Total pages in book: 86
Estimated words: 83542 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 418(@200wpm)___ 334(@250wpm)___ 278(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 83542 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 418(@200wpm)___ 334(@250wpm)___ 278(@300wpm)
I want a relationship, but I’m always attracted to the guys who don’t.
And Oskar isn’t even exhibit A. Maybe N. Or Z.
I swear I’ve gotten worse over the years, not better. In high school, it was being used by my crushes for rides to school or lunch money. My college boyfriend more or less used me as a sugar daddy, and through the years … there have been a lot of mistakes.
I can already tell Oskar will be added to the list.
I still don’t have my answer when Oskar’s front door slams open a few hours later.
Here we go.
“You told Damon?” he snaps the second he catches sight of me at the dining table.
I don’t answer right away, which I’m sure is driving him nuts. Instead, I finish reading over the media release Keerson has sent me before setting my laptop aside.
“How was your skate?”
“Great until I saw a million missed calls on my phone and got blasted by my agent for being a dumbass.”
“Aren’t you used to that by now?” I ask.
His sweaty hair is plastered to his forehead, and I take it he didn’t shower before getting his ass home. That’s how pissed he is. “You’re avoiding my question.”
“Because it’s a ridiculous question.”
“How is it? We said we weren’t telling anyone.”
“And we aren’t. But Damon is your insurance policy. If it gets out, you can bet your ass he’ll already have a story in the works.” Pity I don’t have the same safety net. Pointing out that I did it for Oskar will go straight over his head though, and I don’t want him looking into the action anyway. My protective side will stay well hidden because I’d be willing to bet he’s the kind of guy who’d use it to his advantage. The others were.
“It doesn’t mean I want my agent knowing about us.”
I laugh. “So, you don’t care that the entire world sees your cheap hookups, but you draw the line at one person knowing you had sex with me. Wow, Oskar. I’m feeling the love.”
He flips me off, then walks into the kitchen and pours himself a drink of water from the fridge door. “It proves his point that I’m incapable of making a single smart decision.”
“Did you tell him it was a choice between me and Aleks? Because I can guarantee he’d agree with your choice.”
Oskar’s face screws up for a second before he drains the glass and sets it in the sink. “You’re like a dog with a bone.”
“It’s called damage control.”
“And I’m the damaged one?”
“I thought that was obvious.” But even as I say it, I eye him. His attitude isn’t as big today. That mask of false bravado is missing, and he looks tired. It could be his usual post-training look, or maybe—just maybe—he’s actually stressed about what he found out yesterday. “I’ve had an idea,” I say, softer this time.
“Is it to give up on this hot-mess express before you go down with me?”
I don’t fall into the pity party with him.
“Sit down.” I kick out the chair next to me, and to my surprise, Oskar does it without argument. “I’ve been playing with your schedule for the next few months and trying to work out some promotional ideas for when we’re home and then teeing you up with anything happening in the cities you travel to.”
He points at the screen. “This one is before a game.”
“Yup.”
“You’ve clearly never played a game of hockey if you want me to help out at a youth center instead of having downtime. I’ll be wrecked.”
I give him a dry look. “And yet you have no issues with going out, getting drunk, and screwing some guy in the VIP area bathrooms the night before a game. I don’t think an hour of volunteering will kill you.”
His eyes cloud over as he remembers the time I’m referring to. Some jackass got a grainy shot under the bathroom door and thought recording the audio would give him five seconds of internet relevancy.
Oskar gives in way too easily. “Fine. But if we lose, it’s on you.”
“How about I promise to make sure you’re relaxed before you get to the game?”
“Before?”
“We’ll hire a car with a privacy partition.”
“And like that, I’m suddenly on board.”
“Of course you are.” I laugh, and it takes a second for me to notice Oskar watching me. “What?”
He pulls his stare away. “Nothing.”
“Well, that sounded like a lie.”
He nods back at the screen. “All of that seems so phony though. Our fans know I don’t do this shit. It’ll be transparent as fuck that I’m only going through with these things to make the team look good.”
“Yeah, no one will doubt that. But you know what the point of this is?”
“What?”
“We’ll keep you way too busy to have a chance to fuck up. Then if you’re not fucking up anymore, they’ll have nothing to talk about. Suddenly this ‘phony shit’ to create a positive image is real because you don’t have time for anything else.”