"Get out," Scout blurts. Her cheeks are the approximate color of a fire engine. "You're not welcome here."
Juliet pushes in front of Scout. She might be the tiniest person here, but she is clearly ready to go to war. “Enzo Morelli, you’re banned from the facility.”
Hmm.I try to place why the name Enzo Morelli feels familiar. Then it clicks.
Enzo is Scout's ex, Silas's least favorite person on earth, and a man who had been arrested for running a sports betting operation through his client list. The fact that he's standing in our facility right now, smiling like he owns the place, shows either extraordinary nerve or extraordinary stupidity.
Glowering at him, I'm thinking it might be both.
Juliet puts her hand out as if to guard Scout. It's a little funny because Juliet is maybe five feet even, and that's with her heels. She glares at Enzo, flips her short brunette hair, and turns to us. "We should go. I can't wait for Silas to find out that Scout's ex was allowed within a mile of her."
They hurry off. Enzo watches them leave with a smug grin.
I scan the guy again, frowning. He sees me looking and raises his hand. "I’m Enzo Morelli. And this is Konstantin Kuznetsov, the power forward for the Seattle Havoc. I'm his agent." He shows off the visitor pass that he undoubtedly had to get to enter the building. "I haven't met you, sweetheart."
"That's enough." Beck's hands land on my shoulders and make me jump. "Enzo, you're not allowed to be here. Let's go."
He and Thorne thread around me, shooing him toward the exit. Thorne looks downright murderous.
"We'll see who's allowed or not soon enough. Right, Konstantin?" Enzo spits.
Konstantin cocks his head skeptically at Enzo. "You have beef with the team?"
Enzo scoffs. "Hardly."
"You fought with our biggest defenseman at a gala event. Got your ass whooped, too," Thorne corrects him. “Bout to repeat the experience.”
Konstantin sucks his teeth. "I didn't realize that there was a problem here."
Thorne zags toward him, forcing him back a step. "Now you can get out, too."
"I just received an official offer to join the Seattle Havoc," he says, rubbing his chin.
"As power forward," Enzo chips in helpfully, giving Thorne a filthy smile. "Guess your management is about to clear out some of the dead wood."
"That's it." Beck isn't the biggest guy in the room, physically, but he doesn't put up with nonsense. He never has. "This is your last warning, Enzo. Start walking or I'll lay hands on you. I can promise that it won't be pretty."
"All right, all right." Enzo jerks his chin toward the door. "You coming, Kon?"
"It's Konstantin," he says, looking down his nose at his agent. "And I think I'll stay. You made quite a splash."
The faintest of foreign accents colors those words. He’s from Russia, I think. Or maybe he was born there and raised in the States.
Enzo raises his hands. “All right, all right!” he half-laughs as my brother and Thorne herd him towards the exit.
I’m left with Konstantin. He looks me up and down with an unreadable expression. I offer him a handshake, blushing. “I’m Mollie Tate.” He takes my hand, and the brief contact zings electricity up my arm. “I’m the Havoc’s social media coordinator.”
“A pleasure.” His eyes twinkle. “I’m new in town. Are you interested in showing me the sights?”
I swallow. “The sights?”
“Yeah.” He waves his hand around. “You know. The Space Needle, Pike’s Place. That kind of thing. Whatever you usually show out of town guests. Or we could go to your favorite dive bar instead, maybe?”
He smirks and leans in. And for a second, I get it. He has a whole masculine charm around him that makes me want to lean in, too.
“It’sPikePlace. Not Pike’s.” I pause, thinking. “That’s probably more of Jessa Laramie’s job, but I’d be happy to–”
“Likefuckyou will.” I whip my head around to see Thorne closing in on me, and he is furious. “She’s the team captain’s little sister. She doesn’t have any interest in showing you around anywhere.”
