Page 144 of The Fake Out

“I did nothing wrong. I only wanted to give him more opportunities for endorsement deals. Just needed to dirty his reputation a little bit.”

“You are an idiot!”

I scampered toward them just in time to see Piper ball up her fist. She pulled it back but must have thought better of it, seeing as how she was surrounded by cameras. With a growl, she dropped her hand.

“What’s going on?” Chris asked, cutting in between Doug and Piper. I stared at him, taking in every little detail. For the first time since April, it felt like I could take a deep breath.

“It was him.” Piper pointed at Doug. “He’s the anonymous source. He’s the one giving out all the gossip.”

“You don’t know that,” Doug snapped, cowering behind Chris.

Chris whipped around to face Doug. I couldn’t see his face, but his voice sent chills down my spine. “Is this true?”

Piper leaned to the side to glare at Doug. “Oh, I can prove it, you rat. How could you even think about bringing the woman in the video into all this? I cannot believe you went after her. You are despicable.”

Doug’s eyes skittered around the room wildly, probably looking for a way to escape. “What? No, I didn’t. I wanted no part in that. I told him not to.”

“Chris, can you tell us what’s going on?” a reporter yelled out. Everyone ignored him.

“But you didn’t stop him, did you? You are a monster.” Piper balled up her fist again.

“Don’t listen to anything she says,” Doug said. “It’s all lies.”

“You son of a b—”

“Whoa, there”—Chris gently put his hands on Piper’s shoulders—“let’s take this to another room.”

“You’re right.” Piper straightened, yanked down the sleeves of her suit jacket. She glared at Doug.

Chris pointed to a door at the side of the room. Piper marched toward it, leaving the door open. Doug, looking more than a little panicked, followed behind, his shoulders stooped.

“I’ll be in soon,” Chris said.

Piper popped her head out. “Mae, I’m sorry to ruin your moment.”

“Mae?” Chris spun around and his eyes found me immediately. He froze.

“Oh,” I squeaked, coming from behind a video camera and into the light. “It’s okay.”

Piper winked at me, muttered something to Chris, and closed the door. A few seconds later, I was certain I heard Doug yell, “You punched me!” But maybe that was only wishful thinking on my part.

Slowly, I walked toward Chris. He was so still, watching me closely.

When I was ten or so feet from him, I waved. “Hi.”

“You’re here.”

“This is my grand romantic gesture,” I said, fully aware my hair smelled like airport hand soap, and I was wearing only half a face of makeup.

He closed the gap between us. His hair was wet from a quick shower after the game, and his face looked thinner.

I frowned. “Have you lost weight?”

“A little.” A few inches separated us now, and I itched to reach out and touch him. His eyes traveled from my head to my toes and back. “Nice shirt.”

“It’s a nightgown.”

He grinned. “Thanks for dressing up for the occasion.”