“I offered.”
“Why?”
Mia sighed and picked at the lid of her own coffee. Down on the practice rink, the Zamboni roared to life as the maintenance crew re-leveled the ice.
“I don’t have a lot of friends. Oscar is the extrovert out of the two of us. Similar to Cian.” She shot me a quick look. “When Oscar first came into my life, I thought I was broken beyond repair. I just didn’t believe anyone could or should love me. Oscar was… well… you’ve met him. He doesn’t really understand the word no, unless you’re talking consent. Anyway, I almost let my insecurities destroy the best thing that ever happened to me. Cian was one of the people who helped me believe I deserved this life Oscar and I have built together. So why did I volunteer to come? I guess I’m passing on the good karma. I would like to get to know you, because you seem like someone worth knowing. And I’m not just saying that for Cian’s sake. You guys have to work out your stuff between you. But if you ever want to talk, I’m here.” She glanced up and away again, then stood, clapping her hands.
“I’m sure you are incredibly busy, so I’ll let you get back to it. Oscar can give you my number if you ever want to use it.” Her small smile told me she hoped I would.
“Thank you,” I choked out as she turned to walk away.
“We all need someone, Blair. Life is pretty dull when we hide behind our walls all alone.” With another nod, she strode down the aisle of chairs and headed for the exit.
I turned back to my computer to find the screen had gone black, and when I glanced up, Mia was gone.
Feeling like someTouched by an Angelshit had just gone down, I packed up my belongings and headed for Dante’s office. She’d had a couple of small PR issues come up and had promised to walk me through how she’d handled them.
“How’s your day going?” she asked as I stepped into her perfectly appointed office. I’d never done much with my own space because I preferred to sit in the stands, closer to the action and the players in case I needed to talk to them while I worked. Dante’s office looked like an upscale law firm that would make grown men cry if they didn’t fall in line.
“A little weird but productive. How’s yours?”
With pleasantries exchanged, we settled in and got to work, running through the media plan, and how she instructed the players to proceed in each of the cases she’d handled.
As we were wrapping up the final case study, she paused, an odd look on her face.
“Can I ask you something that might be a little personal?”
Dante was straight forward, ball busting, and exactly who you wanted when shit hit the fan.
She rarely asked permission, and as long as I’d known her, we’d never spoken about personal things.
“Sure. Shoot.”
“Is something going on between you and O’Leary?”
Her face was carefully blank, giving nothing away.
“What makes you think that?” I asked in lieu of an answer. What could I say? He might like me, or he could be setting up to break me.
“He spent the night in your hotel room in Washington.”
I hid my surprise, wondering why she was bringing it up now.
“Nothing happened.” I could have explained the situation more, but it felt like a betrayal to tell her he was wasted and vulnerable. The team had a strict code of behavior for away games, and getting pass-out drunk was definitely a no-no.
“You were photographed leaving a diner together two days ago.”
Why would I have been…? Right. I wouldn’t. But Cian would.
“We went for lunch after doing some volunteer work. We’re… friends.” I almost choked on the word.
Dante nodded, keen eyes studying me like I was another problem to solve. Maybe I was.
“Take the rest of the day off. Keep off social media, and when thenothingturns intosomething, for the love of God, let me know first. Okay?”
“You really think someone like him would look twice at someone like me?” I asked, voicing the heart of my insecurity. He was too pretty. Too talented. Too… him. Why was he focused on me?
She sighed. “He’d be lucky to have you, Blair. Take it from someone who has already failed at the marriage thing. Compatibility is critical in a relationship, and it has nothing to do with looks. It has everything to do with how they make you feel. O’Leary looks for you when he enters the room. I’ve seen it. So whatever’s going on, decide how you feel about it. Make your decision, or don’t, but have all the information.”
