Page 7 of Offsides

“We both know Effie’s wrath, so yes. But tell me, is this just about the fact that you have to have dinner with a reporter? Or is there something about this reporter?”

“Why would you think that?”

“Because I know you. I know that you are the king of easygoing, and that you believe more than anything in living life to the fullest and enjoying every day. I know about the promise you made. If anyone understands, it’s me, dude. I still talk to Anya, how many years after her death? Which is why I also know when you’re tied up in knots over something.”

“I’m not tied up in knots.”

“You most certainly are,” Gunnar corrected him. “And before you say ‘nothing good comes from reporters,’ I got it. But I also know you know how to handle them, and while you hate talking to them, you do it when needed. So, there is something else at play here.”

“There’s not,” he lied, hating that his friend knew him so well.

“Fine.” Gunnar shrugged, leaning forward in his chair and tossing his phone onto the desk. “Then call the girl. You’re free on Thursday.”

Cowboy huffed, knowing Gunnar was right. He reached into his pocket, pulling out his own phone and scrolling to the contact for the one person he’d never thought he’d call.

“Theo, it’s Britt Callahan. What are you doing Thursday night?”

* * *

“You’ll never guess who I just got off the phone with,” Theo teased, her heart racing with excitement as she slung open the door to her producer’s office.

“The look on your face tells me it’s someone like Bryce Donald,” Dana Marini said, putting down her pen and swiveling her chair to face Theo. “Please tell me it’s Bryce Donald.”

“Better. Britt Callahan.”

“You think Britt Callahan is better than Bryce Donald?” Dana said, an incredulous look on her face.

“Absolutely.”

There was no doubt that Bryce Donald, quarterback for the Nashville Fury, was hot. With those deep blue eyes paired with the light brown hair, the guy looked like he should be gracing the cover of a magazine rather than tossing a ball. But there was very little else about the guy that held Theo’s attention.

Britt “Cowboy” Callahan, on the other hand, was an entirely different story. For both personal and professional reasons.

Crashing down into the weird-shaped brown guest chair in the office, Theo sucked in a deep breath, trying to keep her excitement at bay. There weren’t many things in life that got her this excited anymore. She’d learned back in college that it was best to keep her emotions under control at all times, no matter what the circumstances. But this—this was too good not to get excited over.

She almost hadn’t answered the phone when it rang. The device had been locked in her desk drawer, hidden away so it didn’t tempt distraction while she organized her notes from her interview with the athletic director from Georgia Tech that morning. If it hadn't been for the rattling from the phone vibrating against the metal of the drawer making that God-awful noise, she would have continued to ignore it. Cursing herself for forgetting to turn it to silent, she’d whipped open that drawer, only to be shocked at the name flashing across the screen. Whatever forces were out there in the universe that had made the stars align like this, well, she owed them a drink.

“I guess if Britt Callahan were taking me on a date, I might be this excited too,” Dana said with a laugh. “Although I still think I would prefer Bryce Donald.”

“It’s not a date.”

It wasn’t.

That might have been what it was being called at the auction, and for lack of a better term, Theo was still using it. But for as much as her body betrayed her when she thought about Cowboy, her intention was entirely professional. Just like everything else she did. There was no time for dating—or even time for revived teenage crushes. Only time for getting the exclusive interview she wanted so badly she could taste it.

“I’m confused. Did you or did you not spend hundreds of dollars so you could go to dinner with this man?”

Dana leaned forward on the desk, staring Theo down the same way her mother would. In some ways, Dana Marini was like a mother to Theo, having taken her under her wing when Theo was still just an intern. It had been more than a decade since then, and Theo didn’t know where she would be without this powerhouse of a media maven helping to guide her. When it came to sports reporting, Dana had been there, done that, and—forget the T-shirt—she had a box full of awards to prove it. She was friend, mentor, and boss, all rolled into one. And was currently giving Theo a look that demanded an explanation.

“I did. But it was so I could get a one-on-one interview with him. Something no one else in this town has been able to get. Fuck, something no reporter ever has been able to secure. I’m not looking to let him wine and dine me. Just to give me more than a well-rehearsed answer at a press conference.”

“And here I thought my little rule follower actually stepped outside the lines for a moment.”

“I’m not breaking any rules. No questionable ethics. It was my money. I’m free to do with it what I want. All I did was make a sizeable charitable donation.”

“All the more reason you should just let him take you to dinner and enjoy the evening with a man who is easy on the eyes. Not every man is Tim, you know.”

Theo sighed, feeling the frustration rise within her. Who was this woman? Where was the no-nonsense, hard-nosed reporter who had helped mold her into what she was? Was she really advocating that Theo go on a date with Cowboy?