Page 12 of Accidentally Checked By My Brother's Best Friend

Mediocre? If that was mediocre, what would Duncan look like when his play was elite?

Can I even handle watching that version?

A rush of heat fills my stomach at the thought. I take a deep breath and try to shake the image from my mind.

Get a hold of yourself! This. Is. Duncan.

Yeah, a smoking hot Duncan.

Blowing out a breath, I mentally chide myself. I don’t know what is going on with me, but I feel I need to find a way to eliminate this attraction. Apparently Real Ava can’t do it, but maybe a Hollywood Ava can.

That’s right. I’m an award-winning actress. I can act my way out of this…I hope.

Biting my bottom lip, I wipe sweaty palms against my jeans to calm my nerves as we approach the locker room exit. David and Scarlett usually wait for Duncan after home games. Me leaving would look suspicious, so I’m waiting, too.

“Ava, we’re gonna run to the restrooms. Do you need to go?” David asks, pointing toward the corridor.

“No, I’m good. I went before the start of the third period.” Leaning against the wall across from the locker room door, I settle in to watch the activity.

“Okay,” David says over his shoulder as he and Scarlett walk to the arena’s main veins, heading toward one of the many restrooms. “We’ll be back in about ten minutes.”

I lift my hand and smile at them, then place my hands against the wall and lean on them, curbing the temptation to fix my hair.

“Uninterested Ava wouldn’t care how she looks,” I mumble to myself.

Heads and curious eyes land on me, but surprisingly, most people just smile and walk past. Maybe having a scandal isn’t so bad after all. Rather than approaching me, people whisper after they pass me. I can handle whispering.

“I lovedWeb of Love.”A woman gently touches my arm and murmurs in my ear. “So glad you broke up with Nathan. I was never a fan. You deserve better.”

She squeezes my arm, and in response, I give her my ‘Everything is Perfect’ Ava smile while mouthing, “Thank you.”

Being a celebrity is one of the strangest experiences. Regardless of where I am, people feel like they know me. What they know is the persona I show them. My childhood gave me lots of opportunities to perfect the face I wanted the world to see while working to keep the truth hidden.

The majority of the time, I could get away with it, but some saw through it—

“Ava, Ava!” Panic fills me as I recognize that tone. “Are you dating Sean O’Connell?”

A phone is shoved in my face, demanding an answer. My stomach drops, and my heart races, causing my breath to come in short bursts. I force myself to smile as I shake my head.

Another voice calls, “Then why did you break up with Nathan?”

Then another, “If you’re not dating Sean O’Connell, none of this makes sense.”

Four phones are shoved in my face with people waiting for a response. I ran from Los Angeles to get away from the press. Yet here they are hounding me. My smile starts to fall, and trembles run through my body.

“Is what Nathan’s saying true? Are you going to give us your—”

“Enough!” Duncan shouts as he pushes the phones away from my face and moves in front of me like a shield. A lightness washes over me. “She’s not interested in talking about this right now.”

“Denier, great game!” One of the voices says. “Do you want to tell us how winning against your division rival feels?”

Duncan gives a low growl and wraps his arm around my shoulder, pulling me close to his side. I melt into his warmth and grip his shirt with my hand. Tucking my head in his chest. The smell of cedar rolling off him and surrounding me has another calming effect.

Ignoring the people shouting questions at us, he pushes his way through the crowd and drags me away from them.

“And The Denier denies again.” A voice carries to us from a distance, sounding far enough that it’s safe to believe they aren’t following.

Instead of releasing his grip, Duncan’s arm tightens around me. For the first time since that phone was shoved in my face I feel my body relax.

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