The Ruthless Captain's Physiotherapist

I walked into the arena wearing a green dress and a smile that felt real for the first time in weeks. The lights were bright, the crowd was loud, and the Vultures were playing a charity game that had brought almost every important person in the city together. Fancy people filled the seats and private boxes, dressed in expensive clothes and talking about things that seemed far removed from my ordinary life. I held my small bag tightly as I made my way toward the family box, believing that my future was finally starting to look good.

Jace, my fiancé, was on the ice with the rest of the team. Everyone said he would go far, and my father liked him, which meant everything in my family. My father was not easily impressed, so having his approval had always made me feel certain that I had chosen the right person.

My phone buzzed in my hand. I looked down and saw an email from the sports medicine program I had applied to weeks ago. My eyes moved quickly over the message until I reached the part I had been waiting for. They had offered me a place in the program, and I couldn't stop the happiness that spread through me. I had worked so hard for that opportunity, and now I finally had a chance to build a career of my own. I wanted to tell Jace immediately, so I looked up at the giant screen above the rink, searching for him among the players.

Then the screen changed.

The game disappeared, replaced by a live view of Suite 14 in the hotel attached to the arena. At first, I didn't understand what I was looking at. Then I saw Jace standing inside the suite, and my stomach tightened when I noticed the woman beside him.

Maya.

My younger sister.

I stared at the screen, waiting for my mind to find another explanation. Jace reached for her, slipped his hand into her hair, and pulled her closer before kissing her. The camera stayed fixed on them, giving everyone in the arena a clear view of what was happening.

The cheering stopped.

For a few seconds, the entire arena seemed frozen. Then the whispers began, spreading through the crowd as people turned toward one another. Someone laughed, and soon other people joined in. The sound grew louder with every second, making my face burn as I stood there unable to move.

My phone was still in my hand, and the email with my good news was still open on the screen. Only moments ago, I had been thinking about my future and imagining myself telling Jace that I had finally been accepted. Now that future felt like it belonged to someone else. Everything I thought I had built had broken in front of hundreds of people.

My father reached me quickly, his face hard and angry. "Naya, we are leaving now."

"I didn't know," I tried to say, but my voice shook.

"Quiet. We will handle it at home. No scenes."

I looked at him, hoping he would ask if I was okay, but he didn't. His attention was already on the crowd and the people around us, as if the biggest problem was what everyone would say about our family. My mother stood behind him and looked away without a word. Maya was still upstairs with Jace, while Jace's people were already on their phones, making calls and trying to control the damage.

Everyone seemed to know how to protect Jace.

No one seemed to know how to protect me.

I left the family box alone and walked through the halls with my head down. The staff members stared as I passed, although most of them quickly looked away when I caught them. My shoes made sharp sounds against the floor, and I could feel tears pushing against my eyes. I refused to let them fall. Not here, and not in front of all these people.

I still had an appointment in the Vultures' medical wing beneath the arena. I had booked it weeks ago because money was tight, and the check was important for my work. Cancelling wasn't an option, especially now that I had received the offer from the sports medicine program. I needed to keep moving, even if everything inside me wanted to stop.

When I reached the reception desk, I gave the woman my name. She checked the computer, then looked at me for a little longer than necessary. She already knew what had happened. Everyone probably did. She handed me a badge and pointed down the hallway without saying anything.

"Thank you," I said quietly before walking away.

The medical area was quiet and clean, with white walls and soft lights. I sat down and pressed my shaking hands together, trying to calm myself. When I looked at my green dress, it suddenly felt like it belonged to someone else. I had chosen it because tonight was supposed to be special, but now I couldn't remember the last time I had felt more foolish.

A door opened, and I looked up.

A tall man with dark hair and cold gray eyes stood in the doorway. I recognized him immediately from the news. Killian Romano, former captain of the Vultures. His career had ended on the same night my brother got hurt, and the story had never really left the hockey world.

"Miss Cole," he said in a low, steady voice. "You are early."

I stood. "I can come back another day if you're busy."

"No. Come in now."

He stepped aside, and I walked into the room. The door closed behind us, leaving the two of us alone. Killian didn't smile or make any effort to make me comfortable. He simply watched me as if he already knew the story everyone else had been whispering about.

"Sit."

I sat on the edge of the chair while he took the seat across from me. The table between us felt too small, especially with the way his gray eyes stayed fixed on mine.

"I know who you are," Killian said.

My stomach tightened. "I'm only here for the consultation."

"Is that all?" He leaned forward slightly. "Your family name is already all over the news. Your fiancé, your sister, the public mess upstairs, and now you walk into my building."

"It isn't your building."

"Close enough." His expression remained cold. "Your brother took more than a season from me. He took the rest of my career. It was a dirty hit. A bad call. I never played the same after that night."

I knew the official story. My brother had always called it an accident, and the league had agreed. Killian clearly believed something different.

"I wasn't there that night," I said. "I was in school."

"Doesn't matter. Blood is blood." His voice stayed calm, but the anger underneath it was clear. "Your family name means something in this city, and now you're here asking for help from the same team your family damaged."

Heat rose in my face. "I paid for this appointment. It's normal. I need the check for my own work."

"What work?"

"Sports medicine. I received an offer today, right before everything fell apart."

One eyebrow lifted.

"An offer, and then the screen showed your fiancé with your sister. The timing is bad."

"Yes," I whispered. "Very bad."

Silence filled the room. Somewhere above us, I could still hear the faint noise of the arena. The charity game continued as if nothing had happened, while my entire life had changed in the space of a few minutes.

Killian studied me for several seconds before saying, "You look like you want to run."

"I do."

"But you stayed for this meeting. Why?"

"Because I need it. I can't afford to miss it, not after today."

He nodded slowly. "Honest. I like that better than lies."

Something shifted in the room. He was still cold and distant, but at least he was listening.

"Your father threw you out of the box," he said.

It wasn't a question.

I frowned. "How do you know?"

"I saw the feed. Everyone did. Your father doesn't hide his moods very well."

I looked away because I hated that he was right. "He told me to handle it privately, like it was my fault."

"Was it?"

"No." The answer came out sharper than I intended. "I did nothing wrong. Jace did. Maya did. Not me."

Killian studied me for a long moment, his eyes moving over my face before settling on mine again. "Most people in your position would cry or yell. You're sitting here talking as if this is a normal day."

"It isn't a normal day."

"I know." He leaned back in his chair. "Your brother cost me everything I worked for. Years of training, titles, the future I planned, all gone because of one hit. And now his sister sits in front of me after her own public fall."

The weight of his words pressed against my chest. "I'm sorry for what happened to you, but I'm not my brother."

"Maybe not. But you carry the name. That's enough for some people."

I held his gaze. "Is it enough for you?"

He didn't answer immediately. The room became quiet again, and I found myself wondering what he really wanted from me. There was something about the way he looked at me that made me feel as if he had been waiting for this meeting, even though that didn't make sense.

"We'll do the consultation," he said at last. "Since you're here. But understand something. I don't forget, and I don't forgive easily."

I nodded, my throat tight. "Understood."

He stood and walked to the counter, where a folder with my name on it was waiting. After reading through it for a few seconds, he looked back at me. "Your file is clean. Good marks. Strong recommendations. The offer you received today makes sense."

I stayed silent because I didn't trust my voice.

"Does your family know about the offer?"

"No. I was going to tell them tonight after the game."

"And now?"

I looked down at my hands. "Now I don't know if I have a family left to tell."

Killian closed the folder and returned to the table, sitting closer this time. "You're in a hard spot, Naya. Public shame, family turned away, future hanging by a thread, and you've walked into the one place where people still remember what your brother did."

"I had no choice."

"There is always a choice." His voice dropped lower. "You could have stayed home. You could have hidden. Instead, you came here."

"I needed the appointment."

"Or maybe you needed something else."

I shook my head, not understanding what he meant. "I just need to get through today, then tomorrow, then the next day."

He studied me again, and the way he looked at me made my skin feel warm and cold at the same time. It was as if he could see past the dress and the calm expression I was trying to keep in place.

"Your fiancé is done in this city," he said. "The team will cut him if the noise gets louder. Your sister will face the same. Your father will protect the family name first. You already saw that."

"I know."

"And you? What will you do?"

I took a breath before answering. "I will take the offer if it still stands. I will leave and start over."

"Leave the city?"

"If I have to."

For the first time, Killian smiled. It was small and sharp. "You think it's that simple."

"It has to be."

"Nothing is simple when your family and the Vultures are involved."

He stood and walked toward the door, opened it slightly, then stopped and turned back to me.

"We're not done. The consultation is only the start. I have questions about your brother, about that night, and about what your family knew."

My pulse jumped. "I wasn't there. I told you."

"People always say that. Then the truth comes out later."

"There is no other truth."

He walked closer until he stood in front of my chair. I had to tilt my head back to meet his eyes. He was tall and broad, the kind of man who had once owned the ice and now seemed to own every room he entered.

"I look at you and I see the cost," he said quietly. "Your brother's hit took my future. Your family's silence kept it buried, and now you sit here like you're the victim of the day."

"I'm not asking for pity."

"Good. I don't give it."

He reached out and took the badge from around my neck. His fingers brushed my skin for a second before he placed the badge on the table.

"You'll come back tomorrow. Same time. We continue."

I stared at him. "I only booked one appointment."

"Now you have two."

"Why?"

His eyes stayed locked on mine. "Be here."

I stood, still confused. "Why help me at all?"

Killian's expression didn't change. "Who said I'm helping you?"

The words hit harder than I expected.

He opened the door fully. "Go home, Naya, or wherever you can go. Sleep if you can. Tomorrow we talk more, and I'll decide what your family still owes me."

I walked past him on legs that felt weak. The hallway seemed brighter than before, and the noise from the arena sounded louder. I didn't look back, but I could feel his eyes following me all the way to the exit.

Outside, the night air was cool against my face. Cameras had already gathered near the main doors, and several reporters turned toward me as soon as I stepped outside. News moved fast, and I knew my name would be everywhere by morning.

I kept walking away from the lights and noise while my phone remained silent inside my bag. There were no calls from Jace, no messages from Maya, and nothing from my father. Only the memory of Killian Romano stayed with me, especially the way he had looked at me as if he already knew every secret my family had kept hidden.

To him, my brother's injury was still an open wound, and somehow I had become part of the payment he planned to collect.

I didn't know what waited for me tomorrow. I only knew I would show up because I had nowhere else to go, and because the man with the gray eyes had already decided that our conversation wasn't finished. Maybe he wasn't finished with me either.

The street stretched ahead, dark and quiet, as I walked into it alone. My green dress moved around my legs, and my future felt smaller than it had an hour ago, but it was still mine. For now, that was enough. I would fight for it, even if the first fight was with Killian Romano himself.

**Killian POV**

I sat alone in the medical office, staring at the list of names the league had forced on me. After my latest injury, they wanted an outside specialist, someone who was independent from the team and could handle my recovery without getting involved in team politics. I had already rejected every candidate they sent. Some were too soft, some talked too much, and others seemed more interested in pleasing me than doing their job. None of them would last a week under my rules.

Then Naya Cole's file landed in front of me.

I knew the name immediately. I knew her brother, and I knew the price that night on the ice had cost me years ago. Her photo looked up from the page, showing a woman with dark eyes and a firm jaw, her expression serious and completely different from the smiling faces most people put on their professional profiles. The notes said she was good at her job, had top scores, strong recommendations, and a clean record until