Page 58 of Playmaker

“Were we?”

He bumped a shoulder into mine, knocking me slightly off-balance. “How come I hear your workout buddies got to meet your new woman before Faith and me?”

I laughed. “Hey, your daughter got to meet her. And she’s just a friend.”

“But Hailey won’t talk about her.”

I bit back a grin. “She didn’t like Callie.”

He frowned again. “Is that something to worry about?”

“You mean like dogs are supposed to be good judges of character? Don’t worry—Hailey was jealous.”

Hunter was quiet for a few strides. “Is there something she should be jealous of?”

Maybe.The thought slipped out. Was that the issue? Hailey was my goddaughter and one of the people I loved most in the world. Had she seen something? Callie wasn’t a typical friend or date.

I hadn’t realized how setting up this agreement would tie us together over the summer. We were…definitely friends. Closer than. I hadn’t even told Hunter about my brother and Vicky. But after meeting Winthrop, and his comments, I’d spilled the whole story. I’d rationalized it because I had to tell Callie what the situation would be when she got to Connecticut, but was that the only reason? For the first time, telling someone had made me feel better.

“So there is something?”

“We’re…friends.”

“Just friends?”

“I’m not fucking her, so yeah.”

“You could be dating without fucking.”

“Have you ever known me to do that?”

Hunter slowed to a walk and then stopped. I did too, wondering if he’d hurt something. There was no one near us here, so we had the illusion of privacy.

“I’d like to meet her.”

I narrowed my eyes. He rarely met my dates, since they normally lasted for one event, and he wasn’t always around. Faith loved to name-check who they were, but they weren’t part of my life. He knew that.

His jaw was set. My protesting wasn’t going to do anything but convince him I was hiding something.

“Okay, come to Briarwood with us Sunday.”

His eyebrows shot up. “Really?”

I nodded. “Callie’s learning how to navigate the greens and the clubhouse. Extra eyes to see if I’m missing something would be good.” The day Darcy came with us had been fun, but he knew less about golf than Callie did. And after spilling my guts yesterday, I was uncomfortable with the idea of more time alone with Callie. Seb as a buffer would be good. Maybe Darcy could join us at the driving range. Make sure this stayed an arrangement.

“Sure.” He jerked his head back the way we’d come and we settled into our running tempo again. “And then the two of you can come to our place for dinner. Believe me, Faith is just as curious as I am.”

* * *

That weekI had a photo shoot with a watch company. After our morning working out at the practice facility, I met the crew at a hotel downtown where they’d booked a suite for the shoot. I wasn’t going to be showing much skin, but I was pumped up from the workout, which should help with the photographs.

It was an expensive watch manufacturer, putting out a new line called Playmaker. Despite being on defense, I set up a lot of goals and ran the power play for the team, so they thought I was a good face for the product.

They’d promised to provide a wardrobe, but I’d brought my own tux. It would look better than anything they could come up with since it had been tailored for me by one of the best in the city. I was more comfortable in my own clothes.

The sponsor had provided the obligatory partner for the shoot. A willowy brunette, beautiful, poised…my usual type. For a moment I was disappointed that there was no bright red hair. Which was fucking stupid, since there was no chance Callie would be here. We each got ready in one of the bedrooms of the suite, and came out for makeup and to pose on the… Oh hell, they’d decided to put her on the piano, while I sat in front of the keyboard with a glass of fake whiskey in my hand, watch prominently displayed.

I settled in to wait. These things were always slow. Setting up lights, checking the angles for unexpected shadows, perfectionist photographers…it was part of the job.

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