Page 38 of Second Down Fake

“You know I’m going to go home and search until I find the name of this model, right?”

“I’m well aware. Good luck. I dated a lot of models that year.” Diego pulled off the main road and into a subdivision with little cookie cutter cottages lined up in rows. Each house, a replica of the previous in varying shades of yellow, blue, and brown.

“Is this where you live?” He pulled into a driveway in front of a robin’s egg blue house with a wide front porch and a cascade of flowers spilling out of the window boxes and onto the ground. “Did you plant those flowers?”

Diego turned the car off and shook his head. “My mom. I have a landscaper come by once a week and keep the place looking nice. I am not great with lawns. A fact I learned during my first off season.”

“The great Diego Salazar, bad at lawn care.” I unbuckled and opened the car door. “I’m definitely going to the press with that bit of news. Don’t you need security or something?”

He shook his head. “Most of the other players live on the other side of town, in gated neighborhoods. Anytime someone pokes around, my neighbors lie and say they’ve never seen me, haven’t heard of me.”

“Nice neighbors.”

“Yeah,” he sighed, shoulders relaxing. “I like it here. This was the kind of house I wished I’d lived in as a kid.”

Did I know anything about Diego’s past? College, sure, but before that? I’d assumed he’d grown up with some wealth. He certainly acted like a person accustomed to the nicer things in life. But I’d never confirmed that. Never asked.

“Come on,” he said without giving me a chance to ask another question. “Let’s get this call over with.”

THIRTEEN

DIEGO

I stretched my back and neck, sitting down beside Cassandra on the front porch swing. She pulled up the camera on her phone, fluffing her hair and angling us both into frame.

“Ready?” She flashed a smile that made my stomach tumble.

“Yeah, absolutely.” I fidgeted beside her, resting my arm on the back of the swing over her shoulders and then dropping it again. Cassandra’s side pressed against mine, her shoulder resting against my arm, which would piss off her sister, but I couldn’t make myself move.

She pressed the call button. The picture of Becca on her screen was quickly replaced with the real thing.

“The fuck, Cassie?”

“Hey, sister,” Cassandra answered, unbothered by Becca’s seething anger. “How are you?”

“Pissed. Is that Diego?” Becca’s tone set my back ramrod straight. On the off chance she agreed to train me this off season, she’d make my life miserable. “Good. I wanted to talk to him, too.”

“Well, we saved you a phone call.”

“Hey, Bec,” I said, poorly attempting to mimic Cassandra’s ease. “Let us explain.”

“There’s no explanation. I leave town and less than a week later, you’re hitting on my sister? My sister,” she growled, her face drawn and jaw set.

“Calm down,” Cassandra said breezily. “I can explain.”

“Sure.” Becca inhaled, her voice dangerously low. “Explain it to me. Explain why there are pictures of you two popping up everywhere, one of which has Diego wrapped around you like a damn snake in a crowded bar.”

Cassandra pursed her lips, glancing over. I shrugged, shaking my head. The ghost tour, no doubt, but the pictures were news to me.

She pushed on ahead. “Diego offered to show me around the city and some kids took our picture. The whole thing sort of spiraled. Long story short, I’m pretending to be his girlfriend for the season.”

Becca blinked twice, jolting back in her seat. Her face went slack.

“I think we broke her,” Cassandra whispered under her breath.

“No,” Becca stammered. “No. Absolutely not. This is ridiculous. You’re not doing that.”

The icy tone in Becca’s voice made my heart race. Cassandra broke it with a breezy laugh. “Well, bad news. I signed a contract and everything. It’s happening. Sorry to disappoint you.”

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