Page 60 of Power Pucking Play

She takes a step towards me, her golden-green eyes flashing. In a simple white blouse and jeans, she looks so innocent and fragile. But I know better now.

She scoffs, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "Yes, because sleeping with someone is a surefire way to get information. That's exactly what I was thinking."

I can't help but laugh at the absurdity of it all. "You know, for a reporter, you're not very good at lying. Or maybe you just didn't think I'd see through it."

She blinks. "Are you drunk? What...what the hell are you talking about?"

I set my beer down and take a step towards her, feeling the anger bubbling inside of me. "Don't play dumb with me, Lex. You're too damn smart for that. You used me, just like you use everyone else to get what you want."

Her face falls, and I can see the hurt in her eyes. But I push on, not wanting to lose my momentum.

"You were so convincing," I continue, my voice rising. "All those sweet words and promises of love. Until you got what you needed."

"Okay," Lexi finally says, taking a deep breath. "Clearly, we've got some wires crossed here. Can we just...talk? Please?"

I want to say no. Want to tell her to leave, to stop messing with my head and my heart. But the look in her eyes—a mixture of determination and vulnerability—stops me.

"Fine," I sigh, running a hand through my hair. "Talk. Talk about who the hell Parker Altman is and why the hell he seems to know so much about me."

Lexi's eyes widen. "How do you know about Parker?"

"Only the call I got from him this morning." I take another swig from my beer. "Was interesting hearing all about myself from a total stranger....and your colleague and friend, apparently."

She takes a deep breath before finally meeting my gaze again. "Parker Altman is a colleague. But not one I'd called a friend. And when he heard about my feature with you, he..."

"He what?"

"He did some digging."

"Did he, now?" I raise an eyebrow, intrigued despite my anger. "And what exactly did he find?"

"Your story," Lexi replies simply. "The one you've been avoiding sharing with the press. You. Your parents. Nonna taking care of you and Gabi while your parents were out working long shifts."

I feel my heart constricting in my chest, the old wounds torn open by Lexi's words. I take another swig from my beer, needing the liquid courage to keep listening.

"Parker must have talked himself into getting a glimpse at the early cuts of the feature…or my notes,” Lexi says quietly. “I'm betting he thought it could be a great angle for, I guess, his own story. A story of overcoming adversity and achieving success against all odds."

I scoff, bitterness seeping into my voice. “Great. See, this is the goddamned reason I didn’t want to do this feature in the first place.” I swipe my hands through my hair, my voice coming outa ragged sigh. “Because of fuckers like this. Because it’s so easy for the story of your own life to get away from you when people get too close. They can shape that story to be whatever the hell they want to be, instead of what it really is. Lex…I wanted to tell my story my way. Not have some snake-skinned dickhead with a microphone and a notepad do it for me.”

Lexi reaches out to touch my arm, but I jerk away from her grasp.

"Why don't you head out yourself and leave while you still can? Hell, you can make it zero-for-three. Gio De Luca," I spread out my hands, "unable to keep his parents, his team, or his friends."

Lexi's eyes soften with sympathy as she watches me drink. "You know that's not true, Gio."

I shake my head, refusing to meet her gaze. "It doesn't matter. None of it matters." I take another gulp from my beer and slam the bottle down on the counter.

"I wanted to tell you myself," Lexi says quietly. "Because I didn't want you to hear it from someone else first."

I let out a bitter laugh, feeling numb and angry all at once. "Like it even matters anymore."

But deep down, I know it does matter. It matters because Lexi's behind-the-scenes article and feature were all about controlling my narrative. Now, my narrative is going to control me.

A dirt-digging jack-off like Parker can take my story and twist into whatever salacious bite-sized story will make the most money—the last thing I was looking to happen.

And yet again, I will be what I was before: a man standing by helpless while spectators make their assumptions, their half-cocked judgments about me. The same sorts of judgments that made me vulnerable to trade talks.

And just as my thoughts go to the possibility of a Blades trade yet again, Lexi’s voice breaks through my thoughts. "I know it's not easy, but you have to face this head on."

---