Derek stared at him.
Then, more quietly, he said, “I didn’t know about your knee.”
“You didn’t ask.”
The words landed harder than Cole intended.
Derek looked away.
For a moment, the younger man seemed to have no response at all.
Then he said, “I’ll pay you for your half of the house.”
Cole frowned.
“What?”
“Not because you won. You didn’t. But I made the offer, and I’m not going to pretend I didn’t.”
“Talk to my attorney.”
“I will.”
Derek hesitated.
“And for what it’s worth, I shouldn’t have made this a public spectacle.”
It wasn’t a full apology.
But it was the first honest sentence Cole had heard from him.
Cole nodded once.
“Then don’t do it again.”
He reached for his bag.
When he stepped back into the main gym, Claire was waiting near the entrance.
Her eyes were red.
“Cole, please. I need to talk to you.”
