Page 13 of Offside Bride

“You’re stupid,” Hendrix says back.

“Your face is stupid,” Sawyer grunts.

“Boys!” Emily cries. Then under her breath, “Seriously, it’s like a middle school playground sometimes.”

“So let me get this straight,” I say. “Just because bruiser over here gets in too many fights, his agent thinks he can clean up his image by pretending he’s Mister Wholesome Husband all of a sudden? And I drew the wife straw.”

“In a nutshell, yeah,” Hendrix says before taking another swig of his beer.

“Would you like some popcorn to go with that?” I say to him. “Maybe some 3-D glasses?”

“I’m good,” he says and swipes another cookie off the plate. Poor soul has no idea what he’s eating.

“You don’t have to do it if you don’t want to,” Emily says.

“Well, Idon’twant to.”

“That makes two of us,” Sawyer snorts.

“And there we have it,” I say. “So why are we still having this conversation?”

“We’re not,” Emily says. “Conversation over. I hope you can all work this out, but I did my duty and told my friend the news.”

Owen shrugs. “Well, that’s that.”

Sawyer’s phone rings and he pulls it out of his pocket. He cringes. “It’s Bruce.”

“Your agent?” Owen asks.

“Gimme that.” Hendrix shoots up and grabs the phone from him, putting it on speakerphone. “Sawyer’s phone. Hendrix Ellis speaking.”

“Hello?” The voice on the other end of the line seems a little confused. “Is…Sawyer available?”

“You’re on speaker, bro,” Hendrix says. “Sawyer’s here, Griffin, Owen, Owen’s pretty wife?—”

“Watch it,” Owen warns.

“Okay, cool your jets, Jablonski.”

“Are we free to talk on speaker?” Bruce the agent says.

“You’re free to speak,” Owen says. “We’re at my house. Maggie’s here, too.”

“The blushing bride,” Hendrix jokes, although it’s not a funny joke at all.

“Good,” Bruce says. “Sawyer, I have some good news and bad. Which do you want first?”

“Bad,” he says without pause.

Bruce goes on. “Nitro Blitz pulled out. They basically said they don’t want their name synonymous with fighting. This is probably piggybacking off that class action lawsuit against them for adverse side effects, but still.”

“Screw ’em,” Sawyer says. “What’s the good news?”

“I just got off the phone with Sunrise Foods. They expressed they have concerns, but they’re willing to keep the contract with you, provided you meet directly with the CEO and his wife for dinner.”

“That’s it?”

“Well, you’d have to bring your wife.”

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