Page 122 of Ice King

“This is your time, you know. Your moment.”

He wasn’t being nasty or even pushy. Just a soft reminder of how hard I’d worked over the years. “Yeah, I know. I’ll be right there.”

“Okay.”

I closed my eyes, envisioning her face. My father was right. She’d want this for me. For the family.

But what in the fuck was going on? I’d need to give her a piece of my mind.

As well as a spanking. Yeah, a long, hard spanking. Feeling resigned, I turned around to head into the hotel when my phone rang. Hopeful, I could barely breathe.

Then I noticed the number and laughed. “Coach Stryker. I was just thinking about you. We’re here and this wouldn’t be happening if it weren’t for you.’

“Yeah, well, you might need to rethink your plans, son.”

“Why?”

With the coach’s voice coming close to breaking, I sensed the urgency in what he was telling me. There was no room for error, no time to waste.

“I don’t know how I’ll do it, but I will get there. Do me a favor, Coach.”

“Anything, son.”

“Round up some people in town. Will ya?”

He laughed. “Already done.”

With a slow and steady growl, I scanned the crowd until I located Abbott. He could tell when I was close something was wrong.

“What is it?” he asked.

“I need to head back to Seattle. It’s very important and I need to tell you why.”

To his credit, he listened without interrupting. When I was finished, I couldn’t breathe and I realized I’d likely just tossed my career away.

Again.

But this time, I was doing so for all the right reasons.

My mate.

“Well, then,” he said and I bristled while waiting to hear the crap he was going to toss out. Whatever. Just whatever. “Then you’ll need to take my jet.”

* * *

Georgia

“Don’t look so forlorn, Gigi. Soon, you’ll be back home where you belong.” Hoffman placed a glass of wine in front of me, standing over me like a vulture.

I didn’t bother looking at him. The thought made me sick inside.

“Of course there will be some additional rules. We’ll discuss those when we arrive.”

Did the bastard expect I was going to agree? I was furious, more so than I’d been in my entire life. While going back to Baltimore was the last thing I wanted to do, I felt I had no choice.

Why?

Because his threats had teeth.