Page 62 of Just for the Plot

“Graydon’s in on this?” Gretchen’s eyes nearly pop out of their sockets, and I don’t blame her; I’d think the same thing.

“He was reluctant but then asked Hutton and they got me Cougar’s number, which I gave to Bower. That’s her name.”

She rubs her temples as if this is information that will hurt any plans she’s worked on over the last few weeks.

“Who knows about this?”

“Why does it matter?”

“Because I need to know everything so I’m fully prepared. What if Cougar decides to do something stupid with this girl, then she comes to the media about how Cougar Vajeen mistreated her and then names all the people involved in setting her up with him? I need to be prepared for such an event.”

“She wouldn’t do that,” I say. “She’s a good friend.”

“Good friends always turn on the famous. Textbook. So who is involved?”

“She won’t turn on me,” I say with conviction. That makes Gretchen pause for a moment.

“Fine, in the unlikely event that she does turn on you, who was involved in this setup?”

“Just the people I mentioned. Me, Graydon, Hutton, Nolan, and Cougar.”

She types something in her phone and says, “That’s way too many men to be involved in a woman’s future.”

“She asked to be set up,” I say out of pure defense. “I want that to be clear. It was initially her idea.”

“Well, that’s a relief at least.” She lets out a sigh and glances toward the window. “So, there’s no chance you’re going to be dating this girl?”

“From what I heard about Cougar Vajeen, it’s probably a no,” I say,my gut churning at the thought of them being together, getting married, having kids…

“But you want something to happen with her?”

“I don’t see how this is relevant to the PR bullshit that I’m trying to get out of.”

“It’s relevant.”

“How so?” I ask. “I told you I’m not doing a dating show.”

“No, I wasn’t thinking about that.” She folds her arms, staring off in the distance, a thoughtful expression tugging on her face. “What if…” She pauses and her teeth pull on the corner of her lip. “What if we did something with you in the PR space that would possibly, I don’t know…assist in your endeavors to date her?”

“I don’t want to expose her to the public and use her to help the Bombers’ image.”

“No, that’s not what I’m thinking. Graydon is already doing that with Maple. We don’t want to double down on the same PR strategy.”

“Okay, so then what do you mean?”

“What if we had you participate in something that she likes and that could win her over, while also uplifting the image of the team?”

“And why the hell would we do that? As if you care about my love life.”

“You’re right, I really don’t.” Her eyes scan over me. “But I care about your image because that’s my job, and the way you’re presenting yourself at the moment is one step up from angry troll under a bridge throwing sticks as people pass by.”

“I’m not a troll.”

“Your shirt is inside out.”

“No, it’s not,” I say as I glance down at my shirt, and sure as shit it is.

“And don’t tell me it’s the new way of wearing it.”