Alice is stunned into silence. A rare thing for her. “You can take your time and think about it.”
“I don’t need to think about it. If you need help, I’m there.”
“But—”
I hold up a hand. “I might also have a reason for saying yes.”
“Why?” Alice hops up onto the counter and sips on her drink.
I scrub a nervous hand over the back of my neck. “The league has been getting some bad press about players and their personal lives. Doing things that don’t cast them in the best light. The league isn’t happy about it.”
“Okay.”
“Basically, we’ve heard we are going to be held to an even higher standard. A player code of conduct, if you will.”
Alice looks confused. “I thought the league already had that?”
I wiggle my head back and forth. “That’s more on the ice. But now it’s going off the ice, too.”
I see when the lightbulb goes off. “And a quickie wedding in Vegas isn’t the way to support this new initiative.”
“Got it in one, Froggie.”
“So you need to stay married to me.”
I nod. “And you need to stay married to me.”
There’s a hard set in her shoulders. If Alice could get her trust fund any other way, I know she would. I’d give her the money myself, but she would never take it. All she has ever wanted was to own her own shop. Something she told me the day we met. Which is why I know her favorite flower and how she earned her nickname Froggie.
Because she called me a ranunculus when we met because I’m charming and it translates to little frog.
My sweet best friend. The one that got drunk and talked flowers with a complete stranger. One who never wants help from anyone and always insists on doing things herself.
“Why don’t we eat and discuss the logistics?” I offer.
Alice smirks at me. “You’re only hungry because you skated today.”
“And? You got my favorite. How can you expect me to not want to eat?” I nod toward the bag next to her. “You know I love Maria’s.”
“What can I say?” She hands over a Styrofoam container. “I was trying to butter you up.”
“Damn. I’m an easy target.” I open the lid and breathe in the spicy scent of chorizo and peppers. I shovel half of it into my mouth in one bite. “You could get me to say yes to anything with these babies.”
Alice smiles, taking a much smaller bite of her vegetarian one. “I’ll be filing that away for the future.”
“Okay, rules,” I say around another mouthful. “It’s safe to assume you already have a list?”
“I mean, nothing that I wrote down, but yes.”
“Hit me.” I set the container down on the granite counter next to me.
“You want them all?”
I nod. “Yes.”
“Okay.” She wipes her hands on her leggings. “We’ll need to be seen in public. I’m thinking a few dates a month.”
“Well, we already hang out as it is, so I can work with that.”
