Free Seduced by the Game by Catherine Gayle, Cassandra Carr, Toni Aleo, Jami Davenport, Cindy Carr, Nikki Worrell, Jaymee Jacobs, V. L. Locey, Bianca Sommerland, Lisa Hollett Page A

back?”
    Karson’s heart sank and
dread filled him as he looked away. “Do you have the money to pay all the
co-pays, for the surgeries if they’re needed? Do you think the doctors wherever
you are can help her the way our doctors can?”
    “We can come back home if
that happens. I’ll protect her,” he said, almost pleading, but Coach shook his
head, his mouth in a straight line as he held Karson’s gaze.
    “I know that you think
this is it, that she is the girl for you, but son, you’re young and haven’t
even begun to see what is out there. I need my daughter to stay here. If you
let her go and allow her to finish school here, then when she graduates, I’ll
give her the money to start her business.”
    As much as he wanted that
for Lacey, he didn’t like the terms that were being offered. He wasn’t going to
allow himself to be pushed into something he didn’t want. He wanted Lacey, but
he also wanted her to live her dreams. “What I don’t understand is why do I
have to let her go? Can’t she stay, and I go? That was the original plan.”
    “No, because she won’t.
She has her mind made up. She’d follow you to the ends of the earth, and she
deserves better than that. She needs security, and being a rookie in the pros
is not going to offer her that. Do you know how much chemo is? How much her
double mastectomy was? Hundreds of thousands of dollars, something you will not
have, but I do. Let her stay here and go to school for free. Let her have the
security I can give her. Let her go, King. I know it will hurt, but it’s what’s
best for her.”
    Karson’s fingers bit into
his thighs as he slowly shook his head. “I’m sorry, but I can’t let her go.
I’ll convince her to stay here. It will work out.”
    Slamming his fist against
the desk, Coach shook his head as he yelled, “I want you out of her life! She
won’t do what’s best for her if you are still there.”
    “Yes, she will. Just let
me convince her to stay here.”
    “No! You aren’t good for
her, Karson. You have to break it off with her. If you don’t, then I’m sorry,
but you can forget about playing tomorrow.”
    “You can’t do that!”
Karson yelled, flying out of his seat. “Teams are coming to watch me tomorrow.
I have to play!”
    “You’re right. You have to
let her go, or not only will you lose your career, but you’ll also lose her.
What girl will want to stay with a loser? Especially when you have nothing to
offer her?”
    Tears stung his eyes as he
looked away, gasping for breath. “Why are you doing this?”
    “Because I love her and
need to protect her. She is all I have left from her mother, and I can’t let
her go.”
    “But I can’t either. I
love her.”
    “If you love her, then let
her go. She will be better without you.”
    “No,” he said, shaking his
head. “We are better together.”
    “You heard me. You have
till tomorrow, King. End it, or I’ll end your career.”
    Taking in a deep breath,
he tried to process everything that was just said to him. He was being
blackmailed, and there was nothing he could do about it. No one would believe
him. Nate Martin was the most respected college hockey coach in the league.
Everyone loved him. Hell, Karson’s own dad loved him. He had no choice. He had
to protect his career, and he had to make sure that Lacey had the life she
deserved, even if it killed him to do it. Coach was right. She had free college
here, and if her cancer did come back, at least here, she would be taken care
of. As much as he wanted to live in his little fantasy world of being a pro and
having the best girl on his arm, he had to realize that it wasn’t going to
happen.
    Looking up at his coach,
he said, “I’ll end it.”
    “Good,” he said with a
nod, running his hand through his blond hair. “And another thing, King, she
can’t ever know about this. I’ll ruin you if she ever finds out. Don’t ever
forget about my connections in the pros.”
    Karson slowly nodded