Holding (Moving the Chains #5) - Kata Cuic Page 0,4

walk a straight line right now, much less follow him anywhere.

Seeming to sense my knees are close to buckling, he drags me away as laughter and more comments pelt me from all sides. The cacophony is barely enough to stop my mind from spinning.

“Give it to her good!”

“Don’t come back here until you’re a man again!”

“Can I watch?”

Heck, I want to watch what Mike Mitchell is undoubtedly capable of, and pornography is not something I’ve ever engaged in.

Once we’re safely in the much quieter hallway, he releases me from his surprisingly gentle grip then rounds on me. “I’m sorry, but I’m not interested. I’ll pay for your wasted time though, unless whoever hired you paid up front.”

The conversation and events that went over my head in the weight room catch up to me with his offer. “You think I’m a prostitute?”

He grimaces, avoids eye contact, and stuffs his hands in the pockets of his athletic shorts. The stance enhances every bulging muscle in his arms. “I’m not judging. I don’t know your life story, just like you don’t know mine. But I can vouch from personal experience that sex doesn’t solve everything. If you’re looking for a way out of this life, I’ll do whatever I can to help. I’m sorry for the kiss, I— Well…it was the fastest and safest way to get you out of there.”

I open and close my mouth no less than ten times, but nothing escapes. No words form. Of all the ways I imagined our initial meeting, being mistaken for a sex worker was never a consideration. Neither was experiencing the sort of kiss I’ve only seen in movies. Or hearing the man who gave it to me say he’s sorry for it.

The problem is…he’s not entirely wrong. I am being paid to be at his service. Management didn’t expressly say if he requested sex that I should acquiesce, but they didn’t exactly convince me they wouldn’t be down for that method either.

I might be young, inexperienced, and naïve in this world of professional sports, but I am no one’s call girl.

With that reinforcing thought in place, I take a deep breath to prepare my spiel. “I’m afraid you’ve misunderstood—”

“No. You’ve misunderstood.” His angry gaze snaps up to meet mine directly. “I don’t care what they told you, what they promised you, or who hired you. I don’t care if you’re in this for the money, for fifteen seconds of internet fame, or for the chance to sleep with any professional football player without caring who he is. I don’t need to get laid. I need to do my job. Nowhere in my job description does it say I’m required to fuck a hooker just to get my teammates off my back and prove to the whole world I’m not gay.”

Wow. I thought I had it rough. This went from bad to worst-case scenario in a hurry. If this is what his teammates have been putting him through since he signed on with the Wolves; if this is what he’s used to dealing with as an NFL player; if this is how little he thinks of me from only our first meeting, I’m not sure I can fulfill my role as his assigned babysitter, much less use this opportunity to hone my social media expertise to turn around his career before it tanks completely.

I tilt my head to the side to study him for a moment, carefully thinking about my words before I lose my temper, which is dangerously close to boiling over. “That’s funny because my job description clearly states I’m required to help you even if you don’t want me to.”

He throws his arms up in the air, much in the same way he did in the weight room. “I’m not going to fuck you!”

A moment of clarity calms my frazzled nerves. He doesn’t know. No one has said anything to him yet beyond his teammates teasing him about last week’s post-game gaffe. He has no idea he’s already screwed. In more ways than one.

I’ve never seen a hooker in a business suit before.

In my time during college ball, I thought I’d seen it all. I guess this is the big leagues though, and I’m bound to experience some new things. I’ve gotta give it to Templeman, he isn’t giving up easily. The dumbass probably thinks I’m harboring some secret naughty librarian fantasy, so he prepped her on exactly how to play the part. The skirt and matching jacket this woman’s wearing