“WILL you stop rinsing the dishes? You’re going to be late,” Aiden says.
“I have a few minutes,” I argue. “I don’t need to be at the stadium until five. It’s only three. You’re a doctor. You can do math.”
“I can, and I also know you shouldn’t be spending your last minutes of quiet bent over a sink with soap up your arms. How does your back not hurt, old man?”
“Asshole.” I laugh and fling a handful of suds at him. “I do yoga in the morning. It’s how I stay so limber.”
“Must be nice. I have to sit down to tie my shoes.” Aiden dries the sauce pan he used for the gravy and sets it to the side. “How are you feeling about the game today?”
“Good. The weather is nice. The guys had a productive session with Dr. Slater, our team psychologist, yesterday. They talked about burnout and maintaining intensity when it feels like no one can touch us. Lunch was fucking superb, and I’m in a decent mood. Things are going well.”
“That speech you gave at the table tugged at my heartstrings.” He clasps my shoulder. “I know you miss being home this time of year, but I’m glad we get to spend the day together.”
“Me, too. Thanks for having us.”
His eyes flick over to the living room where Maggie, Maven and Lacey sit with mugs of hot chocolate and a third slice of pie. Both sets of their parents left for their hotels, wanting to grab a nap after the meal. Katie and her partner dipped out, too, on a shopping mission to hopefully beat the crowds at midnight.
“How are you doing after the kiss cam shit show? You and Lacey seem to be okay.”
“We’re fine, but we wanted to talk to you all about something,” I say. I turn off the faucet and dry my hands with the dishrag hanging under the sink.
“Is this a good something or a bad something?” Aiden asks.
“It’s… something. And probably not what you’re thinking.”
“You don’t know what I’m thinking.”
“I don’t, but I see that smirk on your face, and you need to cut it out,” I say.
“Am I wrong for wanting my friends to get together? You make each other laugh. You have fun with her. It looks like there is chemistry,” Aiden says. “Is there not?”
“No. Not… not like that. Nothing like that. It’s platonic. I enjoy being around her,” I explain. “How can you not? She’s Lacey.”
He hums and drapes a towel over his shoulder. “Okay,” he says.
“Okay?” I narrow my eyes. “What do you mean, okay?”
“I mean, okay. If you say you don’t have any feelings for her, then I believe you.”
“It’s weird you’re not putting up a fight.”
“It’s weird you think I would try. Come on. Grab your dessert plate and tell us what you want to tell us,” Aiden says.
I cut a heaping slice of pie and cover it with whipped cream and an extra dash of cinnamon I find in the spice cabinet. Lacey’s baking is top-notch, and the stomachache I’m going to have on the field later will be worth it.
We walk to the living room and Aiden takes the spot on the couch next to Maggie. He presses a kiss to her forehead and she looks up at him, color splashed on her cheeks and love in her eyes.
Lacey’s gaze meets mine, and she sticks out her tongue. I huff out a laugh and sit in the chair by the electric fireplace I love so much, the leather warm under my legs and a blanket behind my back.
“We have something to share with you all,” Lacey says. She sets her empty plate aside and scoots to the edge of the couch. She crosses her legs and folds her hands on top of her knees. “Shawn and I are going to be seeing each other as romantic partners through the holidays. We wanted to give you all a heads up because there might be photos of us looking cozy and intimate, and we don’t want to give anyone close to us the wrong idea about something that isn’t true.”
“You two are dating?” Maven asks. She claps her hands together and squeals. “Oh, my god. This makes me so happy.”
“Sorry to burst your bubble, kid,” I say. “It’s fake. We don’t like each other like that.”
“Why not?” Maven’s smile falls into a frown. “You two are always laughing with each other. I see you look at her when you think no one is watching. Plus, Lacey is so fun and so pretty. You can’t do much better than her.”
“Wow.” Lacey grins and gives Maven a fist bump. “I didn’t even pay her to say so many nice things about me.”
“Best aunt ever.” Maven’s attention flicks to me. “What do you have to say for yourself, Uncle Shawn?”
The tips of my ears burn pink under her scrutinizing gaze. Teenagers are fucking ruthless, and it feels like I’m walking into an interrogation.
“While I agree with your sentiments, Mae, Lacey and I enjoy spending time together as friends. We’re both very busy people, and relationships are a lot of work. Work I’m not sure we have the energy for right now.”
Lacey nods in agreement. “Shawn is one of my favorite people in the world, but our love lives aren’t the priority. With this plan, there won’t be any pressure on us to act a certain way or spend a certain number of hours together. It’s all for show.”
“My mom desperately wants me to bring someone home for the holidays,” I say. “It’s a whole family affair. My sisters come, and they bring their partners and kids. I’m sick of people looking at me like I’m a pathetic pile of sh—crap just because I’m alone at the dinner table on Christmas.”
“And I’m going to have Shawn accompany me to the holiday gala at the hospital like you suggested, Mags,” Lacey adds. “He’s also going to donate a couple of coaching sessions for the silent auction. Plus, it might help my chances of getting the chief physician position at the office.”
“We can both get what we want out of this,” I say, ping-ponging off of her. “Think of it as a business transaction. An exchange of goods and services. My agent is going to release a statement this afternoon before the game confirming I’m in a relationship with someone and we’re asking for privacy. Lacey’s going to be in the box this evening so the press can get some photos, and that will be that.”
“Privacy?” Aiden laughs. He drapes his arm around Maggie’s shoulder and pulls her close to his chest. “Shawn, you couldn’t walk outside your apartment building without getting run over by photographers and reporters the day after the kiss cam. The masses found Lacey’s social media accounts within hours. They ran a whole segment on ESPN about your dating life and how your personal relationship might affect the Titans’ chances of making the Super Bowl. A reach, if you ask me, but you’re naïve if you think you two are going to have any privacy.”
“I think it’s too late to not use it to our advantage,” Lacey says, and she pulls on the hem of her short skirt. I see frills at the top of her thigh-high stockings and I avert my eyes, my hand running over my jaw. “We kissed in front of thousands of people. The video circulated, and if we’re going to be the subject of conversation without even being present for the discussion, we’re going to find some good in this. Shawn coming to the gala will do tremendous things for our list of sponsors. Going home with him for Christmas means less family strain, and everyone is happy. Actions have consequences. What we did is out in the world now, whether we like it or not, and I’m not letting anyone but us control the narrative.”
Lacey is firm and final, her decision about how we move forward made. My feet drop to the floor and I stare at her. I wish there was a way to hide her away, to keep her out of the spotlight and not thrust her into this world of interviews and invasive questions.
The media—and the public—are in a phase where they want to know everything about athletes and who they are dating. I can blame the starting quarterback for the Cincinnati Renegades for that. He started seeing a music superstar in September, and the internet lost its damn mind over the images of him helping her out of a car.
Since then, a gossip reporter has been staked out at every professional sports stadium, trying to get the dirt on who the men in the leagues might be bringing to bed every night. It comes with the territory; the better your team is, the more attention is placed on you. And with attention comes interest in knowing every detail about your life.
I should have left Lacey out of it.
“How is this going to work?” Aiden asks. “Are you all going to be affectionate with each other? What are the rules? What do you need from us?”
“We need you to not start shit,” I say, and I narrow my eyes in their direction. “No meddling. I know what you’re both thinking, and the answer is no. We do what we have to in front of the cameras. In here, with you all, it’s exactly the same as it’s always been.”
Maven looks around the room. “What are they thinking?”
“Adult things,” I say. “I’ll tell you in five years.”
“I am an adult,” she answers, and she rolls her eyes as she flops back against the couch cushions. “Still think you two should just date.”
“Thanks for the comments from the peanut gallery.” I cut off a bite of pie and shove the forkful of food into my mouth. “This is going to work out just fine.”
“Yeah,” Lacey agrees. “No drama. No feelings. No one gets hurt. We’re adults, and we’re going to come out of this as friends. It’s no big deal, really.”
“Okay,” Maggie says. “If you think this is going to work, we support you. It’s a good idea, and if it makes everyone happy, that’s even better. Just—” she glances at Aiden, and he gives her a nod. “We love both of you. Can we talk about the other side of this for a minute? I know I might have suggested it, Lace, but I’m worried about what happens if something goes wrong. What if someone gets hurt?”
I look over at Lacey, and she chews on her bottom lip. I know we talked about our friendship coming first, but there’s always the possibility of something derailing our plan. She’s probably thinking the same things as me.
What if this tears our friendship apart?
What if I lose her in the process?
What if I fuck up the good things I have going for me? Friends who love me. Nieces and a goddaughter who look up to me. A team I’ve worked so hard to bring back from the brink of extinction. A family who gives me shit about being single, but deep down, really just wants me to be happy.
“That’s not going to happen,” Lacey says. She stands from the couch and walks toward me. She perches on the arm of the chair I’m sitting in, and I’m kind of tempted to pull her into my lap. “Shawn and I both know how fortunate we are to have you all in our lives. We’d never do anything to jeopardize that. This is going to be fun.” She looks down at me and smiles. “I don’t know about you, but I could use a little fun in my life. Maybe you can whisk me off to Saint-Tropez on your yacht. Oh, or you could take me skiing in the Alps.”
I match her smile with one of my own. “Sorry to disappoint you, but I don’t own a yacht.”
She rolls her eyes. “No yacht? Is it too late to end this relationship?”
I laugh and hold up my plate. “I guess I’ll buy a yacht if it’ll make you happy. I need to keep you around for your baking.”
“Asshole.” She laughs and shoves my shoulder. “Glad to know I’m appreciated.”
“See?” I grin at my friends. “We’re going to be just fine.”
