Page 123 of Hot Damn
“I’ll get the owner’s suite set up for it. Can you get it aired?”
“Dad’s on his way. He’s got every station he owns on alert. I think he’s planning to blast it as far as he can the second it’s recorded.”
“Smart.”
“I was going to ask but he beat me to it when he offered.” Blowing my nose to clear the clog from my voice, I watch Nat tap away at her phone with a frown on her face.
“I need to get out there. One of the guards says someone in the media is trying to get in?—”
“Oh!” I bounce to my feet. “It might be Deb. I called her.”
Laughing, Nat says, “It’s not Deb. I’m pretty sure it’s your dad.”
“They won’t let him in?”
“I told them to lock the place down.” She grins. “This is the reason I worked so hard to convince Ray to work exclusively with the Rogues.”
“I need to clean up.” I glance at Oakley. “Can I use the?—”
“Don’t even ask, woman. You own the team, the executive restroom is for all of us to use whenever we need.” She looks at my clothes. “I might have something for you to wear. You can’t interview them in that.”
“I wasn’t planning?—”
“I want you to do it.”
Beck’s voice has me spinning to face the door. “Beckett?—”
“If we’re going on camera, Whit and I want you across from us.”
“But—”
“No buts. We want you with us. We’re okay with telling the world our story if you’re beside us.”
“Beck.” My gaze moves to the young woman behind him, and I can’t keep my emotions from my voice or my eyes. “Whitney.”
In a second she’s across the room in my arms, and the tears I thought had stopped return for another round.
“I’m so sorry.”
“Shh…it’s okay,” I soothe her while my watery gaze locks on her father.
“I didn’t mean?—”
“I know, Whitney. And it’s okay. You should have been able to talk to the school counselor without worry.”
The scoff-laugh she emits put a smile on my face. “Yeah, except my history proves they can’t be trusted.”
“Don’t label all of them by the actions of a few.” Beck tips his chin in acknowledgment of my subtle dig of his initial reaction to me months ago.
“I found a folder in Dad’s desk. It had everything about what Dad went through. The court documents don’t have his name on it, but it wasn’t hard to put it all together and work out who he was, who I am.”
“And you needed a sounding board to process it.”
“Yes.”
“I understand why you did what you did but I’m going to tell you something I want you to remember in the future. My mom is a lawyer, you hire her for a dime and you can tell her anything you want and she’ll never repeat it to anyone. She’s a vault.”
“But—”
