CHAPTER 007
1163 Words
*DEAL IS OFF THE TABLE*
Flora's POV
I dragged the phone from Lucille, zooming the picture.
My eyes widened in shock. It was truly him.
I slumped back in my seat, head in my hands. “This can’t be happening. Megan’s brother is Tyler Sinclair? The same Tyler I turned down like an i***t three days ago?”
Lucille was already deep in his profile, scrolling with that mischievous glint in her eye.
“Damn, Flo. Look at this. Mr. Devil on Ice doesn’t play around. No thirst traps with girls, no soft launch dates, not even a suspicious ‘just friends’ post. It’s all hockey, workouts, and brooding Alpha stares. This man has the emotional range of a brick wall.”
She wasn't wrong. His page was all hockey, workouts, and charity events. Not a single woman in sight.
“What am I supposed to do?” I groaned, my voice cracking. “Winning this bet clearly won’t be possible. Seduce Tyler Sinclair? Get him to kiss me and claim me publicly in seven days?”
Lucille kept scrolling, humming thoughtfully, her jokes dialed down for once as she processed. “Hmm. He does give off major ‘don’t touch me’ energy.”
“I should go to Megan,” I said, standing up abruptly, frustration boiling over.
Lucille’s eyebrows shot up. “And say what to her, exactly?”
“Umm… tell her the bet isn’t going to work out,” I stammered, heat rising to my cheeks. “That I wasn’t in my right mind when I said yes. Because I clearly wasn’t.”
Lucille shot me a stern look, crossing her arms. “There’s no way I’m letting you go suck up to that b***h. Absolutely not. We’re not crawling back to her like.”
The game had ended, and players were filing off the ice, jerseys soaked with sweat, the crowd still cheering. Lucille’s gaze shifted suddenly, locking onto the tunnel area where Tyler was skating toward the exit, towel around his neck, that massive tattoo on his left arm glistening under the lights.
“I have an idea,” she said, a mischievous grin spreading across her face.
I followed her stare and my stomach flipped. “Oh s**t. What funny idea are you cooking up in that chaotic head of yours now?”
“Relax. Trust me,” Lucille said, already tugging me down the stairs toward the ice level.
“What’s your idea?” I demanded, heart racing.
“How about you walk over there and talk to Tyler,” she suggested, eyes sparkling with trouble.
“Talk to Tyler,” I repeated, certain I’d misheard.
“Mmm-hmm, you heard me.”
“No way. That’s insane.”
“No, it’s not. Just say hi, flash him a smile, and tell him you’re sorry you were drunk when you rejected his fake-dating proposal.”
“No… eww, no way,” I protested, disgusted at the thought of groveling to that Alpha again.
We kept moving down toward the exit ramp near the ice. The players were close now, chatting with teammates. Just as we got near enough, Lucille gave me a sharp push from behind.
I stumbled forward, slamming straight into Tyler’s broad back.
My stomach dropped. His scent hit me like a wave—dark, masculine, pure Alpha power reeked off of him.
Tyler’s friends stopped talking. He froze mid-wipe of his face with the towel, then turned around slowly. Those sharp eyes locked onto mine, irritation flashing across his handsome face.
Think fast, Flora.
“Hi, Ty,” I said, forcing a bright smile just like Lucille had coached.
He looked clearly irritated, jaw tight. “Your game today was great,” I rushed on, showering compliments while catching Lucille’s mischievous grin from the corner of my eye. “You were moving like…like the ice belonged to you. That last shot? Insane.”
“What do you want?” Tyler said, his lips stretching into a smirk. He crossed his massive arms, making his biceps strain against the jersey. “And what’s with the weird smile? You look ridiculous.”
I stopped smiling immediately, my cheeks burning hot.
“Ummm… can I speak to you in private?” I asked, trying not to sound desperate.
“No.” His rejection was abrupt, Alpha tone laced with finality that tugged at my instincts. “I have nothing to discuss with you.”
“Please. It’s actually important,” I pleaded.
His gaze lingered on me for a while, then he raised two fingers, signalling to his friends to leave.
They did.
Lucille was gesturing wildly behind him, feeding me lines. I repeated them as best I could—apologizing for last time, saying I was drunk and not thinking straight, that I’d been overwhelmed.
“Can we still sign the deal?” I asked finally, my voice low and even.
"No." His gaze swept over me from head to toe before returning to my face. “I gave you enough time to think about it. Deal’s off the table now.”
“Well, I know but—”
He turned on his heel without another word, walking away with that arrogant stride, leaving me standing there like a fool.
How intolerable.
I looked back at Lucille, who had her hands up innocently, shaking her head like she wasn’t the cause of this fresh embarrassment.
How difficult can he get?
Just then, a mocking voice cut through the noise.
“Well… well, well. If it isn’t the dork of the century.”
I turned. Sean was skating toward me slowly, clapping his hands with exaggerated slowness, that familiar smirk plastered on his face.
“The f**k do you think you’re doing, Flora?” Sean scoffed. “Did the breakup affect your brain or something?”
“What?" I snapped.
“I mean, that’s the only explanation for you approaching Tyler like that. Who do you think you are?”
“You’re hitting on Tyler now?” He laughed, loud and cruel. “Wake up, Flora. Tyler’s never going to look in the direction of a dork like you.”
“f**k you, Sean,” I snapped, anger flaring hot. “You think I can’t pull off someone like Tyler?”
“In your dreams,” he sneered, skating in lazy circles.
“Watch me then,” I bragged, the words flying out before I could stop them. “You’ll be shocked to your bones when I do it.”
I turned and stormed off angrily, pushing through the crowd back to where Lucille was standing, heart hammering.
“Really?” Lucille said, eyebrows raised, that sarcastic tone back in full force.
“What?” I shot back. “This is all your fault. Why the f**k did you—”
Lucille’s eyes suddenly lit up like a lightbulb, mischief returning tenfold. A slow, dangerous grin spread across her face.
“I’ve got an idea.”
- Writer
