Alle Kapitel von Lost Love, High Stakes: Soccer King's Comeback: Kapitel 1 – Kapitel 8

Ian Ziegler's bootlicking friends immediately slapped the table and burst into laughter."Whoa. He agreed to it. I can't believe it!""Well, I'll be damned! This broke ass bumpkin thinks he's got what it takes to make soccer bets. He probably doesn't even know what offside is!""Offside? Hah! Does he even watch soccer? Can he tell which goal even belongs to the team he's betting on?"Ian flicked the ash off his cigarette and blew a mouthful of smoke straight into my face. "What's the matter? Are you so broke that a Bentley is enough to make your eyes light up with greed?"He patted my girlfriend, Nina Foster, on the shoulder. "Nina here has been dating you for two years now. You're just going to dump her like that? Oh, man. I feel so sorry for her."I said nothing.Nina was wearing a white strappy dress today. She kept her head down the whole time, staring at her phone without even glancing at me once.Meanwhile, Ian picked up his lighter to light another cigarette. That was wh

30 minutes into the match, Brondale United abruptly launched a counterattack. Felix managed to pull off the perfect fake, pushing past the Maran Leopards' defenders to launch a volley from mid-air."Goal! It's a goal!"The atmosphere in the room instantly erupted, with Ian's lackeys waving their beer bottles around as they hollered in excitement."Ian's a god! You're screwed now, Craig!""Get ready to fall on your knees and lick Ian's shoes! Hahaha!"I smirked and said nothing.At the 53rd minute, Brondale United scored again. Ian's grin grew even cockier as he grabbed the keys to the Bentley from the table and spun them on his fingertip."See that, Craig? This is what you call real strength. Tell you what, as long as the Maran Leopards score a single goal, I'll let you hold the keys in your hands for just a minute. And if they score two goals, I'll let you take the car out for a spin."I glanced at him. "The match isn't over yet."Snorting, Ian cocked his head and eyed me. "S

"Goal! The score is now 2-1!" the commentator shouted.Ian frowned. "Damn it! Lucky fluke for them.""Does this mean I get to hold the keys to the Bentley now, Ian?" I piped up nonchalantly.Scowling, Ian snapped, "What's the rush? They're still one point down. There's no way they can turn the game around!"The words had just barely left his mouth when the Maran Leopards' midfielder deftly passed the ball to his striker, who timed his run perfectly and kicked the ball straight into the net.It was now 2-2.Ian shot to his feet and yanked his phone out of his pocket in a panic, swiping at his screen as he exclaimed, "What the hell? How is that possible!"The match wasn't over yet.At the 87th minute, the Maran Leopards' winger once again broke through the right flank and sent the ball into the box. The striker came just in time to tap it in.It wasn't long before the referee's whistle sounded, and the game ended on a 3-2 comeback for the Maran Leopards.Silence fell over the p

Ian's pathetic and disgusting display made me snort."Stop dreaming, Ian. I was the one who did the work to earn the 1.2 million in the first place. You're using my money to settle what you owe me for the bets? Why didn't it cross your mind that we've been buddies since we were kids, when you only gave me 5,000 out of the 1.2 million, huh?"Why didn't you think about how we grew up together when you eagerly set your sights on my apartment? Are you an idiot, or do you think I am?"Ian's ingratiating smile froze. His terror and unwillingness to accept this situation finally drew out the worst side of him, an incorrigible gambler."Don't fucking push it, Craig! Fine. You want to take me down, huh? Let's go again! There's no way I'm going to keep losing. I still have money. I can take out more loans! I'll get the money to bet against you!"He grabbed his phone, his fingers shaking as he took out all the loans he could find."I haven't hit my credit limit yet! Here's 500 grand. And he