Page 12 of Rafferty

“No.” She leans in closer, but North is standing close enough, he can hear. “And I’d really encourage you to give me another shot. I’d hate for Brienne to be made aware of how you tricked me into bed and are now treating me this way.”

“What in the actual fuck?” I growl, my entire body tightening with rage. “You wouldn’t.”

“Wouldn’t I?” she says sweetly. “I’ll be seeing you at Stone and Harlow’s wedding next week.”

Tansy is out of earshot when I snarl under my breath, “Motherfucker.”

“That is one crazy woman,” North says sympathetically. “You think she’d go to Brienne?”

I turn to face him. “Don’t you? Look at the lengths she’s gone to already.” I glance back at Tempe and see a small measure of concern clouding her features, which I’m guessing is in reaction to my own thunderous expression. When I look back to North, I feel lost. “I can’t afford to lose my contract with this team. I only signed a one-year deal and I’m third line. They could send me down.”

“Brienne’s not like that,” North says, but I don’t hear any conviction in his response. We’re both new to this team and while Brienne Norcross seems like a great owner so far, we don’t know her.

Not really.

And Tansy is family.

I rub at the back of my neck, the muscles corded with tension. “What do I do?”

North glances over at Tempe and then back to me. “You ride that fake girlfriend thing all the way.”

“What?” I ask, frowning at the suggestion. “No. I can’t ask that of her, and besides… this didn’t work.”

“Maybe not, but if you keep hammering it home with Tansy, maybe it will. Repeat the lie enough, she’ll have to believe it. Besides, what do you have to lose? I say get Tempe on board with this—and if I’m measuring that kiss earlier, she’ll be on board—and ride it all the way to freedom.”

Another look at Tempe, who cocks her head at me as if to question, “What’s going on?”

“I suppose,” I murmur, calculating all the ways this could go wrong but if North is right, this could work. Keep Tempe glued to my side and Tansy will have to leave me alone. She could be dissuaded from going to her cousin if she actually believes I’m with someone else.

“Yeah… okay. I’ll talk to Tempe.”

♦

I walk Tempeto her car after North took off with a sincere “Good luck” backslap.

“Well…” Turning from her open car door to face me, Tempe asks, “Did it work?”

“No,” I say with a sigh as I nab my wallet from my back pocket and pull out the ten one-hundred-dollar bills I’d stashed in there to pay Tempe for her time. “And she’s threatening to go to the team owner and say I tricked her into bed and now I’m blowing her off.”

“What a bitch,” Tempe murmurs as she accepts the money, tucking it into her own back pocket. “Will you get in trouble?”

I shrug. “No clue, but I can’t risk it. Coming to this team is what’s going to set up my career for the rest of my playing time. I can’t afford to lose this.”

“I’m sorry,” she says, her hand on my arm. “That’s a shitty thing for her to do. I wish there was some way I could help.”

“Actually,” I say, relief slamming through me that she offered. Sort of. “Would you continue to be my fake girlfriend? North seems to think if Tansy sees you and me together, it will dissuade her from going to Brienne. That it will cause enough doubt to keep her buttoned up.”

Tempe’s brows knit together, a worried look on her face. “I don’t know, Rafferty. What are we talking about?”

“Come to any team appearances with me so Tansy can see us together. I’m guessing for a few weeks and that’s all. It won’t be too much of your time.”

“And how do you explain me to the team? Are they all going to get on board with this?”

“My closest friends will.”

“They’ll all lie for you?” she asks dubiously.

“Yeah, they will.”

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