Play Date (Play Makers Book 3) (43 page)

Kerrie answered the phone quickly. “Rachel! Are you in Portland? How did the royals take the announcement?”

“They’ve been wonderful about it. But there’s a problem.” Her voice faltered, imagining how she would feel if she were on the other end of this call. “Sean must have felt left out, because he told them about you and him. And it was a shock. Understandably. Because it’s a lot to absorb. And when they didn’t react like he wanted them too, he got upset.
Also
understandable.”

“In other words, they were happy about you and Bam? But opposed to me and Sean? Even though we’ve been seeing each other for at least as long, if not longer, than you have?”

Rachel struggled to steady her tone. “To be fair, Vince and I are both single.”

“To be
fair,
Bam Bannerman sleeps around more than Coz ever dreamed of.”

They were silent for a moment, then Kerrie whispered, “I can’t believe I said that, Rachel. I’m so sorry. He’s madly in love with you. He’d
never
cheat on you. You’ve got your happily ever after, and I love that.”

“You can have yours too,” Rachel assured her. “But you need to play it smart. Sean’s feelings are raw. He’s ready to give up everything for you. And I know you’d love that, at least at first. But in the end, you’ll just get hurt again.”

Another silence ensued, then Kerrie asked, “How?”

It was a good question. If Sean wanted Kerrie, and Kerrie wanted Sean, how could it be wrong?

Except obviously it was. So Rachel continued stubbornly. “He’ll resent you someday. If he loses his best friends—his brothers—and becomes a pariah in the league, he’ll blame
you.
It won’t be fair. But you can’t be everything to him, Kerrie. That never works. It’s a cool romantic fantasy, but unrealistic. It failed you once, didn’t it?”

She couldn’t bear to go further. Didn’t have the heart to remind Kerrie that she had isolated herself from her own family by marrying her sister’s fiancé, and had paid a steep price. Hadn’t Coz turned on her for that very reason? Daring to say he would have been happier if he had stayed with Melody?

It wasn’t fair. But that didn’t mean it wouldn’t happen again.

Luckily, Kerrie got it. Because she actually
wasn’t
a head case, despite Johnny Spurling’s assessment. “I’ll slow him down. Encourage him to talk to
you,
at least. He adores you, so it’ll be easy. The three of us can have lunch on Monday if you’re free.”

Rachel almost whimpered with relief. “That’s perfect, Kerrie. I’m trying so hard to be everyone’s friend here, but in my heart, I’m all about you and Sean. Vince has me, John has Erica. So this is about you. And I really think it’s the right move.”

“I trust you.” Kerrie’s tone turned brisk. “I’d better hang up in case he’s trying to call. I’ll text you the time and place for lunch after I talk to him. Just do one thing for me, okay?”

“Of course. Anything.”

“Promise me you won’t take Erica’s side against me. I couldn’t bear it.”

“That could never happen,” Rachel told her staunchly. “Even if Erica
wanted
it, which she doesn’t. You need to trust me on that too. It’s going to be okay. Just don’t run off with him until the three of us talk.”

“I won’t,” Kerrie told her tearfully. “And, Rachel?”

“Yes?”

“Thanks for being my friend.”

Chapter 18

It took a while for Rachel to stop crying, but luckily the butler’s pantry had soft cotton towels and a sink, so she managed to stem the flow with cold water. Then she returned to the dining room, where Erica and Bannerman had their heads together in a nonromantic but conspiratorial posture.

“I didn’t kiss her,” Bannerman insisted, jumping up in feigned guilt. “Even though she’s hotter than hell.”

When Rachel laughed, Erica gave her a grateful smile and asked, “How did it go?”

“Really well. She’s going to slow him down.
Her
words.”

Erica waited until she sat down again, then patted her hand and said, “If she’s willing to do that, she’s got my vote. I just want Sean to be happy. And it sounds like Kerrie does too.”

“Thanks, Erica. I’m having lunch with the two of them on Monday, so wish me luck.”

She glanced at Bannerman and could see he was still struggling with the idea of his buddy dating a head case. But he didn’t say it out loud, which she appreciated.

Then Johnny walked into the room and it was moot. Because for obvious reasons, they all wanted to know what
he
thought, as though no one else’s opinion counted.

The QB noticed the drinks. Immediately. No surprise there. He had great vision, didn’t he? So he said with a forced smile, “Where’s the champagne? This is a celebration, isn’t it?”

Without waiting for an explanation, he headed to the butler’s pantry, opened the full-sized refrigerator, and found the chilled bottle. Then he uncorked it and brought it back to the table along with four crystal flutes.

Rachel was pretty sure she saw him eye his Scotch longingly, but he poured four servings and distributed them with a flourish. Still standing, he raised his bubbly drink in a toast. “To Bam and Rachel, the best surprise ever.”

They all touched glasses, then Johnny sat down and leaned forward, all business. “So? Where are we on this?”

“You mean Sean and Kerrie?” Erica asked him gently. “We’re making progress, thanks to Rachel.”

“Thanks to Kerrie,” Rachel corrected her. Then she flushed and explained to the QB, “I called her. And she agreed to slow things down. For
his
sake. Even though she would love to run away with him.”

He grimaced. “I shouldn’t have called her a head case. I apologize for that, Rachel. But she’s not a stable person. If that sounds harsh, I’m sorry. You said she was quirky, so maybe we’re just using different words for the same thing.”

Rachel expected Bannerman or Erica to jump in, but they just sat there mute. So she said carefully, “There’s a lot you don’t know.”

“She’s married to an asshole. She’s sweet and sensitive—obviously. And she’s starved for love. Did I leave anything out? Other than she’s a lot older than Deck?”

“Johnny,” Erica murmured. “Be nice.”

Rachel sent her a grateful smile, then turned back to the QB. “Yes, you left a few things out. She was young when she got married, and she didn’t know Coz was engaged to her twin sister until she was already in love with him herself. It all fell apart, so she threw herself into NFL fund-raising activities. She’s been raising millions and millions for good causes. She never thought she’d find love again. Then she and Sean found each other.”

He clearly wasn’t convinced but nodded anyway. “I knew she did some fund-raising, but I didn’t give her enough credit for it. A lesser person would have just sat back and spent the a-hole’s money. So thanks for correcting me on that.” His gaze narrowed. “You think Deck should chuck his career for her?”

“No. I think that would be tragic. For both of them.”

He exhaled sharply. “Good to know.”

Erica smiled, then admitted, “Here’s what bothers me the most. Coz is the bad guy in all this. He cheated on his first fiancé with her own sister. Deceived the sister into marrying him. Then treated
her
horribly. Everyone knows he runs around. And he’s a jerk. So how are Sean and Kerrie the bad guys in this?”

“That’s such a great point,” Rachel agreed.

“That’s
John’s
point,” Bannerman told them gently. “Coz is an a-hole, so she should have divorced him years ago. Before she ever met Deck. But she didn’t. And we’ve got to wonder why.”

Rachel touched his cheek. “She built a life as Coz’s wife. It’s scary to walk away from that. She’ll do it now because she has Sean to help her. But before? Her own family would have disowned her for it. They barely tolerated her marriage and they’d never,
ever
tolerate her divorce.”

Erica’s eyes sparkled with hope. “We’re all saying the same thing. Don’t you see? We need to put this on Coz. It’s his fault, so why not?” She gave her husband a seductive smile. “Murf will help, won’t he? I can draft the narrative and he can circulate it. Discreetly. Coz Cosner has been flagrantly cheating on his wife for years. And she’s been a saint about it. Now, finally, she’s had enough.”

“I like it,” Rachel said gratefully. “If we can get Kerrie to do it—to leave him for cheating on her, so it’s not tied to Sean. Then go into hiding and meet up with him again after a decent amount of time—it could work.”

“Sorry, teach,” Bannerman murmured, “but he’s hot to marry her right away. I saw it in his eyes.”

“We can slow him down,” she repeated firmly. “Kerrie’s on board with that. As long as . . .” She winced, not sure how much to reveal. But what could it hurt now? So she said carefully, “Kerrie needs to know Sean will be waiting for her. That she won’t end up alone. But if what you say is true, and he’s ready to make a commitment, then that’s not a problem.”

“Ready to make a commitment to someone else’s
wife?”
Johnny exploded. “No way. She’s all wrong for him. Did you see his face? She’s destroying him inch by inch. And
we’re
supposed to take part in that?” His wild blue gaze fixated on Rachel. “I’m sorry, but I can’t do it.”

“You can do it for Sean,” Erica interrupted coolly. “Can you imagine how
you
would have felt if someone told you
I
was the wrong choice? Would you have listened? No. Or at least, I hope not.”

“That’s what Deck said,” Bannerman said wistfully. “That I was all wrong for Rachel, but John got on board anyway. So why not for Coz’s wife? Why are they more of a mismatch than us?” He winced at his own words. “That’s an insult to
me,
right? Damn, I should’ve kicked his punk ass.”

Rachel knew he was trying to lighten the mood, and she loved him for it. But as strange as it seemed, she felt like she and Johnny were making progress. So she said stubbornly, “We don’t need to decide everything today. We just need to get Kerrie divorced in a way that doesn’t implicate Sean. Agreed?”

Erica nodded. “We can all agree on that. Right, Johnny?”

When the QB hesitated, Bannerman told him with mock sympathy, “This is it, dude. Couch? Or bed?”

Johnny surprised them all by chuckling. “I hate that couch. And I
love
sleeping with my wife. So yeah, I can agree with that.” His face softened. “I actually feel sorry for Kerrie, you know. If she can come out of this with a second chance, fine. As long as it’s not with Deck.”

Rachel was about to object to that last part when Erica jumped to her feet, clearly inspired. “We don’t need to use press releases and ancient history to make Coz look bad. We can do it right
here
. In this very house.” Her eyes sparked with excitement. “We all know Coz cheats every chance he gets, so we’ll
give
him that chance. And this time, Kerrie will make a scene. Demand a divorce. And
he’ll
be the bad guy, not Sean.”

• • •

Erica’s idea was simple. It was also insane, and Rachel wanted to point that out given Johnny’s insistence that “head case” was a bad thing. But she was in awe of Erica’s brilliance, so she just kept quiet as the scheme unfolded.

Erica would throw an engagement party for Bannerman and Rachel. They’d invite their coach and his wife. They would also invite a gorgeous actress named Janine, who had starred with Johnny in his Lager Storm commercial. Erica and Janine had become friends, and because the actress was so talented—and such a sport—she would happily flirt with Coz. He wouldn’t just be flattered, he’d get turned on, because Janine would send just the right signals. He wouldn’t be able to resist her professional charms, so he would
definitely
misbehave in public.

Then it would be up to Kerrie. If she would just go ballistic, right there in front of everyone, it would all be over except the court decree and generous property settlement.

“We’re not doing that,” Johnny told his bride bluntly. “No way. Right, Bam?”

Bannerman shrugged. “I can’t cross Rachel on this.”

“I thought you were the effing
sheriff.”

Bannerman chuckled, then pulled Rachel into his lap. “The sheriff runs the town. But the pretty saloon girl runs the sheriff. I thought everyone knew that.”

Rachel laughed proudly, looping one arm around his neck and kissing him amorously.

Johnny was silent for a moment. Then he glanced at his wife and said, “You’re kind of pretty yourself.”

“I was wondering when you’d notice,” she said with a mischievous smile.

The QB grinned and stood up. “We’ve done what we can for now. So I’m taking my saloon girl to bed. Congrats again, you two. Feel free to use the guest room. We’re flying out at six a.m. for an egg hunt at my pop’s house, so we won’t see you again until Monday. Stay as long as you like.”

“Rachel’s dragging me to church in the morning,” Bannerman assured him. “But we might take you up on that guest room for a couple of hours.”

“We’re leaving,” Rachel corrected him with a giggle. “Have fun with your nephews.”

“Yeah, right.” Johnny grinned again, then wrapped his arm around his bride’s waist and insisted, “Let’s go.”

Erica was giggling as he dragged her toward the bedroom, but she called over her shoulder, “Let’s meet back here on Monday afternoon.
After
you have lunch with Sean and Kerrie. We have an engagement party to plan!”

Rachel watched them disappear down the hall toward the master bedroom, then turned back to Bannerman. “Thanks for siding with me.”

“You mean I had a choice?”

“You
always
have a choice. Couch or bed, remember?”

“Got it. And since there’s a bed in that guest room . . .” He scooped her up, then eyed her sternly as though daring her to object. And because she couldn’t say “no” to the guy, they headed down the hall right behind their host and hostess.

• • •

On her way to lunch with Sean and Kerrie on Monday, Rachel tried not to picture the way Sean’s face had looked after his argument with Johnny. Not just depressed or discouraged, but hurt and angry and ready to throw his life away.