Hello Quarterback (Hello #8)

9. Mia

9

MIA

Ford wasn’t one to dance around the topic. No, he’d gone straight to the question that had a more-than-slightly embarrassing answer.

Years in boardrooms had taught me to school my expression, even when my heart was beating out of control and my stomach was lurching.

“It was a PR opportunity,” I answered simply.

He raised his eyebrows, the dark brown lines arching over turquoise eyes. “And here you said it was a long story.”

The response was so unexpected, I had to laugh. “You’re right, I did.”

He smiled a crooked smile that did nothing to slow the rampant pace of my heart. It was one thing to see him in a room full of people, another all together to watch him in his home. Relaxed, yet confident. Inviting, but still mysterious.

All alone with me.

I swirled a strand of floppy asparagus around my fork. “Promise you won’t judge me?”

He dipped his head in promise. “You have no idea the stories about my teammates that have been covered up. I’m sure yours is nothing in comparison.”

I tilted my head in question.

He leaned a little closer over the table. And I was so mesmerized by his perfect bone structure, the changing color of his eyes, I almost didn’t hear what he said next. “Let’s just say that the rhino didn’t get out of the zoo on its own last year.”

My jaw dropped. “No way.”

He nodded. “Pretty sure I’m still sore from the sprints Coach had us do as a punishment.”

That made me laugh. “I’ve only ever heard of high school teams running when they got in trouble.”

I shook my head. “Where do you think those coaches got the idea?”

Silence hung between us, his question heavy in the air. I bit my bottom lip, gauging how much I should reveal.

But I liked Ford. He was the one guy I actually wanted to have a chance with, and I wasn’t building a relationship full of potential around a half-truth. “Do you remember me complaining about Thomas?”

He grimaced, then nodded.

“He blocked the acquisition of the Andersen sisters’ company so he can propose one of his own to challenge me next quarter. And between him and his wife, they’re campaigning internally to win the board’s vote.”

“Mia...” he breathed. “Does Gage know about this?”

“He’s on the board,” I said, “but he didn’t make it to the last meeting. Tara had a dance recital.” I smiled on the last sentence, amazed that the man who used to work nonstop would miss a quarterly board meeting to watch toddlers in tutus.

Ford shook his head, and I continued. “My publicist had the idea that a relationship would level the playing field. Thomas has his wife, and I’d have someone to ‘campaign’ on my behalf. So she set me up with Hayden because, apparently, he’s a hot commodity at Griffen Industries.”

Ford smirked. “Do you work with a bunch of twelve-year-old girls?”

“It seems so.” I chuckled and set down my fork. “But I definitely cannot spend enough time with Hayden to pull off a fake relationship. You’re right—I deserve better, even if it’s make-believe.”

So there it was. All my embarrassing truth out in the open. All except for the fact that I was excited to be here with Ford, to try something real. If I still had a chance after sharing all that.

But Ford didn’t look disappointed or put off at all. He looked... relieved.

“So you don’t think I’m crazy?” I finally asked. “Or pathetic?” I added.

He leaned forward, a genuine smile on his face. It lit up his eyes, making them almost sparkle like the sun catching the ocean. “Actually, the opposite,” he said.

My eyebrows drew together. “What’s the opposite of pathetic?” I asked.

“Admirable,” he said without pause. “Even more so than you were before.”

There was my heart picking up pace again, and I didn’t even bother hiding the way those words made me smile. He admired me?

He flattened his palms on the table like he was steadying himself. “You might not play football, but you know your game. You’re committed to it, to doing whatever it takes to win.”

I nodded, feeling more understood than I had in a long time. “Most people don’t get the sacrifices it takes to get to our level, much less respect them.”

He took a sip of his water, and the way his throat moved as he swallowed was tantalizing. “You’re right. I’ve been with women before who wanted me to take my foot off the pedal when I needed to be pushing it to the floor. It’s a big reason why I’ve been against dating.”

So Tallie and Farrah were right about Ford being against dating? My heart soared even further because he’d chosen me as a potential match. Me. He recognized me in a way that few men did. As an equal. It wasn’t poetry or a box of chocolates or even a boombox on his shoulder, but to me, it was even better.

“I would never ask you to play small,” I said. “Especially when I’m chasing goals of my own.”

He dipped his head in the most adorable way, clasping his hands on the table. “This couldn’t be more perfect,” he said.

I almost couldn’t believe those words had come out of his mouth. “You mean it?”

He nodded. “The owner of the Diamonds wants me to date his daughter... unless I’m already in a relationship. And you wanted a fake relationship as well. If it’s okay with you, we could date for the season. It would get Trent off my back and help you gain favor at your company. I know I’d be great at talking you up, and I’d be spending time with someone who doesn’t make me feel like I’m listening to nails on a chalkboard. What do you say?”

I blinked, taking in his words.

Any height my heart had soared to instantly vanished as it smashed on the ground and then got ran over by a garbage truck—a few times for good measure.

Ford wanted a fake relationship to get him out of a bad date.

That’s why he’d brought me over here.

Not because he liked me.

But because he needed me.

I thought I might be sick.

“Mia, are you okay?” he asked. “You look a little pale.”

I shook my head. “Where’s the restroom?”

“Let me show you.” He stood, taking my arm like he knew I needed steadying, and walked me to the powder room around the corner from the kitchen. His touch was like fire on my icy cold skin. Could he sense through our touch how pathetic I felt? Because right now it seemed like each of my cells was screaming the word.

How was I in my late thirties and feeling like the girl picked last in gym class all over again?

I got inside and shut the door, locking myself safely inside.

Ford called, “Can I get you anything? Medicine?”

“No, I’m fine,” I managed. “I’ll just be a second.”

When his footsteps faded away, I got out my phone and texted Zeke, rockets of shame launching down my spine.

Mia: Can you come back to pick me up?

I set my phone down and leaned against the bathroom counter, looking at myself in the mirror. Really looking.

I was in my late thirties, no real relationship to show for it. No engagements. No major breakups, not even a divorce under my belt. And for a long time, I’d been okay with it because like Ford said, I was willing make sacrifices to win what really mattered to me: my career.

I wanted to be a success no matter how many people thought I couldn’t be one. I’d done what it took, learning this company inside and out, getting my master’s degree online while working sixty-plus-hour weeks. I’d given up dates, shut down relationships in the early stages, even broke off an engagement, and truly committed to my work.

And now I had another choice.

The opportunity to “date” someone extremely well-liked within the company was here.

Could I sacrifice my pride enough to take it?