Page 22 of The Blame Game

Kate leaned forward. “If option two is what feels most comfortable, we’ll go with that. It’ll be a little more work for both of you but it’s our best shot at keeping your sexuality under wraps.”

Dom nodded, his brow furrowed.

Kate’s tone turned gentle. “I know how much you value your privacy, Dom. I know how little desire you have to come out. I truly don’t want to force you into doing that before you’re ready. This isn’t a scandal at the moment, it’s merely an item of interest. I didn’t want you to be blindsided by it.”

“I appreciate that. I need to speak to my agent before I make any decisions though.”

“I can give you a little time. Maybe twenty-four hours. A lot will depend on if anything else comes out in the meantime, but you should speak to your agent first. There’s certainly time for that.”

“Right.” Dom cleared his throat. “We’ll get back to you then, if that’s alright?”

“Sounds good.” She smoothly closed her laptop, then settled her clasped hands on the lid. “That being said, I don’t think you should be spotted leaving here, Sawyer. It’s quite likely you’ll be photographed.”

Dom blinked. “Paparazzi? Here?”

Kate laughed. “We’re in Toronto, not Los Angeles. I simply mean that there tend to be people with high-quality camera phones everywhere. I did some searching, and you living in this building doesn’t appear to be public, internet-available knowledge. But it is known that you’re in a high-rise near downtown and on the water. All it would take was someone who lives here sharing that information online or taking your picture and they could pinpoint the exact location.”

Dom shuddered. “Yeah, true.”

“Uhh, I want to help but I do have a job to get to,” Shea reminded them both. “I have two jobs, in fact. In addition to being a stylist, I work as a physical therapist.”

Kate’s frown deepened. “Ahh. Was Dom ever your patient?”

“No,” Shea said truthfully. “We met when he was looking for a stylist through Select Image Consulting.”

Kate’s expression smoothed out. “Well, that’s good. Do you think you’d be able to take a few days off work?”

“Probably,” he said. “Especially if I tell them I’m dealing with some smoke inhalation. I’m sure they would understand me needing to rest for a few days.”

He hadn’t coughed much this morning, thankfully, but, well, he could play it up if he had to.

“I think that would be for the best. My suggestion would be for you to take a few days, lie low, and discuss what route you want to take. I know none of these scenarios are ideal but …”

Shea nodded. “Yeah, if that’ll be best, I can do that.”

“What about me?” Dom said. “I have the game tonight.”

“Yes. You’ll need to keep up with your usual schedule.”

“Right, okay.” Dom frowned. “So I guess I need to decide before then. Because this team is nosy as hell and there’s no way they’ll let me get away without answering questions about this.”

“Yes, that’s an excellent point.” Kate sighed and rubbed her forehead. “Though, at least we know there’s a precedent for the fake relationship angle if you do decide to go that route. It wouldn’t be the first time someone on the team did.”

Shea’s jaw dropped.

Kate stood and winked at him. “But you didn’t hear that from me.”

“Uhh, no worries there,” Shea sputtered. “I can keep a secret.”

Which was maybe the understatement of the century.

“Oh, I know.” She smiled at him. “You and Dom have managed to keep things under the radar until now so I have no doubt of that. Besides, if Dom trusts you, so do I. He’s even more paranoid about privacy than I am.”

“What did Kate mean?” Shea asked after she left. “Who pretended to be in a relationship?”

“There are several guys, actually.” Dom chuckled. “That’s their story to tell, not mine. But the truth is, however fake it was at first, it’s all legit now.”

“Huh.” Shea looked gobsmacked. “Wow, I had no idea.”

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