CHAPTER TWENTY
Jake
I should be focused on making the most of this PR opportunity—GQ has one hell of an audience, and the Rangers media machine will amplify the profile’s reach, making the most of the good press.
Tonight I’m starting something that could either be really good or very bad for my career and my future. This profile could mean the difference between Keri’s unspoken accusations continuing to hang over my head like a storm cloud spitting lightning bolts, or a lighter, fan-friendly story being attached to my name.
In an ideal world, I would have been able to keep my private life private, the way I like it, but ideal went out the window when things with Keri went from bad to assault with a deadly weapon. And now my reputation and my family’s ability to hold their heads up in my hometown hang in the balance.
Any asshole with the brains God gave a subway rat would be carefully plotting his next move, aware of how easy it would be to screw this up. Shane and I have only known each other a few days, and no matter how hot the chemistry is between us, or how carefully we plotted our backstory, there’s a chance one of us will crack under pressure.
But I’m having a hard time concentrating on anything but the woman by my side, the woman with her arm around my waist and her breast soft against my chest and her silky blond hair slipping through my fingers as I guide her in for another stolen kiss. Her mouth is my crack rock, and the taste of her on my lips is enough to keep me in a state of constant arousal, my cock insisting on remaining semi-hard so it can be locked and loaded the second Shane gives the signal that she wants more than pretend.
That she wants me inside her, making her come, showing her how fucking devoted I will be to bringing her pleasure.
Down boy, I remind myself. These pants aren’t going to be forgiving if semi-hard becomes something more. Though, at the rate we’re going, it’s only a matter of time before I embarrass myself.
We’ve been at the party twenty minutes and I’ve already kissed Shane five times. The temptation to make the most of this night of no-holds-barred fantasy is proving too much for me. I’m a man who has spent his entire life in control, refusing to be anything like the old man who did his best to fuck up my life before it even got started, and now I’m throwing all my discipline out the window for a pretty woman.
But she’s a hell of a lot more than pretty. Shane is smart, sweet, funny, a little bit wrong in exactly the right ways, and so sexy that I’m starting to hate my fucking slacks. Why didn’t I pick something looser and spare myself the suffering? Though I have to admit seeing Shane blush as she checked out my ass almost makes it worth it.
“Get ready,” she whispers against my mouth, the taste of Shane and mojito mingling on her lips. “Denise is on her way across the dance floor.”
“Does that mean I have to stop kissing you?”
She smiles. “Just for a little while. Then we can get back to being that couple that makes everyone uncomfortable and jealous.”
“Sounds good,” I say, and it does.
So far I’m enjoying this intervention more than I ever imagined I would. And if I have my way, both Shane and I will be enjoying it a hell of a lot more before the night is through. Tonight is the night. I’m not going home without letting Shane know that my jones for her is one hundred percent the real thing.
“There you are!” The girlish exclamation is followed by the sound of swiftly clapping hands. “Oh my God, you two are the most adorable, sexy, fabulous thing I’ve ever seen! I can’t stand it!”
I turn to see a brunette who looks to be in her mid-thirties, her elegant features, tasteful makeup, and glamorous blue dress at odds with her childlike voice and over-the top enthusiasm.
“I’m Denise! So good to meet you, Mr. Falcone.” She thrusts out a narrow hand. “I’m a huge, huge fan.”
“Call me, Jake, please.” I take her hand and give it a gentle squeeze. “It’s great to meet you, too. I’m thrilled to be here.”
“Oh, me too!” She claps again. “We’re going to have so much fun with this, I promise. It will be completely painless and awesome. Now come here, Shane, and give me a hug, you gorgeous thing.”
Shane reaches for the other woman with a laugh. “How are you, Dee? You look beautiful. Love, love, love your dress.”
“Thank you, thank you. I was so glad to finally have an excuse to pull it out of the closet.” Denise hugs Shane tight before pulling away with a giggle. “You’ll both have to forgive me if I’m a little giddy. I’ve already had two glasses of champagne. I’m trying to get my courage up to ask Jorge to dance. I’ve had a thing for him forever, and with all the romance in the air lately, I figured I should woman up and give it a shot.”
Shane smiles. “That’s the spirit. And there’s nothing to forgive. Jake and I like giddy people, don’t we, babe?”
“Absolutely.” I twine an arm back around her waist, not enjoying being separated from her, even for a few moments. “Hell, I’m a little giddy myself.”
Denise threads her hands together with a happy sigh. “Oh, I can tell. I was watching you two from across the room, and you just glow. You’re positively radiant together. The pictures are going to be phenomenal. I can’t wait to get you both in wardrobe and somewhere fabulous. Maybe the cloisters if the weather is good.”
“Wardrobe?” I shoot Shane a glance out of the corner of my eye.
“But not tonight,” Denise hurries to assure me before Shane can respond. “What you’re both wearing tonight is perfect for a few shots to tease the feature on the blog. We’ll save the makeup and wardrobe and the glamorous stuff for our last meeting. I’ll have nailed down my angle by then and be able to tell the artistic director exactly what I’m looking for. Sound good?”
“Sounds great,” I lie, wondering if I’ve gotten myself into more than I bargained for.
Shane didn’t say anything about a photo shoot. I rarely say yes to interviews, let alone getting dressed up and posing in front of a camera. The last time I let myself be talked into something like that was for the Easter Seals fundraiser, where I ended up getting suckered into wearing a pair of bunny ears and taking pictures with the kids. The team called me Thumper for the rest of the season.
“Um, yeah, sounds great,” Shane says in a less than enthusiastic tone.
Denise laughs. “Don’t worry! I know you hate having your picture taken, for some insane reason.” Dee turns to me, laying a hand on my arm. “I mean, if I looked like her all I would do is get my picture taken, right?”
She turns back to Shane with a tsking sound. “But I know you’re shy, so I’ve got my best guy booked for our shoot. He’ll get you both relaxed and take killer shots. It will be sweet and painless, and you’ll come away with something gorgeous to hang in your apartment. Tonight we’ll just do a little easy, backstory chatting and save the bigger questions for out next meeting, when we’ll have more privacy.” She waves both hands. “Come join me at my booth. I’ve staked out a corner where we should be able to hear ourselves think.”
“Lead the way.” Shane squeezes my hand as Denise starts back around the dance floor, headed for the long, glass-walled room on the other side. “Sorry,” she adds beneath her breath. “She didn’t say anything about a photo shoot before. It was supposed to be two meetings, here and something low key, like brunch.”
“It’s fine,” I say, finding I’ve already gotten used to the idea. “She’s right—you shouldn’t be shy in front of the camera.”
“I’m not. I don’t mind pictures with friends and stuff like that. It’s just the staged posing, flashes and bounce card stuff that makes me twitchy.”
“Then we ask her to cancel the shoot. I don’t want you to be uncomfortable.”
“No way,” she says, with a shake of her head. “I’ll do it. We’ll do it, and it will be great. No problem. It’s just pictures.”
I squeeze her hand. “Thank you, princess.”
She smiles up at me as we reach the booth. “My pleasure, dragon.”
“Oh my God, yes!” Denise’s jaw drops as she plops into the padded booth. “That’s it! The princess and the Dragon! New York City royalty and the fiercest man on the ice. That’s my angle!” She blows kisses across the table. “Bless you both. So far you’re the easiest profile ever.”
“Happy to help.” Shane slides into the booth ahead of me. “And there’s a bottle of champagne with your name on it if you make Jake dress up in a dragon outfit for the photo shoot.”
I ease in beside her with a smile, putting my arm around her shoulders. “I’ll wear a dragon suit, but only if you dress up as a warrior princess. None of the pink, flowing stuff.”
“Why’s that?” Shane cocks her head, a pleased smile teasing her lips that makes me want to get this answer right.
“Because you’re too badass to wait around for someone to save you.” I catch a lock of her hair, wrapping it around my fingers. “And because I think you’d look unbelievable in a leather bra and holding a sword.”
She hums thoughtfully, but her eyes are dancing. “Just a bra and a sword? Nothing else?”
“Or just the sword,” I say, grinning. “But only if we were alone.” My smile fades at the thought of anyone else seeing Shane decked out in a leather bikini. “So on second thought, I’ll be a dragon and you can be a princess who lives somewhere really cold and likes to put on her winter coat before she comes outside.”
“So, you don’t like to show her off?” Denise asks, a more focused note in her tone that makes it clear the interview has started.
“Um…not really.” I experience a flash of nerves for the first time since arriving at the party. Beneath the table, Shane squeezes my leg in a silent show of support. I glance down at her, feeling better as soon as I look into her eyes. “The person I’m dating is a person, not a status symbol.”
“But you’ve dated so many women who could be considered just that,” Denise says, proving there’s a real reporter beneath her bubbly exterior. “If you’re not after the status symbol, then why not date one of the many beautiful, not famous women in New York? Why go after actresses and models and country music superstars?”
“I don’t discuss my past relationships,” I say in an even tone. “But I will say that most of the women I’ve dated have very public careers, like mine. They understand what it is like to be in the spotlight. I never had to worry that I was exposing them to scrutiny that they wouldn’t have experienced in their everyday lives. As a private person, that’s something I worry about when it comes to the women I’m involved with.”
“Interesting.” Denise nods. “So is that why you’ve kept things so quiet with Shane so far, and with Miss Warner before you and Shane were involved?”
“Denise,” Shane says, a note of censure in her voice. “You said you weren’t going to ask about that.”
Denise blinks innocently. “Did I? Oh man, I don’t think I said that. I’m not going to sell copies by spreading rumors, but I am interested in facts.” She turns her sharp brown eyes my way. “But if Jake isn’t comfortable talking about that part of his past, we can move on.”
“I’m fine with it.” I force a tight smile. “Yes, I do make an effort to keep things quiet when I’m dating someone who isn’t already in the public eye. If things end, I don’t want her to be hounded by reporters or paparazzi unless she wants to be. That should be her choice, not a pain in the ass she has to deal with because we had dinner a few times.”
“And yet, here you are.” Denise smiles as she leans in, propping her chin on top of her fist. “Agreeing to be interviewed for a high profile magazine article with a woman who has made it her mission in life to keep her private life private and who runs for the hills every time Page Six sends a photographer to cover one of her galas. What’s up with that, you two?”
“You know exactly what’s up with that,” Shane cuts in before I can answer, her tone sweet, but firm. “Neither of us are going to go on record about anything specific, but I will say this—I will do whatever it takes to protect an innocent person, especially when that person happens to be the man I love.”