Page 37 of Bride Games

They sat on a bench eating an enormous, warm funnel cake covered in powdered sugar. As Lucy licked her fingers—and Emma cursed herself for not bringing antibacterial gel—her daughter said, “This was the best day.”

Eli leaned over and flicked white sugar off Lucy’s chin. “I’m glad you had fun. This will be one of many family adventures together.”

Lucy slipped her sticky hand in Eli’s. “Thanks, Mr. Hansen. Can we go home now?”

34

Paige

Paige awakened with a pounding headache. Anger, panic, and mortification filled her every thought. She had barely slept and knew if she ate breakfast, she’d probably lose the contents. After the coffee brewed, Paige retreated to her bathroom to apply makeup in an attempt to cover the dark bags beneath her eyes. As she brushed her hair, she considered why her boss wanted to meet, attempting to convince herself that Mr. Hales wasn’t savvy with social media.He doesn’t even have a computer in his office, just a long shiny desk with a stack of files on one corner. The meeting is probably totally unrelated to this drama.Her hopes lifted but were just as quickly dashed when she remembered his wife and daughter. What are the odds neither was online yesterday? Probably zilch.

After a quick shower, she dragged herself to work. She wasn’t even sure if her shoes matched and didn’t really care. She dressed in a black pantsuit which matched her morose mood and rushed to arrive early so she wouldn’t have to talk to colleagues.

Paige drove to work on autopilot. She hadn’t bothered to check social media this morning and assumed she was still likely trending, and not in a good way. The hallways at the station werefairly quiet, save for a few reporters and promotions staff since she had arrived during the morning news hour. Paige trudged toward the coffee area in the lobby but the pot was empty.Naturally.The receptionist hadn’t yet arrived. She opened a cupboard underneath a small table, found coffee and filters, and decided to make it herself.Maybe this will give me some good karma.While the coffee brewed, more employees arrived. One worked in the editing bay and another in the weather department. They each gave her a half wave but none of the usual chitchat they normally enjoyed. Paige’s brows furrowed.Was every employee glued to X last night?

After Paige filled her ATV 10 coffee cup, she made her way toward her office, stopping short when she saw something plunked in the middle of her desk.That’s odd.She could tell it was some sort of wooden plaque or sign the size of a journal. She set her coffee cup down and picked it up. Each word on the brown and ivory sign was football related:offense, defense, conversion, blitz, scrimmage, end zone,and many more terms.Oh, my God. Everyone knows. This is beyond embarrassing.

She plopped in her office chair with a thump and began laughing uncontrollably as she read the stupid sign again.Actually, this would have been really helpful last year. Where was it then?

Paige raced toward the receptionist, heels clacking with every loud step. The young woman had clearly just arrived and was in the process of draping an ATV 10 lanyard around her neck. Paige waited until she turned toward her, embarrassed she didn’t know the woman’s name. “Morning. Hi. Um, did you see anyone suspicious here this morning? Anyone new at the station?”

The woman shrugged. “Nope. I just got here.” She glanced at the coffee pot. “Great. Someone beat me to it today. Want some coffee, Paige?”

“No. Thanks. I have some.” Paige didn’t bother telling the receptionist she made the coffee. Instead, she trudged back to her office, knowing her meeting time with her boss was soon. As she sipped her now-cold coffee, the sports guy, Stan the Man, passed by. Stan gave her a half smile, or was it a smirk? “You’re here early.” He paused as he patted her office door jamb. “Rough night, I bet. Tough luck.” He looked both directions up and down the hallway before taking a step into her office. Lowering his voice, Stan said, “You know you could have asked me about sports. I would have been happy to coach you. I’ve been in sports my whole life. I didn’t have any idea you didn’t under?—”

Paige narrowed her eyes. “Stop it, Stan. Just stop.

He shrugged. “Whatever.” He studied her and added, “Good luck. Man, I wouldn’t want to be you right now.” Shaking his head, he added, “You never want to upset the fans.”

“Have a good day, Stan.” Crossing her office in three steps, Paige closed her door and leaned against it.Last year everyone loved me. Last year, they had a freaking surprise party to thank me for getting ATV 10 to number one in the rankings. Last year, many of my stories and videos went viral, even though I didn’t fully know what the hell I was doing, but I did know about special interest stories and excelled at those. The athletes loved me. The fans loved me. Several reporters attempted to emulate me, especially that damn Marie Fallon.Paige fought back tears.I actually fell in love with this crazy career. And now?She snapped her fingers.Just like that, it might be over.

She glanced at her watch, took a deep breath, and held her head high.It’s time to go to my boss’s office and face the music. I’ve got this. I think….

35

Heart pounding with anticipation of the worst possible kind, Paige crossed the lobby toward Mr. Hales’ corner office. Reporters kept their heads down. The room was eerily quiet. She knew every eye was on her. She could feel their stares.It would have been nice to see Zach before this meeting. He must have had another late night at the hall of fame event.She shook her head.

Paige dodged employees like a pinball machine expert. After being told Mr. Hales was running an hour late, she was relieved she had more time but was desperate to get back to her office. Paige ducked inside, closed her office door, and turned on her computer. She attempted to look busy in a do-not-disturb way. The last thing she wanted was to be ambushed by nosy employees—or see their sympathetic faces. Not now. Not yet.I’ve got to get to the bottom of this first.

She jerked up when someone knocked on her door, only to see a massive bouquet of flowers masking the delivery person’s face. The enormous bouquet was filled with aqua roses. After the man put them on the edge of her desk, she noticed the envelope read:To Ballsy.

Paige wanted to burst into tears. Before reading the card, she knew the flowers were from Tyreek Hill, who had given her that spunky nickname, after she brazenly approached him on the field before game day for her first-ever sports interview. And it had worked. Their incredible interview and field workout had gone viral.Maybe he’s cheering me on. Maybe Tyreek’s on my side after our fun workout last year at the Dolphins stadium.

Paige took a deep breath before opening the tiny card, which simply read:WTF?She put her head in her hands and fought back tears.Shit. I had hoped the NFL players would be too busy practicing to be on social media. This is horrifying—not to mention embarrassing.

She barely had a chance to gather her thoughts when a second delivery person arrived with yet another bouquet. Paige knew she sounded ungrateful when she said, “Now what? I don’t want more flowers.” The delivery person looked confused as she plunked them beside the first bouquet.

Paige stared at the roses.Don’t tell me these are from another NFL player. Or a coach.She gritted her teeth as she slowly opened yet another tiny white card. Shockingly, the flowers were from Trent who said he was sorry about what happened to her, as well as to them personally. He added she didn’t deserve this dreadful attention and was great at her job.

Paige couldn’t stop the tears and bawled.This is the worst. The absolute worst.I want—need—to talk to Zach before my meeting with Mr. Hales. Where the hell is he?

Paige moved both bouquets to a side credenza so they were out of her direct view. When her phone rang, she answered it on the first ring, hoping it was Zach. As she pressed the phone to herear, she recognized the voice of Mr. Hales’ assistant. “He’s ready to see you now.”

“Thanks.” The usually cheerful assistant hung up before hearing Paige’s response.

As Paige entered her boss’s office, she knew he knew. It was obvious. Bad news was etched all over his face. Mr. Hales motioned toward a striped chair across from his desk. “Have a seat, Paige.”

Before she had time to cross her legs, Mr. Hales said in a not-so-friendly tone, “Let me tell you a little story. As you know, I’m not exactly tech savvy. I don’t even own a computer. But”—he steepled his fingers—“my daughter recently brought me into the 21st century. One rainy weekend she taught me a few tips and helped me follow all my friends, associates, and colleagues. Mr. Hales locked eyes with Paige. “So, imagine my surprise when I saw my star employee trending—I think that’s the term—and not in a good way.”

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