Page 133 of Divorced from Number Thirty-Eight
Gray
The back door opens and closes quietly before I’m ready.
Because I know what I have to do.
I just…I’m not sure I have the strength to follow through.
The stories.
The derision.
Her book being pulled.
Fuck. Fuck.
And worst of all?—
I’ve had a taste of how beautiful it can be to have her…and I’m going to have to let her go, anyway.
“I know the articles are bad,” she says. “But my team is good and I know the Grizzlies PR team is equally as talented. We just…”
She keeps talking, but I’m not really hearing her.
Not when the headlines designed to provoke are on the fucking internet in black and white?—
Pucks, Passion, and Porn: Has the Captain Gone Too Far This Time?
Grizzlies Captain in Hot Water (and Hot Scenes): Management ‘Monitoring Situation’
From House Fire to Homewrecker: Author Behind Grizzlies’ Newest Scandal.
Captain’s Girlfriend Cashes In: Erotic Fiction Writer Profits from Private Passion
And the fucking videos.
Everyone having an opinion. A comment.
The derision being tossed her way.
If it was just me, it would be easier. But it’s not just me. It’s not just a media storm to ignore and “no comment” and wait until it dies down.
No, Faye’s been pulled in right next to me.
And I know—fucking know—that Courtney is behind this.
My teammates, my family wouldn’t talk to the media about Faye’s job, about the fire—and certainly not about me being inspiration for her books.
But Courtney could have heard something or surmised enough to create this.
To hurt Faye this way.
To hurt me.
A gentle hand settles on my back.
“Don’t,” Faye murmurs. “Stay with me.”
Those words kept me with her before, mere weeks ago. Fuck, that feels like an eternity ago, a lifetime.
