Page 12 of The Player's Obsession

“Hello.” She sounds less than enthused.

“I hope I’m not interrupting. I’m thinking of Leon’s Steak House for dinner. Do you like steak?”

“Yes, I do.”

“Great, I’ll pick you up at seven tomorrow?”

“Sure. That would be nice.” Her response is flat. I assume she’s tired.

“I’m glad you got home safely.”

“That tends to happen when one has the right set of keys.”

“True. You impress me as a woman who is resourceful. Even if you didn’t have keys, I know you’d figure out how to get home.”

“True.”

“Well, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Okay.” Her tone sounds more amenable than earlier. Is she warming up to me?

“Have a good night.”

“You, too.” She hangs up.

That went well.

I’m pleased with myself even if I coerced her into the date. I’m confident she deserves an evening out. I have yet to find a woman who doesn’t enjoy being taken out to one of the best restaurants in town. Wining and dining are some of my redeeming qualities.

Outside of the team, I’m not sure I have many other qualities a woman would love. I’m faithful, but it didn’t matter in the end. I flick through social media to check on Melanie. I’m sure Friday night will be their rehearsal dinner. We have a game on Thursday, then we’re off for a week. They will have a week-long honeymoon, and then it will be our first playoff game.

Secretly, I'm harboring the hope that their flights will be canceled, leading to a ruined honeymoon.

CHAPTER6

Penelope

“Idon’t know, I mean, Oliver seems nice enough, a bit of a grump, perhaps. Egotistical, for sure. He loves pushing my buttons. He startled me so much that I fell over the vacuum. Then he asked me out. The nerve of him to assume I’d be so ingratiated to be seen that I would leap at the opportunity. It’s so infuriating.”

“Did he say that?”

“Not in so many words.” I lean back on my white oversized chaise lounge and speak to Lucinda through my ear pods. “It wasn’t an entireWhen Harry Met Sallybattle of opinions. I suppose it wasn’t as terrible as I imagined. I was embarrassed, but I wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction of knowing it.”

“A man with his money is probably particular,” Lucinda points out. “I’ve never dated a billionaire, so I don’t know. I’m just saying that we don’t know a damn thing about their world.”

“He’s a billionaire? No way,” I exclaim. He definitely lives like one. He has an entire wine collection on display and chilling behind a glass wall. The closets in his bedroom are all custom-built and designed with a spot for everything from tie clips to sneakers to Italian leather shoes if the Florence stamp on the side means anything.

“Yes, he’s a bit of a brainiac. He loves investing in the stock market and researching companies. Boring if you ask me,” Lucinda says. “I’d expect him to have a dry sense of humor and be too analytical for my tastes.”

“Well, I grabbed the wrong car keys when I left. Then when I went back to get the correct keys, he roped me into a date tomorrow night. Do you think it’s safe?”

“He’s been my client for over a year. I don’t think you have anything to worry about. Sounds to me like he likes you. I bet he was surprised to see someone in his house because we always clean when he’s not there. He did insist on it being cleaned today, so whatever,” Lucinda comments, her voice beginning to sound strained.

“How are you feeling?”

“Much better after your soup. You could sell that and have a side hustle.”

I let out a huff. I wish it was that easy. I’d love to have a lucrative side hustle.

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