take a—”
“Shut it,” he growled. “I’ll deal with you later.”
Fuck me. That didn’t sound good.
But what the hell, I was in deep shit anyway.
I might as well say my piece. “You’re upset, Brooklyn’s upset.
Emotions are running high for understandable reasons, but I think we should all take a step back before we say anything else we regret.
” They glared at me with matching stony expressions.
I wisely refrained from mentioning how alike they looked at that moment.
“I’ll move to a hotel and make it work. We’ll keep this a secret, and no one will ever find out.
” Besides all the people who already know.
“After that, we can move on. This isn’t something to have a falling out over. ”
Minutes ticked by in excruciating silence. Neither of them acknowledged my suggestions, but eventually, their boiling hostility was reduced to a mere simmer.
“Why did you come by in the first place?” Brooklyn asked her dad. She appeared to be making a concerted effort to keep her voice even.
“I wanted to talk about why you haven’t accepted the Blackcastle offer yet.” Coach glanced at me, his mouth twisting. I suppressed another wince. My advice to him had come back to bite me in the ass in the worst way. “I guess I have my answer.”
She didn’t respond.
“I have to head to the clubhouse soon. We’ll continue this discussion another time,” Coach said abruptly. “DuBois, pack your essentials and meet me outside in ten. You can get the rest of your stuff later.”
Brooklyn shot up straight again. A panicked expression spread across her face.
I stared at him, my gut twisting with foreboding. “Uh, where are we going, sir?”
“My house.” His smile lacked any semblance of humor. “You’re moving in with me.”