Page 50 of Daddies on Ice
Carl actually expects me to pretend to be Jake’s girlfriend.
Ash slams his hand down on the dresser. “You can’t be serious.” His voice booms, full of heat. His gaze swings to me and it’s not anger I see there, despite his tone. There’s a hint of fear and…jealousy?
Carl doesn’t flinch. He leans back in his chair like he’s already won this fight. “Iamserious. It’s the only way.”
Jake lets out a groan and tips his head back, dragging a hand through his hair. “Come on, Coach. Me playing the doting boyfriend? Nobody’s gonna believe that.” His eyes flick toward me. “Even with someone as beautiful as our Tish.”
The room explodes. Ash and Jake bark over each other, both voices growing louder. Carl cuts in, his voice like gravel, trying to shut them down.
My head spins. The sound of it, the chaos, it feels like being trapped in a storm with no way out.
I press a hand against the table. “This won’t work.” My words aren’t loud, but they cut enough that the others pause.
Carl turns his gaze on me, sharp and unyielding. “It’s the only option. We can’t risk word getting out that he’s in a fake relationship, and I can’t think of anotherplausiblewoman to act as his girlfriend without running to the press to spill the story.”
“I already have more than enough work keeping this team from drowning in bad press,” I say, my voice firmer now. “And did you consider that pretending to date Jake might backfire?”
“If it does, I have every confidence that you can fix it,” Carl says without hesitation.
I’m not sure whether to be flattered or annoyed. The look I send him is one of frustration, surprise, and vexation.
Ash shakes his head, a low growl in his throat. “You can’t be serious, Carl. This isn’t a solution. It’s a mess waiting to happen.”
Jake leans back in his chair, smirking, though there’s no humor in it. “See? Even golden boy agrees with me for once. What a shock.”
“Shut up, Jake,” Ash fires back. His arms fold tight across his chest, jaw hard enough to crack. “You think this is funny? You’re about to drag her into your circus. That’s not happening.”
Ash is reacting out of emotion, not something he usually does. At least not that I’ve ever seen.
He and Jake are good friends, but thisarrangementreally bothers him.
Hell, it bothers me, too.
Jake lifts both hands in mock defense. “Don’t blame me. I didn’t come up with this brilliant plan. I’m just the lucky bastard who gets stuck with it.”
Lucky. The word makes my stomach twist. But then he said “stuck,” too, and for some reason that makes my cheeks heat and my stomach flop. I may not want this, but I don’t like the way Jake put it either, as if he’s being stuck with me, no matter how true it is.
Carl slams his palm down on the table, silencing them both. “Enough. This isn’t about who likes the idea or not. It’s about what the public sees. Jake’s reputation is out of control. Sponsors are on edge. The league is watching us. A steady girlfriend changes the story.”
Ash laughs, sharp and bitter. “Steady girlfriend? With him? You really expect anyone to buy that?”
Carl doesn’t blink. “They’ll buy it if we sell it right.”
Jake leans forward, elbows on his knees, his expression darkening. “No one’s going to believe I’ve gone straight, Coach. You can stick me in a tux, parade me through every black-tie event in the state, and the press will still say I’ve got someone on the side.”
Carl’s gaze sharpens. “Then make sure you don’t. Not in public, not where anyone can get a photo. If you need to…handle yourself, you do it quietly. Very quietly.”
The bluntness makes heat rise in my face. Carl is giving him a way out if he gets too horny and needs to get laid.
It’s on the tip of my tongue to say, “What about me? What if I want some action on the side?” My fingers tighten on the edge of the table, but I say nothing.
Ash explodes. “That’s what you’re offering her? To stand there smiling while he sneaks around? You’re asking her to torch her reputation for the sake of his.”
For the briefest second, Carl looks stricken.
As if he’d not thought that this arrangement could damage my reputation.
Honestly, I didn’t think about that either.
