Page 91 of Second Down Fake

"Do you want to take this conversation down to the bar?" I asked. "Or do I need to pick a fancy hat?"

"Nah, I need a drink." Rob pushed himself off the ground and gestured for us to follow.

We walked downstairs, skirting around the kitchen where Mila excitedly showed her grandmother the cookies, and pushing through a set of doors into the backyard. A dense forest of trees buffered Rob's tract of land from the noise of the city and the backyard felt like an isolated ranch rather than a suburb farm.

"Did you buy Mila a pony?" I asked, hooking a thumb at the fence surrounding a red barn.

"No," Rob growled. "Not yet. Maybe when she's seven."

"He's definitely buying her a pony." Noa stage whispered.

Rob opened a shed and stalked inside.

"Quite the workshop you have here," I said with an awed whistle as I followed inside. The exterior was little more than a ramshackle barn, but the interior was pristine with shiny metal vats on the back wall and a bar with six taps behind a row of stools. "Do you have a bunch of friends I don't know about?"

Rob slid behind the bar and grabbed a handful of small glasses. "What the fuck are you talking about?"

"The bar set up. You've got..." I eyed the bar before taking a seat. "Ten stools which leads me to believe you have other people who come over here. Unless this is some fancy bar simulator you just made for fun."

"Noa's my friend. And he's a big dude."

"I don't take up an entire bar." Noa slid in beside me, taking an offered glass from Rob. "He doesn't have any other friends."

"Who needs friends?" Rob muttered. "And tell me what you think about this imperial."

"Tell him it's great, or he gets all whiney." Noa knocked his elbow into me with a grin.

I took a sip. "Boozy."

Rob rolled his eyes, pouring himself a pint. He leaned on the bar. "So, why the hell are you here, anyway?"

I shrugged. "Can't I just stop by to see my favorite center and his buddy?"

"I hope they let us scrimmage in practice." Rob took a swig of beer. "I'm going to tackle your rude ass into the turf."

"I'm guessing Cassandra's not around today?" Noa asked.

"City walking tour and then a shift at the bar," I grumbled, wiping condensation off the glass with my thumb. "I'm going to stop by at closing and pick her up."

"You realize you're not actually dating this girl, right?" Rob raised an eyebrow. "Because seems like you're doing a ton of boyfriend shit for someone you're paying to pretend to be your girlfriend."

I blew out an exasperated breath. "Trust me, I'm trying to get her to date me. It's not going well."

Rob snorted.

I ignored him. "She's leaving at the end of the month. When we made the deal, I thought she'd stay through the regular season. But Bec's lease is up at the end of the year and James wrote the contract to end in November."

"So, real soon." Noa frowned at his drink.

"Too soon."

"If she wanted to stay, she could." Rob threw back the rest of his beer and poured a second glass from the tap. "Maybe she just doesn't want to date you. Or maybe she knows you'll just dump her at the end of the season, anyway. Why not be the first one to leave? Sounds smart to me."

Noa shook his head. "Not helpful, bud."

"I'm being realistic."

"You're being an asshole," Noa stated matter-of-factly. He turned in his chair. "Ignore Rob. He's a work in progress. I thought Cassandra was kicking around until January?"

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