Total pages in book: 129
Estimated words: 124005 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 620(@200wpm)___ 496(@250wpm)___ 413(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 124005 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 620(@200wpm)___ 496(@250wpm)___ 413(@300wpm)
We’re snuggled on the couch, basking in the afterglow of amazing sex when my phone buzzes on the coffee table.
Dallas’s arms tighten around me. “You should ignore that.”
“It might be the girls.” I tap the back of his hand, knowing full well it isn’t.
He reluctantly releases me, and I grab my device, opening the email and scanning the contents. “Shit. No. What the hell?”
“What’s going on?”
“Flip’s endorsement campaign with Milk has been pulled. He’s been doing so good.” I stand and scan the rest of the email, trying to figure out what happened. I pull up Flip’s contact and call him right away.
“I just got the email,” he says through the speakerphone. “There were a few students in the elevator on the way up this afternoon, and they wanted pictures. That’s normal. I didn’t think anything of it, but one of them had coolers. I’m used to being in places where that kind of thing is controlled, Hemi. I’ve been off the radar for months, and now I look like the worst kind of douchebag.”
“Did they post the pictures?”
“Yeah, and I’m tagged. I’m pretty sure they’re underage, too.”
“Are you at home now?”
“Yeah.”
“I’m coming over so we can figure this out.”
“Are you sure? I know it’s late.”
“I’m sure. We can make a game plan for tomorrow. I’ll be there in a bit.”
I end the call, already walking to the door.
Dallas’s brow furrows. “Do you really need to deal with this right now? It’s going on ten thirty, and you’ve been running all day.”
“It’s my job to figure out how to fix this. This isn’t just a Flip issue. It’s now a team issue.”
“I know, but you need to rest.” He follows me to the door. “What can you do about it now? All the offices are closed. People aren’t answering their emails at this moment.”
“I won’t sleep tonight with this hanging over my head. And neither will Flip.” I kiss him on the cheek. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Please text when you get to Flip’s so I know you made it safely. You’ve got this.” He pulls me in for a tight hug and kisses me one last time before he lets me go.
As I walk out the door, I worry once again that I’m right. I’m powerless against my nature, and if I give in to the feelings that want to settle in my heart, it’ll end up broken all over again.
CHAPTER 36
DALLAS
Wilhelmina, being the badass powerhouse she is, manages to get everything under control with the Milk campaign and Flip doesn’t lose his biggest endorsement. It was a matter of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Thankfully, everyone in that elevator was of legal drinking age, but it could have gone very wrong. As it is, the ordeal has taken all of Wills’s bandwidth the past couple of days, so I haven’t seen much of her. With training camp in full swing and season startup around the corner, I want to make the most of what’s left of preseason.
The team has just finished morning skate, and I have a two-hour break before we hit the gym for our workout. If the timing is right, I can get a little one on one with Wills and take her out for lunch. I peek my head into her office and take a moment to appreciate the fact that this woman is my girlfriend. Like most days, her hair hangs in loose waves over her shoulders. She’s dressed in a bright blue blouse and black dress pants. She looks beautiful, and like the woman of my damn dreams.
I knock on the door, and she glances up from her computer, lifting a finger in my direction before she continues typing.
“I can come back later.”
“Just a minute. I’m almost done.”
She’s in business mode, and I’ve interrupted her. But this feels a lot like how she responded before she stopped hating me and started letting me love her. But she’s not in love with you. That niggling voice in the back of my head has gotten louder lately. Every time I say those three little words to her, and she doesn’t say them back, it feels like a barb working its way under my skin. I question whether she’ll ever feel that way. I want forever with her. I want this engagement to be as real for her as it is for me. But every time she puts off another discussion with her moms, or tells the Badass Babe Brigade that there’s no rush to plan, it feels like reopening a wound that hasn’t healed.
She finally stops typing and looks up, her expression expectant. “What can I do for you, Dallas?”
“I’ve got a couple hours before my workout. Do you want to go for lunch?”
Her smile is pinched. “That’s sweet, but I’ve got a lot on my plate today, and a lunch date isn’t in the cards.” Her phone buzzes, and her eyes drop to find it on her desk.