“How hard is it to stay out of trouble?”
“I haven’t checked my phone since yesterday afternoon. Skip to the punchline.”
“Just look at your social media pages. Pick one. It doesn’t matter. It’s everywhere.”
“What’s everywhere? I haven’t done anything.” He opened his newsfeed.
And there it was.
Two images side-by-side. On the left was a photograph of him in the Jacuzzi, untying Amie’s bikini top. With her head tipped sideways, her long hair spilling over her breast, it looked like he was whispering sweet nothings in her ear.
The photograph on the right was of him carrying Gigi out to his truck. She was laughing, while he looked at her with pure, flagrant lust.
Is Cassian Ellis two-timing the
hot cheerleader with a Lollipop?
“Dammit.” Gigi’s contract. This headline would kill any shot she had with Clean Beatz. “I’m not with Amie. I’ve never been with her. How do I fix this?”
“What about the Lollipop?” A seasoned sports manager, Ethan had dealt with these situations countless times.
“We just came back from doing the tour together.” Which only fueled speculation that they’d hooked up. “We…” He was about to say, We grew up in the same town, but he didn’t need to announce that kind of information. Shit. “What can I do?”
“Where’s it taken? Is that your hotel? It looks like an indoor pool.”
“It’s the resort pool, why?”
“Well, that’s a public space. And the one with the Lollipop? That looks like a parking lot.”
“I’m not looking to sue anyone. I need to get it out there that I’m not with Amie, so I can’t be cheating on her.”
“You don’t really think anyone cares about some formal statement you make, do you? Because they see what they want to see. Look, get me the direct line to Gigi’s manager. We’ll get on the same page before we approach your coach and her label. My number one priority is making sure you keep your job.”
“Ethan, listen to me. That story’s going to sink Gigi’s career.” Fuck it. Gigi wasn’t his manager’s job. “I have to call Joan.” His publicist would understand. “Let me get off the phone.”
“Get that number for me.”
“I will.” He disconnected, then took off to find Gigi. She hadn’t come back into the house yet.
A horrible sense of foreboding had the hairs on his arm standing on end.
His phone vibrated again. Bill. He needed to check in with the head of his security, so he took the call. “Hey.”
“All right, so I did hear back from them.”
“Back up. I haven’t looked at my messages this morning.”
“Right. So, this story broke last night around eleven. I immediately contacted the hotel, requesting access to the security footage, and I’ve been waiting to hear back before briefing you. Fortunately, both properties—this one and the one in Aspen—are owned by locals, so it’ll be easy to view what they’ve got. What I need from you is a timeframe. When were you in the Jacuzzi with Amie—”
“Around eight pm. And I went to the Roadside Inn about a half hour later. I was back home by ten, so that should make it damn easy to pinpoint.”
“Excellent. I’m meeting with them this afternoon.”
“Look, this guy’s getting into my private parties. He’s following me. I can’t help but think it’s Xander.” Cassian wouldn’t let some fuckstick ruin his life. “I want you to hire more security. Whatever we need. I’m done with this shit.”
“You down to hire a PI firm?”
“Of course.”
“Good. I’ll make that call right now. Listen, Cassian, we’ll get to the bottom of it, I guarantee it.”
“We have to.”
“I hear you. I’ll let you know what we get from the footage.”
He disconnected and looked out the living room window to find Gigi pacing in front of his truck. Fuck. She was clearly upset, talking on the phone.
While he waited for her to finish her call, he skimmed the messages on his phone, freezing when he saw one from his coach.
Coach: You’re going to make me trade you, aren’t you?
Right before he could answer, Gigi ended her conversation. Hands on her hips, head lowered, she stomped a bare foot on his lawn.
Cassian threw open the door. “Is everything okay? Who was on the phone?”
“My manager.” She sounded distracted.
“And?” Dammit, he couldn’t believe this had happened.
“And I told her the truth. That we knew each other in high school, got reacquainted on the tour…”
“Did you tell her we’re together?”
“Yes. I had to. She can’t help me if I hide the truth from her.”
“Okay. My manager said he’s going to talk to yours. If you want to text me her contact info, I’ll forward it. In the meantime, I’m hiring a private investigator.” He couldn’t be the reason she lost her contract. “I’m going to find out who’s doing this.”
She gave him an exasperated expression. “Why is your first thought not Amie Clover? You told me she wants to get back on NFL Cheerleader.”
“First of all, she’s caught up in this, too. As a cheerleader, she could lose her job if she’s seen drunk and stripping for the football team. She’s also got a serious boyfriend. But secondly, she’s a friend, and she wouldn’t do that to me.”
“Does she know you might get traded?”
“Of course not. Outside my manager, only you and Dean know.”
“Then she doesn’t know how this could impact you. She’s probably using this to get back on her reality TV show.”
“It’s a possibility, but she spent two nights on the tour with me and nothing was leaked. I think the common denominator’s my backup quarterback. Right after Aspen, he gave an interview, basically confirming the threesome. It’s no secret he’s not my biggest fan. And he’s the one who’d benefit if I got traded.”
“Would he do something like this? In a time when it’s so easy to find out who’s behind these things?”
“People do stupid shit all the time.”
“Wow, if he’s behind it…” She softened. “What are you going to do?”
“The only thing I can do right now is wait to hear back from my security team. They’re looking at the footage from both hotels and hiring a PI.” He reached for her, but she didn’t step into his arms. “Tell me how I can fix this for you. I’ll do anything you need me to do.”
“It’s done. There’s nothing I can say, no press release I can put out that will change peoples’ perceptions. And, honestly, the only perception that matters is Dale’s. If she decides she’s done with me, then what do I have? She gave us one month to be in the press for only good things, and every single one of us is involved in some kind of scandal.”
“Me carrying you is not a scandal.”
“If Dean carried me it might not be. But it’s you, the Bad Boy Quarterback.” She looked exasperated. “It’s not just this contract, Cassian. It’s my career. My reputation. No label’s going to want anything to do with me.”