Page 5 of Miami Ice

I hand her back her phone. “I believe you,” I say.

A customer approaches the table, picking up one of the peppermint sticks I have on display in a red-painted jar. Thenshe drops it into her shopping bag and walks off before I can even tell her those were part of a display and not a freebie.

UGH.

Sofia’s brows knit together. “Were you giving those away?”

I sigh. “No.”

“I’m sorry, I’m not letting you do your job. I promise I’ll buy some stuff if you can just give me a few more minutes of your time.”

I perk up. She has my complete attention now. Her sale could push me past breakeven.

“I’ll be honest, I’m confused how I can help your brother, because you know nothing about me.”

“I follow my gut,” Sofia says. “I just know you’re what he needs right now.” She abruptly stops speaking. “Crap, I forgot the most obvious question. Are you single? You have to be completely single or there’s no point to me telling you anything else.”

I freeze. What is this turning into?

I decide I don’t want to think too much about where this conversation is going. “I am. Not even dating.”

“Yes! I was hoping you’d say that.”

WHAT AM I ABOUT TO HEAR?

I go back to not thinking too much.

“Okay, so it’s obvious you don’t know my brother, but he was traded to the Miami Manatees recently. I’m here trying to help him settle in. If you google him, you’re going to see he had quite a reputation in Denver. Beckham has always had things come easily to him—hockey being the main thing. He could be so much better if he applied himself fully, but he hasn’t. He was just out of college when he began his NHL career. And you have a young man who hasn’t been pushed, who now has millions of dollars in his bank account, and has women sliding into his DMsand approaching him wherever he goes. In short, he’s lost his way. And Denver ran out of patience to deal with it.”

I begin painting a picture in my head, as I always do when I hear a story or read one. Now that I’m hearing Sofia describe her brother, I can paint the canvas clearly.

“He thought he was invincible,” she says softly. “But he’s not. Beckham didn’t want to leave Denver, and he’s shell-shocked by the trade. For the first time, he’s got to prove there’s a man who wants to fight to be the best he can be. He’s got to fix his image. And that’s where you come in.”

“Me?” I ask, stunned. “How?”

“I used to work in social media before I had the girls,” Sofia says. “I’ve been warning my stubborn baby brother since he started playing at the NHL level that he could be an elite player if he decided to ever be serious. But now it’s more than that. He’s got to prove to his new team that he understands he’s been given a new shot. That means no out-of-control partying. No more clubbing with different women every night. It means brand-new optics. I think that could mean you.”

“What?” I squeak loudly. “How?”

“Better optics include a Beckham who is going to show up to practice early. Stay late. And have a very sweet, respectable girlfriend for a period of time, especially during the Christmas season.”

My mouth drops open, but no words come out.

“Georgie,” Sofia says softly, “I’m proposing you pretend to date Beckham through the holiday season.”

I need to loosen my jaw so it can drop to the floor like a cartoon character’s would.

“You aren’t serious. This … this is stuff that happens in books, not real life!”

“I know, the fake-dating trope is my favorite,” Sofia says, grinning at me. “But Georgie, listen to me. It would be allpretend. You go out with him to some public places, do some festive holiday crap, post some videos on Connectivity Story Share, quietly break things off sometime after New Year’s. You love Christmas, I bet you have a million ideas of what kind of Christmas dates you’d love to go on, don’t you?”

Now I feel my neck begin to grow hot. I know it’s going into red splotches, something it always does when I’m embarrassed. How can Sofia look at me and know I keep a little journal full of Christmas dates I’d love to do with someone special someday?

“But you would get a lot out of this deal, Georgie. Exposure for your jars. Beckham could even appear with you at one of your shows to get attention. Do you realize the publicity you would get if he posts just one pic saying he’s coming to a show or loves how creative you are?”

I blink. That would be massive.

“You would also be paid.”

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