Chapter Three Special Assignment
RYLEE
THREE MONTHS LATER
The click of my mouse is like a metronome as I go through picture after picture of a drool-worthy man palming a football. He’s wearing his pads with no jersey to show off his ripped six-pack and smooth pecs.
As much as I enjoy a good helping of man candy, though, I’m not focused on how gorgeous the guy is - I’m trying to figure out which pictures I want to submit for the magazine article highlighting the guy’s life and career so far as quarterback of the Tennessee Titans.
I’ve got hundreds of images of him in different outfits and poses, as I like to have variety when I do photo shoots like this one.
Unfortunately, my perfectionism is getting in the way, as I manage to find a flaw with every single one of the images.
“Damn, look at that beefcake. I’d like to take a bite out of that.”
Grinning, I look up from my screen to find my colleague and friend, Blaire Roberts, leaning over my workspace, eyeing my computer screen with a hungry look.
“Down, girl,” I tease.
Blaire shrugs and flips her long black hair over her shoulder.
She’s a pretty woman with milk chocolate eyes and a curvier figure than mine.
She’s 5’5”, exactly my height, so we always joke about how we’re able to see eye-to-eye on so many things.
As two of only a handful of women in The Athlete’s Edit division of ICON Magazine, we’ve learned to stick together.
Groaning, Blaire grumbles, “You’re so lucky you got that job. If I’d gotten it, I’d have made it a beach theme so I could spend all day rubbing that fine man down with tanning oil. You always get the hotties.”
“Oh, I’m sure you’ll get the next one.”
She snorts and shakes her head. “Not likely. Juliet always gives you the good subjects because you’re her favorite.”
I let out a bark of laughter. “I am not Juliet’s favorite, you weirdo. Besides, the guy was nice and fun to shoot, but he spent half the time talking about his girlfriend. No chance of biting, or bagging, or rubbing there.”
Blaire pursues her red-stained lips together in a pout. “Damn… why are all the good ones taken?”
Sighing, I nod. “Yeah, I know. It just doesn’t seem fair.”
My mind immediately jumps to Miles and my heart aches. For a short time, I’d thought he was one of the good ones. Then, I came home to find him in our bed fucking some bimbo… and I realized just how stupid I’d been.
That was right before Grace and Jensen’s wedding.
Shaking my head, I push thoughts of that asshat away, refusing to let him impact my day. I’ve wasted enough time on him. Over a year, to be exact, of a bad relationship.
“You know, I’ve actually started talking to someone,” Blaire says, pulling me out of my head as she perches on the edge of my desk next to me. “I’ve been using this new dating app, Cloak, and it’s pretty exciting.”
I furrow my brow, intrigued, though I do my best not to show it. “Cloak? I’ve never heard of that. What is it?”
“It takes after ‘Love is Blind,’” she explains.
“You match with someone, but you don’t know what they look like or their real name or anything.
You have to chat with them and get to know them before you can actually set up a time to meet them.
It’s supposed to help create deeper connections that aren’t biased based on looks. ”
“That kind of sounds like a Dateline episode waiting to happen.”
Blaire chuckles. “I know, right? I was hesitant at first because of the anonymity thing, but the app has a heavy vetting process. Members are required to do background checks and input license numbers so their identity can be verified.”
“Huh.” That does sound… interesting. Still not loving the idea of not even knowing the name of someone I’m talking to, but I get the concept. “And you don’t get to see their picture?”
“For at least the first month,” she clarifies. “They’re pretty strict about it, too. If you break the rules, you get kicked off the app and permanently banned.”
“Yikes,” I whistle. “Seems kind of harsh.”
Blaire shrugs. “They have to maintain the integrity of the app’s goal. Anyway, I like it. It’s helped me find someone, and it feels like we’re really connecting. You should look into it. I think it’d help you get back out there after Miles.”
I flinch at the mention of his name but nod and force a smile. “I don’t know… doesn’t really sound like my thing.”
We’ve officially stepped into territory I don’t want to talk about, so when my phone suddenly rings, I nearly groan in relief. I see that it’s our boss, Juliet, calling, I immediately grab it.
“Yes?”
“Rylee, can you come to my office, please?”
“Sure thing.”
Hanging up, I hop out of my chair and give Blaire an apologetic shrug.
“Sorry, gotta go,” I say. “Juliet… ”
“Yes, yes, of course,” she grumbles, slipping away from my desk. “Go see what your next awesome assignment is. I’ll just go back to my desk and stew in my jealousy.”
Chuckling, I turn and make my way across the large open space of the news floor, weaving through the maze of standing and sitting desks of reporters, writers, and photographers to get to Juliet’s office. Her door is slightly open, but I still knock before I make my way inside.
The first thing I notice when I walk into Juliet’s office is how crazy organized it is.
Glossy magazines are stacked in straight, neat towers on the floor, some flagged with neon Post-its, others splayed open to pages she’s marked up with a red pen, but it doesn’t feel messy.
There’s a clear intention behind these piles and a system for how they’re sorted.
The walls are a mix of sports memorabilia and framed cover shoots—SEC quarterbacks grinning under stadium lights, country singers in cowboy boots with captions about “Southern grit,” and a black-and-white photo of a female boxer that reminds you to “keep swinging.” There’s a signed Titans jersey framed in a shadow box and a cracked softball bat displayed on a specially made shelf.
Juliet is sitting at her desk, the large windows behind her looking out over downtown Nashville.
Her silver-blonde hair is smoothed back into a tight bun on the back of her head, and her glasses are perched on the end of her nose.
With her smart pantsuits and no-nonsense attitude, she looks more like a sexy librarian than the editor-in-chief of a lifestyle and sports magazine.
She looks up as I enter and gives me a friendly smile.
“Rylee! Come on in. Take a seat.”
“Sure thing.” I cross the room and settle in one of the cushioned chairs in front of her desk. “What’s up?”
Juliet takes off her glasses and regards me for a moment before asking, “Is it true you have some close connections to the Night Hawks hockey team in Denver?”
The question catches me off guard, but I slowly nod. “Um… yeah. One of my best friends just married the team’s captain this past summer, and another one is probably getting engaged to a different player soon.”
Grace’s wedding was gorgeous, though a bit blurry toward the end of the reception.
I do have distinct memories, though, of a giant of a guy hauling me into the hotel over his shoulder and giving me one of the most intense orgasms of my life before totally ghosting me.
I woke up the next morning, naked and alone, everything from the night before a blur, especially after he ate me out, but my pussy was swollen and tender from everything he did to me.
Felt like I got a decent fucking. Just wish I could remember it, or the man who made me feel so good.
Kodiak - at least, that’s what I’ve dubbed him since I don’t actually know who he was.
Naming him after my favorite camera is a little bittersweet, though, given how he blew me off.
Small blessing that I don’t remember much more than that.
I’ll have to keep myself in check at Skyler’s wedding, though I don’t know how anyone expects me to keep it in my pants when my friends constantly surround themselves with fine ass hockey players…
“Wonderful!” Juliet exclaims. I don’t often see her so visibly excited.
What the hell is going on? “I just heard from the magazine’s CEO.
He wants us to do a full ten-page spread on the Night Hawks for our December edition of The Athlete’s Edit given their Stanley Cup win last season.
We’re also going to pick one player from the team to name as ICON’s most eligible bachelor of 2025.
The CEO wants to market the editions together so that people jump from one publication to the other, effectively doubling sales. ”
“Woah,” I reply, keeping a cool exterior even as my adrenaline begins to spike.
A bundle feature between two of the three ICON publications?
Holy shit! This could be huge. I love sports and love working for The Athlete’s Edit, but I would love to get promoted so I’m working for the Lifestyle and Fashion Edits as well.
If Juliet is putting me on this assignment, it might mean things are finally moving in that direction for me. “So, uh, what do you need me to do?”
“I’ve recommended you for the full job,” Juliet answers, and I squeeze the arms of my chair to keep from pumping a fist into the air in triumph. “There’s one catch, though.”
Fuck! There’s always a catch.
“What is it?”
“ICON can’t afford to send both a photographer and journalist to Denver, especially for the length of time that will be needed to pull this whole thing together.
” She gives me a pointed look. It’s one I recognize.
It’s the I’m-going-to-challenge-you-now-Rylee-and-you-better-not-let-me-down look she’s given me many times before now.
“So, you’re not just going to be taking photos for the articles… you’ll be writing them as well.”
My jaw drops. “What? You want me to write them?”
Juliet nods. “You’re an exceptional writer, Rylee, and I know you can do this.
You’re going to get a hefty bonus, and I’m pairing you with one of the company’s top editors to compile everything and clean up the pieces.
So, I don’t want you to worry about having to be perfect with your writing.
You’re going to have a solid back up in that regard. ”
Damn, Juliet knows me so well. Knowing I’ll have someone to perfect my work for me will allow me to focus on the overall assignment - otherwise, I’d likely get so bogged down making sure everything was just right, I’d never get the articles done.
“And just to sweeten the pot,” Juliet continues, “if you pull this off, you’ll have first pick of upcoming assignments for all three publications.”
Ding, ding, fucking ding!
Yes! This is exactly what I’ve been waiting for! The opportunity to blow my career up (in a good way).
“So?” Juliet prompts. “What do you think?”
“I’ll do it!” I exclaim, not bothering to hide my excitement anymore. “I’d love to do it. Yes, yes, yes!”
Juliet chuckles. “I thought you’d say yes.
All right, we need to move quickly to get this all set up so we can have the articles done in time for the December release.
I’m going to have you stay there to oversee everything until the article is ready to launch.
Start looking for a place to stay in Denver right away.
The company will cover your expenses up to five thousand dollars.
The travel manager could likely find you a place, but I figured you’d want some say in where you stay.
You can have your pick so long as you stay within the company’s budget. ”
Holy shit! I’ve never had a budget so big! This is crazy. Am I dreaming? God, I hope not. I'd never want to wake up. Five thousand? I didn’t even get that much when they sent me to the Superbowl!
“Rylee?” Juliet arches her brow expectantly. “Does that all make sense?”
“Right, of course,” I nod, my mind already a million miles away as I think about seeing all my girls in Denver and hanging out with the Night Hawk hotties.
“Stay within budget. Gotcha.” Suddenly, I realize I might not have to worry so much about the budget.
“Oh! I might have an idea already of where I can stay. I’ll call my friends tonight and see if I can work something out. ”
“Great,” Juliet replies. “Love that. Go ahead and spend the rest of the day getting your other jobs closed out or reassigned. Let’s see, it’s Friday, so… you’ll have the weekend to get ready, and you’ll leave Monday.”
Tight timeline, but I can make it work!
“No problem,” I assure her. “Thanks a lot, Juliet. I really appreciate this opportunity.”
“I know you can handle it.” She waves her hand at me. “Now, shoo. You have a lot you need to do.”
Jumping up, I hurry out of her office and practically skip back to my desk.
I pass Blaire’s work area and skid to a stop. She spins around her in her chair and gazes up at me expectantly.
“Well?” she prods. “What’s the assignment?”
“I’m going to Denver to do not one, but two features on the Night Hawks!” I exclaim. “One on the team for Athletes, and another on a single player for Lifestyle. Bachelor of 2025.”
Her eyes go wide. “Holy shit. Really? Who’s writing it?”
“That’s the other thing… I’m writing them!”
“You?” Blaire looks momentarily stunned, but then beams. “That’s… um… amazing! I’m so happy for you!”
There’s a tightness in her voice that I can’t quite decipher, but she appears genuinely excited for me.
I do get the sense, from a sensitivity in her eyes, that maybe she wishes she’d gotten the assignment, but she’s a good friend, and is trying not to show it.
I’m so giddy, I don’t want to waste a single moment in preparing for my trip.
“Thanks!” I reply, my cheeks starting to hurt from my smile. “I need to get back to work to wrap things up before I leave. We’ll talk later though, okay?”
“Sure,” Blaire nods, releasing a short breath. “Sounds good.”
I spin away and continue toward my desk, wanting to finish my work and head home as quickly as possible so I can tell my mom the good news before I start calling my girls.