Chapter 46
FLIP
“Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t trade your ass,” Vander Zee grinds out.
My stomach is a mess, my mouth is dry, and all I want is to get back to Tally to make sure she’s okay, but I’m here, sitting across from her dad, because he’s my boss and I made a huge fucking mistake. “Because it’s not what it looks like.”
He glares at me.
“Do you honestly believe that I would deflower your daughter in the bathroom of a high-end restaurant? And then exit the bathroom with her wearing my shirt and me not wearing a shirt so every single person in the restaurant would know?”
Vander Zee doesn’t need to know what happens behind closed doors with me and his daughter, or in dark corners. My goal was to save her from public humiliation, which backfired spectacularly.
“If that’s not what happened, then what did?” Vander Zee compulsively squeezes a stress ball. His face is worrisomely red. I better not give him a heart attack.
“Tally got her period in the middle of dinner and bled through her dress.”
He blinks a couple of times, like this was the last thing he expected. “And you didn’t think to give her your jacket instead?”
“We tried that. Her dress was blue and my jacket didn’t conceal the spot. She was already embarrassed and uncomfortable. I wasn’t going to make her wear a dress covered in period blood home. So I gave her my shirt because it solved the problem.”
“You have to know how this looks.”
“I do, thanks to the way the media is spinning this.”
“There are pictures of the two of you all over the fucking internet, Madden. They are making my daughter look awful, and they certainly aren’t painting you in a positive light.” The stress ball pops out of his hand and bounces across the floor. “I warned you.”
“Don’t think for a second that you’re more upset about this than I am,” I snap.
“I’m her father.”
“And I’m her boyfriend. It’s my job to take care of her and protect her from shit like this.
Now she’s in the middle of this nightmare, all because my love life is clickbait fodder.
I’m doing everything I can not to mess this up because of the choices I made before Tally.
I am very aware that she isn’t the only person being dragged into this.
Hemi and I are working through a strategy. ”
Every woman I’ve ever spent the night with who posted a photo is getting new airtime, thanks to this.
And worse is how close they’re getting to my relationship with Fiona.
If it becomes public knowledge, I’ll have everyone else’s unhelpful perspectives on why that relationship imploded the way it did.
And so will Tally. She’s already stretched to the breaking point and this won’t help. I don’t want Fiona to be the thing that pushes her over the edge.
“You talk about showing up for my daughter, well now’s the time, Madden. You better find a way to shift the media’s attention.”
“I know how high the stakes are.”
“Do you though, Phillip? Because I’m not sure you thought through the consequences of your actions.” He runs a rough hand through his hair. “I should have said no. I shouldn’t have allowed this.”
“With all due respect, sir, Tally and I are both adults—”
“Don’t,” he snaps. “Don’t tell me you can make your own choices.
She’s my baby. You knew you’d be under a microscope.
You said it yourself, your job was to protect her and show the hockey-watching nation that you’d grown up and changed, that you could handle the responsibility of dating your coach’s fucking daughter.
Instead, you’ve turned her into the worst kind of gossip.
How do you think it will affect her job prospects when she’s splashed all over the internet like this?
” Vander Zee looks like he’s two seconds away from punching me in the face.
I wouldn’t stop him. He’s right about all of it.
“I will fix this, sir.”
“You better, or you’ll be uninvited to family dinner next weekend and you’ll be warming a bench in Winnipeg next season. If they’ll even take you. Get the fuck out of my office.”
I feel sick all over again as I push out of his chair. What if I ruin her future? What if he does trade me? I need to make this better.
My next stop is Hemi’s office again.
She and Hammer are sitting at her conference table, heads bowed. Dallas is lounging in the executive chair behind her desk.
“Close the door,” Hemi says without looking up.
“Want me to leave, honey?” Dallas asks.
“No, actually. You’re good at cleaning up messes, so you might have something valuable to contribute.” She closes her laptop. “Judging from your expression, your conversation with Vander Zee didn’t go as well as planned.”
“Not really, no.”
“You did make it look like you had sex with his daughter in a public bathroom,” Dallas says, unhelpfully.
“Thanks for the reminder I didn’t need.”
Dallas ignores my angry glare. “You should tell the media the truth.”
“And embarrass Tally more by telling the world she got her period in a restaurant and bled through her dress?”
“It’s a hell of a lot less embarrassing than everyone believing she got screwed in a public bathroom after a nice meal, isn’t it?
” Dallas picks up a crocheted peach from the basket on Hemi’s desk and rolls it between his fingers.
“And you can helpfully point out that while in the past you made some choices that had questionable consequences, you sure haven’t made a habit of it in the past few years.
You could also mention that you’re a grown-up, and that your goal was to protect your girlfriend from embarrassment, but thanks to the way things get twisted around, she’s forced to endure more of it instead.
Also, no one wants to talk about periods, even though they’re part of life, so shoving that at the media will shut them up real fast. Women are badasses for dealing with that every freaking month. ”
Hemi and Hammer clap.
Dallas grins.
After a moment, Hemi clears her throat. “Dallas makes a good point. If you run with the truth, they will back off, which is what we want. A ruined dress is a whole lot more appealing than a ruined reputation. Plus, it paints you as the boyfriend who literally gave his girlfriend the shirt off his back to save her from the humiliation the media is happy to shower her with.”
“This could work,” I muse. “Whatever I can do to make it easier for Tally. How soon can you get me an interview?”
Hemi reaches for her phone. “I can have someone here in half an hour.”
“Make the call. That will give us enough time to prep.”
Hemi secures the exclusive interview.
“Anything I need to know about the journalist?” I ask once she’s off the phone.
“She went to Tilton and her brother plays pro hockey in Chicago. She’s been following your story and is on our side, so it’ll be a fair interview.”
Connor appears in the doorway, hand poised to knock. He rests it on the jamb instead. “I’m glad to see you’re still alive.” His gaze falls on me. “My wife would be exceptionally sad if Vander Zee unalived you to death for having sex with his daughter in a public bathroom.”
“That’s not what happened.”
“I’m aware. My wife filled me in. So why haven’t you released a public statement?”
“We’re working on that now,” I grumble.
“You should work faster. Your girlfriend getting her period is far less scandalous.” Connor inspects his nails. “They should have had supplies in the bathroom for her.”
“It was too late for that.”
“Oh my gosh! I have the best idea!” Hammer slaps the table.
Everyone startles.
“Sorry.” She wiggles around in her chair. “But hear me out.” She holds up both hands. “What if we have a tampon toss?”
Hemi wrinkles her nose. “The visual on that is not appealing.”
“Like the teddy bear toss, but we do it with period supplies. Let’s spin this around on the media and do something good with it. There are all kinds of women’s shelters looking for feminine hygiene products.”
“And the group homes,” Connor adds. “We had a similar incident with Everly.”
“Poor thing.”
“I’ve learned a lot about tampons in the past couple of years.”
“I love this idea, and we will run with it.” Hemi points at me. “And you will be the one to promote it during this interview.”
“I’ll get started on graphics and T-shirts!” Hammer says.
“I’ll go on a coffee run,” Dallas offers.
“I’ll have Meems threaten to pull advertising funding from the networks who are incessantly posting those pictures of you and Tally,” Connor says.
“Because you don’t want your wife to be sad if I end up traded?” I ask.
He blinks steadily at me. “I never want my wife to be sad, but I also don’t enjoy watching the media create unnecessary drama.”
“Thanks.”
“You’re welcome. Good luck with the interview.” Connor leaves us to it.
Hemi, Hammer, and I spend the next twenty minutes talking things through.
“I want to make sure the focus stays on the present, on me and Tally.” I’ve seen a couple photos of me and Fiona floating around out there, and I really don’t want that to come up now.
“I think we all want the same thing.” Hemi taps her pen on her desk. “Is there anything else we need to know?”
“No.” I lean back in my chair. “We’re good.”
The journalist from the Tribune arrives. She’s a tiny thing with dark curls, thick glasses, dressed all in black. The only pop of color is her patterned flats.
“Marietta! Thank you so much for coming.” Hemi rounds her desk, and they shake hands before she introduces her to Hammer, Dallas, and then finally me.
“Flip Madden, your reputation precedes you.”
“Hard to get out from under.”
Hemi coughs. “Maybe keep that off the record.”
Marietta arches a brow but motions to the table. “Shall we start putting things on the record?”
“Right to the point. Sure.”
“I’d like to get this article in the evening edition if possible.” She pulls out her device. “I’ll record this and send it to Hemi as soon as we’re done.”
“Sounds good.” I take the seat across from her.
Hemi sets a bottle of water in front of me. I take a long swig. “Can we keep the focus on my current relationship?”
“I’ll do my best.” She hits record. “Your relationship with Tallulah Vander Zee has gotten a lot of attention recently.”
“To be fair, I always get a lot of attention. But yeah, there’s been a heavy focus on us this season, despite the Terror being in a strong position going into the playoffs.”
“This has been true for the past several years, so hockey watchers might have come to expect it. You, however, haven’t publicly dated anyone in that time. It’s doubly interesting when you’re dating the coach’s daughter.”
I cross my arms. “You’re not wrong.”
Hemi gives me a look.
I uncross my arms and try to keep my posture relaxed.
“Recently you took Tallulah out for dinner.”
“It’s not the first time and it definitely won’t be the last.”
“That’s good to hear. Chop has great food.” She smiles.
“You’re not living if you haven’t had the scallops,” I agree.
“Is that your favorite dish?”
“One of. Tally likes their burrata salad.”
“Also an excellent choice.” She meets my gaze. “There are some pictures from the restaurant.”
“I know. I can’t open social media without seeing them. Neither can Tally.”
“That must be hard. Especially since she’s still in university and her school is highly hockey-focused.”
“I can’t protect her, and I hate it. Especially since the conjecture is inaccurate. I would not do what I’m being accused of to my girlfriend.”
“But you know why you are.”
“Imagine the world having a front row seat to some of your worst decisions, and then having them played on repeat so you can’t get past them.”
“That would be difficult.”
“I’ve been dealing with this for years. But Tally hasn’t. It’s the first serious relationship I’ve had during my entire career. I get that people are interested. I went from commitment averse to fully committed.”
“People can’t help but be intrigued. The untamable Flip Madden has finally settled down.” Marietta says.
“Hard to believe with the rumors floating around, though,” I add.
Marietta leans forward. “What’s the real story?”
“My girlfriend got her period and bled through her dress.”
Marietta sits up straighter and glances at Hemi, who nods.
“Her dress was pale blue. And she looked incredible, by the way. Ethereal. Gorgeous.” I tent my fingers, pressing the tips together.
“I wasn’t going to make her wear the dress out of there.
She’s had more than enough attention on her these past few months.
So I made a choice. Maybe it was the wrong one.
But if I hadn’t given her my shirt, if she’d walked out of there wearing a blood-stained dress instead, what would the narrative have been then?
Would it have been better or worse? We’ll never know, because that’s not what happened. ”
“So you gave her your shirt?”
“Yes.”
“You gave your girlfriend the literal shirt off your back,” she repeats.
“Of course I did. I l—” I stop short.
Hemi and Hammer look like they’re holding their collective breaths.
Marietta leans in. “You what?”
“She’s my girlfriend. She’s the most important person in my world. I would do whatever it takes to protect her.”
She reaches across the table and hits pause. “Does she know?”
A cold spike of fear shoots down my spine. “Does she know what?”
She looks briefly at Hemi before her gaze returns to me. “How you feel about her.”
“I’d appreciate it if she hears those words from me first.”
“Fair. I do think your actions speak volumes.” She unpauses the recording. “Is there anything you’d like to say, Phillip Madden, the man who gave his girlfriend the shirt off his back to protect her?”
“In honor of my girlfriend, and the fact that the hockey-watching nation now knows she gets a period, we’re asking our fans to give back to the community by donating a box of tampons, pads, or any other helpful period-related items, which will go to local women’s shelters and to group homes in the city.
Anyone who brings a donation to the next home game will automatically have their ticket added to a lottery for seats at our first playoff game in Toronto. ”
“I love it. Thank you for being so candid and honest. Tally’s a lucky young woman.”
“I’m the lucky one.”
She ends the recording and sighs. “Well, you’re nothing like I expected and everything I hoped you would be.”
“Thanks. I think.” I rise as she does.
“Thank you so much for coming on such short notice.” Hemi shakes her hand.
“Honestly, it’s my pleasure. I sincerely appreciate the opportunity. Love covering hockey, but I’d never want to date one of the players.”
“Yeah, me either,” I joke.