Page 84 of Wildcat
She responds back to let me know she’s at my place and that’s where I head, as fast as I can.
She’s waiting in her car when I pull up. I can tell the instant I get a glimpse of her face that she saw.
“I’m so sorry,” I say. “They caught me totally off guard.”
She lets me hug her. “I know. I saw the article this afternoon. I wanted to give you a heads-up, but there wasn’t time.”
I nod slowly. Yeah, a heads-up definitely would have been nice. “Did your dad already know too?”
“I don’t think so. The article referred to me as an unknown. I guess they figured it out sometime during the game.”
“Should we talk to your dad tonight?”
“I’ll talk to him. He’s going to be upset I didn’t tell him before he found out like that.”
“I’m pretty sure any anger is going to be directed at me. I’m supposed to report to his office in the morning.”
Scarlett gives me a sympathetic face. I take her hand and start to walk inside, but she doesn’t budge. “Wait. I need to ask you something.”
“Sure. Anything.”
Her gaze darts to the ground and then slowly lifts to meet mine. “Was my dad really the only reason you didn’t want the media to know about us?”
I replay her words twice in my head.“I don’t follow.”
“I’ve been in relationships where we kept things secret, and I don’t want to do that again.”
“The ex?” I say, slowly piecing together her concern.
“Yes. He kept us a secret for the entirety of our relationship.”
“You said you were together for a year?”
“Yeah, an entire year that I was hidden from his public image. It wasn’t all his fault; he was following the advice of people he trusted, but Leo, I can’t do that again. So, if you aren’t ready to be with me, really be with me, then I can’t do this.”
I cup her face. “I’ll call every reporter I know right now if that’s what you want, baby.”
One side of her mouth pulls up into a smile. “I don’t think that’s necessary, but I do need to know that I’m not going to be kept separate from your professional life. I don’t want to get in the way. I just want to be a part of your whole life. And I don’t want to be Leo Lohan’sfriend.”
“You’re Leo Lohan’s girlfriend, and I promise, no more hiding,” I say. “Wherever I go, you go. I want to hold your hand everywhere we go.”
“Okay.” She lets out a breath. “Good.”
She wraps her arms around me and squeezes me tight. I sigh in relief. “Want to go to Wild’s? The guys are all there, and I can show you off. A little PDA, and I’m positive we can make the front page of the news.”
“Next game for sure,” she says. She peers up at me and bites the corner of her lip. “I think tonight I need to go home and talk to my dad.”
“Right.” Oh man, my palms sweat. “Do you want me to come?”
“I better talk to him first.” She smiles. “I’ll call you later, boyfriend.”
29
BE NICE, DADDY
SCARLETT
As much asI’d like to, I can’t stay and hideout at Leo’s. I know I need to talk to my parents, especially my dad.
