“Kelsey, I know you better than anyone else. You thrive on the challenge of turning public opinion around. You wouldn’t have flown here on a moment’s notice and come to this party if you hadn’t already committed, in your own mind, to helping me out. Name your price.”
“Damn you, TS, you think you have me all figured out, don’t you? You have to know how tough this is for me, and yes, I really do want to help you, but—”
“Look, I know you have some concerns. Let’s say you work with him on a trial basis for the first week? Meet Maverick, set up a few strategy sessions. See how it works out? I’ll pay you a retainer fee until you decide to sign a contract.” TS named an astronomical number, nodded to someone across the room, then finished his drink.
Dammit, how could she turn him down now? She could handle a week with the moody, bad boy, right?
Turning toward the bar, he hesitated. “Oh, and to sweeten the deal, if this goes well, I have an opening for vice president of communications. You’d be perfect.”
He was handing her the position of a lifetime, but could she overcome her past disappointments and return to Pineville permanently?
“What? All this time you’ve been holding that tidbit of information back from me?” He was talking more than a short-term job. VP of anything with a major baseball organization would mean she’d be able to get out of L.A, something she’d been thinking of doing for a while.
But could she separate the heartache of her childhood from the career challenge? Seemed like Maverick’s poor choices would end up bringing her the new opportunity she’d been searching for. Kelsey smiled at TS, grateful for their friendship, and decided to take a risk.
She had a “yes” on the tip of her tongue when he walked into the room.
Chapter 3
Maverick strode into the resort’s penthouse. He wore a frown and, with a hooded glare, swept his gaze over the room. Kelsey guessed it had more to do with one too many drinks consumed than his reluctance to make an appearance tonight. But that was unfair. She should give him the benefit of the doubt.
“Well, speak of the devil. Your favorite troublemaker just arrived.” She said. Noting the pitcher’s shoulders were thrust back, his arms held tight against his body. Hmmm. “And he doesn’t look too happy to be here,” she murmured.
But he did look determined and yeah, movie star gorgeous. Maverick cleaned up rather well, wearing a midnight-blue evening jacket that showed off his broad shoulders to perfection. His thick hair, usually worn in wavy locks that brushed his shoulders, a superstition he followed religiously during the season, was now short. Back to the faux hawk he wore in the off season before he let it grow out again.
Much like Samson, he considered his pitching strength was directly tied to his hair. He once told a reporter about this superstition and all the players wore wigs to the next game. The public ate it up and now the diehard fans wore wigs to the home games. She wondered if that would carry over to the team’s new hometown.
“Kelsey, I’d like to introduce you two as soon as possible. But I was thinking we’d give him a few moments to settle into the room. I’ll go get us a fresh drink.” TS left her side.
Barely registering his comment, Kelsey was too busy sizing up her new client and admiring his, er. . . form. What was it about hard bodied athletes? Her skin began to tingle, and her breath became uneven at the thought of being pressed up against him. This was not how she’d ever reacted to a man and she’d met plenty of celebrities and other professional athletes. Her head wasn’t easily turned by a pretty face or hard body.
Shaking off her reaction, she wondered if the rumors she heard were true that Maverick’s new best friend was a bottle of whiskey. It might explain his rigid posture tonight. Was he working off a bender? Noting he arrived solo, which was, according to the tabloids, out of character for him, she wondered if he’d learned at least one lesson from this current mess.
His last relationship had been splashed all over social media. Well, not really a relationship. Headlines had announced the unfortunate events during last year’s All-star weekend in Las Vegas: The Ballplayer and the Stripper had been a top story for weeks after.
Kelsey hoped he wasn’t fighting any more demons because he already came with more baggage than the team on a road trip. Add even one more issue to his list of problems and she would have to think twice about his chances of repairing his image.
Maverick turned and caught her looking at him. His face relaxed into a heart-stopping smile, and unfortunately, it was aimed straight at her. His cornflower-blue eyes dared her to look away as he continued to gift her with his trademark lady-killer smile.
Lord almighty. No wonder women threw themselves at this man.
Holding her stare a moment longer, Maverick then raked his gaze over her warm face. Time stopped and all rational thought disappeared. Then he winked, breaking his spell.
Not easily seduced, she prided herself on controlling any situation in which she found herself. And that included dealing with flirtatious men. But this man, the player she was here to “fix,” had bespelled her with one look. A look that was now roaming down and back up her now humming body.
Well, two could play at this game. She held herself still, doing her best to control her rapid breathing so that by the time Mav’s eyes settled back on her face, she appeared bored, or at least unaffected. She was rewarded with a wide-eyed reaction. She hadn’t earned the nickname “Ice Princess” in college for nothing.
A heated glance from a handsome man was not going to throw her off her game. Kelsey desperately needed to appear in control of her emotions and her body’s physical response. Maverick didn’t need to know he’d captured her attention with one wicked smile.
She was here to do a job, not flirt or allow her libido to rule her good sense. Turning back to TS, she asked, “Does he know your plan?”
“Not yet,” TS answered. “I was going to give him tonight to stew about what I’m going to say. I want to see how he reacts here, in front of the hometown crowd first. See if he can hold it together. Tomorrow, I’ll drop the bomb.”
“Not bad. But are you sure that’s the best course? Lulling him into a false sense of security before going for the quick and painless strike doesn’t always work.”
“Hey, it’s my go-to move. How do you think I convinced the USBL to grant me the rights to move the team?”
“Yeah, whatever.” Kelsey smiled to ease the sting of her words, however she was secretly impressed by his tenacity. Always had been.
TS chuckled. “Kelsey, this is exactly why I need you. Why Maverick needs you. You don’t take any bullshit, even from me. I admire that. Always have.”
Glancing around the room again, she saw that the subject of their conversation was now leaning up against the bar and chatting with a few of his teammates and their dates. No longer looking her way, but her body was still humming, damnit.
“Huh. I would have figured you would react a bit differently.” TS murmured.
Busted. Giving him her full attention, Kelsey asked, “How so?”
“He’s a hotshot ballplayer. Good looks, money. Has a lot going for him despite his current challenges. I guess I would have thought you would have acted. I don’t know. More interested.”