Page 35

CHAPTER 35

Cami

Bestie Friend

I cannot believe you got him to do this.

Me

You underestimate my abilities

Bestie Friend

He looks so cute! They’re all so small.

Me

I know. My ovaries are going to explode

Walking a few steps to the left, I move the angle of my phone and snap another photo of Charlie. He’s sitting at the front of the room, a book about a boy who wanted white mittens in his hands, and a group of kids sitting at his feet. Many are dressed in red, white, and blue, and some are even sporting a Cade jersey.

Back when I came up with the list for bringing Charlie’s media persona back to life, we agreed a story time at the library would be great for socials. Well, I agreed and when he sent it to Sophie she was really excited about it. She is standing next to me at the back of the room, smiling as he changes his voice to match the characters. I hadn’t met her before today. Usually I’m not involved in anything that has to do with his hockey career, so I hadn’t had a reason to meet his agent before.

She’s short, but her three inch heels help her some. Her blonde hair is pulled back away from her face in a low ponytail and she’s wearing a deep plum pants suit. I would have immediately been intimidated by her if she hadn’t walked up to us and pulled me into a hug before even saying hello.

“He looks like a natural up there. Totally opposite of what anyone would have thought, I’m sure,” she whispers as she leans over towards me.

“I know. The kids love him and how is he so good at the voices?”

“I don’t get it. It’s honestly kind of scary. Did he practice these with you at home?”

As soon as she says it, he changes yet again to a new voice for a character that’s just been introduced. Both of our eyes go wide at the change and I throw my hand over my mouth in an effort to hide the snicker. The back of her hand smacks my shoulder at the same time as Charlie gives me a subtle glare and I quickly try to gather myself.

“I’m sorry, I’ve just never seen him like this. We definitely did not practice at home.”

“It’s okay, I get it. I just don’t want him to stop and he will if you laugh.”

“You’re right. I’ll keep it together.”

The parents at the back of the room are all holding up cell phones and taking videos and photos as he moves through the story, eventually coming to the end, and asking the children to raise their hands to share what they thought of the story.

One child says they liked the part where the grandma made the mittens, another said they liked the animals in the story, and one took off on a story about how his grandma was old and fell down the stairs but she’s okay now. Watching Charlie try to break into the kid’s story so he can close the book and move forward with the event, but not hurt his feelings, is comical.

He’s so gentle with them and I wonder if things like this are some of the reasons why I can see a future with him that goes beyond the next few months. He’s so endearing and each day I am struggling more with the inability to resist falling into something real with him.

My phone buzzes in my pocket and I take it out, smiling at the texts from Alana responding to the pictures and videos I sent her of her brother reading.

Bestie Friend

Okay I don’t want to know about your ovaries when my brother is involved.

Me

It’s just a saying. You know when you see a hot guy do something with kids?

Bestie Friend

Pretending you didn’t call my brother hot.

Me

Too much?

Bestie Friend

Just weird. But I’ll get used to it!

I heart her message and switch over to Instagram to reply to the few fans who have commented on my story of his reading. Most people have been really kind to me and welcomed me into the Rangers fandom, but there have of course been some who aren’t so kind. I choose to ignore those people and focus on the positive.

As I type, I see Charlie talking with the two reporters Sophie invited to come today. She didn’t want to bring a ton of people in, not wanting to communicate this was purely for press, even though that was one of the main driving factors. He smiles demurely and speaks in a quiet voice into their microphones. I admire him from my place in the back, the feelings of fondness and warmth swirling in my chest. Over the last few weeks he has become something different to me than he was before.

Before he was my best friend, and that’s still true, but things have changed in subtle ways. When something happens, he’s the one I want to tell. When I can’t decide what coffee I want or if I should buy something or not, I want to text him and ask for his opinion. When my family drives me nuts and I want to rip my hair out, my first instinct is to pick up the phone and dial his number. He’s quickly becoming my person in more ways than just how I spend my time and while that’s terrifying, it’s also exciting.

He finishes up with the interview and makes his way over to me. Once he reaches me, he slides his hand from my hip to my back, then presses his palm into my lower back and pulls me forward to press into him. He leans down and places a soft and slow kiss to my lips, then pulls back and smiles down at me.

The action sends butterflies through my chest and I have to take a deep breath to calm myself. I know we’re in public, but the way he’s been making me feel lately is all too real.

“How’d you like the story?” he asks with a smirk playing on his lips.

“Loved it. No notes, except can you talk to me in those voices?”

“Nah, that’s a little too out there for me, Cam.”

“Oh, I didn’t mean it like that,” I say as I laugh and swat his chest.

“Hey, you said it, not me.”

I roll my eyes at him and pull him back into me for a hug. My head fits perfectly under his chin and it’s quickly turned into one of my favorite places to be. He holds me there for a few moments, then removes one of his arms, reaching back to pull his phone out of his back pocket.

“Ugh,” he groans. “Did you send a video of me doing the voices to my sister? Seriously, Cam?”

“What? She would have seen it on Instagram eventually, she isn’t blocked from our stories anymore.”

“I am never going to hear the end of this.”

I snicker into his chest and squeeze him one more time before letting go and turning to face the room. He gives me another kiss before going back over to the table they have set up for him to sign autographs. The turnout today says enough about his growing popularity. The event is free, but people had to sign up in order to attend and the spots were gone within just a few minutes. It makes me happy to see him getting some love from fans, and I hope he sees how much they genuinely love seeing more from his life.

Sophie manages the line and the news people take photos while fans shuffle forward for their turn to meet Charlie. Young children get their jerseys signed and some even bring in hockey sticks. I hear one little boy tell him that he joined the squirt team, which is just a term for his age range of 9-10, and was inspired by seeing him on the ice.

It’s touching and I find that I could be content doing events like this again. I don’t think I mind being a WAG for a professional hockey player nearly as much as I thought I would, and I might even be interested in being promoted to permanent WAG status, that is if my fake boyfriend is at all interested in being not-so-fake.