“Look, Robert, I don’t think we should see each other anymore.”
“Um, okay,” he managed after a considerable pause, looking and sounding confused. “Can I ask why?”
“It’s just not working for me, all right?” Shred, shred, shred. “I think you’re a great guy, it’s just time for me—for both of us—to move on. You know?”
You’re so right, Janna wanted him to say. But he didn’t. Instead, the color drained from his face and his eyes looked sad as he asked in a beaten voice, “Did I do something to offend or upset you? Because if I did—”
“You didn’t do anything,” Janna jumped in to assure him. “It’s me, all right?” Shred, shred, shred. Spout another cliche why don’t you? “It’s me.”
Glassy-eyed, he appeared not to be listening. “Have you found someone else?”
“Of course not, don’t be silly.” She wished she could tell him the truth, but she was afraid: Robert was an intense guy. Janna could imagine him intensely stalking her if he found out about her and Ty.
“You’re just unhappy,” he said woodenly.
“Yes.”
Looking numb, he slipped his papers back into the rear pocket of his jeans. Then, without any warning, he hung his head and began to cry. Out of the corner of her eye, Janna could see the old couple at the next booth discreetly peering at him over their newspapers.
“Robert,” she implored frantically, “get a grip, will, you please?”
“Mon dieu, how can this be happening?” he wept. He raised his teary face to Janna. “You’re my muse! Without you my creative impulse will die, it will wither on the vine!”
And then you’ll get a real job, Janna thought. Instead she said, “That’s not true, and you know it. You’ll still be able to write.”
“Ability is one thing, desire another,” was his bitter response. “Without you, I won’t want to write.”
Janna was silent. This could go on forever, him pointing out how she was ruining his life and her insisting that really, she wasn’t, even though it was possible she was. He’d grown up poor, he’d chosen a profession where he’d no doubt remain poor, his mother was the poster girl for Thorazine, and now his girlfriend was dumping him. The impulse to completely contradict herself and take him back was strong, but Janna squelched it, reminding herself that pity was a poor basis for a relationship. It had to end here, now. She kept quiet.
Robert’s face, which had been contorted in agony, now shone with incredulous anger. “You don’t care, do you? You don’t care if you kill my creative spirit.”
Janna thought a moment. She knew the right answer. “Not really.”
“I knew it! I knew you’d turn into one of them eventually.”
“One of them?”
“It’s finally happened, hasn’t it? You’ve utterly and completely sold out.”
“Pretty much,” Janna agreed.
“You’ll regret this, ma petite belle.” He rose, wrestling his coat on. “You’ll rue the day you let me go; but what’s more, you’ll curse the morning you arise and realize you’ve no heart left, that you’re just a willing cog in their machine.”
With that he stormed out of the diner, leaving Janna, as always, to foot the bill.
At work later, she knew she should feel relieved about cutting the cord with Robert, but she didn’t. Instead, she felt self-conscious and nervous, as if she were walking around wearing a huge sandwich board that proclaimed, “I’m sleeping with Ty Gallagher.” She knew this was ridiculous, but she couldn’t help it. It was a variation of her impostor fear. Walking past the secretary into Lou’s office, Janna thought, She knows. Sitting down opposite Jack Cowley in Lou’s office and having to endure his false grin revealing tiny, pearly teeth better suited to a doll, she thought, He knows. Smiling shyly at Lou as he waddled past her and ruffled her hair saying “Hiya, kid,” she thought, He knows.
In her paranoid frame of mind, they all knew, and they all thought—what? That it was a joke? A one off? That she was a slut? She was being crazy, and she knew it. She had to stop. If she was this paranoid one day after the main event, what the hell would she be like after she and Ty started fooling around regularly? Convinced everyone was watching them do it through the windows?
She sat back against the crinkling leather of the couch, waiting for Lou to get organized. This usually involved him taking two or three slurps of coffee, severing an egg and cheese sandwich by cramming half into his mouth, and rustling a few papers. The process always fascinated Janna, mainly because it never varied. Jack Cowley, on the other hand, always seemed to avert his gaze from Lou whenever possible, clearly disgusted by whatever Lou did. It must really frost his uptight little butt to have to work for a guy like Lou, Janna mused. The thought gave her perverse pleasure.
“All right, ladies and germs, here’s the latest. As you know, we got three road trips next week: Minnesota, Vancouver, and Calgary. Jack, you’ll be with me as usual.” Lou looked to Janna. “As for you, Missymiss, tell Big Lou what’s on your plate this week.”
Janna peered down at the notes on her lap. “In addition to handling that visit by Dobler to the Kid’s Hospital, I’m going to be on hand when the writer from that women’s mag interviews the Gills on . . . what is it, Thursday? I’ll be there for the photo shoot, too. Let’s see, what else . . . I spoke with the editor I know at Seventeen. She definitely wants to do a shoot with both Lex and Dante, maybe a group shoot with a bunch of the other hot, young, single guys.”
Lou pounded a squishy, exultant fist on the desk. “Yees! Penetration into the teen market! I knew there was a reason I loved you.”
Even though Jack was glowering at her, Janna’s pride still swelled under Lou’s praise. It felt good to know she was doing her job well; it made her feel that maybe she did deserve the incredible salary she was pulling down. Maybe she was competent enough to strike out on her own after all.
“Now.” Lou’s voice turned serious as he made the other half of his sandwich disappear. He picked up a sheet of paper from his desk. “This just came down from Corporate this morning, and you, Janna Banana, are gonna hate it, because I, being the Grand Poobah, am going to be exercising my executive privilege and make you deal with it.”
Janna’s heart sank. “What?”
“Corporate’s feeling better about the guys getting involved in the charity stuff and all that jazz. It’s a step in the right direction. And they’re thrilled with that idea you came up with that all the guys have to wear suits and ties when they show up for away games.” Janna felt another rush of pleasure at being rewarded shoot through her. “But it’s still not enough.”
Janna’s head dropped back. “Let me guess,” she said to the ceiling. “They want to enforce a curfew on the road.”
“No, but that’s a great idea.” Lou grabbed a pencil and began scribbling. “What they want is for the guys to wear jackets and ties on game night both home and away.”
Janna lifted her head. “Home?” she echoed. “Lou, most of these guys are coming directly from their apartments. They don’t want to have to dress up. It makes sense when they’re out of town, representing the team, but to have to do it here—”
“I agree with you,” Lou cut in. “But this is what they want. They want all of ’em to do it, or else.”
“Or else what?”
“Or else they’re gonna be fined two hundred cannolis every time they don’t.”
“You have got to be kidding me.” She could already imagine what would happen when she hit the guys with this one: mutiny in the locker room, and it would be her walking the plank. “Lou, c’mon. They’ll never go for this, they’re going to freak out. Can’t you talk to Corporate and tell them this is completely unrealistic?”
“I tried, doll face, believe me. They won’t listen. They want what they want when they want it.”
“Personally, I don’t think it’s such a bad idea,” Jack Cowley drawled. Janna and Lou turned to him simultaneously. “Kidco’s right. The way s
ome of these goons come slouching into the locker room before a game, they look like they just rolled out of bed. Especially Gallagher.”
“That is not true and you know it,” said Janna, trying very hard not to sound defensive. “They come in sweats, jeans, khakis . . . they’re athletes, for God’s sake. Not male models.”
“They’re professional athletes,” Cowley rebutted, “who should look professional. Draping these apes in Armani may not make them gentlemen, but at least they’ll look like gentlemen.”
“Apes?” Janna repeated angrily. Ty Gallagher is not an ape, you effete jackass. “How can you—”
“Whoa, whoa, time out, boys and girls,” Lou calmly intervened. He regarded Jack coldly. “Cowley, I know you’d rather be doing PR for some A-list actor than a bunch of guys you think have the collective IQ of a footstool, but keep your personal feelings to yourself, capisce? It doesn’t exactly fill me with confidence in your abilities to hear you calling them apes.” He turned to Janna, his expression softening. “As for you, I know the guys are gonna bust your chops on this, but I also know you can handle it. Anyone who can get that hardhead Gallagher to put on a tux and show up at a benefit knows how to work this crew. I have no doubt that come Friday, every one of those boys is gonna show up before the game looking like a million bucks.”
“Right,” Janna agreed tepidly. A million bucks. That was roughly the amount she’d have to wave in Ty’s face to get him to comply. Oh, this was going to be ugly. Mean, bad, and ugly. She should never have taken this job. She should never have gotten involved with Ty. But since she had, she had no choice but to do Kidco’s bidding, and hope that her personal relationship with the captain gave her some extra, invisible clout. Heart heavy and fingers crossed, she left the meeting.
CHAPTER 08
Anger. Incredulity. Scorn. Shock. Depressed resignation. These were the emotions Janna saw flash across the team’s faces while she explained Kidco’s new dress policy to them. She was careful to avoid Ty’s eyes, knowing damn well that of all the players, he was the most outraged. Yet he didn’t curse, protest, or outright refuse. He simply listened until she was done speaking, then spit on the floor in disgust and walked away, his feelings on the issue made crystal clear.
Janna waited to speak with him until most of the team had cleared out, and he had gone into the players’ lounge. She was relieved to see there were only two or three other players in there, teammates who were showered and changed, and getting ready to leave. Ty was sitting on one of the couches in chinos and a button-down denim shirt, thumbing through the sports pages of the Daily News. A carton of orange juice sat on the floor beside him. Anxious, Janna gingerly sat down. The pressure of another body on the couch made him glance up; when he saw it was her, he closed the paper, regarding her with unabashed disbelief.
“They’ve got to be kidding. Tell me it’s a joke.”
“Ty—”
“It was bad enough being told we have to get dressed up when we’re on the road. Whoever came up with that idea should be taken out and shot.”
Janna blinked.
“But this is too much. What’s next? Telling us where to live, what to eat, what to watch on TV? Who the hell do they think they are?”
“The owners of the team,” Janna replied softly. “Whether it’s right or not, they see you guys as employees, pure and simple.”
“Yeah?” Ty’s voice was defiant. “Well, they can fine this employee all they want; I am not being told what to wear, and before you even ask it, no, I will not try to convince any of my guys to toe the line. It’s every man for himself on this one.”
Janna’s heart sank. “Great.”
“C’mon, Janna.” His eyes quickly darted around the room to see if any of his cohorts were listening. Both of them had stiffened considerably since she’d sat down, almost as if they were trying to overcompensate for their familiarity with one another. “This is bullshit, you know it is. It’s a totally unreasonable demand.”
“I agree,” Janna admitted. “And I told Lou so. Lou agrees, too, and he told Corporate so. They don’t care. This is what they want. It all comes down to image.”
“Screw them and their image,” Ty fired back stubbornly. The last of the other players said good-bye as he left the room. Ty waved and continued, “Here’s the thing: I wouldn’t have any objection to playing it their way if I got the feeling they respected the team, or even gave a damn about the sport. But they don’t. We’re just a marketing tool for them.”
“This is the way professional sports is now, Ty. You know that.”
He reached down for his juice carton, and tilting his head back, drank deeply. “Doesn’t mean I have to like it. Doesn’t mean I have to do what they say, either.” His eyes traveled a slow, straight line from the top of her head down to her feet, pausing to linger at her breasts, her hips. “Lookin’ good today, Miz MacNeil,” he murmured appreciatively.
Janna gritted her teeth. “Don’t.”
“Don’t what?” Ty teased quietly.
“You know what.” Janna felt her face going hot.
“No, I don’t,” Ty insisted, moving an inch or two closer to her and discreetly pressing his knee against hers, bone touching bone, heat matching heat.
Janna closed her eyes.
“What’s wrong?” Ty half whispered. “Don’t like to live dangerously?”
Janna’s eyes sprang open as she edged her body away from his. “No, I don’t,” she hissed under her breath, “and neither should you. You better watch yourself.”
“Meaning?” His eyes followed two teammates as they walked past the doorway, waving good-bye. “Catch you tonight, guys.” He turned back to Janna. “You were saying?”
“If you keep being difficult, Corporate’s going to come down on you with everything they’ve got. That’s the way they work.”
“Do you know this for a fact, or are you just assuming it?”
“I’m just assuming it. But it’s worth thinking about, don’t you think?”
“Nope. You forget: I brought the Cup to the city last year, and we’re going to repeat this year. Corporate won’t do anything to me.”
“Except bleed your team dry in fines,” Janna pointed out. She felt guilty thinking it, but the bottom line was, the more obstinate he was, the harder it made her job. “Ty, please. Do what Kidco wants, okay? Wear the suit and tie.”
His hooded gaze turned seductive. “What will you do for me if I do?”
“What do you want me to do?” Janna flirted back. She realized her heart rate seemed to have tripled in under a minute.
“How about coming home with me after the game Friday night?”
“It’s a possibility.”
He reached forward, his hand lightly grazing her thigh. “Anything I can do to convince you?”
“Uh, Ty?”
Janna thought her heart would shoot straight out of her chest at the sound of Kevin Gill’s voice behind them. She and Ty jumped apart guiltily, even though there was no way Kevin could have seen Ty’s hand quietly withdraw from her leg from where he stood. Still, this was not good, not good at all. There was no way her nerves would be able to take this kind of delicious, close-to the-edge flirting. It was fun, okay, but not worth it, definitely not worth it.
“Hey, Kev.” Ty’s voice was smooth as he turned to look at his friend, standing in the doorway to the lounge. “What’s up?”
It alarmed Janna to see Kevin looking befuddled. “Tubs wanted to know if you and I could stick around and review some video of the last game with him. You got some time?”
“Sure.”
That was Janna’s cue. She rose, making a great show of gathering all her papers together. “I hope you change your mind,” she said to Ty in what she hoped was a cold voice.
“Don’t bet on it,” Ty called after her combatively as she moved to leave the room.
“Hello, Kevin,” Janna said, smiling, as she passed him.
Kevin gave a friendly nod. “Janna.”
Working hard to suppress a smile, Kevin said, “So, how’s it going, pal?”
“It’s going great. You?”
“Great, great.” Curiosity danced all over Kevin’s face. “So what’s up between you and Janna, huh?”
“Nothing.” Ty struggled to remain stone-faced. “Why?”
“Oh, man, don’t bullshit me. I’ve known you too long, and the vibe in here was just too weird.” He picked up the paper and began casually perusing it. “You guys seeing each other?”
“In a way.”
Kevin slowly put the paper down. “What does that mean?” Before Ty could formulate an answer, Kevin came up with his own. “Oh, Christ. Don’t tell me you’re playing with her.”
Ty stared at him, offended. “I’m not ‘playing’ with her.” He glanced around again, even though the place was empty, save for the two of them. “We’re casually dating, okay? And that’s between you, me, and the walls.”
“Casually dating?” Kevin looked distressed. “What does that mean? You’re screwing her, no strings attached?”
Ty couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “You really think I’m a jerk, don’t you?”
“Not at all,” Kevin insisted. “I just know where your head is at right now as far as women are concerned.”
“Yeah, and that’s where Janna’s head is at as far as men are concerned. She wants to keep it casual, too.”
Kevin looked dubious. “She told you that?”
“No, I’m making it up. Yes, she told me that.” He reached down and finished his juice. “Why are you getting so bent out of shape over this?”
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