As the door swung open, a loud, boomingugh echoed through the room, and I spotted the guy


    sitting at the head of the table.


    Wait a second… he looked familiar.


    Steve jumped in with the intros. “This is Cole, my cue sports buddy and good friend,”


    I stared at the guy, and it clicked–Cole Drago. Thorsten’s son, and now the head honcho of


    VastReach Group.


    I’d looked him up before. Turns out he was into snooker and even won some amateur snooker


    championship.


    Back then, I never would’ve guessed he and Steve were connected, let alone that they’d be this


    close. “And this must be your friend?” Cole said with a grin.


    His tone was friendly, but something about it sent a chill down my spine. His record might look


    squeaky clean, but his dad? Not so much. There was no way he would be as perfect as he


    seemed.


    Guess it’s true what they say–you can’t judge a book by its cover.


    “Keira, just call him Cole from now on. If you ever need anything or run into trouble, go to him,”


    Steve said, pulling out a chair for me.


    Just as he was about to sit down, Cole cut in “Steve, why don’t you sit here and let her sit between


    us? I’d like to get to know her better.”


    My heart skipped a beat. I’m usually cautious around strangers, especially someone like Cole.


    I nced at Steve, hoping for backup, but he didn’t even look up. He just set my ce, arranging


    the


    cutlery and te like it was no big deal. “No need. You can still talkfortably.”


    Relief washed over me. Thank God for Steve. He didn’t throw me under the bus.


    Cole chuckled. “I’ve never seen you so protective of a girl before.”


    Steve finished setting the cutlery, making sure everything was perfectly aligned. ‘She’s like my little


    sister. How could any other girlpare?”


    That was a clear warning to Cole–I wasn’t someone he could mess with.


    Honestly, I was touched.


    Steve had made his point, and Cole seemed to get the hint. Heughed softly and looked over at


    me.” You’re lucky to have Steve looking out for you.”


    Before I could respond, the two of them dived into a conversation about the recent tournament.


    They went on about the match for a while before Cole turned back to me with a polite smile. “We’ve


    been hogging the conversation. You’re not bored, are you?”


    He turned to me with a polite smile. “You’re not bored, are you?”


    “She’s not bored. She knows as much as we do, and her skills are top–notch, evenpared to


    the guys,” Steve said, giving me a nod of approval.


    Cole looked genuinely surprised. “Seriously? In that case, how about we head over to Steve’s ce


    after dinner and y a few rounds?”


    Steve jumped in right away. “Sounds good. You two can y. Out of five rounds, if she wins even


    one, it counts as your loss.”


    “Deal!” Cole agreed without a second thought.


    ? 2024 N?v/el/Dram/a.Org.


    They didn’t bother asking if I wanted to y, but I didn’t object. Going up against Cole could be my


    chance to get closer to Thorsten.


    After dinner, I followed them to Steve’s ce, the pool hall with all the cue games.


    Steve stood beside me and said, “Just y like you do when it’s us. No pressure.”


    I nodded and grabbed a cue, walking over to the table. I nced at Cole. “So, if I win just one


    game, it counts as my victory, right?”


    “Absolutely,” Cole agreed.


    I raised an eyebrow. “And what’s the reward if I win?”


    Coleughed and looked over at Steve. “She wants a reward, huh?”


    Steve shrugged. “You’ve got deep pockets. You can handle it.”


    “Alright,” Cole said, still smiling. He turned back to me. “Name your prize. As long as it’s something


    within my power, it’s yours.”


    I hesitated for a moment before speaking. “I want you to promise me something. Don’t worry, it’s


    nothing illegal or shady. Just a favor.”