The Publicity Stunt

12. Chapter Eleven

The first two periods were a shit show. Kace played like trash, and he knew it. Not seeing Bri in the stands threw him off his game after she told him she was coming to town to watch him play. Hell, he even saw the pictures of her as she left her plane hours before.

On the way back to the locker room after the second period, reporters bombarded him, which took him by surprise. They normally interrogate them after the game, and he braced himself. A female reporter he recognized after the last three games asked what he thought about Bri”s social media post.

He”d told her he was busy on the ice and doesn’t have time to check social media, although that might make the penalty box a little less horrible. The woman pulled out her phone and handed it to him. He scrolled through the pictures after reading the caption until he saw the last photo. It was a picture of him on television with a heart. It put a grin on his face.

He told the reporter Bri”s a very busy woman, and as much as he”d love to have her there in person, he knows she needs rest days just like the rest of the world. Her schedule is more demanding than his, and that says a lot for anyone who understands a hockey schedule.

When she asked if he was seeing Bri after the game, he dodged the question and walked into the locker room to get his ass handed to him. When he came out for the third period, he played like the superstar he”d been before, and the Bootleggers won by three points.

Now, Kace sits in the locker room and looks at his phone. Bri texted him, apologizing for missing his game. As it turns out, she also took care of Tessa, and he can”t help the smile. Even though she missed his game, she did what she could from where she was. Plus, Tessa showing up out of the blue didn”t sound too good.

He gets an idea, and he messages her back. Maybe, just maybe, he found an excuse to see her tonight.

Kace calls Neo after reading her replies.

”Hey, thank God you pulled yourself together in the third period. Especially with speculation about you and Bri being on the outs since she landed in St. Petersburg but isn”t at the game. You two really know how to keep a guy on his toes, don”t you?” Neo says.

He rolls his eyes. ”Yeah, glad I could make your job easier. Listen, I need a favor.”

”What”s up?”

”Are you able to call in an order to-go at a BBQ place called Smithers? I have no idea where they are, but they’re somewhere near here.”

The taps from Neo”s tapping on his phone screen tell Kace he”s doing the work Kace probably could have done, but he pays Neo a shit ton of money to act as both his publicity rep as well as an assistant when needed. ”Yeah, it looks like they”re open for another hour. What do you need?”

”That”s a good question. I know I need the brisket, but maybe an array of different meats and sides?”

”You got it. I”ll make sure the car has the address for them. Taking it back to your hotel?”

”Oh, that”s right. I also need another favor. Can you find out from Nia what hotel Bri”s at? I want to surprise her with the food.”

He chuckles. ”That post saved our asses. And food... yeah, sure. Got it.”

The comment stirs something loose, and he knows Neo being back in Texas is for the best. ”She”s a good girl, Neo.”

”Hey, I believe you. But I saw that kiss at the awards show, and believe me, Nia and I both agree there”s more than just a fake situation going on with you two. Being in the same area as you two feels electric. It”s not unfathomable that you two would be taking this into very real territory.”

”Just watch what you say, okay?”

”Got it. I didn”t mean any disrespect. I”ll get the order called in, and the driver will take care of bringing you everywhere you need to go.”

Hanging up, he sneers at the phone. Kace hasn”t seen Bri since the awards show, and she hasn”t left his mind. He”s also done major soul searching the past few weeks, and he knows without a doubt he doesn”t love Sasha anymore. He”s angry and hurt, but he doesn”t want her to come back. If she did, he”d turn her away. That surprised him more than he”d expected.

Walking out to the car, Kace rides to the restaurant and finds it surprising Bri Waters has ever eaten here. Part of him wonders if Neo found the right place because it”s nothing more than a literal hole in the wall. The outside looks more like a shack than a restaurant, and it doesn”t look what he”d consider to be clean. He”d eat there without a doubt, but Bri”s diet and standards seem really different than his.

He steps out of the car with the food in his hand in front of the hotel, and like he expected, cameras flash in his face. Security forces them back, and he mutters, ”I don”t think I”ll ever get used to this,” to himself.

”Kace,” Nia says with a smile and meets him in the lobby. ”Neo called and said you”d be here.”

The woman always has short skirt suits on, and he can appreciate the long legs with the ridiculous heels she wears. What impresses him most is how she looks like she glides, and he wonders if she ever participated in beauty pageants. She looks like she”d have been Miss Something-Or-Other.

”I wanted to surprise her, otherwise I”d just ask her,” Kace says.

”Bobby will bring you up to her suite.”

A man almost as large as Kace, only six inches shorter, meets him at the elevator and rides with him to the penthouse suite. Bobby keeps eyeing him from the side as they head up to the top floor on what seems to be the longest elevator ride ever.

”What”s up, man?” Kace asks.

”Just so we”re on the same page, I”m protective of that girl,” Bobby says, the veins in his neck visible like he holds back explosive rage. ”She”s been hurt enough by stupid people, so I just want to make sure you know that if you”re a stupid person, back off now.”

Kace can’t help but laugh. ”Excuse me?”

”You might be taller than me, but you can”t take me. I can promise you that. And especially not when I”m mad. If you hurt Brianna, I will hurt you. Might even end your hockey career before you make it to the Cup. Who knows?”

”You got a thing for my girl?”

He steps towards him, but Kace stands right where he is. ”I”ve seen her go through more than she should have growing up. Her family is a real piece of work, to put it nicely. She”s had far too many people pretending to be her friend or interested in her, only to hurt her by either trying to extort something from her or selling her out to the highest bidder. She”s the sister I never had, and she”s the best boss I”ve ever had. I”d not only die for her, I”d kill for her.”

The elevator stops, and they step onto the floor. ”I appreciate the warning, Bobby. The last thing I intend on doing is hurting Bri in any way. She”s a special girl, and I see that. I”ll also do whatever I can to make sure she”s not hurt by me or anyone else. Not if I can help it.”

”I”m glad we understand each other,” he says and pats his shoulder. ”Because I will go Tonya Harding on your ass. Or knee. Except if I go for your knees, I”m taking both out.”

Jesus, the last thing Kace ever expected was a descriptive threat of bodily harm, but the looks from the other security guards tell him hurting Bri will be one of the biggest mistakes he ever makes.

Knocking on the door, he stands to the side and waits for it to open. When it opens, he steps into view, and Bri”s mouth drops when she sees him.

”Surprise.”

”You got Smithers?” she gasps and pulls him inside the suite. ”You are a wonderful, wonderful man.”

Tessa walks over and raises an eyebrow. ”You must”ve seen her post before third period because you stopped playing like total garbage.”

”Yeah, I guess I missed my lucky charm. But the moment I knew she was watching, I had to pick up my game to impress her.”

”Whatcha got there?”

”He picked up Smithers BBQ!” Bri says, pulling the food from his hands and setting it on the counter in her kitchen. ”Please tell me they still had brisket.”

He can”t help the smirk on his face while watching her get so excited. ”Should be. I thought I might”ve had the wrong place when I showed up.”

”It looks janky, but it”s better than any BBQ place in Texas.”

”No way,” Tessa says.

Bri opens up every box and does a little dance. ”I said what I said, and once you try this, you”ll have to agree. There it is!”

She takes a slice of brisket and bites into it, closing her eyes and moaning as she tastes the beef. ”Damn,” Kace says.

”What?”

”I think that”s the sexiest sound you can make.”

Tessa”s jaw drops. ”Well, on that note, I”m going to grab a plate and leave. And I will tell you just how wrong you are, Bri, in the morning.”

”No, you won”t,” Bri says with a laugh.

”You don”t have to leave,” Kace says, but he doesn”t mean a single word.

Tessa chuckles and walks towards the door. ”Yeah, I do. I have a room one floor down. Bri, babe, thank you. I love you.”

”I love you, too, Tee.”

He watches the blonde leave, and he turns to the food. ”Okay, give me lessons on what to try here.”