Her attention is on her phone, but Tedi’s jumping up and down.
“Looks like the hot blonde did the trick again,” Ford says, patting me on the back, and skates off.
Is it bad that I would’ve liked her to see me score? It’s not the best sign since she’s my agent’s girl.
Chapter Four
Saige
Tedi elbows me in the breast. “Did you see that? He scored!” She flies out of her seat and bangs on the glass.
I peek up from my phone to see Aiden staring at us. God, he’s so sexy. What the hell am I doing here? Men like Aiden are my kryptonite.
After another player bangs his stick on the boards, and Tedi collapses back in her seat. “Did you see that? That was Tweetie.” She’s talking to the guy sitting next to her even though I think he’s a Sharks’ fan since he’s wearing blue and silver while she’s decked out in the Fury colors of black and white.
“How do you know so much about hockey?” I ask her.
“I have brothers. They played. They weren’t very good, since they’re both architects now.” She sits up straighter in her chair. “They weren’t tough enough.”
“Oh,” is all I say.
“I guess that white wine did the trick, huh?”
I eye her because I’m sure Aiden doesn’t want anyone to know about some weird superstition he has now. Plus, since he scored a goal, I’m fairly sure he’s going to be on my doorstep before his next game.
My phone rings and I see my biggest client, Maverick Sanders’s, name on the screen. He’s a pro football player for the Miami team and was my first client who trusted me fully. Handed me his entire social media, including a webpage. So no matter where I am, Maverick always gets his phone call answered.
“Hey, Maverick,” I say, pushing one finger to my ear.
“Where are you?” he asks.
“I’m at the Fury game.”
“What? All the times I’ve tried to get you to my games, you said you don’t enjoy sports.”
It’s true. Maverick has offered me killer seats, and I always decline. Games are a dangerous place for me. Because of my work, I get to go behind the scenes and associate with the players. I understand the appeal a pro athlete has on my libido and I don’t take chances, since most of them are only interested in one thing and usually only for one night. The only reason I’m here tonight is because Tedi played a major guilt trip on me.
“Sorry, nothing personal.”
“You’re fired!” he says and laughs.
My gut twists. Maverick is the cornerstone of my entire business. He’s the face on every piece of marketing material I have. Just the use of his name gets me other athletes as clients. If I lose him, I’m screwed.
“What?” I ask, the lump in my throat growing bigger.
He laughs again and my shoulders relax a bit. Okay, he really is joking. “I was kidding when I said that, but the truth is that I do have to fire you.”
“I’m sorry?” I stand and shuffle down the row before walking up the stairs of the arena.
“Yeah, you know how Emery and I just got engaged?”
“Yes.” I know because she’s been sending me pictures of them to post, wanting me to report every time they’re doing anything from grocery shopping to a date night to a fundraiser. I keep telling her they should keep some things private and never post live, always post after they’ve left, but she never listens to me.
“She’s going to take it over.”
“Maverick,” I say with displeasure in my tone because this is the stupidest decision ever. If he wanted to try it on his own, then have at it, but not his girlfriend. There’s no way she has his best interests at heart.
“She’s got the time, and honestly, she really wants to do it.”
I can almost hear Emery’s whiny voice pleading with Maverick.
“I really don’t think it’s a good idea. She’s too close, too personal. Remember when I first took it over for you because people were ambushing you when you were out socially?”
“She promised me she wouldn’t do that again.”
I’m silent for a moment because this is a huge blow. I’ll have to redo my entire marketing campaign. “Have you really thought this through?”
“It’s social media. How bad can she screw it up?”
My back straightens. I’m annoyed that he thinks my job is nothing but a joke. Does he have any idea how many more followers I’ve gotten him, or that he doesn’t come off like a privileged, condescending asshole now? Has he added up all the money he’s gotten from the partnering posts I’ve secured on his behalf? “Okay, I’ll send over a document to cancel our contract first thing in the morning and provide you with all the passwords. As long as you’re sure.”
“I’m sure she’ll do fine.”
“Sure, she will.”
Not. Definitely not. She’s going to make a mess of it. I’ve shown their relationship a bit, but the women who follow Maverick don’t want to hear about Emery. That’s why it’s all going to blow up in his face.
“Thanks for understanding, Saige.”
“Good luck,” I say and hang up.
I stand by the concession booth, staring at the large pretzel covered in salt. My bruised ego tells me that will fix my problem. Without thinking of much else, I buy the pretzel and cheese and a large beer.
When I walk down the stairs toward the first row, there’s a frenzy of hockey players whizzing by on skates, and I grow nauseated.
Tedi eyes me for a moment. “Who was that?”
I tear off a piece of the pretzel and dip it into the cheese. “Maverick,” I say as if it’s no big deal.
I think I’m still in shock. I didn’t see this coming. We were great business associates. He was so helpful in the beginning, always referring me to people. I thought he saw my value, but to just hand it over to his fiancée and say it’s no big deal? He clearly didn’t.
“And?” Tedi pulls a piece of my pretzel off for herself.
“He’s no longer with Stars SM.”
Tedi’s mouth opens but nothing comes out.
I nod to confirm she heard me right, and she plunges her pretzel piece into the cheese, sitting straight and staring at the ice, unblinking.
“Asshole,” she mumbles.
I don’t agree or disagree. I don’t know what to think. Just when I was starting to feel secure about my business, this happens. I spent a huge amount on the marketing materials I just had made, which I’ll now have to scrap. Add on the fact that when a high-profile client leaves, it can fill those who are still with the business or thinking about coming on board with doubt. I swear, every time my life gets better, I’m thrown another wrench to dodge.
“No worries though, because look at all these guys who need social media taken off their hands.” Tedi wraps her arm around me and motions toward the ice.
“True. I have Maksim poised to sign on.”
“Yeah, he’s a hot Russian for sure, but you need more than him to replace Maverick.”
She’s right. I’d need about six of them or… I shake my head. The only player on that ice who would be on par with Maverick is Aiden Drake. He’s the captain of the team. And although I pretended not to know who he was on New Year’s Eve, did he really think I don’t know every athlete who’s worth knowing?