“What the hell are you doing?” I whisper, looking around frantically. Every camera and eye in the area is focused on us. Even both teams are watching us, the Night Hawks all looking as shocked as the girls.
Jayce holds out a small velvet box. He opens it to reveal a gorgeous princess cut diamond set in white gold and it glints under the bright lights above. Before I can fully process what’s going on, he lowers himself to one knee in front of me. My heart starts racing and my jaw drops.
“Jayce… uh, what…?”
“Sutton Holloway,” he begins, his voice booming as a hush settles over the crowd. “I know we haven’t been together long, but I knew the moment we met that you were the woman of my dreams. Will you make me the happiest man in the world? Will you marry me?”
Everything comes to a grinding halt as his words slowly sink into my mind.
What. The. Fuck?
I blink, trying to make sense of all this, but my mind is a haze and I’ve gone numb from shock. The arena lights seem to brighten even more than usual, blurring everything around us. What is he doing? I told him I didn’t want to do his crazy plan. That it wouldn’t work. Yet, now, staring down at him, surrounded by an arena of witnesses, I almost believe him.
Holy shit. Maybe thiscouldreally work, and he’s solved the reporter problem by making such a public display no one can question.
My phone buzzes again and I peek at my smartwatch to see that Leon’s sent me yet another text. Just the sight of his name snaps me out of my daze. Why the hell am I hesitating? Why not jump into this with both feet? It’s the solution to my problems, and I much prefer Jayce’s company to Leon’s. I’d rather pretend to be engaged to him than beactuallyengaged to Leon.
And that’s the key element. This isn’t real. I just need to remember that. It’s not a real engagement.
I meet Jayce’s gaze and he gives me a quick wink. We’re in this together. It’s a ploy. A scheme to get what we both want, and it’s a damn smart one.
Plastering a wide smile on my face, I clasp my hands together and exclaim, “Yes! Yes, of course I’ll marry you, Jayce!”
The crowd goes wild again and Jayce lets out a whoop, then stands back up and takes my hand, sliding the ring on my finger. It’s weighty and I wonder how much he spent on this gorgeous engagement ring for a fake fiancee.
While I’m distracted, he sweeps me up into his arms bridal style.
“Make them believe it,” he whispers in my ear.
Looping my arms around his neck, I smile and kiss his cheek before flashing my ring for all to see. We’re in it now. Past the point of no return. And I’m going to sell it.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN: BREATHE
SUTTON
Grace,Rylee, and Skyler are staring at me and Jayce in total shock, their jaws nearly on the floor. I can only imagine what they all must be thinking right now, and they’ll be chomping at the bit to get answers once the initial dumbfoundment wears off.
I anticipate having to face the barrage of questions they’ll certainly have for me and start to mentally prepare myself, knowing the moment Jayce sets me down, I’ll be swarmed as if I kicked a bee hive.
To my surprise, Jayce doesn’t let me go. He continues to hold me in his arms and turns to skate toward the tunnel leading to the locker room. For a moment, no one follows us, as if the team is also frozen in their shock, but within moments, I hear them crowding out of the rink behind us.
Once we’re outside of the locker room, Jayce sets me on my feet and places a kiss on my forehead.
“Jayce, what…”
“Wait for me right here,” he gently orders. “We’ll talk about everything, I promise.”
I must still be in a state of shock because I just nod obediently. Grinning, he turns and makes his way into the lockerroom and I stare after him in a bit of a daze. Even when I hear hurried footsteps rushing up behind me, I can’t seem to tear my gaze from the closed locker room door he’d disappeared behind.
“Sutton!” I recognize Rylee’s voice before I feel hands on my shoulders, pulling me around, breaking my trance. Grace and Skyler move in on either side of me, and I’m suddenly surrounded.
“Uhhhh.” I give them a nervous, awkward smile. “I can explain…”
“We didn’t even know there was anything going on between you and Jayce!” Skyler exclaims, her eyes wide behind her glasses. “How long have you two been together? Why’d you keep it from us? What about that Leon guy? Did you lose a bet?”
My cheeks flush and I blink, overwhelmed. She’s talking so fast it’s hard to keep up with each of her questions, so I just shake my head hard.
“No, no, guys, listen.” I glance around to make sure no one else is in the corridor with us. “It’s not like that. I think he’s doing this to get our families off our backs. It’s all an act. A ploy he came up with. I turned him down the first time he told me the idea, but I think it might actually be my best option right now.”
