Page 114 of Stick Side
“Well,” Ben began with some reticence, “I have a lot going on in my personal life. I regret to say that it seems to have affected my game tonight.”
“He has things going on in his personal life,” Dodds scoffed. “No shit, Sherlock.”
Ben’s eyes darted back over to Coach McGuire. The older man’s countenance had grown decidedly stormier. What the hell was going on here?
Before he could ask, Coach Dodds’ iPad chimed with an incoming call.
Dodds walked over to the touchscreen and answered the call after a single ring. “Ms. Gower,” he greeted without preamble. “As requested, I’m here with both Logan and Coach McGuire.”
It became immediately apparent to Ben that Shawna was in full-on professional PR manager mode.
“I don’t think I need to tell you that we have a full-blown PR nightmare brewing,” she said succinctly before adding, “ESPN just picked up the story.”
Ben blinked. ESPN? “What’s going on?” Ben asked of no one in particular.
His question fell on deaf ears, Shawna and Dodds continuing to talk over him. Words like “trade,” “scandal,” and “fraud” registered in one ear before flying out the other.
Ben moved so that he was standing directly in front of the iPad where he and Shawna could see each other clearly. “No. Seriously.Whatis going on?” he asked with more force.
Shawna blinked at him, her momentum broken.
“Based on your question, is it correct to say you’re unaware of the current media shitstorm surrounding you and Cynthia Hargraves?” she asked with curious regard. It was a pleasant change from the infuriated looks his coaches had been sending his way.
Either way, Ben knew his face reflected his confusion. He racked his brain. “I don’t think I’ve ever met a Cynthia Hargraves,” Ben said cautiously.
“You’ve definitely met her,” Coach McGuire said in a way that suggested he was trying to keep his temper in check and not fly off the handle. “The true question is how well you know her.”
Here, Coach McGuire handed Ben a second iPad. Ben’s eyes widened more than he imagined they would if propped open with toothpicks.
“What the hell?” Ben cursed as he thumbed through the various articles open on the screen.
“Another Playboy Athlete in Chicago?”
“Hometown Hero or Deadbeat Dad?”
“Did Hockey Heartthrob Benjamin Logan Think He Was Moving to Chi-Town or Cheat-Town?”
“Are All Athletes Really Just Players?”
Benfeltlikehe’djust taken a sucker punch to the gut.Shit.Maybe his agent hadn’t been reaching out about an endorsement deal after all.
After scanning through a dozen or so articles, Ben lifted his head to find three assessing gazes directed his way.
“This is bullshit,” Ben said simply.
“It’s bullshit because it’s untrue, or it’s bullshit because the media shouldn’t be able to publish details about your personal life?” Shawna probed. She wasn’t pulling her punches.
Ben bristled at having his integrity questioned and pinned her with a look that suggested she should have known him better than to need to ask such a question. And yet, he had to remind himself that she really didn’t know him all that well. As much as it grated, just because she’d spent Thanksgiving with him and his family didn’t mean she knew the full depth of his character. Or anything beyond the surface details, really.
As Ben maintained Shawna’s gaze, he could see why the woman was so good at her job. She looked completely unruffled as she picked apart his personal life.
“Bullshit because it isn’t true,” Ben stated clearly.
Ben turned to look at Coach McGuire, meeting his gaze with a look he hoped conveyed his sincerity.
Coach McGuire’s stormy regard faltered. Ben appreciated that.
“Then why don’t you seem more angry?” Shawna asked, clearly unwilling to let his initial defense stand for itself.
