Page 2 of Her Athlete's Wedding Secret

“Stop being such a self-absorbed jerk and get some manners.”

“I’m not a self-absorbed jerk!” Benson protested. “I can’t help it if I want to have a good time once in a while. It’s just too bad that I keep getting caught.”

“You just destroyed public property in the most well-loved park in America.”

Benson scowled defensively. “I just tore up the grass a little. It’s nothing that can’t be fixed. Tell them to send me the bill.”

“You still don’t see that you did anything wrong?” Cameron sounded exhausted.

“Not really. I was just having a bit of fun.”

“You’ve got to be kidding me. Can’t you at least pretend to feel bad?”

“Fine. I feel bad,” Benson admitted. He did feel a little guilty. He shouldn’t have been drinking that much. It tended to get him into trouble. “Does that make you feel better?”

“No. Until you have an engagement announced with a respectable woman, your position on this team is hanging by a thread. They won’t wait long before finding your replacement. There are plenty of other football players out there.”

“Not as good as I am.”

“They’re tired of your antics. You’re making the team look bad. You’re the best quarterback the team has had in many years, but even that won’t save you this time.”

Benson sighed. “I understand.”

“Good. I expect to hear back from you by the end of the week. If you don’t have a girl lined up to marry, there won’t be much more I can do to help salvage this situation.”

“The end of the week!” Benson couldn’t believe it. “That’s not enough time to find someone to agree to marry me.”

“It has to be, or you don’t have a football career anymore. They’re already threatening to end your contract, and then no team will take you. The good news is, I have faith in you.” Cameron ended the call, and Benson sank into a chair, dazed. What was he going to do now?

“You okay, Benson?” Chase asked, coming up to him.

He shook his head. “No.”

“What’s going on?”

“I did something stupid, and now I’m about to get kicked off the team.”

“You mean spinning donuts in Central Park?” Chase asked.

“You know about that?” Benson asked.

“I think most of Maple Creek knows. They’ve been talking about it all week.”

“Why doesn’t that surprise me?”

Chase shrugged. “It’s a small town. They love to follow the news on what happens with the celebrities from around here.”

“I should have known that story would be all over the news. Did they say anything cool about my truck? Ol’ Bessie can tear it up.”

“I think they said it was a hunk of junk.”

“Shhh. That’s going to offend Ol’ Bessie, and she won’t run right if she’s offended.”

“It’s a machine. It doesn’t have feelings.”

“Don’t say that too loud. Bessie might hear you.”

“You’re ridiculous. I can’t believe you’re still driving that old truck. I remember when you drove it back in high school, and it had all kinds of problems.”

---