Page 64 of Thoroughly Innocent Intent

“I what?” I hesitate, unsure of what I heard.

“You wreck me.” He lifts my chin up with his fingertips, so I’m forced to look in his eyes. “You give yourself to me so completely. Your body, your faith, your trust. I don’t know if I deserve it, but I’m damn grateful for it.” He brushes his lips tenderly over mine, and in that moment, cradled in his arms like I’m some sort of treasure, I realize I’ve fallen for him. But I don’t say that, because if he doesn’t feel the same way I don’t want to know.

* * *

“Samantha Galen,” I hit the speaker button on my desktop phone so I can keep both hands free to flip through the ballroom contract for Colt’s fundraiser.

“Have you seen it?” Delaney gushes.

“Seen what?” I stick my pen in my mouth so I can follow the text with my finger, which I find helps me spot any errors.

“It!”

“What?” I mumble around the pen.

“Your picture with Colt. You’re famous!” she squeals.

The pen falls to my desk with a clatter. “What picture with Colt?”

“There are a few, actually. One of the two of you outside the restaurant we ate at, it looks like you’re waiting for the valet, and he’s got his arm around you and it’s really cute. Another where he’s wearing a ball cap so it’s kind of hard to tell it’s him at first but once you read the headline, you can totally tell.”

“What headline?” I brace for the answer, remembering how Colt said the headlines don’t always reflect what’s actually happening.

“Stallions Playboy Makes Move Off the Field.”

“Oh God.” I close my eyes and groan. “Does it say who I am?”

“It does, but it’s not as bad as it sounds. Promise,” Delaney assures me, “Listen.Stallions Tight End Colt Trudou, the team’s most notorious playboy, has been spotted around town with a new woman on his arm, philanthropic consultant Samantha Galen. Devoted fans undoubtedly know this marks a departure for the star receiver, who’s a tabloid regular in the off-season, but is rarely seen in public during the season, and never in the company of a woman. Though Colt’srumored to be working with Samantha on a charitable foundation of his own, it looks like these two are more than just colleagues. Superstitious fans are likely to panic over the new addition to Colt’s life, but it seems as if these two have been together for quite some time, and based on the way Colt’s been playing so far there’s no need to worry.See, totally fine,” Delaney singsongs.

“How is it fine? People know my name, they know what I look like, and if Colt suddenly starts playing poorly, they’ll blame me.”

“Well, when you put it that way it doesn’t sound fine, but it could be worse.”

“How?” I demand.

“They could’ve used a really unflattering picture of you,” she says in all seriousness.

“That’s your definition of worse?”

“What’s worse than having a totally unflattering picture on the cover of a tabloid?” I feel her shudder through the phone. “So yeah, it could’ve been worse. You look totally hot. Genuine smile and all.”

“Oh crap,” I gasp. “Did you say tabloid?”

“Yes. Why? That is where they publish gossip.”

“Colt’s daughter.” I rub my temples. “I don’t think she knows about us yet, and I’m fairly certain finding out from a tabloid is going to undo some of the progress he’s made to do a better job parenting.”

“Oh.” This time I can feel her wince. “Hey, maybe it won’t be that bad. Even the article implies things are different with you, so maybe his daughter will see that. And who wouldn’t want you for a stepmom instead of Dance Club Barbie?”

“Delaney,” I hiss. “Don’t insult women you don’t even know. And stepmom? I can’t even process that right now.”

“I’m just trying to cheer you up,” she says dejectedly.

“I know.” I rub my temples again, trying to relieve the increasing tension. “It’s just that we were trying so hard to stay outside the public eye, for a number of reasons, and I hate that someone took that away from us. I hate that we didn’t have any say in when or how to tell our story.”

“Huh,” Delaney muses.

“Huh? I have no control over my life anymore and the only thing you can say is, huh?”

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