Page 71 of Tangled Vows

“That’s exactly what I’m saying.”

“A source close to the team revealed you had an affair with Coach Danvers’s wife during your time with the Thunder, and that’s why you had to leave Boston. They claim she was there last night to rekindle your relationship. Is that what happened?”

“Okay, I think that’s enough questions,” Coach Bradford cut in, but I was ready for it. I would put these rumors to rest once and for all.

“No, I’m going to address this right here and now,” I said, and I could hear Roni in the back of my mind screaming at me to shut my mouth. She had already torn me a new one thismorning over the pictures that had been “leaked.” She would likely murder me after what I was about to do.

“I didn’tleave withMrs. Danvers last night. I went back to my room alone after she came onto me, and I turned her down.” There was a collective gasp from the room. You could’ve heard a pin drop. Nobody moved or spoke for a solid five seconds.

“But the pictures—” he began, but I cut him off.

“The pictures are misleading, as they were meant to be by the lowlife who took them and sold the media a false narrative just to make a quick buck.” He clamped his mouth shut, and his face pinched with irritation. I continued, ready to set the record straight. “I realize I have a reputation, one that I certainly earned, but I’m a married man now. Anyone who knows me knows how much I love my wife. She’s made me a better man. She showed me what true happiness feels like. I owe every bit of my success this season to her. And if you think I’d risk losing her just to have someone to warm my bed, you’re out of your damn mind.”

I shoved away from the table and disappeared from the stage. This was a disaster. Everyone was aware of my fling with Jessica now. Someone who’d witnessed the incident with Danvers this morning must’ve gone to the press. The question was: who? There had been other guests and hotel staff in the lobby. It could’ve been any of them. Another option came to mind, but I wanted to deny its possibility. Surely no one on my team would betray me like that. We had each other’s backs on and off the ice. At least, that was what I thought.

50

SHAYLA

“Have you talked to Easton?” my mom asked, her voice raspy. Her question was followed by a coughing fit, so I reached for her cup of water and brought the straw to her lips. She took a sip and smiled at me gratefully.

I shook my head in answer, tears stinging the backs of my eyes again. I’d had no intention of telling her what was going on. She didn’t need the added stress. But I started crying when she asked if I was going to watch the game last night. I had no choice but to tell her what was going on. She’d rubbed my back as sobs wracked my body. Then she’d tried to make excuses for him.Maybe it wasn’t as bad as it looked, or maybe it was just the angle of the camera. Maybe he was trying to walk away from her and not lead her back to his hotel room.

I didn’t believe any of it, not for one minute. She’d touched him with the familiarity of a lover, and he’d let her.

“Sweetheart, you two are married. You’re going to have to talk to him eventually,” she replied, her eyes full of empathy and maybe a little reproach. If anyone knew what I was feeling, it was her. She’d been in the same position before with my father.It didn’t matter that my marriage to Easton wasn’t real; my feelings for him were.

“I know,” I admitted softly. “I’m just not ready. And I need to focus on you and helping you get better.”

“Don't use my illness as a shield,” she admonished gently. “Just because I’m sick doesn’t mean you can avoid resolving issues with your husband.”

“How am I supposed to resolve this? He cheated on me,” I cried, my voice cracking.

“You don’t know that.”

“I do. I’m not going to bury my head in the sand and pretend it didn’t happen.” I couldn’t hide the accusation in my tone, and my mother winced. Regret washed over me instantly. “Mom, I’m?—”

“I know you must have thought me weak for staying with your father for so long,” she began, and I wanted to deny it even though it was true. “But I didn’t stay with him because I believed he was sorry or thought he would change. I stayed with him for you and your sister. I knew if I left he would make our lives hell.” I stared at her in stunned disbelief. “It wasn’t like I hadn’t seen the signs. I knew he’d eventually leave of his own accord, and even though we struggled, we still had peace. We wouldn’t have had that if I’d been the one to leave.”

“Why are you telling me all this?”

“Because Easton is different. He’s nothing like your father. I’ve seen the way he looks at you, like you’re his entire universe, every sun and every star wrapped into one.” Emotion swelled in my chest, but I shoved it down and locked it away. She was only seeing what she wanted to see because she didn’t know it was all a ruse.

Before I could respond, Makenna burst into the room out of breath and pushing her windswept hair from her face.

“Shayla, you gotta see this,” she said, panting.

“What?” I asked, unsure I wanted to know considering the wild look in her eyes.

She tapped on her phone screen a couple times and turned it toward me. A video of the press conference following last night’s game began to play, and my chest tightened at the sight of Easton sitting behind the table. Kent and Weiss answered a few questions before a middle aged male reporter set his sights on Easton.

“Some might say your aggression on the ice is a result of the recent scandal involving your former coach’s wife, Jessica Danvers,” he began, and I was caught off guard by his statement. What aggression was he talking about, and how the hell did he know that was Jessica Danvers in those pictures? He continued on, asking probing questions and bringing up Easton’s history with Jessica.

Shit, somehow the press had learned about that.

Coach Bradford tried to step in and intervene, but Easton refused to let him stop the interview. His expression turned glacial as he addressed the pictures, claiming that they were misleading. Then his face softened, and warmth filled his eyes. My heart rate picked up, and I watched with bated breath as he continued. Then I stopped breathing all together at the next words that came out of his mouth.

“Anyone who knows me knows how much I love my wife.” The buzzing in my ears drowned out all other sound, and I heard nothing else after that. I stared absently at the screen, unseeing as my mind reeled from what he just claimed on national TV. I was vaguely aware of Makenna taking her phone from me and saying my name, but I was frozen. I couldn’t even speak.

---