13

DAVIES 

Nathan stopped laughing. His eyes widened. The cocky smirk melted off his face like wax.

“Stay sitting,” my voice cut through the tension as his other teammate tried to stand. The guy froze, reading the murder in my eyes, and slowly sat back down.

Sliding into the booth opposite Nathan, the leather seat groaned under my weight.

Leaning forward, my forearms rested on the sticky wooden table. We were inches apart. Nathan smelled like cheap cologne and fear. A small patch of gauze covered the scrape on his chin from last night.

“What do you want, Davies?” Nathan spat, trying to keep his voice steady. He failed. A slight tremor shook his right hand.

“You sent Maya a voice note.”

“So what?” He jutted his chin out. “Freedom of speech, bro. She needs to know actions have consequences. She embarrassed me. Now she gets to deal with the fallout. That is how the real world works.”

“You mentioned her mother.”

“Just stating facts.” Nathan took a sip of his beer, feigning confidence. “Medical treatments cost a bag. Be a shame if she lost her campus jobs and could not pay the bills. The dean listens to me. One word, and her scholarships are gone.”

“You are a coward.”

“I am a strategist,” he countered, a nasty grin returning to his face. “You might be bigger, but I hold the power here. You cannot protect her forever. Eventually, you will get bored of the fake hero act and dump her. Then she is all mine to break.”

Before he could blink, my right hand shot across the table.

Fingers clamped around his throat like a steel vise. The glass of beer tipped over, spilling amber liquid across the wood. Nathan gasped, his hands flying up to claw at my wrist. His eyes bulged in shock.

“Let him go!” Troy yelled from the floor, but nobody stepped closer. They knew better.

Pulling Nathan forward, his chest slammed against the edge of the table. My grip tightened, cutting off his airway just enough to invoke real terror.

“Listen to me very close, rookie,” my whisper hissed near his ear, deadly and calm. “You think this is a game. You think you are playing chess. But you just walked into a slaughterhouse. Maya is untouchable. Her mother is untouchable. Her jobs, her scholarships, her life. All off limits.”

Nathan wheezed, his face turning a blotchy shade of red. He clawed at my arm, his nails doing zero damage through my long sleeve.

“If you send her another threat,” my voice dropped an octave lower, “if you look in her direction, if you even breathe her name to the dean... I will not just punch you in front of a bonfire.”

Releasing the pressure a fraction, he sucked in a desperate gasp of air.

“I will hunt you down,” my eyes locked onto his terrified gaze. “I will snap your legs so you never skate again. I will ruin your future. And then, I will kill you. Do you understand?”

He could not speak. His head bobbed in a frantic nod.

“Say it,” my fingers tightened again.

“I understand!” he choked out, spit flying from his lips. “I get it! Let go!”

Shoving him backward, his body slumped against the leather booth. He coughed violently, rubbing his bruised neck. His teammates stared in stunned silence. The tough guy act was dead and buried.

“See you on the ice next week,” standing up, a cold smirk touched my lips. “Try not to cry.”

Turning my back on the pathetic scene, my boots carried me out of the dim tavern. Fresh air hit my lungs, clearing the stench of fear and cheap alcohol. A dark satisfaction settled in my bones. Nathan got the message. He would not dare go near Maya again.

Stepping onto the gravel, my hand reached for my keys.

“Davies! Oh my god, Davies!”

A bright, blinding light flashed directly into my eyes.

Blinking against the harsh glare, the fuzzy shape of a girl holding a camera rig came into focus. Chloe. The media girl from the bonfire. She held a pink microphone in one hand and a giant ring light attached to a smartphone in the other.

“Wartburg Gossip Live is back!” Chloe squealed, shoving the microphone toward my chest. “We caught you leaving the Dogfang hangout! Did you just go inside to confront Nathan? Is the beef escalating? The chat wants to know if this is about Maya!”

“Get that out of my face,” my tone was flat, devoid of patience.

“Come on, give us something!” She stepped into my path, blocking the route to my truck. The bright light seared my retinas. “Are the rumors true? Did Nathan threaten Maya? Is the WAG safe? Chat is saying bro is tweaking for real this time!”

“I said move.”

“Just one question, Captain!” Chloe persisted, shoving the camera closer. “Is the fake dating rumor true, or are you guys endgame?”

Patience snapped. The lingering adrenaline from choking Nathan demanded an outlet.

My arm swung in a fast, brutal arc.

My knuckles collided with the plastic ring light. The impact shattered the cheap plastic. The attached smartphone flew out of her hands, sailing through the air before smashing face-down onto the hard gravel. A loud crunch echoed in the quiet parking lot. Sparks flew from the broken battery casing.

Chloe screamed, jumping back with her hands covering her mouth.

“My phone! Are you crazy?”

“I warned you,” stepping past her trembling frame, my voice held zero remorse. “Find a new hobby.”

Opening the door to my truck, the engine fired up with a loud roar. Throwing it into reverse, the tires kicked up a cloud of dust and gravel. Leaving the tavern behind, my focus shifted back to the only thing that mattered. Maya.

Nathan was handled. The annoying media pest was silenced.

Now, I needed to make sure my girl was okay. Fake relationship or not, she belonged to me. Anyone who tried to cross that line would meet the exact same fate.