“I do.” Bill rocks back on his heels, looking more confident than ever. “It saves face for this fake-dating rumor and restores hope for all our fans, which will fuel your career and the success of my team for years to come. I started this.” He flashes a quick gaze to the ground. “I admit I didn’t realize how clever the media would be, but we aren’t done yet. Get a good kiss on camera. We can wait a few weeks for everyone to have a chance to believe in fairy tales, and then you can make your statement about not being ready to date. If we give up now, it fuels the story that it is all a farce.”
“You sure love your hockey team, don’t you?” I half chuckle, half wince. “This is an awful lot of trouble to go through to get fans, especially when you don’t need the money.”
“I may have my own bets to even.” He winks at me, rocking back on his heels again.
“Oh really?” A veil lifts as it suddenly all makes sense as to why he’s trying so hard. It’s not about Axl or me. It’s all about his ego. “Do tell?”
“Some secrets are better left secrets, but I’ll say I may have made a bet—or two—about this team to some of my friends, and well, I don’t like to lose.” His smile spreads in a genuine grin, and he reaches out his hand. “What do you say? We help each other out one more time. One more act?”
Ihatethe idea of kissing Axl.
Wait, let’s clarify.
I rather like the idea of kissing Axl, as I’ve been enamored with those lips since first glance. The part I hate is the deception, especially when we promised not to go there. Even if he allows it to happen, it’s bound to massively confuse him. He’s been nothing but a gentleman to me.
It’s a terrible idea.
But if I don’t do any damage control and allow these fake-dating rumors to fester, they could get out of hand, further sinking my career. I’ll never make this tour money back. My crew could go unpaid, and the mere thought of that makes me want to hurl. Not to mention Axl’s shot at the NHL goes down the drain.
I could make it a fast peck.
Sort of like a thank you.
As long as Bill gets it on camera.
Yeah, like a grandma kiss.
That could work.
A thank you and so long . . .
Oh, this is a terrible idea. I press my fingers to my temples, wishing I could bury all my problems, but they aren’t going away. Bill is right. We started this. If we quit now, we look guilty. I already hate the words I’m about to say, but I take his hand in mine. “No promises. I’m not going to force myself on him, but if it feels like I can slip one in there . . .” I roll my eyes as I can’t believe what I’m saying. “I’ll try.”
He eagerly pumps my hand up and down. “You got yourself a pucker-up pact.”
That’s exactly what I’m afraid of.I drop his hand, mulling over how I’m going to get myself into this situation.
It has to be casual.
He can’t suspect a thing.
Maybe I can make it like an accident where I fall on him.
Whatever it is, I have to come up with something quick before these rumors get out of hand.
fourteen
Axl
Due to our morning travel, I missed early practice, but I’m not about to start making excuses. As soon as my feet hit solid ground, I drive over to the arena and run drills by myself. Truthfully, the time alone is cathartic and exactly what I need to clear my head. This whole thing with Sophie has my brain fogged up. Like, I fully understand she’s only pretending to like me, but she’s easy to hang out with, and last night at the charity ball, I wasn’t expecting to feel so protective and evenjealous.
When I looked at Rocco playing that game with her, all I thought about was putting my fist in his face, and the dude’s never done anything to me. He became my poster child for every cheater, and I had a stirring in my gut that said it was time to get even.
Shaking my head, I skate off the ice after I’m done and head to the locker room. I slow as I round the corner, as by now, I half expect Bill Baker to be hiding in the shadows with anotherbackroom deal. I let out a full sigh of relief when I find the boardroom empty.
Maybe he’ll be happy now.
We did what we said we’d do.
