Page 29 of Off the Mark
At Rowan’s bemused look, I said, “She let it slip that I had one at a meeting, and I guess a romantic relationship is just ‘family-friendly’ enough to get me on their good side.”
That look of bemusement turned sly. “Wait. She told them you had a boyfriend before I showed up today?”
I realized my error a beat too late.
“It’s no biggie,” I said quickly, “but I might haveimpliedthat you and I were an item. Before I officially asked you. Then hadn’t had the chance after that day in your office to spin her some convenient story about why you’d suddenly vanished.”
His head tipped back on a laugh that had me dropping my face into my hands. “Oh, Maddox. That isbrazen as hell.”
“I panicked, okay?” I pressed my cool fingers to my blushing cheeks.
His grin was a mile wide and much too charming. “What were you gonna do if I hadn’t shown up today? Drag along a cardboard cutout of my body?”
I blew the bangs off my forehead with a noisy breath. “Oh, I don’t know. Tell her you had to suddenly move to Canada?”
He nodded. “A classic. And I’m gonna give you shit about this forever. It’s only fair.”
“Fine,” I grumbled. “A cardboard cutout would be less annoying at least.”
He leaned in a few inches. “It’s always been adorable, watching you do that.”
“Do what?”
“Pretend that you don’t love having me around.”
I narrowed my eyes. He did the same. We held that pose, stony-faced, for a few seconds. Until the ends of his lips twitched. Just once, but it had me laughing into my fist, trying—unsuccessfully—to pass it off as a cough.
Rowan winked. “Gotcha. Again.”
“I’m stressed out. I just lost a race.” I held up my hand. “And I’minjured. I’m not at my best.”
He chuckled. Finished his beer, then raked a hand through his hair. “Cardboard cutout or not, we’ll get you back on their good side, Maddox. I said this the other day, but it’s still true. They’d be fools to cut you.”
I bit the end of my thumb, nervous about what came next. “I, uh…I was extremely lucky to score this sponsorship for a lot of reasons. It’s atonof money. Money I need now, because my dad was served an eviction notice a couple weeks ago. If I can’t come up with the funds to pay what he owes, help him with the rest of the mortgage moving forward, he’ll be kicked out of that house. So that’s my miracle.”
His jaw clenched. “That’s criminal, Charlie. I’m so sorry.”
I lifted a shoulder. “I fucked up. Big time. The pictures from the bar. Blowing off the events. I can’t have my dad getting evicted because of my mistakes.”
“This isn’t all on you,” he said, brows knitted together. “Most of the fault lies with the awful system that doesn’t take care of athletes after they’ve retired. Especially ones with career-ending injuries, like your dad. How is he gonna pay his mortgage if he can’t race?”
I thought of the bridges my dad had burned after he quit, a result of his physical pain colliding with his new limitations. He refused appearances that paid. Was an asshole to his agent, who was only trying to do his best. And developed a reputation for being “difficult” that was impossible to shake.
“He didn’t always…he didn’t always make the best choices. Guess the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, huh?”
Rowan’s expression darkened. “Charlie, I don’t really think that’s fair—”
“So what’s your miracle then?” I asked, interrupting him.
He hesitated, jaw still flexing. For a moment, I thought he might press the issue, but then he let out a long sigh. “I told you that the rec center is in the middle of a financial crisis. A major one. We lost an operations grant this summer, one we had gotten for years, and it covered a lot of our salaries. Including this new program I started for seniors in the neighborhood.”
He rubbed the back of his neck a few times. “Since I’m the person temporarily in charge right now, I gotta find a lot of money in three fucking weeks or I have to eliminate that program. The first of many.” He tipped his glass my way. “All those events you want a boyfriend for, well…I checked ’em out online. A lot of rich people and rich businesses will be in those rooms with you. If I can get some face-to-face time and a warm intro from the Bad Girl of Moto herself…”
Rowan’s mouth hitched up, eyes hopeful. And I was already nodding in agreement. “I do know some of them. And if I don’t, I’ll make it happen. Consider it done.”
His smile turned sheepish. “Thank you. Do you…do you think it’s a totally stupid idea?”
“Of course not. It’s a totally strategic idea.”
