Page 8 of Not that Impressed
It’s one of those times, after she catches me watching her, that I turn to find a camera operator standing right next to me, filming the way I was staring at her. Great.
“Get lost,” I say tightly.
The guy lowers the camera enough that I can see his face. He gives me an irritated look. “You signed a?—”
“I signed a waiver saying you could be in the same room as me. Not that you could follow me around.” I’m basically growling by the end of the sentence.
“Will…” Charlie warns in a low voice.
“That waiver says I can film you wherever you are in this room,” he insists, but his voice holds enough hesitation that I can tell I intimidate him.
I lean toward him. I dwarf him by almost a foot, and I probably weigh twice as much as him too. He swallows and takes a step back. “Film up in my face like this again and find out what happens,” I say in a low voice.
He doesn’t say anything else, just glares and backs up.
“Wow, bro…” Charlie says. He’s looking down at the backpack he’s packing instead of at me.
“Dude was basically in my back pocket,” I protest. I glance over at Janelle. She’s studying me, but she looks away when our eyes meet.
This was a bad idea.
“Sorry,” I mutter. Charlie shakes his head.
Thankfully, the drive is wrapping up. I have to get out of here. Once we finish the backpacks at our table, I say deliberately in front of Janelle, “Hey, Charlie, I’ve gotta get going.”
He eyes me, confused, not following my attempt to help himspend more time with Janelle without me having to spend more time with Ellie. “I was going to help Janelle clean up,” he says.
“Oh! I can give you a ride home,” she offers, and I force myself not to react in triumph that one of my plans actually worked.
Charlie is not so subtle. He grins. “Okay, sounds good. See you later, Pemberton.”
“Later.” I make a beeline for the door. I catch Ellie’s eye as I leave. Her expression is smug, and I narrow my eyes. Has she decided I’m off to take a woman twenty years older than me on a hot date?
I stride out of the gym without looking back again. I need to get a workout in and clear my head. Stop obsessing about Ellie Bennet thinking I’m a troll and get back to my real goals, like winning another championship and being one of the few linebackers to be named a championship MVP. I’ve been hustling my whole life for football, and just because I made it pro doesn’t mean I intend to stop. Getting a workout in will have the nice side effect of not thinking about Ellie Bennet.
I’ve spent way too much time doing that lately for someone I don’t even like.
Isla.is.GLOWING
Hanging out with @Ellie.Bennet.IRL and @janellejbennet today and spreading some love. Check out who I found! @Mr.Colin!
CHAPTER 5
ELLIE
It’s nice on Thursday to have a break from filming for a day. Even though working with Janelle’s nonprofit is always wonderful, having to do it in front of cameras is complicated. Janelle and I both let the show film stuff like this because it means more people paying attention to the things we support, but I always feel like I’m performing when I do that, and it makes the work less fun. Maybe it just feels less altruistic even though that’s the only reason I’m there and the only reason I’m okay with the cameras there. Like I said: complicated. That’s why I usually just help plan the Pumas service projects rather than go myself.
That’s definitely why Will thought I was there. Ugh.
I don’t care what he thinks.
Spending time working on my collaboration with Girls Play, a foundation dedicated to leveling the playing field for girls in sports, is like a ray of sunshine. We’ve designed a line of athletic wear that I’ll promote, and all the proceeds will go to Girls Play to help them fund their programs. Today I’m playing dress up, working with a photographer to capture several of the items to post over the next few weeks on my social media accounts. And since Rainee is one of my favorite people in the world, it makesthe work easy. Plus her studio always feels bright, no matter what light we’re shooting in.
Rainee snorts with laughter when I come out of her tiny dressing room in leggings and an oversized t-shirt that says,You can hit on us but you can’t scoreaccompanied by the silhouette of a female softball player. “You are going to bankrupt me,” she says. She’s already mentioned multiple times how much of the stuff she’s going to order.
“I’ll give you a discount,” I promise with a grin. She’s already snapping pictures because she likes my poses best when I’m just chatting with her. Maybe because she’s a doll and so much fun to be around.
“I don’t want a discount. I just want to buy all the things.”
