Chapter Seventeen
Colton - End of November
“Fuck me. Four million views,” I said under my breath as I looked at the screen of my phone.
Emma had been right; my face was now everywhere.
I’d open up any social media platform and there I was.
Shots of me and Emma together at games, out for lunch, even at the park last weekend when we’d gone to the Christmas festival together.
Now as the guys and I sat inside The Sip and Stir having a coffee before we made our way back home, people were taking pictures of us and asking for our autographs.
“She really blew up your career. You are now one of the most loved guys on the team, or at least your relationship is.” Dylan chuckled after I took a picture with a young girl who had recognized me.
“Yeah, I know I owe it all to her. Larson is finally off my back as well,” I said, taking a bite of my bagel.
“That is good. Honestly, that is the last person any of us want on our backs,” Knox muttered.
The interview with Off the Ice Insiders had gone so well, they’d spent the day with Emma and me photographing us around the house.
They sat down and asked us questions about our relationship, and they even joined us for dinner, which they also took photos of while we cooked together.
I was grateful that Emma had coached me on all the answers, because otherwise I was certain I’d have messed them up.
They’d even mentioned doing a spread in the coming months on each of the Dominators couples, which Emma thought was a fantastic idea.
When they left, Emma promised she’d send them some highlights and information from some of the previous games I’d played this year and had done so immediately after they’d left.
“You’re telling me.” I chuckled.
The table grew quiet. As I sat here in this small local cafe, I still did not know what we really were to one another.
I’d started thinking about that more than a week ago.
I’d come home late one night from a set of away games and found Emma curled up in my bed sound asleep.
She’d stopped doing the away games and only showed up for the home games like the other girls.
I’d watched her sleep for a bit and then crawled in beside her, absolutely terrified of what would happen when all of this was over and she returned to her life.
I realized shortly after that I didn’t want her to leave; I didn’t want to lose another chance at us.
“What is it, big guy? You look conflicted,” Levi questioned as he returned from the bathroom.
“Oh, well, now that things are rocking and rolling with my image again, in a positive light, I fear Emma is going to be leaving soon…”
“That doesn’t mean it has to be the end,” Clay added.
“No, it doesn’t, but before she came here, she had a life.”
“And you are worried she’ll return home, go back to that life, and forget about you,” Dylan said.
“Maybe a little. There is a large part of me that’d like her to stay.”
I swallowed hard. I was downplaying how I was feeling because the thought of her leaving was doing nothing but consuming me.
“Then ask her, man. Remember our talk about taking control?” Knox questioned.
“Yeah.”
“Look where that got you,” Dylan said, raising his eyebrows.
“Yeah, hell, I was certain I heard her all the way across the city the other night.” Lucas chuckled.
“Shut up,” I said, beginning to laugh as the other guys joined in.
I looked at my brothers as they looked at me. They were right.
“Well, now I need a plan,” I said, looking at each of them.
“Alright, boys, let’s work our magic,” Dylan said, leaning forward.
I took hold of Emma’s hand as we sat in a quiet corner of Vancouver’s newest restaurant, The Crimson Table.
Music played quietly in the background as I looked into her eyes.
Tonight was so much more than just us. We had things to celebrate because I’d heard from Larson that the charges were being dropped from that horrific night that started all of this.
“That meal was outstanding,” she whispered, running her thumb over the back of my hand.
“I’m glad. Apparently, dessert is even better,” I said, my eyebrows raising in jest.
“Colton.” She giggled, her cheeks flushing.
“What? Seriously, the chocolate mousse is supposed to be out of this world.” I winked, which caused her to laugh out loud.
Anticipation of this evening ending was almost killing me. I’d gotten word from Larson that Emma would head back at the end of next week, which had forced me to put together this plan quicker than I’d have liked.
“My gosh…you,” she said, her cheeks flushing as she picked up her wineglass.
“Seriously, just wait until I get you home, cover you in chocolate mousse, and lick it off you.”
Her cheeks flushed at the thought, and I saw her squirm in her seat a little.
“That would be so messy.”
“Yeah, but I have an island that we can work from. That way we don’t get chocolate all over the sheets.”
Again, her cheeks flooded with color.
“In all seriousness, I just want to thank you for all you have done for me. I know it was rocky to start.”
“That it was and now look at us.”
“Yeah, I wanted to talk to you about that.”
“Oh?”
She looked at me, those beautiful blue eyes dancing, a soft smile on her face as she waited. I swallowed hard; I did not know why I was having such a hard time with this.
“Emma, I know you’re going to be returning home the end of next week, or that is the plan anyway, but I’ve been giving things a lot of thought, and I really don’t want you to—”
“Emma? Is that you?”
I looked up to see a man standing there with a couple of other men. He was a good-looking guy, dressed in a well-tailored suit, and then I looked over at Emma, who stared up at him in disbelief.
“Fuck, I just messaged you earlier today asking if we could sit down and talk. I never would have thought you’d still be out here,” he said, taking her in.
“Yeah, I got the message.”
“Well, why didn’t you answer me?”
“Well, I figured it could wait until I returned home.”
“Gentlemen, would you mind leaving me for a moment?” he said, looking at the other men he was with.
They nodded and left the restaurant without another word, leaving the three of us there.
I felt like I was in the middle of a terrible movie. I sat there watching the two of them, watching as the looks passed between them. Was this Mark, the guy who’d put her through absolute hell, I wondered.
“I guess it could wait, but since we are here together right now, I just want to say that I’m sorry, and I think we should take some time to sit down and talk when you get back.”
She didn’t even look my way; she just kept her eyes locked with his.
“I don’t know, Mark.”
He shifted from one foot to the next, still staring at her. “I think you do. I think you know I’m sorry for the way things went, and honestly, I miss you more than words can say. I made a mistake, Emma.”
Emma slowly let go of my hand and dug into her purse for something, but then closed it when she couldn’t find what it was she was looking for. “Mark, right now, I think—”
I didn’t wait for her to continue; instead; I stood up and straightened to my full height, towering over him. “Mark? Is it? I think you need to leave,” I said, looking down into his face.
“Back off, buddy,” he said, giving me a shove to the chest.
Emma looked up at him, shocked and horrified he’d just pushed me. “Colton, it’s okay, I have it under control,” she said, holding her hands out to stop me.
“Oh, so this is him, is it?” Mark said, looking over at me, a sly smile on his face. “The troublemaker!” he shouted, which caused others in the restaurant to look our way.
“Mark, please stop,” Emma pleaded, glancing around at the other patrons watching us.
“Emma, please tell me that you can’t be serious. Getting involved with a guy like this, it must be fake. Isn’t it?” he questioned.
“Mark, please…” she repeated.
“Ah, yes, I figured you had to be behind the sudden shift in good behavior coming from this guy, all those pretty pictures of the two of you in the fake setting. She is good at her job, isn’t she?” Mark said, looking over at me.
Anger erupted inside of me, and I closed my hands, making a fist.
“People should have known it had to be a setup. There is no way a looser like yourself would ever get a girl like Emma in real life.”
That was it; that was the straw that broke me.
I grabbed hold of him and lifted my fist, bringing it down to his face.
The moment my fist connected with his cheek, Mark went flying into a table behind him, the entire thing crashing to the ground.
The entire restaurant silenced as Mark lay on the ground, covering his nose and mouth with his hand, and that was when I noticed a camera flash.
I looked up to see many people with their cell phones recording us, and that was when I saw Emma staring at me with a horrified look, shaking her head.
Staff came rushing over, helping Mark up off the ground, two men taking him out another door as management followed.
Two other servers appeared and began cleaning up the mess of broken dishes, while the other servers distracted the other patrons, getting them to take their seats and ignore what was going on.
I looked at her, pleading with her not to run and to give me a chance to explain.
“What the hell are you doing?” she cried, looking at me. “All our hard work, undone in minutes.” She whispered.
I could see the disappointment in her eyes as she looked up at me, and it was then I realized I’d let her down and scared her so badly I doubted there would be any way to earn her trust again.
“Colton, I was going to tell him to leave, and you just got up and went—”
“Emma, I’m sorry. Give me a minute to explain,” I pleaded.
Tears flooded her eyes as she stared at me. “I can’t do this with you,” she sobbed.
“What do you mean?” I questioned, my stomach knotting in fear.
“This, I can’t do us anymore. I’m…I’ve got to go.”
She didn’t wait. She didn’t say another word. She quietly took her things and left the restaurant.
A Week Later
“She’s gone,” I muttered into the phone.
I could hear Dylan breathing, so I knew he hadn’t hung up on me.
Instead of coming straight home that night, I’d wanted to give Emma time to herself, and I needed to cool off as well. So, I’d gone over to Dylan’s for a bit. I’d shared what had happened and then I made my way back home.
I’d figured she’d have been in bed when I arrived home, but the house was empty. I’d thought maybe she’d gone out herself to be with the girls, but in the morning, I noticed all her things were gone. There wasn’t a stitch of Emma left in my place, aside from the furniture she’d chosen.
“Sorry, Colton, I really don’t know what to say,” Dylan said.
“Has Aurora heard from her? Or Lorelai?”
I heard Dylan whisper something to Aurora. “No, sorry, she hasn’t heard from her either.”
“Thanks, see you tonight,” I muttered, hanging up the phone.
Since she’d gone, my life seemed to unravel at a rapid pace. I was once again in the spotlight, first with the events from the restaurant but thankfully the good we’d created quickly wiped out the bad.
I walked into the changing room to see the guys all sitting there, huddled over quietly talking. The minute they heard the door open, they all looked up, a look of unease on all their faces.
“What’s going on?” I questioned. “Trouble with the plays for tonight?” I asked, making my way to my locker.
Once I turned my back, I heard whispered words, and then I felt a hand on my shoulder. I turned to see Knox standing right behind me.
“What?” I questioned.
“What you been up to today?”
I frowned. “Slept.”
“Ah, have a good nap?” he asked.
“It was alright, why?”
Knox shifted uncomfortably where he stood, giving me an odd grin.
“What is it?” I said, looking over his shoulder at the others.
“You know, Lorelai mentioned you haven’t seen her lately for treatment. She really wanted to check your back out before we play tonight. We should head on down there now.”
“Oh yeah? When did she tell you this?” I questioned.
“She messaged me ten minutes ago, said she couldn’t get ahold of you. Yeah, ten minutes ago.” Knox nodded.
I shook my head. These guys were up to something.
“What the hell is going on here?”
“What do you mean?” Knox asked again, shifting from side to side.
“Well, I just saw Lorelai twenty minutes ago, and since when do you dance as if you have pee?”
Knox looked over at the rest of the guys and then whipped his head around at the sound of the locker room door opening. I looked over to see Pamela come in.
“Sorry I’m late, gentlemen,” she said immediately, looking my way.
This would explain why none of them had changed, and they all sat around dressed in whatever way they’d arrived in.
“Show me what it is you’ve found.”
“What did you guys find?” I questioned.
“Come on, big guy, let’s go get some food,” Lucas and Levi both said, getting up from where they were sitting.
Now I was suspicious. Whatever they’d found had to do with me, and I wanted to know exactly what it was.
“Not a chance,” I barked.
Pamela turned and looked at me, then put her attention back to the others.
“Go ahead, Dylan, what did you find?”
Dylan looked at me and crossed his arms in front of his chest, then looked at Pamela.
“Well, it’s surrounding the big guy here, and…” He paused, looking at me again. “Looks like Off the Ice Insiders has found out about Miranda’s Miracle Foundation and Colton.”
The room spun out of control as Dylan mentioned the foundation I’d created in the name of my mother.
How the hell had they learned about that?
I’d done everything in my power to keep my name off that foundation, right down to making all these fuckers and the ones in charge here sign an NDA, and then I realized the only other person who knew.
“Don’t panic, please. We will get this taken care of,” Pamela said, immediately taking screenshots of the article.
My phone vibrated in my pocket, and when I looked down at the screen, I saw the only person in the world I never wanted to speak to again. How things change, because five minutes ago I’d have begged for a message from her. Now all I could wonder was how she could stoop so low to betray my trust?
In a rage, I whipped my phone across the locker room, smashing it into pieces.