Contracted To The Beast novel Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Chapter 10

1 called Nia again. She hung up on me immediately.

I dialed her number one more time. It went straight to voicemail. The phone was switched off

“Fuck!” I yelled and slamitred my fist on the table. The loud bang made every head in the pub turn toward me

“Chill out, bro,” Liam said quietly. He leaned closer. “You are attracting too much attention. People are staring

I did not care. I grabbed the glass of raw whiskey and poured it down my throat. The burn felt good. It matched the rage building inside my chest. I poured another shot and drank it fast.

Liam watched me carefully. “We will sort this out tomorrow. Let us go. We have early practice.”

We paid the bill and walked out into the cold night air. Liam drove since I had not brought my own car. His apartment was close to the condo. The whole ride I stayed silent, jaw tight, staring out the window.

When we reached the building, Liam turned off the engine. “Go to bed, man. Shit will work itself out.” He locked the car and headed to his place, leaving me standing alone in the cold.

I scanned the parking lot for Nia’s Honda Civic. It was not there. She had not come back to the condo tonight. The realization sat heavy in my gut. Where the hell was she? At her mom’s house? With Beck?

I walked into my apartment and slammed the door behind me. I tossed my phone hard onto the bed. It bounced once and

fell silent.

I had warned her. I told her to be careful around people. Especially around Beck. Now this mess was everywhere online.

I opened one of the comments under the photo.

Gold digger. Slut. Homewrecker. Attention whore.

My jaw tightened.

Nia wasn’t built for this kind of cruelty. Hell, maybe nobody was.

I started pacing the living room. My mind raced for a way to fix it. Nia and Beck had been friends since high school. We could leak an old photo of the three of us together. Make it look like a friendly reunion. A cute meet-up. Yeah. That could

work.

I stopped pacing and rubbed my face. It might actually calm things down. I would make sure this issue got sorted first thing

tomorrow.

But something felt off. Beck had not been around for long. Less than a week. Suddenly there was a clear photo of hum hugging Nia and the media jumped on it fast. How did the paparazzi get inside the arena so easily? It was too convenient. Almost like someone planned it.

Beck. I had a strong feeling he was behind this. He had always wanted Nia. Always looked at her like she belonged to him. Now he was back and causing problems.

I could not let this embarrass me. Not like this.

I woke up early the next morning. My body still felt heavy from the whiskey, but I forced myself through a workout. Push- ups, weights, then a quick run on the treadmill. I showered, threw on my Vipers polo shirt, gray sweats, and white Nike Air Force sneakers. I grabbed my duffel bag and drove to Rogers Arena.

Nia’s car was already parked in her usual spot. Good. We were going to have a serious conversation this morning.

14:33 Tue, Jul 7 M

Chapter 10

I walked into Coach Riggs’ office first.

“Good morning, Coach.”

He looked

“Not yet.”

up from his desk and raised an eyebrow. “Have you seen Nia this morning?”

The coach shook his head. “Aren’t you supposed to check on her? That girl’s life is already hard. Do not make it worse for

her.”

I stayed quiet. The rest of the team started coming in with loud greetings.

“Practice now, boys.” Coach ordered.

They all groaned but headed out. I followed behind them.

“Kane.” Coach called before I could leave.

“Sir.”

“Physio. Now.” He gave me a long, knowing look.

I turned and walked toward the physio room. My mind kept turning over how to start the conversation with Nia. I knocked gently on the door.

“Come in,” her soft voice answered.

I stepped inside. “Morning.”

“Maddox,” she said, turning to face me. She arched her brow.

“I need my shoulder checked,” I said and sat down on the treatment bed.

“Remove your shirt.”

I pulled the polo over my head. The cool air hit my skin. Nia stepped closer and started examining my shoulder and arm

“Are you feeling any pain?” she asked.

“No.”

“You will be fine before the playoffs start officially. Just keep taking your meds regularly.” She finished quickly and moved back toward her desk.

I grabbed her arm, stopping her.

“What is the problem?” she asked. Her voice sounded irritated.

“I warned you,” I said, voice low, tight. “Told you to be careful. But you just-what? Ignore it?”

Her eyes flashed. “Careful? I hugged your brother, Maddox. I didn’t commit a crime.”

“That’s not how it looks.”

“I don’t care how it looks!”

My grip tightened on her arm before I could stop it.

14:33 Tue, Jul 7 M

Chapter 10

“You should,” I snapped. “Because right now, you’re all over the internet looking like-

“Like what?” she cut in, stepping closer despite the tension. “Say it.”

I hesitated.

Wrong move.

Her laugh came out sharp. “Exactly.”

“I’m trying to fix this,” I bit out.

“No-you’re trying to control it.” Her voice cracked slightly, but she didn’t back down. “There’s a difference.”

My jaw tightened. “You think I wanted this? You think I asked to clean up another mess?”

Her expression changed instantly.

Hurt. Real hurt.

“This is your mess,” she said quietly. “Your name. Your image. Your world.”

Her eyes filled, but she blinked hard, refusing to let the tears fall.

“I didn’t ask to be dragged into it.”

That hit.

Harder than it should have.

“Then stop making it worse,” I muttered.

That did it. Tears spilled over, fast and angry.

“You don’t get to stand there and blame me,” she snapped. “Not after everything you’ve already taken from me.”

The words landed like a punch. I went still. She pointed at the door.

“Fix your mess, Maddox,” she said, voice breaking. “And get out of my office.”

I released her arm, pulled my shirt back on, grabbed my duffel bag, and walked out into the hallway. Shock still sat heavy m my chest.

I stood there for a second longer than I should have. Something tight settled in my chest. That wasn’t the quiet girl from high school, and somehow, that bothered me more than the tears.

A week ago, she was invisible. Now she was everywhere. My name is attached to hers like a target. And every hit meant tor me? It was landing on her instead.

I needed to talk to management today about her security. Both online and offline. I could not let anything happen to her.

My phone rang again and I answered without checking the screen.

“Father.” Silence greeted me first.

“You’ve become sloppy.”

My shoulders locked instantly. Same reaction every damn time. His voice stayed calm. Controlled. Worse than yelling.

14:33 Tue, Jul 7 M

Chapter 10

“I’m handling it,” I said flatly.

“A public scandal involving my son and his physiotherapist is not what I call handling it”

My jaw tightened.

“She’s part of the recovery strategy.”

A quiet scoff echoed through the line.

“Is that what we’re calling it now?”

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