“First off, it’s none of your business. And secondly, we weren’t exactly friends.” She looked away again, her eyes scanning the water.
My fingers moved beneath her chin, turning her face toward me, waiting for her gaze to find mine. “Well, we’re friends now. I will fucking ruin that man.”
She shook her head and shrugged. “Just leave it alone. It’s probably the reason he only has men working there. And I haven’t told anyone about this, including my family. They’d freak out. So… this is off the record, Captain.”
“I’m sorry that happened to you. But I’m glad I got you fired from that piece-of-shit job now.”
“Well, you’re not completely off the hook. You were still a total jerk to me when you got me escorted out of the press conference.”
“Why didn’t you just wait until I came out of the restroom?”
“Please. I’d been trying to ask you questions for months. But anytime you were in public, there were journalists swarming you. Most of them are men, and I hate the fact that I’m shorter than all of them.” She rolled her eyes. “I’d jump and wave my hands, but you never saw me.”
Something in my chest squeezed.
Something unfamiliar and foreign.
I didn’t just lust after this woman—I actually cared about her.
I wanted to kill that fucking ex-boss of hers for the way he’d treated her.
And I was pissed at myself for not being more aware of her efforts to talk to me in the past.
My hand still rested beneath her chin, my gaze searching hers. Flickers of gold and copper bounced around those dark, gorgeous eyes. “I see you now, sweetheart.”
“It’s about damn time,” she whispered and then chuckled.
“Agreed. So how about today, we change things up?”
“How so?” she asked.
“We’ll finish the workout back at my place, and then I’m going to shadow you today. I want to spend a day in the life of Brinkley Reynolds.”
She smiled. “What? Why?”
“Because I’ve let you into my life, and I want to see what yours is like.”
“Well, I shadow you most of the day, so that may not be very exciting for you.”
I barked out a laugh. “I want you to do what you’d do if you weren’t working with me.”
“Really?”
“Yes. We’re friends, right? That’s what friends do.”
She nodded. “Okay. Prepare yourself. My days can be very exciting. I don’t know if you can handle it.”
I let my hand drop from her face because the urge to kiss her was too fucking strong. I stepped back and reached for the kayak and helped her climb back in. Then I jumped in myself, tipping us over two more times before we finally figured out how to both get in without falling. I’d laughed my ass off as she’d sputtered water every time we’d tipped over.
We were both soaked by the time we made our way back to my place.
I finished my weight workout and took a quick shower. Brinkley left to catch a shower herself, and then I was on my way over to meet her at her house.
Was I nervous?
I spent every day with this woman.
Why was spending a day in her life any different from what we did every other day?
My phone rang just as I pulled in front of her place, letting me know it was Drew.
“What’s up, brother?”
“Have you been on the internet today? Seen a newspaper?”
“No. I’m in Cottonwood Cove. Nobody here gives a shit about what’s happening out in the real world.” I laughed. I knew Brinkley’s story about where I was going to play wasn’t going to break until the end of the week. She’d made a deal with Sports Today that she would break the story in their magazine, and they’d made it clear they’d like to bring her on full time in the future, as they hoped they would get the complete story that she was writing about me.
He chuckled. “Brinkley Reynolds’ picture is splashed everywhere, dude. That pap caught a photo of her jumping in front of you and telling him to step the fuck off.”
I scrubbed a hand down my face. “That fucker. It’ll blow over.”
“Not sure. People on the internet seem to be loving it. I mean, she’s this hot-as-hell woman jumping in to rescue the big, bad Lincoln Hendrix.”
“Are you drunk?” I asked dryly.
“Fuck off. I’m telling you, it’s a big fucking deal. People are running with it. It’ll work out nicely with her announcement, though. Everyone will know you’re working together, not dating. Right now, everyone wants to know who she is. But this has definitely drowned out Jaqueline’s interviews.”
“Never a dull moment.”
“Where are you?”
“I’m picking her up. She’s going to show me around town. I’m shadowing her today instead of the other way around.”
He laughed. “You like her. Why don’t you just admit it?”
“I do not. We’re friends. We work together. She also has a no-dating-professional-athletes rule. She’s pissed at me more often than she’s not. And I’m moving across the country soon. There are a million reasons why I shouldn’t go there. Can’t happen.”
“My, oh my. This is so fun to watch. I’ve never seen you like this, Linc. I’ve got to admit—I like seeing you squirm.”
“I don’t squirm. And you’re an asshole. But I do need a favor.”
“Name it,” he said.
“We are never giving so much as a breadcrumb to Athlete Central as long as Harvey Talbert is there. Can you make sure all your clients are aware that the dude is a class-A creep?”
“Abso-fucking-lutely. And since I’d reached out to get Brinkley her job back, he’s been trying to keep the communication open for some future interviews. I’ll shut it all down.”
“Thank you. Let him know that as long as I’m an athlete, he won’t so much as get a nod from me. He’s a fucking piece of shit.”
“Well, I guess we know why she didn’t take the job back.”
“Yep. Thanks, brother. We’ll talk soon.”
I ended the call and got out of the car. When I made my way up her walkway to the front door, she pulled it open before I knocked.
“My phone has been ringing off the hook. The gig is up, Captain. Apparently, people know I’m working with you. I’m getting all sorts of job offers.” She chuckled and then did some sort of little twirly dance.
“Yeah, Drew just called. It’ll set up your announcement nicely. And the good news is, you will have options for where you want to work when this is all said and done.”
Thoughts of this coming to an end didn’t sit well with me.
I shook it off and focused on today. Now.
Just like I always did.
She invited me in, and I glanced around her place. I’d only ever made it to the front door, and I’d never been invited inside. The place was cute and cozy.
Very Brinkley.
She was wearing a white tank top and a pair of denim overalls, just like the first day that I’d met her.
“Exactly. It’s all very exciting. Everything is set with Sports Today. They sent over my contract for the announcement, and they keep bringing up a future job opportunity for me. It’s madness.” She smiled and threw her hands up in the air and shrugged.