"Enough," Michael says, pushing Cooper away from me, but he never lets go of my shirt. It’s fisted in his hands, and when they finally pull him off me, the shirt rips off me. He then rears his arm back, and in a blink of an eye, he punches my face. I can taste metal in my mouth, and the side of my face burns. The whole room is quiet, and everyone, and I mean everyone, is watching. Our team, the Montreal team. The coaches, the trainers, and the fucking media, you could hear a fucking pin drop on the carpet. When I turn my head to look up at the television screen hanging in the corner of the room, my eyes read the red ticker at the bottom before my eyes finally take in the whole screen.
Wilson is once again caught in another scandal, but this time, it's rated R. Sex tape leaked with none other than his teammate's sister.
"What the fuck!" I roar as I see images of Franny and me fill the screen. Not just Franny and me but Franny and me from last night on my fucking couch. The rage rips through me so much my whole body is shaking. My hands are clenching into fists, and I push Cooper off me. It takes me two steps to get to the television. I grab the hockey stick by the door and smash the television with it. The screen turns blue after the first shot, and when I hit it again, it turns off. I smash the television until the stick breaks in my hand.
"Out!" Nico roars. "Everyone, fucking out. If you aren’t with Dallas, you need to get the fuck out of this room." Dylan looks at Michael, who nods at him and walks out of the room. The rest of the media starts to walk out also, clearing the room.
I take one look at Nico and shake my head, charging for the door. "I’m going to your office," I tell him from beside him. "She’s in the box."
"On it." He looks at Cooper, pointing at him. "You need to rein it the fuck in," he hisses.
Cooper puts his hands on his hips and glares at Nico. I know that if I was him, I would tell Nico to fuck off, but Cooper has more control than I do. I open the door, and the media is like flies on shit with questions, one after another.
"Did you film that?"
"Did you leak the tape yourself?"
"Did you know she was Cooper’s sister?”
“How long have you been with her?”
I ignore all the questions as I walk toward the end of the hall, opening Nico's office and stepping in. Slamming the door behind, my heart hammering in my chest as I pace the room. Every single time I hear voices, I stop and look up at the door. I know right away when she’s close by because I hear the press calling her name.
“Frances, did you know he was taping you?"
"Frances, are you dating him?"
Nico opens the door, and she walks in, followed by Cooper at her back. My heart stops in my chest when I see her. I don’t know what I’m expecting, but what I’m not expecting is the anger on her face. She walks to me, and all I want to do is make sure she is okay. There are so many words going through my head and so many things I want to tell her, but the only thing that comes out is her name in a whisper. "Frances," I say, hoping to fuck she doesn’t tell me to fuck off. Just the thought of that makes my heart stop in my chest.
She stands in front of me, touches the side of my lips, and I hiss. I raise my hand to touch it and feel the wetness. Looking at my thumb, I see it’s blood, which is why I tasted metal. "Who did this?" she asks me, and then turns around with lightning speed to look over at Cooper. "Why would you do this to him?" she asks, and Nico steps into the room.
"You guys have one minute." He puts up one of his fingers. "One. Then I want the two of you"—he points at Cooper and then me—"in that locker room. You need to get on that ice and pretend nothing is happening. I know it’s not going to be easy, but the press is already having a field day with this."
"I want you to get out of here," I tell Franny, who just looks at me and pffts out in defiance. All I want is to grab her face and kiss the ever-lovin' fuck out of her.
"Not a chance in fucking hell." She shakes her head.
"Are you fucking serious right now, Franny?" Cooper says, his voice not low, and I’m about to take a step forward, but Franny beats me to it.