Announcement

Chapter Four

Kaia’s POV

I had been sitting on my couch for almost an hour with my laptop open in front of me, but I had barely read anything on the screen because my mind was somewhere else entirely.

My phone suddenly rang, I looked down and saw my friend’s name on the screen.

I answered immediately. “Hello?”

“Kaia, where have you been?” she asked, sounding unusually excited.

“At home. Why?”

“You haven’t heard?”

I sat up slightly. “Heard what?”

There was a short pause before she laughed. “The championship.”

My heart skipped. “What championship?”

“The championship, Kaia. The one you’ve been waiting for.”

I immediately pushed the laptop away. “What happened?”

“It has been officially announced. The dates were released this morning, and registration has already started.”

For a moment, I couldn’t speak.

The championship, the  one I had been talking about for months, the one I had wanted to play in more than anything.

I had imagined myself standing on that ice, wearing my team’s jersey, hearing the crowd, feeling the pressure of the biggest games of the season, and proving once again why I belonged among the best players in the league.

My entire body suddenly felt lighter. “When is it?” I asked.

She gave me the dates, and I quickly reached for my phone and opened my calendar.

It was close, much  closer than I had expected.

“Oh my! ” I whispered.

“I knew you would be excited,” she said. “You have been waiting for this forever.”

“I know.”

“You’re going, right?”

A smile spread across my face.

“Of course I’m going.”

We talked for a few more minutes, and for the first time in days, I felt like something was finally going my way.

The moment the call ended, I dropped my phone onto the couch and stood up.

I was going to the championship, I was finally going to have another chance to play on the biggest stage.

Then I stopped, the  smile slowly disappeared from my face.

There was one problem, a  very big problem.

I walked toward the window and stared outside while the excitement inside me slowly disappeared.

The championship was not open to just anyone, I couldn’t simply show up and register myself, I had to be registered under a qualified professional team and  I didn’t have one.

I closed my eyes, my new team wasn’t ready, I didn’t have enough players, I didn’t have the required staffc I didn’t have the proper structure,I didn’t even know if I could get everything approved before the registration deadline.

I had spent days trying to build something from nothing, and now the championship had appeared at the exact moment when I had almost nothing to show for it.

I slowly sat back down, there  was only one team I could join immediately.

The team Roman had bought, my  old team.

The team I had walked away from because I refused to accept his conditions.

I stared at the floor for a long time.

Then I remembered his words.

You can play for another team.

At the time, I had been so focused on what came after those words that I almost ignored the first part.

He had given me a way back into professional hockey.

But there had been a price.

You will stay in my house for a few years.

I had hated the idea the moment he said it.

I still hated it.

The thought of living under the same roof as Roman, having him know where I was every day and having to deal with his constant need to control everything made my stomach tighten.

But missing the championship was worse.

I had worked too hard for too many years to watch an opportunity like this disappear simply because I was too proud to accept one condition.

I stood up again and walked around the room.

I could continue fighting alone and possibly miss the biggest competition of the year, or I could accept his condition and play.

I stared at the wall for several seconds before finally making my decision.

“I’ll do it.”

The words felt strange coming out of my mouth.

I grabbed my bag. “I’ll accept the condition.”

I didn’t like it, I wasn’t happy about it but I wanted that championship more than I wanted to prove a point to Roman and  if accepting his condition for a while was the price I had to pay to get back on the ice, then I would pay it.

At least that was what I told myself as I left my apartment.

***

Roman’s company was exactly as intimidating as I remembered.

The tall glass building stood above the surrounding buildings, with people walking in and out of the entrance while security guards watched everyone who entered.

I walked through the doors and approached the reception desk.

“I need to see Roman Bennett.”

The receptionist looked at me politely. “Do you have an appointment?”

“No.”

She checked her computer.“I’m sorry, but Mr. Bennett has a very busy schedule. If you don’t have an appointment, I can’t send you upstairs.”

I almost laughed, of course, he’s a busy person, but still had time to buy and even monitor the team. 

“I need you to call him.”

The receptionist looked uncertain. “I’m sorry?”

“Call Roman and tell him Kaia Bennett is here.”

She glanced toward the security guards. “I’m not sure he can—”

“Just call him.” My voice was calm, but firm enough that she stopped arguing, she picked up the phone and made the call.

I stood there waiting, trying not to look nervous.

A few moments later, she hung up. “You can go up.”

I nodded. “Thank you.”

One of the guards escorted me toward the elevator.

As the doors closed, I stared at my reflection.

I looked calm.

At least on the outside.

Inside, I was already preparing myself for the conversation.

I didn’t want Roman to think I was happy about this, I didn’t want him to think he had won.

I was simply making a decision that was necessary for my career, that was all.

When the elevator opened, I stepped into Roman’s private floor.

His assistant was waiting for me. “Mr. Bennett is expecting you.”

“Of course he is.”

The assistant gave me a strange look but said nothing.

I walked toward Roman’s office and knocked once before opening the door.

Roman was behind his desk.

He looked up from the documents in front of him, and the moment his eyes landed on me, something changed in his expression.

It was not surprise, that  annoyed me immediately.

He looked almost amused. “You came.”

I closed the door behind me. “I need to talk to you.”

“I know.”

I frowned. “You know?”

He leaned back in his chair. “You wouldn’t come here unless you had made a decision.”

I crossed my arms. “Don’t make this more difficult than it needs to be.”

A small smile appeared on his face. “I wasn’t planning to.”

I walked closer to his desk. “The championship has been announced.”

“I know.”

Of course he knew.

Roman seemed to know everything before I did.

“Registration requires me to be under a qualified team,” I continued. “My new team isn’t ready.”

He remained quiet. “So I need to play under your organization.”

His eyes stayed on mine. “You need to play under my organization,” he repeated.

“Yes.”

“And what do you want from me?”

I stared at him. “You already know.”

His mouth curved slightly. “Say it.”

I hated the satisfaction in his voice, I took a slow breath. “I am ready to accept your condition.”

For a moment, the room was silent, then Roman smiled, not  a huge smile.

Just a small, knowing smile that immediately told me he had been expecting this. “I knew you would come around.”

My jaw tightened. “Don’t look so pleased with yourself.”

“I am not pleased.”

“You’re smiling.”

“I smile when I am right.”

I rolled my eyes. “You’re impossible.”

Roman opened one of the drawers beside him and pulled out a thick document.

He placed it on the desk and pushed it toward me.

I stared at it, then  I looked at him. “You already had it prepared?”

“I had a feeling you would need it.”

“A feeling?”

He leaned back. “I know you, Kaia.”

I looked down at the contract, there  were several pages.

I picked it up and flipped through the first few.

Everything looked formal, with sections covering my position, the team, the championship and the agreement between us.

I already knew the main condition,  would stay in his house, that was the price.

I didn’t want to spend more time there than necessary, so I reached for the pen sitting on his desk.

Roman watched me, I signed my name, then I turned the page and signed again and  again.

I didn’t bother reading every word because I already knew what I had agreed to.

I just wanted it done.

When I finished, I placed the pen down. “There.”

Roman didn’t reach for the contract.

Instead, he looked at me. “You didn’t bother to read everything.”

I frowned. “I know what I’m signing.”

“No, you know what you think you’re signing.”

Something about his answer made my stomach tighten.

I looked down at the papers again, then back at him. “What does that mean?”

Roman’s expression remained calm.

I reached for the contract and looked through the pages again, this time more carefully.

There were several sections I hadn’t noticed before.

My eyes moved across the words, but I still couldn’t understand why he was looking at me like that.

I slowly raised my head. “Is there more to it?”

Roman said nothing.

The silence between us suddenly felt much heavier than before.

I stared at him, waiting for his answer.

His eyes remained fixed on mine.

And for the first time since I had walked into his office, I wondered if accepting Roman’s condition had been a much bigger mistake than I realized.