AllFreeNovel
Share Us
And I won’t get hurt.
But when it comes to Cameron, it’s even more than that.
First, I don’t want to fall for him when I’m only here temporarily. But also—and more importantly—I’m here for a job. If I were to engage in any kind of relationship with him, I could ruin my professional reputation. And I’m finally starting to make a name for myself. Not to mention, his reputation is already a problem.
Ugh.
I look up from my phone and a pair of hazel eyes meet mine from the side of the rink. I catch my breath.
Cameron gets under my skin much too easily.
“Nila,” he calls out, waving me over as the team takes a break.
I shove my phone in my purse and head down the steps, my heart thrumming in my chest. Considering Cameron wasn’t all that friendly when I tried to check on him earlier, I have no idea what to expect from him now.
“I just wanted to say I’m sorry,” he says, his eyes less red than when he walked in. If I didn’t know any better, I’d think he’s been crying.
But you know, it could just be allergies, too.
“There’s nothing to be sorry for,” I say lightly, giving him a smile. “There’s a lot going on, so I get it.”
“Yeah.” He nods. “So, um, why are you here?”
I tilt my head, confused. “Um, just getting some footage.” Lies, sort of. I mean, sure, I wanted to get footage of Cameron … but it was also a convenient excuse to check on him and see how he was doing since he wouldn’t respond to my text.
He narrows his eyes. “Oh ... I figured that was all on hold right now.”
“Oh, yeah.” I clear my throat, feeling my face heat up. “It is, but I’m sure it’ll blow over. And when it does, you’ll need some content for the new social media manager. I thought I would help.”
“Right...” His voice trails off as he continues to study my face. “Anyway, I’m gonna grab some dinner before the PR meeting. You wanna go?”
I hesitate, my heart jumping out of my chest at his offer. “Are you asking me out?” I blurt out awkwardly.
Oh no.
His eyes go wide, and I can’t tell if I’ve caught him in the act or embarrassed him by reading more into his question than I should’ve. “Uh...”
“I’m so sorry. I read into that,” I say quickly, brushing him off. “I just wanted to make it clear that this is professional only. I don’t get into relationships with clients.”
“Right, yeah.” He rubs the back of his neck. “I didn’t mean it like that—I meant like, we’re going to the same meeting after this ... and you’ll probably need to eat … and so will I ... so...”
“Yeah, makes sense,” I choke out, hoping he doesn’t notice how red my face is. “I’m actually, um, I’m going to skip it this time.”
“Skip dinner?”
“Uh, yeah.”
“Why?”
I shake my head. “I don’t know. I … ate before I came.” Which isn’t even the truth. I haven’t eaten all day, but I’ve just made things so awkward, I can’t imagine actually going to dinner with him. It would be miserable.
“Oh, I get that. It’s cool. I’ll see you at the meeting, then?”
“For sure,” I say, giving him a forced smile. “I’ll see you then.” My eyes follow him as he skates away and my heart sinks in my chest.
I breathe out a sharp sigh, hating the way I wanted him to be asking me on a date. Even though I know I would’ve refused it (because my rule still stands, I don’t date clients), it’s still nice to be asked...
I head for my purse that I left in the stands, pick it up, and slip out of the rink—opting not to stay for the rest of the practice.
