Amanda stiffened, her fingers digging into the blankets. She could appreciate he’d feel protective toward his teammate, so she refrained from snapping a retort. “No. Not for a story. I’m going to listen to what she has to say but that doesn’t mean I’ll print it. I’ve given you no reason to distrust me,” she said, her tone even. “In fact, just the opposite.”
“Because you say you aren’t going to tell everyone about my arm?” he challenged. “We made a deal for that silence, remember? Tonight stays private and so does my injury.”
“You think that’s the only reason I’m not telling? Didn’t we already have this conversation? I could have exposed you before tonight.”
Long moments of silence passed. He crossed his arms in front of his chest, his stance aggressive. “Groupies are trouble,” he said, ignoring all of her points. “Laura is trouble.”
“She’s a kid who needs a friend.”
“She’s trouble. Walk away from this.”
“I can’t turn my back on her. She’s upset.”
“Can’t or won’t?”
“Brad—”
“If you print anything she says without the facts to back it up, Amanda, you’ll never get another interview in the Rays’ locker room.”
Amanda swallowed, feeling a bit sick. “I’d defend myself but it seems I’ve already been convicted.”
He didn’t respond, didn’t even glance in her direction. Amanda watched as he finished putting on his clothes. He’d shut her out before he’d gotten out of her bed. He tossed her a brief goodbye, then left.
She pulled her knees to her chest. Why was Brad so fearful of her getting close to Laura? Amanda couldn’t help but wonder if Kevin’s suspicions about Tony were true and Brad knew it. Maybe Brad feared Laura did, too.
The situation was complicated and her emotions weren’t helping. The way Brad had turned on her hurt like hell. He hadn’t listened to a word she’d said after Laura called. What was Amanda to take from his behavior? Was she a groupie to him and now that he’d had her—not to mention a surefire guarantee that she’d never print a word about his injury—he was tossing her aside? The idea stung given that she’d thought they’d shared more than sex.
Damn, she should have waited until she’d worked through all of the consequences of sleeping with Brad. She could kick herself for not giving this more thought. But, no. She’d let lust beat out logic. And look where it landed her—her career resting in the hands of a man who didn’t trust her and a heart that felt a little too bruised for a one-night stand.
What a mess.
11
REACHING FOR the takeout coffee cup perched on the edge of her desk, Amanda took a sip. She winced at the bitter taste of the too-strong brew. It was 8:00 a.m. after a night of too little sleep and no matter how bad the flavor, she needed the caffeine. She’d gotten up early to meet Laura only to have her leave a message canceling while Amanda was in the shower.
Since she was already awake and not likely to return to sleep with Brad on her mind, she had come in to work. Focusing on her computer screen, Amanda ground her teeth and hit the Delete button. Her column ran tomorrow and it needed to be brilliant. So far she wasn’t off to a great start. She had an idea, but not the spin that really made it edgy.
“Coffee has arrived.” Reggie held two grande Starbucks cups.
“Oh, my God, I love you.”
He grinned. “White mocha or caramel macchiato. I’m fine with either.”
“White mocha, please.” He handed her the cup and she took a long sip. “That is so good.”
“I’m addicted,” Reggie confessed. “I swear they drug the stuff. Some say Starbucks is a cult, you know.”
“Cult? You’re kidding.”
He gave her a serious look. “They say the drinks have some special ingredient that makes you want more.”
She wasn’t quite sure she’d heard right. “You’re telling me you believe an entire chain would drug their coffee.”
“Something makes it addictive,” he said, his expression still dead serious.
She shook her head in disbelief, staring at him as she searched for mischief and found it. “The drug is called caffeine and I’m a willing addict. And until I’ve had mine, I suggest you don’t give me a hard time.”
Reggie started laughing. “All right, all right. I’ll go easy on you the rest of the morning.” He grabbed a chair from the cubicle beside hers and sat. “I figured you’d need a boost after a night at the bar. So. Tell me everything.”
Amanda took another sip to break eye contact so he wouldn’t figure out everything amounted to more than she was willing to share. “Well, let’s see. Jack was an ass, as usual.”
Reggie snorted. “Tell me something I don’t know.”
“Here’s an interesting subject. One of the groupies was hanging all over Tony.”
He made a face. “Like I said, tell me something I don’t know.”