Page 13 of Off Pitch

“Wait, you’re going to have a fake girlfriend?” He pauses to laugh like this is the funniest thing he’s ever heard. “Who’s the unlucky lady having to spend the next six months ‘dating’ you?”

“It’s, uh… um…”

Cole’s eyes narrow in on me. “Who is it, Knox? You’re stumbling, so it must be someone I know.”

I take the cap off my head, covering my face. He might find this whole situation funny. Still, there’s always the possibility that he won’t like the idea of me fake dating his sister. I’d rather not see his face if that’s what it will be.

“It’s Harlow.”

Cole is silent, unmoving. I remove the hat from my face, trying to gauge his reaction. He’s stoic right now, not giving me any indication of what he’s thinking.

Finally, he fills the silence. “You’re going to fake date my sister?”

Resting my head in my open palms, I reply, “Yeah. She already agreed to the idea.”

When the silence becomes deafening, he doubles over in laughter. “Oh my God, Harlow is going to be your girlfriend?Happy-as-a-clam, every-day-is-a-good-day, smiling-is-my-favoriteHarlow? You’re so fucked, man.”

“You’re going to fucking enjoy this, aren’t you?”

“Oh yes. By the end of this season, grumpy Knox will be gone. She’s going to break you down. We might even start seeing you smile.”

“This is fake, Cole. She’s not going to break me down. We’re putting on a show.”

“Keep telling yourself that.”

I groan. “I know you didn’t come in here to rib me, so why are you here?”

“Ah, almost forgot.” He reaches into his bag for something. “Hair tie.”

“You wouldn’t need a hair tie if you got a goddamn haircut.”

“Fuck off, man.”

five

Knox

We won last night’sgame against the Hawks 4-1, taking a 2-0 series lead to start off our season. Cole tried to discretely fuck with me the entire game. He’s already enjoying this far too much, and we’ve not even launched this fake relationship. At least he stopped when Lane kept glancing over. The fewer people know about this, the better.

After the game, Harlow texted me and told me we should meet up this morning to go over everything. Get our story straight, essentially. That’s how I find myself on a rickety ass elevator inside a shabby building in the heart of Kips Bay.

Once the elevator door dings and I’m sure I won’t plummet to my death, I step off onto the seventh floor. She apparently lives in apartment 7B. I find my way to her door and knock. When she answers, I take in the sight in front of me.

Harlow is dressed in a pair of tight black leggings and a low-cut long-sleeved white top. Her hair falls over her shoulders in blonde waves. She’s a goddamn vision, even dressed casually. This fake dating thing will be much more difficult if she keeps looking likethat.

“Come on in, Knox,” she says, gesturing me inside. “Welcome to my humble abode.”

“This is a shoebox, Harlow,” I state as I step into what might possibly be the tiniest studio apartment I’ve ever seen. The main area has a tiny couch, a small table, a bed tucked into the corner, and a kitchenette. There appears to be a free-standing closet on the far wall as well. “You live in this?”

She crosses her arms, and her eyes narrow in on me. “Not all of us have multi-million dollar contracts that can buy us a penthouse. I run a blog—this is the best I can do.”

Good job, Knox. This is the first time you’ve met up since you started this, and you’re already coming across like an entitled prick. “I wasn’t trying to make it sound like that,” I say before quickly adding, “Sorry.”

“It’s fine.” She lets out a sigh. “Cole’s offered to help me with rent on a better place, but I won’t let him. I want to be able to make it on my own. It’s hard to be taken seriously as a woman so heavily involved in a male-dominated sport, and I want to prove that I can do it without help.”

“That’s admirable,” I admit, earning me a soft smile in return. “But isn’t your benefit from this arrangement essentially having me help you?”

“You’re just going to bring me attention. People will wonder all about Knox Spencer’s girlfriend, the woman who could warm his icy heart. They’ll look me up, find the blog, and hopefully stick around after this is over.”

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