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My stomach buckles as I look into Alex’s face. Nothing they’re talking about has anything to do with me, but I can’t help but remember that this same man had held me against a wall, stark naked and seconds from dicking me down, before we were rudely interrupted.
“Well,” he says, flashing a diplomatic grin, “you saw our last game. How do you think I was affected?”
A tiny chuckle rises from most people seated at the table, and even some pressmen are grinning.
“Uh . . .” the reporter stutters. “I wouldn’t quite think that it was a lot. But—”
“What happened with Ms. Hartmann was a regrettable incident due to a miscommunication,” Alex cuts the man short. His smile is still in place, but there’s an icy note in his voice. “I’ve moved past it.”
A tiny smattering of applause arises from the crowd.
“Yeah,” another reporter perks up. “About your new girlfriend . . .”
“We’re here to talk about hockey,” Coach Birby protests, and the reporter’s face goes red as he falls silent. Slowly, the conversation turns back to hockey.
“There,” my dad says, a small smile on his lips. “Finally.”
Normally, I’d wait for him to say what he’s thinking in these moments, but this time I need to know right away.
“What do you mean?” I say, my voice a whisper.
“The ‘bitter ex’ chapter is closed.” My dad’s smile is spreading. “Alex has put an end to it. The press knows he’s dating someone else, and there’s really no need for you to keep pretending.”
Shit.
I hadn’t thought of that. But my dad is a hundred percent right. In just a few weeks, Alex has achieved every single thing he wanted to by fake dating me.
I, however . . .
“And just in time, you know,” my dad is saying.
“What?” I ask, too horrified to keep my voice as low as I usually do.
He flashes me a jubilant smile. “Theo has been talking about you all evening,” he gloats, unable to keep the pride out of his voice. “He said you shared a delightful few hours on the plane ride over here, and while he hopes you might feel the same way about him, he knows you wouldn’t be willing to pursue things any further until I give my blessing. Of course, you’d have to date under the radar for a few months until this Alex thing blows over completely, but I think it’s worth a shot.”
No.
Once more, he managed to arrange the perfect scheme. Everything had fallen into place for my father beautifully.Even fake dating Alex had not stopped his goals from manifesting.
And the worst thing about this plan is how much I helped it along. Flirting with Theo to make Alex jealous, even wearing this dress tonight. Everything I’d done to lure Alex in had ended up making Theo even more interested.
My dad chuckles. “You don’t need to look so surprised,” he says. “I only want the best for you, Brit. And I know I’ve been kind of hard on you about being around boys, but I can tell that this is going to be a good thing. Go for it.”
Great. Somehow, he’s going to wind up being the hero.
“You’re going to have to cut things off with Alex,” he muses, satisfied. “If you want, I’ll tell him for you. That you like Theo and—”
“I don’t like Theo.” I’m surprised I managed to push the words out, but the moment they leave my mouth, a huge sense of relief washes over me.
There. I finally did it.
My dad still has that sickening smile plastered on his face. “Sure, you don’t, Brit,” he says. “You don’t need to be awkward about talking about stuff like this with me anymore. In a few years, you’re going to be married, anyway.” He puts his arm around me and pulls me toward him. “I’m going to clear matters with Alex for you. Thank God this whole thing blew over before the press could do a deep dive into you.”
He turns on his heel and strides out.
I stare at the press table, not seeing anything through my suddenly blurry vision.
This is happening. It’s happening so fast that even my best efforts could not prevent it anymore. If I went after my dad and raised another objection to Theo, he would step very quickly into manipulative mode. He’d probably either try toconvince me to go on one date with Theo or ask Theo to increase his pursuit.
