Page 92 of Hot As Ice

“You know how it is!” I insist. “Men love to brag in the locker room. They’re, like, huge gossips too. Even though women are always being accused of gossiping.”

“You’re not wrong. I just don’t see how this is anything to brag about for a guy? That he needs to pay women to sleep with him?”

I shrug, suddenly unsure myself, but how else would word have gotten out?

“You need to talk to him,” Becca says.

I nod and go to grab my phone from my bedroom.

twenty-nine

hunter

“CRUISE! In my office. Now.”

It’s rarely good when Coach wants to see anyone in his office. Jamie and Ryder give me quizzical looks following Coach’s summons. I shrug and tell them I’ll meet up with them later. We’re just out of practice, hair still wet from the shower. I’m starving and wish I could be going to get a bite with them, but that’ll have to wait.

I brace myself as I head into Coach’s office. He’s sitting at his desk, glaring down at the university paper. He tosses it toward me after telling me to take a seat.

“What the hell is this about?” he barks.

I glance down at the paper, no idea what he’s talking about. But there’s a highlighted passage in the gossip section and I quickly scan it. My stomach drops. What the fuck is this shit?

“Is that about you?” Coach asks, tapping the highlighted paragraph. “And don’t even think about lying to me.”

I shake my head. I will deny till I die. Half the garbage in the gossip section is never true, so what if this particular one is? I’m not about to blow up my life by admitting to it.

“It’s not about me, Coach,” I say as calmly as I can. “Half the stuff they print is just BS anyway.”

Coach leans back in his chair. “I didn’t think so,” he says, resting his hands on his belly. “It doesn’t even make any sense.”

I nod. “Right,” I scoff. “Why would I ever have to pay someone?”

He grins, then scowls. “I don’t like it, even if it’s just a dumb rumor. I’m going to have a talk with the editor. They shouldn’t be allowed to publish drivel like this.”

I nod again. “Thanks, Coach.”

“Alright, get outta here.”

As soon as I’m back in the hallway, with Coach’s office door shut behind me, I release a long exhale. Jesus Christ. That’s the last thing I expected today. My brain is whirring, trying to figure out how anyone on the paper would know anything about Stevie and me. I haven’t told a soul about our arrangement. I doubt she has either.

I fish my phone out of my pocket, about to text her, but she’s already texted me a few times.

Stevie

Did you see the paper?

Are you on campus?

Where are you?

HELLO?!

Fuck.

Why do I have a really, really bad feeling about this?

I reply that I’ll be home in 15 minutes if she wants to meet me there, because, yeah, I’m pretty sure we need to talk. Even though I have classes all afternoon, I blow them off. There’s no way I can sit in class and concentrate on anything anyway.