Page 14 of The Marriage Playbook

She shook her head. “That isn’t what I’m talking about,” she said. “I mean, that’s great, and we might be able to work it into whatever we eventually release, but you have to realize that for people living paycheck to paycheck, hearing that a rich athlete gives to charity doesn’t make you look especially good. It’s almost neutral. It takes you from being a dragon hoarding your wealth to being a regular human being with empathy for others. I mean, that’s something we should share about you, but it won’t save your image.”

“Then what will?” he demanded.

“I’m talking about family,” she said. “You’ve seen the pictures of players holding their little baby on the field after they win a game. A guy like that usually gets the benefit of the doubt in these situations. People want to believe that a husband and father is a good person. They’d look at you differently if you could show them you were a family man. But since you’re unmarried, that doesn’t help.”

“I can’t believe being married would make that much difference,” Liam said dismissively.

“Oh, it would,” Cara assured him. “I’m not just saying this stuff to be funny. There’s all kinds of data backing me up on this. Lots of records of football players who have gotten into trouble and then held press conferences to try to repair their reputations. In almost every case, the guys who have a wife sitting by their side have their image completely restored.”

Liam chewed on his lip. “I mean, it is an idea,” he said.

“What’s an idea?” She hadn’t been venturing an idea. She had just been pointing out a fact.

“I could get married,” he explained.

“Well…I mean, seriously? You’re willing to get married over this?” She had known he was desperate for a solution, but that seemed a bit far to go.

“It wouldn’t have to be permanent,” Liam said. “I’m sure I could find a woman who would be willing to go along with a temporary marriage. Just long enough to restore my image. Then we could get a divorce, maybe even an annulment. She’d get some money out of it, and everyone would be on my side again because they’d feel so bad for me that my marriage had fallen apart. It could work.”

Cara’s head spun. On one hand, it was a ridiculous idea. She couldn’t believe they were even discussing it. But on the other hand, based on the research she had done last night, it probably would work. “Do you really think you could find a woman who would go for that?”

Alastair was the one who answered. “That wouldn’t be a problem at all,” he said. “Finding a woman willing to marry a rich football player? That would be easy. Especially knowing that the marriage didn’t have to last. You’ll have more potential brides than you’ll know what to do with.”

He leaned over and murmured in Cara’s ear, “I have to hand it to you. I never thought you were capable of coming up with something like this. If your idea works, this is the kind of move that could absolutely make your career.”

I didn’t come up with it, Cara couldn’t help thinking. She hadn’t been pitching this as an idea. It had been Liam who had decided to run with it.

But on the other hand, if it was going to advance her career, and if no one saw any problem with it, who was she to argue?

CHAPTER 8

LIAM

“All right,” Cara said. “The idea is to find someone you have decent chemistry with, so that the press will find you believable as a couple.”

“I don’t see why that’s necessary,” Liam said. “We should just be picking the hottest woman who applied.” He thumbed through the head shots and pulled one out at random. “What about her? She’s cute.”

Cara glanced at the picture. “Well, for one thing, she’s twenty-four and you’re thirty-two.”

“So? What’s wrong with that?”

“Nothing’s wrong with it necessarily, but it won’t do anything for your reputation if she can’t match up to your level of maturity. We need someone who looks like she belongs with you. People are going to be suspicious enough with this marriage coming right on the heels of your scandal. It’s going to look like you’re trying to grab the news cycle back. It’s important to find someone who looks like you might actually have fallen in love with her for her personality.”

Liam sighed. “So I have to pretend to go on dates with all of them?”

“It’s not that big a deal,” Cara said tersely. “This isn’t how I want to be spending my day either, you know.”

“At least you’re getting paid,” he pointed out.

She snorted. “Don’t act like you’re doing this for my benefit. Just have a drink with each of these women and let’s see what the energy is like between you, all right?”

“We should at least serve alcohol,” Liam said, gazing mournfully at the iced tea on the table Cara had set up for him in the corner of the coffee shop where they would be meeting women today.

“Yeah, right,” she said. “By the time the fifth person came in you’d be sauced.”

“Do you think I’m such a lightweight?”

“I have no idea, but I don’t intend to find out,” she said. “We’ve got this coffee shop rented out for the next four hours, and we have that much time for you to meet as many women as possible. If we’re lucky, we’ll be able to settle on someone for you by the time we’re done here. Why don’t you go sit down, and I’ll go outside and show the first person in?”