Chapter 45
Cassie
“What were you two thinking?” Rick yells at us from behind his desk.
Cole’s shoulders stiffen in his seat. “No need to raise your voice.”
“No need to—Are you insane, Cole?” Rick furiously waves his arms in the air. “I stuck you two together to fix your image. And then I get sent an anonymous email with a photo of you two kissing? I think a little yelling is warranted!”
“Fine,” Cole answers. “Yell at me if you have to. But have some respect for how you’re talking to Cassie.”
My heart twists. It’s a contradiction: I’m so touched Cole is defending me, but I feel sick that I’ve dragged him into this situation.
“Cole, it’s okay. I’m just as responsible for this as you are.” I reach out a hand to touch his arm but quickly stop myself before my fingers land. Slowly, I turn to face my boss. “I’m so sorry, Rick. You trusted me with handling Cole’s career this season, and I completely let you down.”
My gut is in knots. I’m trying so hard to keep it together right now. I need my voice to stay steady even though I’m on the brink of collapsing inside.
After all, I brought this on myself. I crossed a line and fell for my boss’s client.
The worst part is I can’t make myself regret it. There’s nothing scandalous or wrong about how Cole makes me feel.
In his arms, I feel respected and cared for in a way I never have before.
“How long has this been going on?” Rick demands. I open my mouth to answer, but he continues. “You know what? The less I know about it, the better. If you two are smart, you’ll end whatever is happening here and pray that no one else ever finds out.”
It’s obvious to me who sent the anonymous email.
It’s obvious who wants me pushed out of this industry.
It was my dad. Who else?
And I feel sick to my stomach that this could blow up not just my career but implicate Cole’s as well.
I run my tongue over my teeth. Part of me knows I should tell Rick about my dad.
But I can’t face it. Would it even help? Or would it just douse this dumpster fire of a situation in even more gasoline? I’m so used to hiding this part of myself that it feels easier to just keep hiding it.
“What happens now?” I ask, my nails digging into my palms.
“This stays strictly between the three of us,” Rick orders.
“I’m not happy about this, but like hell am I going to let the rest of the NHL organization find out that my star client has been secretly sleeping with the woman I sent to babysit him.
Cole, the Nor’easters management loves you right now.
I’m not blowing up your career right before you have a potential contract extension in the works. ”
Relief hits me. Bittersweet, but still relief.
Amidst all the bad news, at least Cole’s career won’t go down in flames like mine. At least he might walk away from this season with a brand-new contract and a secure spot on the Nor’easters.
But Cole isn’t looking happy about it. His dark brows are pinched, his eyes stormy.
“What about Cassie?” he asks.
Rick shakes his head, and dread envelops my body. He rises to his feet, staring out at the view of Boston through the window. Clouds have drawn together overhead, and rain is lashing down.
“Look, my parents came to this country with nothing, and I built this entire career for myself from scratch. I want this industry to be more welcoming to people who aren’t third-generation Ivy League men.
So I would never make this into an issue about you being a woman working in sports.
” Rick turns back and points at the door.
“But there are people beyond this room who will make it into that. And if this gets out, there will be people at this agency who expect me to fire any junior agent who crosses this sort of line.”
My stomach drops like a plane going down.
Nausea floods me.
“So, is that it?” I ask, trying to stop my voice trembling. “I’m fired?”
Rick exhales deeply, massaging his temples.
“I haven’t decided yet. Hell, I’ve never had to deal with this situation before.
I don’t want to fire you. I don’t want to waste such a promising new career.
But I need time to figure out how to play this.
I think it’s best if you take some time off work while I figure out how to proceed. ”
Time off work?
Work is what I throw myself into when real life feels hard.
My voice is small. “Like a… suspension?”
He nods, grim. “Yes. And Cassie… I hate to say this, but the promotion is off the table. Unless you work some kind of miracle to make this go away, I can’t in good conscience have you as an agent on my team. The new position will go to Spencer.”
Cole shakes his head, rising to his feet. He leans across the desk, the muscles in his back tensed.
“Are you fucking serious, Rick? You’re suspending her?”
Rick arches a brow. “You’re sleeping with my best junior agent. Am I supposed to be thrilled about that?”
Cole’s jaw clenches hard. “Right, she’s your best junior agent. So why the hell are you thinking about firing her? We crossed a line, but I swear to god, this will never affect her career from this point onward.”
Rick shakes his head. “You can’t promise that. You can’t even promise that it won’t affect your own career.”
That’s the truth. It makes me feel sick, but how can I deny it?
“You two should tread carefully, though,” Rick warns. “I still don’t have a clue who sent that email, but someone out there knows about you and has particular feelings about it.”
I don’t meet anyone’s eyes as I leave the office. My eyes are glued to the floor as I quickly cross the bullpen. Past Spencer at his desk, past all my coworkers.
“Cassie,” Cole calls out after me, but I don’t stop walking. Can’t stop walking.
I hit the elevator button. It’s taking too long, and I feel everyone’s stares burning into my back.
My heart races. I abandon the elevator and rush down the flights of stairs out into the street. It’s raining hard, freezing against my skin.
I don’t care. My head is dizzy, and I just want to run.
“Cassie.”
I turn to see Cole has followed me out into the rain down the empty street. I don’t even want to meet his gaze.
“I’m a liability, Cole. You understand who sent that photo, right? It was my dad. I crossed a line with you, and he took advantage of that.”
“This isn’t your fault.”
“I know it’s not my fault that I happen to be related to an asshole like him. But it becomes my responsibility when it affects your career.”
His hand wraps around my back. Drawing me closer against him. He’s staring at me unblinking, even with the rain pouring down.
“Cole, stop.” I shake my head. “We have to stop.”
His eyes glint. “You know I’ll always listen to you. So if you tell me again, I’ll stop and let you go home alone. But I don’t think that’s what you really want.”
“I…”
My voice dies. I can’t tell him to stop, to leave me alone. Because it’s not what I want.
But I force myself to at least give him a choice.
“You should walk away from this. From us.” I hold back a sob. Is it rain or tears soaking my face? “I’ve spent this season trying to help your reputation. But if this comes out publicly, it’ll do the opposite.”
“Walk away?” Cole’s eyes glint wildly. “You think I want to walk away?”
I don’t answer. His palm presses firmer against my spine.
“You’re shivering,” he says softly.
I am. I don’t know if it’s from the cold of the rain soaking through my clothes, or the shock at being suspended from my job.
Either way, I feel lightheaded. Shaky.
Suddenly, all the fight drains out of me. I press my face against his chest, letting him wrap himself around me.
“Baby,” he says, “let me take you home.”
I’m in a daze by the time we make it back to Cole’s house. He leads me straight to the bathroom and starts running a bath for me. Warm, soft steam begins to fill the room.
“You got rained on too,” I mumble, fiddling with the sleeve of my damp blouse.
He shrugs, pushing the damp waves of his dark hair out of his face. “I can wait till you’re warmed up. I’m much bigger than you, so I don’t feel the cold as much. Anyway, I’m used to freezing my ass off. Part of the job description.”
He directs me to the edge of the bathtub. “Stand here,” he instructs.
I do what he says, and he kneels to slip off my blush-pink heels. Then, so gently, he peels off my clothes. My soaked white blouse. My skirt. My bra and panties.
I’m used to him stripping me down when he wants me.
This? It’s every bit as intimate.
Even more so, in a way. This isn’t because he desires my body. It’s because he wants to take care of me. I can feel it in every gentle touch, how he steers me—firm but tender—toward the bathtub and instructs me to get in.
“Come on, Cassie. You need to warm up.”
I don’t fight back.
For a split second, I catch his eyes drop to my naked body before jumping back up to my face. As he steers me toward the bathtub, my body touches his, and—
A skitter of electricity across my skin. He’s hard. I can feel the firm bulge of him against me before he steps back to let me get into the bath.
But he’s not doing anything about it. I don’t know why that floods me with both desire and pure emotion.
This is about so much more than sex for him. And for me, too.
Knowing that makes it even more difficult to accept this might end tonight.
He grips my hand to help me balance as I step into the perfectly warm water. Slowly, I sink down, the water kissing up to my shoulders.
I exhale. It feels so nice, warmth seeping back into my body. My mind is still dizzy and racing, but I can feel it begin to quiet a little.
“I’ll give you some space,” Cole says softly. “Get warm and relax.”
“No.” I reach up, leaving a wet palm print on his sleeve. “Stay. Please? I just… could use the company right now.”
“Of course, baby. For as long as you need.”
Baby. The word stings. I want so badly for him to keep calling me that.
He drops to sit on the floor, leaning against the edge of the bathtub. Gently, he pushes a loose strand of hair out of my face, smoothing it down.