Chapter 16
sixteen
brody
The words hang in the air between us.
“What?” Her voice is small. Broken.
“You have to break it off. Now.” I step back—creating distance that feels like miles.
Chloe blinks at me, eyes watery and brimming. “No.”
“Chloe—”
“You just told me you love me.” Her voice cracks, and I die a little inside. “I’m not going to break up with you just because some contract says I’m supposed to.”
She walks away from me, back toward the reception hall doors.
“Chloe, wait—”
But she’s already gone, disappearing through the doors into the reception.
I stand there for a moment, alone in the hallway. The ghost of our kiss still lingering in the air. The weight of what I’m about to do crushing my chest.
Then I follow her.
The reception is in full swing when I walk back in. Music playing, guests laughing, fairy lights overhead making everything look soft and romantic. Maya and Derek’s perfect wedding, exactly as planned.
Chloe is across the room, talking to a waiter near the dessert table. She’s gesturing to the cake station, pointing at something, her coordinator persona firmly in place.
But I can see the tension in her shoulders. The way she’s not quite looking at anyone. The slight tremor in her hands.
I watch as she tells the waiter something about the chocolate fountain running low. He nods, hurries away. She turns to adjust a napkin display that doesn’t need adjusting.
Avoiding me.
I head back to my table and sit down. It feels like the penalty box.
Conrad looks at me. Then at Chloe across the room. Then back at me.
“You okay?” he asks quietly.
“Great,” I lie.
The DJ’s voice cuts through the noise. “Ladies and gentlemen, the dance floor is now open! Let’s celebrate Derek and Maya!”
The music starts, kicking off the dance floor with a classic. “Celebration” by Kool & the Gang.
And I wait. Chloe keeps herself busy, focuses on coordination tasks, grabbing Derek and Maya more drinks, keeping tabs on the dessert station. She even stops at a random table to grab empty plates before handing them off to one of the catering staff. Anything to avoid the inevitable.
Because that’s what this is. Inevitable.
I won’t let her lose everything.
A handful of songs play out while I’m stuck on the sideline. But then the lights change. The strobing flashes of green and pink and yellow fade out, washing over the dance floor with blue.
“It’s time to slow things down a little,” the DJ says. “Let’s get all our sweethearts out there for this one.”
The music starts up again, the unmistakable voice of Elvis crooning through the hall.
“Wise men say, only fools rush in…”
My eyes catch Chloe’s across the room. This is it. I step out of the box and make my way over to her.
“Chloe.”
She doesn’t look at me. “I’m busy.”
I lean in close enough that only she can hear. “Dance with me.”
“No.”
I reach for her, my fingers brushing her waist, begging her to look at me. To understand. “Please.”
She finally looks at me. Her eyes are red-rimmed, mascara smudged. Beautiful and breaking.
“Come dance.” It’s practically a whisper.
“Brody—”
But I’m already pulling her toward the dance floor. I feel her pulse jumping under my thumb. She could resist. Could pull away. Could make a scene right here.
But she doesn’t.
She follows me to the dance floor.
We reach the center, and I pull her into my arms. Chloe melts into me, hiding her head in my chest.
“You need to do this,” I say quietly, my mouth near her ear.
“Stop.” Her voice is tight. “Just stop.”
“Chloe—”
“Why?” She pulls back to look at me. “Why are you pushing this so hard? If you love me like you said you do, why do you want to break up so badly?”
Because I love you. Because I’m trying to protect you. Because the NHL will sue you into oblivion if we don’t, and I won’t let that happen to you.
But I can’t tell her that.
“It’s complicated.”
“Complicated.” She laughs, but there’s no humor in it. “That’s your answer?”
“You know why—” I lower my voice, glancing at the nearby couples.
“Forget about that!” Her voice rises before she catches herself. “I don’t care about any of that. I care about you. About us. Why can’t that be enough?”
“It’s not that simple—”
“Then explain it to me!” Tears are streaming down her face now. “Make me understand why you’re doing this. Why you’re so desperate to end this.”
I can see her mind working. See the moment something clicks.
“It’s your contract, isn’t it?” Her voice gets quiet. Careful. “Your NHL contract. That’s what this is about. You don’t want to lose your renewal.”
“What? No—” I reach for her.
“Hey.” Maya is there, stepping between us, her voice low over the music. “Is everything okay?”
Of all the terrible timing. “We’re fine,” I say.
But Chloe is crying, real tears now. There’s nothing fake about the way her heart is breaking. And I hate myself for it. How did this get so turned around?
Maya looks at Chloe, at me, then back. “Chloe? Are you okay?”
Chloe’s lips press tight, her gaze falling to the floor, hiding her tears.
Derek steps forward, positions himself slightly in front of Maya. Protective. His jaw is tight. “I knew it was a game.”
Something in me snaps. “It wasn’t a game!”
“Then what is it?” Derek’s voice is hard. Cold.
I turn back to Chloe. She’s standing there crying, mascara running, looking at me like I’m destroying her.
I am destroying her.
“Please—” The word comes out broken.
She takes a shaky breath. Wipes her eyes. “Fine.”
The whole ballroom is watching now, the song long over, silence pushing in on us from every side. I brace myself for the hit.
And then she says the words that shatter me completely. “You’re just like your father.”
The world stops.
“He chases the rush. The winning streak. Gambling everything for the next big score. And you”—her voice breaks—“you’re doing the same thing. Chasing your career, your contract, your success. And anyone who gets in the way—”
“That’s not—”
“You’ll hurt them.” Tears are falling freely now. “You’re a charmer, Brody. Just like him. Make people fall in love with you and then leave them picking up the pieces.”
I can’t breathe. Can’t move. Can’t process.
My father. The man whose mistakes I’ve spent my entire life trying to outrun. The gambling addict who ruined everything he touched.
I step back, the distance between us suddenly insurmountable.
My face must show something—betrayal, pain, devastation—because Chloe immediately looks horrified. Her hand flies to her mouth.
“Brody, I didn’t—”
But she did. She said it. And she meant it.
I find my voice. It comes out quiet. Wrecked. “Yeah. You’re right.”
I turn and walk away.
I’m already out the doors when my phone buzzes.
Rick
Did you do it?
Yeah. I did it.
I destroyed the woman I love to fulfill a contract I should never have signed.