The woman taps her pen against the papers in her hand. “That’s a fairly generic answer, Cooper. To you, what makes a best friend?”
It’s a question I don’t have to think twice about. “It’s someone who will sneak out of the house with me at one in the morning just to lie on the beach, or go for a walk. It’s someone who I know will be there for me no matter what. Someone to Irish goodbye with. Who will love my family just as much as I love them.” My eyes burn a little thinking about something I’m not sure I’m ever going to have. At least, not with the specific person I’m thinking of. “A person who will shove a burger in my face one second and look at me like I’m the only person in the world the next, because I know damn well that she’s the only one in mine.”
The two across from me look at each other with pursed lips. “That feels,” the man starts, “oddly specific.” For the first time this entire meeting, I feel like they’re actually stumped.
I eye my hands as they link together, feeling ice cold all of a sudden. “Most of us have had a friendship that taught them what they deserve, haven’t we?”
They nod quickly.
“On that note, we wanted to ask you a few questions about your,” he pauses. “Your reputation, let’s say. Strip clubs. Some rumors about bringing girls into your hotel room before games?—”
I let out a nervous chuckle. “I think it’s important to remember that that’s a rumor,” I tell him. “And a fairlyserious accusation. I would never put my team in jeopardy like that.”
I did do it once. It was a mistake, and I wasn’t caught, but the girl did talk. It wasn’t my finest moment, and it’s not something I’d ever do again.
Now, the strip clubs… all I’m going to say is there was a time I just wanted to drown myself in misery, and I don’t think I’ve ever seen ahappyman in a strip club.
“Okay. It’s a rumor. But rumors usually come from somewhere, even if it’s just behavioral. The truth remains that you’re known for being a bit of a playboy, am I incorrect?”
I shift uncomfortably in my chair. Unfortunately, he’s correct. “I have been known to have a little fun in the past, yes.” It’s a title multiple articles have assigned to me as I attended charity events or ended up in the news for being an idiot. I don’t like it.
Technically, last weekend was the past. I was spotted leaving a hotel with a model, despite our best efforts to go incognito.
My behavior isn’t something I like thinking about, and I fidget uncomfortably. I don’t like being alone. I desperately want to find someone. But no one isher,and there’s not a day that goes by that life does me a favor and allows me to forget it.
The air feels thick as I look around. Production crowds us with lights, cameras, and microphones glued to their ears. A tingle shoots down my spine as I become all too aware of them.
And I smile. I smile big. “I think that I’m thirty years old, and all of my friends are settling down. Why not go big or go home?” Winking at the camera, I wait a beat until theexpertsseem satisfied, and I settle back into my couch, my heart racing.
The woman—God, I should have probably remembered their names, but everything about the start of this was a blur,and it’s too late to ask for them now—looks me over, and I can feel her reading me to filth in her head. “You seem awfully confident sometimes, Cooper, but are you really?”
“Why wouldn’t I be?” I ask. Small spots fill my vision, and I press my nail into my palm to get rid of them. I just need to get through this. “I have a great job that I love, for a city that I adore, and,” I pause, letting out a low chuckle. “My mom blessed me with my looks. I know I got lucky in life. Why not embrace that?”
The two glance at each other again, judgment clear as day in their beady eyes, and my jaw tightens.
Their questions continue for what feels like ages, before they abruptly end, pack up, and start leaving.
I would be lying if I said that I felt at ease. The entire interview has made me nervous for the rest of the show.
What the hell did I sign myself up for?
“You did such a good job,” Edward says as he walks over, handing me a water bottle. “You got through the hardest part.”
“I wasn’t expecting to be filmed and asked about my family so early on.” I knock back the drink, watching him from the corner of my eye.
Edward winces. “I think you’ll find that it’s probably going to be in your best interest.”
I doubt that.
CHAPTER 8
AMARA
Mila was over early in the morning to do my hair and makeup. We kept my natural curls, only adding a small amount of makeup to my face. “We don’t want to erase you,” she had said.
And I appreciate it.
I was told that the crew would be here around two in the afternoon, and that we would be shooting well into the night. Mila and I spent the rest of the morning cleaning up my place.
