Page 52 of The Publicity Stunt

"It was impossible to not fall for her, man. I mean, she's remarkable. I just like being around her."

"And you don't care about Sasha anymore?"

Sasha? Laughing, he shakes his head. "God, no."

"So, you took back the engagement ring?"

Shit. It's the one thing he hadn't gotten rid of yet. "Um, no, not yet."

"Kace..."

"I forgot I had it," he says. He really had. When everything happened, he shoved it into a drawer and never gave it another thought.

Brett sighs. "You better not let her snoop around because if she finds it, it might look like it's for her."

Oddly, the thought of being engaged to Bri doesn't scare him. In fact, the idea makes him feel settled. "That's a good point. I better get rid of it because it's not the ring I'd get for Bri."

"You're thinking about rings? It's that serious?"

"I'm not planning on proposing for Christmas or anything, but if I'm honest, I can see myself with her. Forever. She constantly amazes me. Just when I think I have her all figured out, she flips the script on me. In the best way possible. She makes me want to be better, Brett. It sounds stupid, and I always thought people who said that were pussy whipped, and maybe I am, but it's the God's honest truth."

The music stops, and he knows she's on her way back. If he plays his cards right, he can join her in the shower before they spend the day together.

"I think the concert's done. I'm gonna let you go because I'm more than anxious to see her."

"You're at her concert?"

"Yeah, why?"

Brett lets out a sigh. "Kace, before you go..."

Kace pauses and waits. And waits. "Brett? Still there?"

"So I may have-"

"No, you have to go!" Bri's voice calls down the hall loud enough Brett stops talking. "I don't want to talk to you."

"Is she talking to you?"

Kace walks towards the door. "No. I gotta go see what this is about. I'll call you back."

Hanging up, he opens the door to find Bri standing in her last outfit of the night. She doesn't notice him, and he stays out of sight until she needs him.

"Bri, we both know you don't want a hockey playing jock. He doesn't understand you. He can't."

Easton. The asshole who just lost one girlfriend now wants Kace's?

"He understands me just fine in all the ways that matter," Bri says. "Now go."

"You need another creative, Bri. Someone who understands not only the business but the process of making music. Performing. Everything."

"Easton, I'm not going to tell you again. You need to leave before my security realizes you got back here and kicks you out."

Kace hears him step closer rather than back away, and he clenches his fists. "Kace Lyons will never understand."

"Understand what? He understands plenty, and he knows me better than you ever did. Now, please, just go."

"I want you back, Bri. I knew the moment I got caught I'd made a mistake."

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