Total pages in book: 80
Estimated words: 76334 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 382(@200wpm)___ 305(@250wpm)___ 254(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 76334 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 382(@200wpm)___ 305(@250wpm)___ 254(@300wpm)
My heart dropped to my feet, then got stepped on and smashed into the concrete. What the fuck? Of course whatever was going on was automatically a disaster waiting to happen, and of course it was my fault. Forget that nothing was actually going on at all, but they got all that shit from a few innocent photos? “That doesn’t even make sense. I got traded to the Rush before the photos came out. They wanted me because I’m fucking good.”
“Not the point, Cullen. You’re supposed to be keeping your head down. You’re not supposed to be in the news for anything other than winning football games.”
“I didn’t fucking do anything!” But then, that had never mattered in the past. Not everything they said about me was true. “Listen, I—shit,” I added when my other line beeped. One glance at the phone and… “Shit!” I said again. “It’s Coach. I gotta answer this call.”
Howie cursed softly. “Keep me posted. Fix this, Cullen.”
“I will.” How shitty was it that I had to fix something when I hadn’t done a damn thing wrong?
I was nervous the whole drive to the Rush facility. Coach had been calm when he called and said they needed to speak with me. That had to be a good sign, right? They likely just wanted an explanation, which I could give to them, and everything would be fine.
Yeah, right. We had yet to win a game with me on the team, and now I was likely about to lose my job. Why would they want to keep me around? I wouldn’t want me. Clearly, I was a liability.
My hands kept trying to wring together, but I forced them to stop. Nerves were waging war with my gut…and maybe even my heart, too. What were they going to say? Clearly, the Rush wasn’t happy with me. They’d taken a chance on me, and contrary to my behavior, I might not be the smartest guy around, but I wasn’t an idiot, and I knew this didn’t bode well for me. Somehow, I’d be in the wrong.
I couldn’t lose football, I fucking couldn’t. Who would I be without that? It was the only thing I’d ever been good at. It was the only thing that made people give a shit about me.
I said goodbye to the Uber driver when we arrived at the Rush facility. My heart tried to climb up my throat and jump out of my mouth the whole time I rode the elevator up.
The redheaded receptionist gave me a smile that was a cross between you’re fucked and I want to fuck you, which was basically my life story in a nutshell.
“I’m supposed to meet—”
“They’re waiting for you,” she cut me off, standing and leading me to a door to a large conference room. I’d seen enough of these for a lifetime.
“Cullen…have a seat,” Larry Dixon, the team owner, who I’d been hoping wasn’t there, said. He was accompanied by Coach Baker, Paul Marsh, and Cynthia Meyer from PR.
“Thank you, sir,” I replied, trying to be respectful instead of biting his head off, which I was known to do when I was cornered. Don’t fuck this up, Atwood. Do not fuck this up.
“Before we get started, do you want your player rep here? Or your agent?” Larry asked, but I shook off his concern. Howie knew something was up, and whatever happened, I would deal with it.
“I’m sure you’ve seen the headlines… There are photos of you and Houston McRae that are…while not explicit or damaging, I have to admit they’re worrying.”
“Would you be calling me in here if I had been that close with a woman?” I couldn’t help but ask, even though it wasn’t the time to play this game with them. It still pissed me off.
“That’s not fair, Atwood,” Coach added. “We took you on this team knowing you’re bisexual. We have two teammates who are together, for Christ’s sake. If there’s a team in the league that’s progressive, it’s the Rush.”
He was right about that, though I knew, just like everyone else, they still had a long way to go.
I nodded, not sure what to really say.
“But the fact is you’ve been known to be in the media for all the wrong reasons. And considering you only have one loss under your belt with us yet and there are already stories going around, we thought it was best that we call you in and remind you of what we expect from our players,” Larry said.
“We don’t want any controversies,” Coach added. “No drama, no wild stories. We want—”
Larry cut him off. “We want you on your best behavior. I’m going to cut to the chase, son. I call it how I see it. I want you to be like Mary fucking Poppins—practically perfect in every way—while you wear the Rush uniform. Spend time with Houston. That’s great. Hell, the whole league and fans from nearly every team love him, so it would probably be good for your reputation. But don’t get caught in…compromising positions with him one night and someone else the next. Don’t invite drama into our locker room. We’re already going to have to figure out how to spin this because the stories are all over the damn place—from the two of you being secret boyfriends to you trying to get him to join your sex cult. You apparently brainwashed him.”