His warm hand caressed the small of her back. “It’s okay. I know you’re concerned about him, babe.” Brody pressed a kiss to the top of her head.
“I just wish…Damn it, Brody, I want to help him.”
“I know,” he said gently. “But your dad is the one who got himself into this mess, and I hate to say it, but he’s the one who’ll have to get himself out of it.”
HAYDEN’S CELL PHONE woke her early the next morning, rousing her from a restless sleep and making her groan with displeasure. She was on her side, her back pressed against Brody’s big warm body, one of his long arms draped over her chest. She squeezed her eyes shut, waiting for the ringing to stop. A second of blessed silence, and then it rang again. And again. And again.
With a sigh, she disentangled herself from Brody’s arms and slid out from under the covers. The sight of the alarm clock on Brody’s nightstand made her grimace. Six o’clock. Who on earth was calling her this early?
“Come back to bed,” came Brody’s sleepy murmur.
“I will after I murder whoever keeps calling,” she grumbled, padding barefoot to the armchair under the window. Her clothes and purse were draped over the chair, and she rummaged around in the pile until she found her cell.
Looking at the display, she immediately recognized Darcy’s number. Uh-oh. This probably wasn’t good. Not if Darcy was giving up her own beauty sleep to make a call.
Hayden flipped open the phone and said, “What’s wrong?”
“Have you seen the morning paper?”
“That’s what you woke me up to ask?” Hayden edged to the door, not wanting to disturb Brody. She leaned against the wall in the hallway and added, “And what are you doing up early enough to read the morning paper? Do you even subscribe to the paper?”
“I never went to bed last night.” Hayden could practically see the grin on her best friend’s face. “And, no, I don’t get the paper. But Marco does. Marco, by the way, is my new personal trainer.”
“At the rate you’re going, you’ll never be able to find a permanent gym, Darce.” She let out a breath. “Now tell me what’s so important about today’s newspaper.”
“You.”
“Me?”
“You’re in it, hon. Front page of the sports section, with your hockey player’s tongue in your mouth and his hands on your ass.”
She nearly choked. “You’re making it up!”
“I’m afraid not.”
Horror lodged in her throat. Darcy sounded serious. And if Darcy couldn’t make a smart-ass remark about it, then it must be bad.
“I’ll call you back in a minute,” Hayden blurted, disconnecting the call.
The T-shirt Brody had given her to sleep in hung all the way down to her knees, but her arms were bare and goose bumps had risen on her skin. She wrapped her arms around her chest and hurried down the stairs two at a time. In the front hall, she unlocked the door and poked her head out, darting forward when she saw the rolled-up newspaper on the porch. The wooden floor was cool under her feet, making her shiver. Snatching up the newspaper, she headed back inside, pulling the paper from its protective plastic as she wandered into the living room.
She sank down on the couch, found the sports section, and gasped. Darcy was right. The first page boasted a large photograph of her and Brody in the Warrior arena parking lot. It must have been taken the moment she’d stood up on her toes to kiss him, and there was no mistaking it, his hands really were on her butt.
The caption read, “Warriors forward cozies up to team owner’s daughter.”
But it was the article beneath it that drained all the color from her face. She read it twice, not missing a single word, then set the paper on the cushion next to her and dropped her head into her hands.
“What happened?”
She jerked up at the sound of Brody’s drowsy voice, to see him standing in the doorway wearing nothing but a pair of navy-blue boxers and a concerned expression.
Without a word, Hayden pointed to the newspaper beside her. After a second of hesitation, Brody joined her on the couch and picked up the section.
She watched his face as he read the article, but he gave nothing away. Blinked a couple of times, frowned once, and finally rose slowly to his feet. “I need coffee,” he muttered before walking out of the room.
Hayden stared after him in bewilderment, then shot up and rushed into the kitchen. Brody was already turning on the coffeemaker, leaning against the counter with a look of utter disbelief in his gorgeous blue eyes.
“They’re saying I took a bribe,” he said softly.