Chapter 2
1677 Words
COLE
"Take a few months off. Lie low and fix your ego."
That was all Bernard Emmett, our field manager said before pushing me out of the season. Not because I was injured or needed rest. But because apparently I had become the face of aggression issues after I shoved an opposing team player and he got injured. I didn't regret it. He was talking trash the whole game and the push wasn't even that hard. He put on an act and made the media pitch him and pushed a narrative around. Dragging my name like I killed someone.
Arrogant. Selfish. Emotionless. A menace on ice.
They called me everything. But honestly? I didn't care. People will always talk, and I had learned a long time ago that the world only loves you when you're winning. So let them talk. Let them scream. I didn't owe anyone an apology for being good at what I do.
Ice Hockey had been my life since I was fifteen. Back then at high school, I was the star player now twenty-six and still the famous Ice hockey star. Bernard scouted me and Chicago Blitz became my home. The rink became my second skin. I lived, breathed, and bled hockey... until the day a woman I barely remembered dropped a three-month-old baby at my door and a two-line letter that simply said:
"She's yours."
That was how I became a father. One reckless mistake. One baby girl left on my doorstep like a forgotten package.
And I was forced to adjust. To pause. To carry a responsibility, I never planned for. Only Bernard and a few close teammates knew about her. To the world? Cole Dawson didn't do soft things like fatherhood.
They saw arrogance, ego and talent mixed with temper. But inside? I was just a man trying to take care of a three-year-old girl who now depended on me for everything.
Maybe that was why I didn't trust women. Maybe that was why I didn't like them around me. Maybe that was why every new nanny Bernard sent disappeared after two or three days.
Until Bernard dropped another bomb that he's sending someone over to fix my ego. As if I was a ten-year-old boy or much more his kid. We both have big egos and if anything I learnt some from him.
The man was way stubborn that what the media were spreading about me. I thought it was going to be some clueless guy I could scare off and handle but Bernard actually sent a woman.
Something about her face felt familiar, but I couldn't place it. And honestly, it irritated me. I didn't need that kind of distraction. I didn't need someone reminding me of anything from my past. Women. And above all I didn't like that I had to rely on a woman. Not with my history, my trust and the crazy news already making my life more miserable than it already was. So I shut the door on her face.
"Why the hell did you send a woman?" I barked when Bernard finally picked up call.
"Cole," Bernard's voice was calm. Too calm. Calm enough to make the anger burning in my chest feel ten times hotter. "She was specially recommended by my friend. I've heard she's excellent at her job. Her reputation speaks for itself. And besides, your last PR resigned."
I stopped pacing only to scoff. "My last PR? You mean the third one in two months? Or the fourth one this year?"
I ran a hand through my hair and glanced at Mia on the floor, busy with her toys completely oblivious to the mess of my life. "I don't trust women. You know that. And from what I saw this morning, she looks incompetent."
Bernard let out a heavy sigh on the other end. "Cole... every PR we've approached has turned the offer down. They don't want to deal with your attitude, your schedule, or your... personality. The season starts soon. Sponsors are waiting. Media's on edge And we need to act as soon as possible to get everything back in shape."
I clenched my jaw. Perfect. Absolutely perfect.
"This isn't optional," he continued. "If you don't go along with this, forget about next season. You and I both know how important that is to you. Good luck."
And the line went dead. He f*****g hung the call on me.
I gripped the phone tighter, furious. A woman shaping my image? Me? The guy who spent years building a reputation of being untouchable? It was ridiculous. Absolutely insane. And a woman, of all people. How crazy could Bernard be?
I knew the field manager so well. He wasn't bluffing The team depend on me. I am their backbone. Without me, the season would collapse. I failed to understand why he was hell bent on getting me a PR when I need no one. My reputation doesn't need to be defined by any PR strategist or whatsoever. But then there was no way in hell I was allowing a woman fix my image or whatsoever.
The doorbell rang again. She wasn't supposed to still be here after I had slammed the door on her. My jaw tightened and as my phone buzzed with a text from Bernard.
Your attitude is already causing problem. Work with her and fix your image. Refuse and deal with the fallout.
Another doorbell and this time my anger tripled and I strode to the door yanking it open. She stood there with her lips curved into a smile. One that I suddenly found irritating but somehow familiar. "I thought you had slept off," She said casually pushing her hair behind her shoulder.
Irritation bubbled instantly. She had the audacity to smile at me. She shifted her weight, pulling her legs forward. "Just so you know, I've signed the contract. Keys and all. At least let's talk first."
I wanted to tell her to get lost or slam the door again. But something stopped me. Something about the confidence, the smirk, the way she refused to give up. I could use it to my advantage. And show Bernard how strong headed I can be.
I stepped aside pulling the door wider. "Come in," I muttered letting her in, my anger mixing with a begrudging acknowledgement that this was going to be interesting. The second she stepped inside; I regretted opening the damn door. Her eyes went everywhere. Up the walls, across the trophies, the framed photos of me holding championship cups. She looked like some wide-eyed tourist who had just walked into a museum she didn't pay for.
And then her gaze dropped to my daughter stacking her blocks. Her brows shot up as she looked back at me. "You...have a daughter?"
Of course. The shock. The judgment. The assumption. I could see them on her face. Exactly why I didn't want a woman in my life.
"How about you stop snooping around my house and sit before you get yourself embarrassed?"
Her mouth parted in disbelief at my tone, then she rolled her eyes. She looked like a dramatic woman. She walked over to my couch and sat down like she owned the place and like this was some board room and not my damn living room. She pulled out a thick folder and set it on the table.
"Alright," She started tapping the cover. "This is the contract. Since you've already made it very clear you don't like my presence, let's move past that and actually understand what you signed up for. I'm Ivy Brooke by the way." She pushed the folder forward, chin raised.
Ivy Brooke? The name rings a bell somewhere. I've heard the name before. I just can't place where.
"I am signing no contract." I said folding my arms. I only let her in because I have a plan off my sleeves.
"Why? What's wrong with my contract?" she asked her eyes darting confusedly from the folder back to my face.
"I don't like it,"
"You didn't even read it."
"I don't read contract made by amateurs. And much by a woman."
She blinked. Once. Twice. "What exactly is your problem with women?" She snapped irritatingly. "Isn't your daughter a girl?"
My jaw locked tightly I heard the click in my ears. Anger rushed up my spine. She has no right no damn right to bring Mia into this. Mia might have been my responsibility I never planned for, but she was mine. I loved her. I protected her. And someone like Ivy or whoever her name was had no idea what the hell came with that.
I leaned forward intertwining my hands together. "I'm going to make your job easier. So let's do this. Pretend we're working together. Go home Because there was no way in hell I was going to agree to this bullshit. If its money you care about, I'll pay off."
Her face turned red. "What do you think I am? A fraud? You think I'm here to play pretense? I've got responsibility."
"Responsibility?" I repeated chuckling softly. "A woman like you? What can you even fix? What image? The job that fits you is taking care of children just like my daughter." I gestured towards Mia.
"I'm not a damn nanny!" She shouted voice echoing in the room. "You're arrogant, thick skinned and exactly like the Cole I remembered! Always thinking the world revolves around you!" And due to her loud voice, Mia attention was now on us—on her to be precise. She doesn't look normal to me.
And what does she mean by the Cole she remembered?
"Backing out of this means you're getting your reputation more ruined."
Exactly like Bernard said. If I lose this, I'm out of the seasoned games. That is why I have this idea to turns things over to my liking. "I know," I answered.
"This is ridiculous." She hissed, eyes blazing.
"Yes," I said my lips curving up. "It is. But welcome to working for Cole Dawson."
- Writer
