Brett sat still in the chair in his trailer while Trixie, a perky young blond, flirted with him as she did his makeup. Three months ago, he’d have flirted back, but the only person he wanted to flirt with now had walked out and was probably already on her way to the airport to fly back to Colorado.

He wished he could fly back home, too. He already hated the mask of foundation covering his face. How on earth did women stand this? He glanced at himself in the mirror and groaned. He looked ridiculous.

“Does it have to be so thick?”

“Sweetie, of course it does. You’re going to be on camera. If I didn’t do it like this, you’d look like a ghost.”

“Fine.”

“I’ll be done in a few minutes and then you won’t even be able to tell you’ve got makeup on.”

“I’ll believe that when I see it.”

“I’m the best in the business, hon. Trust me.” She winked at him in the mirror and brushed her chest against his upper arm. The action left him cold. Now if it was Cassandra…

Stop.

She’d said it was all kinds of wrong. For him, it was all kinds of right. How stupid was that? Cassandra was the opposite of everything he was normally attracted to. She had a career. Most of the girls he hooked up with were only looking for a good time like he was. Cassandra seemed like the type of girl who went for a long-term relationship, one that ended up at the front of a church with her in a long, pretty dress. Problem was, the thought of her with any other guy didn’t sit well with him at all. How pathetic was that? Being jealous of a man and a situation that didn’t even exist. At least he hoped she wasn’t involved with someone. She wouldn’t kiss him like she had thirty minutes ago if she was in a serious relationship, would she? No, Cassandra wasn’t the type to play around.

“There you go. All done,” Trixie announced and with a flourish, removed the cape draped around his shoulders. “What do you think? I was right, wasn’t I?”

Brett allowed himself another look in the mirror and had to admit, with everything blended in, he didn’t look too ridiculous. It still felt heavy against his skin, though.

“I guess it doesn’t look too bad.”

She laughed and trailed her fingers down his arm, the signal of what she wanted to do loud and clear. “Applying makeup isn’t all that I’m good at.”

Brett removed her hand from her arm and stood. How the hell could he let her down without annoying her so that the next time she did his makeup, he wouldn’t come out looking like a clown. “I think I know what you’re trying to suggest, Trixie. But I’m here to do a job. And I plan on doing a good one. I’ve got people counting on me to do the right thing.” To soften the blow he leaned forward and placed a kiss on her cheek. “Thanks for making me look good.”

She shrugged and smiled. “Oh, well, a girl’s gotta try. I do hope you win. You seem like a nice guy. Not what I expected, for sure.”

He didn’t know what to make of her response, but he was glad she’d taken it so well. Now for the next test of the day—facing Mitch Osborn.

Wasn’t that going to be fun?

---

“Brett, I need you to stand here. When our host announces your name, you walk around this trailer and out into the central area.” Ted pointed to an area about fifteen feet from where he stood.

“Gotcha.” He acted like he had no idea he was about to be thrown to the lions. He knew exactly what Ted expected. He wanted Brett to throw a tantrum at seeing Mitch and Drake. If Cassandra hadn’t warned him, he might have done just that.

“Great, I want to do this in one take, so make it good.”

“You can count on me.”

Brett bit back a laugh at the gleam of excitement in Ted’s face. The other man was probably mentally rubbing his hands in glee. Ted may not get the type of drama he was hoping for, but Brett was going to give him a damn good show, anyway. He knew Mitch well enough to know he wouldn’t react too negatively. He’d be damned surprised to see him, but Mitch wouldn’t stomp off the set or come out swinging. Drake, even though he was Mitch’s best friend, was a good guy. Everyone on the Olympic team loved him, so Brett knew Drake would be cool with him being on the show.

“Okay, make sure you remain here. Our intern, George, over there—” He pointed to a young man holding a clipboard and wearing a headset standing about ten feet away. “He’s going to keep an eye on you so you don’t try and peek to see who our other competitors are.”

He held his arms up in mock surrender. “I wouldn’t dream of cheating.”

“Good. Good.” He paused and Brett worked out that someone was talking to him in his earpiece. “Right, I have to get back to my position. It’s show time.”

Ted walked away and Brett took a couple of deep breaths. Nerves and excitement vied for dominance inside of him, the exact same feeling he got before one of his big races. Thinking about racing brought back the failed memories of Rio, but he pushed them aside. He was young. There was plenty of time for him to get to another Games. He planned to make the Tokyo Games in 2020. This time he’d win.

“How’re you doing?”

Brett turned around and found Cassandra standing behind him. He smiled, glad to see her. “Hey, I thought you’d gone.”

“No.” She curled a piece of stray hair behind her ear in what looked like a nervous gesture. “I’m here for the day. Well, actually, I’ll be with you most days.”

His smiled died on his lips. “Why? You don’t trust me? Is that it? You expect me to fuck up.”

“No, not at all. I trust you’ll do the right thing. I said that earlier. I’m here because I want to be here and because it’s part of my job. If there are any issues or requests for you to appear somewhere, I can deal with them here and ask you immediately instead of sending an email or leaving a message on voicemail.”

While her answer made sense, he still couldn’t help feeling like she was acting as a watchdog to ensure he toed the line.

“Fine.”

A determined glint entered her eyes and she strode toward him. “Yes, I want this show to help you, but ultimately I can’t control what you say or do. I’m not going to give you a script or anything. I just want you to be yourself and enjoy your time here. Regardless of Mitch and Drake, and whatever they might think of you being here. It’s a fun, worthwhile show. Don’t do what’s right for me. Do what’s right for you.”

“Stop,” he said when she went to lean in and kiss his cheek. He grabbed her hand when she recoiled like a cobra had struck out at her. “Not that I don’t want a kiss from you, but my face is covered with makeup.”

A light pink blush spread over her cheeks. “Oh, okay. Well, I’d better disappear until your name is called. If either Mitch or Drake see me, they’ll know you’re here.”

He supposed she had a point. After he signed with Star Image, they’d released a press release with her picture alongside his.

“I’ll see you later?” he asked, cringing at the need he could hear in his voice.

“Yep. Once you’ve been introduced, I’ll come out of hiding and hang around the fringes until the end of shooting.”

“Hopefully it won’t be too boring for you.”

“Nope, I’m looking forward to it.”

“How are you getting back to the hotel?”

Cassandra hesitated a second before answering him. “We’ll be riding back together.”

He smiled at the thought of all the things they could get up to in the back of the limo played in Technicolor glory through his mind. “I’ll be looking forward to it.”

Brett chuckled as her mouth opened and closed. She shook her head and turned away from him. He stuck his hands in his pockets as he watched her leave, the sway of her hips mesmerizing him.

“You’ve got five minutes, Mr. Hunter,” George said.

He raised his hand in acknowledgement. Time to get in the zone, the same way he did before a race. Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath and let it out, allowing his shoulders to relax. Next he shook his arms to release the tension, repeating the action with each of his legs. He bounced up and down on his toes. When he opened his eyes, he was prepared for whatever happened next.

“Welcome to Dream Builders. I’m Josh York, your host of this brand new show where we team up world-class athletes with kids from local elementary schools to build projects that benefit their school and community. You, the viewers, will vote on the final products and the winning team will receive $10,000. The runner-ups won’t go away empty handed, though. They’ll also receive a check for $5,000 each.”

Josh paused as cheering sounded loudly. Brett had no idea when other people had turned up, but by the sound they were making, there had to be a decent crowd on site.

Shit, this is real. I can do this. I can do this.

“Now I know you’re all anxious to find out who our celebrity athletes are. Let me tell you, I think you’re going to love who we’ve got lined up to help the kids. This first athlete rose to the top of his sport at the recent summer Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. Not only did he win a record number of Gold medals, he also won the girl.” Brett cringed at that. Could the script be any more cheesy?

“Let’s hear it for the king of the pool, Mitch Osborn.”

If the producer wanted the reveal to be a surprise, why had Ted put him within earshot of the introductions?

It took everything in Brett not to lean around the edge of the trailer to see Mitch. Their paths hadn’t crossed since the Games. Normally after a big event, everyone returned to their own training routines and locations. Brett knew a National team meeting would be happening soon. That was when he’d expected to see Mitch, in his new role as mentor, not on a television show.

Brett tuned back in to his surroundings in time to hear Josh announce Drake’s name. He’d be next. He looked over at George, who was motioning him to step forward. Brett took a few steps before George held up his hand, halting his progress.

“And now for our third participant. This young man really needs no introduction, since his face is all over the media.”

Fuck, even the host was throwing him under the bus. Well, the last laugh would be on them when he proved he would not act the way they expected him to. He could just imagine Cassandra gnashing her teeth in anger at his introduction. It surprised him how much he believed her when she said she only wanted him to succeed.

“Everyone, let’s give a big welcome to fellow Olympian and former teammate of Mitch Osborn, Brett Hunter.”

George slashed his hand down signaling Brett to move.

Showtime.

Plastering on a big, cocky grin the cameras weren’t expecting, he jogged out from his hiding spot and waved to a crowd of about a hundred people seated on wooden risers. He then narrowed his focus onto Drake and Mitch. As expected Drake’s smile seemed friendly. Mitch on the other hand was wide-eyed and, no doubt, a little shocked at his appearance.

Brett immediately went over to Josh, shook his hand before looking in the direction of the cameras and smiling. He’d done enough press conferences to know to look down the camera lens. “Hi Josh, it’s great to be here.”

“It’s great to have you here, Brett. How are you feeling?”

“I’m honored to be part of this fantastic show. I plan to do my best to win for my team.”

“That’s great! I’m sure they’re glad to hear that. Do you have anything to say to your other competitors?”

This was his chance to change the expected script. “Mitch and Drake are both amazing competitors. Both Olympic Gold medalists. I feel privileged to share this experience with them.”

Oh, how he wished he had a camera to take a picture of Josh’s bewildered face. He gave the host a smile and then walked over to where Mitch and Drake stood.

He held out his hand to Mitch. “Hey, this is a surprise. I don’t know what I was expecting when I arrived here today. But it wasn’t you, Mitch. It’s good to see you again.”

Brett wasn’t shocked when Mitch’s eyes squinted in suspicion, but they cleared quickly, as though he could tell that Brett was being genuine. Mitch grasped his outstretched hand. “I wasn’t expecting you to turn up here, either. You’re looking good, Brett.”

Brett nodded and then turned his attention to Drake. “Hey man, good to see you, too.”

Drake, being Drake, pulled Brett into a quick bro hug and slapped him on the back. “And you! This is unexpected.”

Brett laughed. “Yeah, isn’t it?”

“Well, there you have it folks, the athletes who will be our team leaders. After the break, we’ll introduce them to the team of kids they’ll be working with over the next few weeks.”

Josh, the host, held his position and beaming smile for an awkward two seconds before the director yelled, “Cut!”

Brett let out a long, low breath. He looked up and spied Cassandra in the crowd. Her wink and “thumbs up” sign said it all.

Score one for Team Brett.