Page 34 of Reputation (Tempt)

“Yes and no. It’s just…” I tucked my hair behind my ear. “It will probably be my last.” It felt strange to admit that aloud to someone other than my dad. Strange and liberating.

“Oh.” Nate frowned. “Is everything okay?”

“Yeah.” I sliced a hand through the air, unwilling to mention my performance anxiety. Because, really, that wasn’t the main reason behind my desire to retire. It had merely accelerated my decision. “I’m just ready to shift directions, and he isn’t. So we made a deal that I would do one last competition and then decide.”

“If you could quit competing now, would you?”

“Yes.” Even though part of me knew my dad was right.

Our time apart had given me some perspective, and I knew I didn’t want to end my career on such a low note. But that didn’t make me any more excited about competing.

“Wow.” He jerked his head back. “That was definitive.”

I smiled. “Yeah. It’s been a long time coming.”

“Yet you’re still planning to compete in February,” he said, an unspoken question in his words.

“Fulfilling a promise.”

“To yourself?” he asked.

“And my dad.” Mostly my dad, even if he was the one helping me keep my promises to myself.

A muscle in Nate’s neck twitched. “So he’s pushing you to do it.” It wasn’t a question. Not really.

“It’s not that simple.”

“I can appreciate that, but are you sure it’s worth it?”

“I—” I wasn’t sure how to answer that. I wasn’t sure I had enough distance from the situation to know. “I don’t know. But you probably don’t want to hear about all my drama. Especially when it’s Christmas, and you already have enough of your own.”

I’d hoped that everything had died down with Trinity and her threats to battle Nate for custody. He hadn’t said anything about it, and I’d been too afraid to ask.

He returned his attention to my arm. To my temporary tattoo. “Understatement of the century.”

I followed his gaze to my skin. Brooklyn had drawn a butterfly. But Nate had added a red rose, complete with thorns. It was beautiful.I wondered why he’d chosen it, though I was impressed by his artistic ability.

“Well, at least you know your nanny drama is a thing of the past.” I smiled, hoping to reassure him that I was on his side. “No more naked nannies.”

“Yep,” he said in a clipped voice. “No more naked nannies.”

Only in my dreams.My cheeks heated.

CHAPTEREIGHT

“Dad.”

“Hm?” I said absent-mindedly. My focus was on the scrapbook Emerson had given me, lingering on a rare image of the two of them. Most of the others were of just Brooklyn—ice-skating, hanging out with Sophia, laughing. All the things I’d missed.

A drop in the bucket compared to the ones I’d miss if Trinity got her way. I gripped the edge of the book tighter, wishing there was something I could do to put an end to her threats once and for all.

Pierce had been hounding me to post more images of my family. To show that I was a family man, a loving dad. But I didn’t want to share my private moments with the world. I resented the mere suggestion. It was an invasion of my privacy and Brooklyn’s privacy, and I wouldn’t do it.

“Dad,” Brooklyn said again, this time more insistent.

“What’s that?” I asked, finally lifting my head.

“Auntie Sloan wants to know if now’s a good time to video chat.”

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