“He’s not in love with me,” Aubrey said, because no way did she believe that.
“Fine. He likes you. And you need to keep up the pretense that you like him, if you know what I mean,” Harvey said cryptically.
She shook her head, panic rising within her. “No. No, no, no, Harvey. You can’t try to pull off another fake relationship within the Hawks franchise. You already did it once with Jared and Sheridan Quinn, and you lucked out when it became successful. The general public is going to start thinking something weird is going on here if you try again.”
“No way will we chance anyone finding out that this is a fake relationship. Right? You two haven’t talked to anyone about this, I’m sure.”
“Um, no,” she lied. The pointed look Harvey was sending her way struck terror in her heart.
She’d told Willow everything. And she wanted to trust Willow, really she did, but a secret was no longer secret when more than one person knew about it. And if Willow knew, then most likely—eventually—Nick would know. And then Jared would know. Then Sheridan. Then…
“Perfect. Everyone knows you and Flynn have been dancing around each other since you started working here, Aubrey. It’ll make perfect sense that you end up together.” Harvey clasped his hands together, looking inordinately pleased with himself. “It’ll be brief. Flynn’s going to be traveling so much the next few weeks for the play-offs, it’s not like you’ll see each other much. If this thing looks real between you two, then terrific. A serious commitment, the powers-that-be won’t necessarily frown upon. So you can nurture your relationship and have fun with it, all the while, playing it up to the press.”
That sounded like a nightmare. She didn’t want to lie to Flynn and do this because her boss had told her to. And who knew if Flynn wanted to play pretend, either? He had better things to do. Such as play football, his life’s work. “This is insane,” Aubrey murmured.
“You can make this work. I have faith in you.” Harvey smiled. “This is what you’ve been training for. The opportunity of your career has just landed in your lap.”
“Yeah, at the expense of my personal life going to crap,” she mumbled, sipping on her now cold coffee. Ugh.
She glanced down at her lap, letting her hair fall in front of her face. If she could be anywhere else, she’d be there. Right now. The dentist for a root canal. Her yearly pap-smear appointment. Getting waxed down there. Yes, she’d rather go to any of those appointments than have to listen to Harvey convince her that pretending to be with Flynn was the right thing to do.
“Aubrey, look at me.”
Slowly she lifted her head, trying her best to keep her expression impassive. Harvey smiled, and it reminded her of the devil. Satan wasn’t a red dude with horns and a pitchfork. He was a slick publicist, in an expensive suit, who also happened to be her boss. “What?” she mumbled.
“You’ve been an excellent asset to my team since you’ve come here. You know this, right?”
She nodded, deciding it best not to say a word.
“I appreciate your hard work. You’ve done wonders with Nick Hamilton. You’ve worked great with Foley. Whatever I ask you to do, you do. That means a lot to me.” He paused, and she waited with dread in her stomach for his next words. “So I need you to do this. Pretend to be with Foley. The less distractions we have, the better. It’s the play-offs, for the love of God. So if you can pretend for a little while that you’re madly in love with Flynn, give a press conference, and then lay low, we’ll be good.”
“I don’t want to pretend I’m in a relationship with him,” she said. More than anything, she didn’t want to lie to him. Yes, she liked him, but she didn’t want to have a “boyfriend” all for the sake of the media. “I don’t want to fake it. Haven’t we had enough of that around here?”
“This is different than the Quinns. Small. Temporary.” Harvey waved a hand. “One press conference is all I’m asking for. An appearance at a game, with you wearing Foley’s jersey. No biggie.”
“‘No biggie.’” She blew out a harsh breath. “Right. No biggie for you. My life, on the other hand, will be turned completely upside down.” It already felt like that.
“You do it and you get a promotion,” he said, dropping the words casually. They went off like little bombs in her head, one after the other, making it hard for her to breathe.
A promotion. Which would mean a raise, and she desperately needed one. Living expenses were crazy in the Bay Area. And a promotion was something she’d strived for since she’d hit the ground running at the Hawks franchise. She hadn’t been there long, but she’d worked so hard trying to prove herself. But she didn’t want a promotion like this. It felt…wrong.
“Or don’t do it, and I’ll be forced to make…departmental cutbacks at the end of the season. Jobs might be lost. Including yours.” Harvey smiled, but the smile was ice cold. He had her by the throat, and he knew it.
“That’s blackmail.” She could hardly get the words out.
He shrugged. “I call it incentive.”
This was all sorts of twisted. He was holding her hand over the fire and giving her no choice but to get burned. Pretend to be in a relationship with Flynn and she’d end up scorched. Don’t do it and she’d be nothing but black ashes scattered all over the ground, jobless.
Faking with Flynn could end up hurting her. She liked the guy. Their attraction was undeniable, and when it came to him, she was weak. So weak. She’d probably fall right back into bed with him, and it would be good. Too good. And she’d start feeling something real for him, and he might start to feel something real for her, and all the while, she’d know in the back of her mind that…
Harvey had put her up to this so she could keep her job. So she could get a promotion. How awful was that?
“You like him,” Harvey continued, crossing his arms. “Don’t deny it. You spent the night at his house, Aubrey. You had sex with the supposed virgin. That’s pretty damn serious, am I right?”
This was beyond embarrassing. “It wasn’t like that.” Her night with Flynn had been spectacular but nothing so serious as the oh-I’m-giving-you-my-virginity-now-so-we’re-bonded-forever type experience.
“Whatever it was like, it happened, and now you can easily pretend to be in a relationship.” He paused again, the air heavy and filled with so many unsaid things. Things she didn’t want to consider. “Just say yes, Aubrey. It doesn’t have to be so hard.”
A dirty joke flitted through her brain at his words, and she stowed it away. Now was not the time for dirty jokes. Everything was going to change with this decision, and she didn’t like feeling so completely out of control. This was her life Harvey was messing with, and he was turning it into a photo op, as if it was no big thing.
“Fine,” she muttered, meeting his gaze. “I’ll do it. But no press conference. That’s too much.” She felt sick to her stomach, agreeing to something like this. It didn’t feel right. As if she was tricking everyone, including herself.
Including Flynn.
“Excellent. And the press conference is happening. It’s already scheduled.” Harvey rubbed his hands together. “I knew you’d say yes. You can put a positive spin on this. If anyone can do it, you can.” He pushed away from his desk and made his way toward his office door. “Keep the promotion part of the deal to yourself, though, okay? Flynn doesn’t need to know all the details.”
She opened her mouth to speak, but he cut her off.
“I’ll grab Flynn and send him back in here. Then I’ll leave the two of you alone so you can talk about this further.”
“But…” Aubrey clamped her lips shut when Harvey exited the office and shut the door behind him.
Shit. She so didn’t want to have this conversation with Flynn now. There’d been no time to prepare, she had no idea what to say, and oh my God, could this get any more humiliating?
Flynn walked back into the office not even two minutes later, returning to the seat he’d just vacated. He appeared edgy, a little te
nse, and she was immediately filled with the need to reassure him.
Stupid. She should be the one who was being reassured. Not only did she have to fake this relationship but she had to pretend to Flynn that she was all for the idea.
She really hated her boss right now. Like, with a passion.
“You’re angry,” Flynn said, his deep voice rumbly and low.
She flashed him a quick, albeit miserable, smile. “No, I’m not.” Yes, she was. But it was time for her to rein it in and put on a show. Besides, it wasn’t his fault they were in this so-called scandalous situation. “I don’t understand why the media is so fascinated with your sex life.”
“Really?” The incredulous expression on Flynn’s face was obvious. “Aren’t you the one who played that angle up?”
“Me?” Leaning over, she set her coffee cup on the edge of Harvey’s desk. Her anger surged higher. “Are you serious? I was informed I should play up that angle by my boss. And weren’t you the one who went along with it?”
“I was doing what I was told.” He shrugged.
“Well, so was I.” She stood, resting her hands on her hips as she towered over him. Sort of. Even sitting down, the guy was built like a mountain. A mountain she’d already climbed, and if she was being honest with herself, was desperate to climb again.
No. No climbing mountains allowed. This man should be off limits. You can pretend all you want, but the sex thing isn’t happening again. Do you really want to get hurt when it’s all said and done? Because this won’t last. Flynn Foley is capable of breaking your heart.
“Don’t try to blame me for this,” she said.
“I’m not blaming you for anything.” His voice and his expression were both irritatingly calm. “You are proving that you’re mad at me, though.”
“I’m mad at the situation we’ve put ourselves in. Big difference.” She crossed her arms in front of her chest, noticed the way his gaze dropped to her breasts and lingered there. Her cheeks heated at his blatant perusal.
She should be mad. She should yell at him “Eyes up here, asshole” or something. But no. She stood there and let him look his fill, secretly enjoying his hot gaze on her.
Yeah. She had major issues, all of them dealing with Flynn.
Finally he lifted his gaze to meet hers, no doubt noticing her pink-with-embarrassment cheeks, but he never said a word. “So we should make the best of it.”
“Make the best of what?” Wow, he was handsome. Staring at him made her forget her troubles, which was ridiculous. But he looked tired. His cheeks were covered in stubble, and his hair was a bit of a mess. As if he’d run his fingers through it again and again.
He smiled, momentarily dazzling her with that quick flash of straight white teeth. “Our situation. We may as well enjoy it…”
Oh. Was he serious? She could make the best of anything if she had to. It was a criteria of her job, after all. “What are you suggesting?” she asked carefully.
Don’t listen to him. There will be no “enjoying it” involved.
“Maybe we should try to date for real,” he said with a slight shrug. “I like you and you like me, right?”
“Right.” She blinked, hating how she’d automatically agreed with him.
“So let’s try this thing out…for real. And if we can’t stand each other, then at least we tried. He smiled, and the sight of it was dazzling.
Okay, maybe he would make this easy on her. She needed easy. Difficult would screw with her mind. She thought she’d have to be the one to ask him out, and instead, he’d done it for her.
But what would happen once the play-offs were over? Would they go their separate ways? As Harvey so kindly had reminded her, employees dating was against the rules at the Hawks organization. She’d signed the form in the back of the employee handbook, stating she knew the rules and wouldn’t break them.
Here she was, breaking them. Publicly. With her boss’s permission and threats of losing her job if she didn’t follow through. Insane.
“You don’t have to say anything. I don’t need an answer right now. It’s awkward enough between us.” He chuckled and ran a hand through his hair, messing it up further. God, he looked cute. “I gotta tell you this, though, Aub. I’m not sorry for what happened the other night. And I meant to call you, I swear, but—”
“Don’t say it,” she interrupted, silencing him. “Don’t explain yourself. Don’t make up some lame excuse. What happened happened. Let’s leave it at that.”
They stared at each other, Flynn’s intense gaze sending goose bumps scattering all over her skin. She reacted to him so easily, and it scared her. When she got near Flynn, she simply…felt. Everything.
Not smart. Reckless wasn’t her style, but that’s exactly how he made her feel.
“You keep looking at me like that, and I’m going to believe you forgive me,” he murmured, his hot gaze locked directly on her.
A shiver moved through her. “There’s nothing to forgive.” Really, there wasn’t. At least, when it came to Flynn. He was now the innocent party in all of this. She was mad at Harvey for putting her in this position. And okay, maybe her pride had been hurt, too. But they had other things to worry about now. Like the media believing they were a real couple. That she’d taken his virginity as though it had been some sort of prize for her to claim.
God. What a mess.
He reached out and circled his fingers around her wrist. “We should have a press conference, announce that we’re seeing each other.”
She slowly shook her head. Maybe if she convinced Flynn to think like her, he’d convince Harvey to cancel the press conference. “It would distract from the team during a critical time. I don’t want to do that. Let’s keep it low key.”
“I’ve tried the low-key route. It doesn’t work. They’re like vultures picking at my flesh until they hit bone. They want a story. We can give them one.”
“I don’t know…”
“Trust me.” He stood, never letting go of her wrist, and she liked it. Liked having him so close, his presence nearly overwhelming, his hand still on her. She could get used to this.
And that was a scary feeling.
“I know you’re the public relations expert, but I know what the media wants from me,” he continued, smiling down at her. “And right now, what they want more than anything is us.”
Us. She could get used to the sound of that. Despite the very temporary feeling of it all, despite the proverbial gun held to her head, she was curious. What was it like to be a very popular “us”? She’d seen it in earnest with Jared and Sheridan Quinn and lately with Willow and Nick. Now they could be a Flynn and Aubrey.
Despite it all, she wanted that, even just for a little while, which was dumb, but she couldn’t help it. Maybe they could mix their names like all the celebrities do. “Brangelina” was still hot, after all. Maybe they could be “Aubrynn”? “Flybrey”?
Clearly she’d lost her mind.
Chapter Seven
Flynn Foley’s New Girlfriend: “She’s the love of my life,” Foley says.
Aubrey stared at the headline on TMZ’s website, shock coursing through her at seeing the words in bold black-and-white on one of the most popular gossip sites in the country. She thought she could handle this, but clearly it was going to take some getting used to.
She’d never been called the love of anyone’s life. Let alone a guy she’d barely spent time with, who she was now involved with in a publicity relationship.
The article on the site had a picture of the them leaving the Hawks facility earlier today, right after they’d had their second meeting with Harvey on how to handle this mess they’d gotten themselves into. In the photo, they were hand in hand, with matching, giant smiles on their faces. Anyone who’d seen them would have thought they’d looked happy and madly in love.
Crazy, how easy it was to fake something.
For the past hour, from the moment she’d gotten home, she’d been scouring the web, looking for ar
ticles about the two of them, which were easy to find. It was all the media seemed able to write about. Talk about a slow-news day. Their names and faces were plastered everywhere, much to her growing fascination. She’d always been on the other side of the publicity spectrum. The one who drummed up interest, never the one who everyone was interested in.
It was a trip.
Like a good little publicist, she got comfortable on her bed and created Google alerts so she’d be notified when anything regarding her and Flynn together popped up on the web. After going through a bunch, she sent on the better, more positive articles to Harvey-the-jerk. She kept the nasty, spiteful little articles to herself, though it would take nothing for Harvey to dig those up, too.
Flynn claimed not to read much of his own press, which she could hardly believe, but whatever. If he wanted to remain clueless as to what they were saying about him, about her and Flynn together, then so be it. She, on the other hand, wanted to know everything.
Both the good and the bad.
Her cell rang, and she grabbed it from her bedside table to check who was calling. It was her mom. Crap. Her heart sinking into her toes, she offered a tentative, “Hello,” hoping against hope her mom had decided to crawl under a rock the past few days and knew nothing about her and Flynn.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” her mother screeched the moment Aubrey answered. “You’re in love with Flynn Foley? I knew working with those football players would mess with your head, sweetheart, but now you’ve gone off the deep end and fallen in love with one? Are you crazy?”
“Mom.” Her mother still ranted. Even though she’d been divorced from Aubrey’s father for years, since Aubrey was thirteen, she still had negative feelings toward the male sex. Thank God, Aubrey was an only child and had no male siblings. They would’ve been done for, what with the man hater Sharon Cooper had turned into.
“And to think I tried my best to raise you right. Don’t you know football players are nothing but a bunch of cheating Lotharios who enjoy nothing more than getting women all twisted over them?”
“Mom, jeez. Let me explain myself.” Aubrey sighed and let her mother continue on for a few more minutes. She may as well get it all out of her system first, then Aubrey could explain what was happening.
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