Page 21 of Pucking One Night Stand

Suzanna from Media laughs. “Yeah, pretty much. But nothing cliché or boring.”

Cassy claps her hands once. “Alright, people, we’ll send out schedules for filming. Expect some mic’d-up moments, travel footage, and maybe a few surprises.”

Chairs scrape back. Guys stretch, and the conversation kicks up again like a switch flipped.

Bishy elbows me in the ribs. “Asshole!” I shoot him a look. He just grins. Behind him, Cassy’s still staring at me like I set her favorite shoes on fire. And just like that, the guys start filing out,still chirping each other, tossing jabs and insults that echo off the walls.

The media team stays behind, already gathered around a laptop, planning shots, and making notes.

As we head for the door, Brody pauses, looks at her, then at me. “Fuck... that’s her, isn’t it?”

Chapter four

Cassy

The room's still humming with noise as the media team leaves, buzzing like bees hopped up on espresso and content strategy.

They’re already tossing ideas around for ‘Roomies on the Road’—who’s going to be the train wreck, how that damn Blake Mitchell is definitely going to be the main heartthrob, and how many players they can get to forget the cameras are even there.

Laughter follows them out into the hallway.

Riley and I are the last ones in the room, still shoving our laptops and chargers into our bags.

We finally step into the corridor, and I’m still not done venting.

“…And can you believe it?” I snap, halfway laughing, halfway about to lose it. “When I was with my dad earlier and he asked if we knew each other? Blake actually said NO. Like, deadpan. Totally ghosted me. Like I was some random chick asking for directions.”

Riley lets out a low whistle, shaking her head. “As I said, all men are dicks. But…” she lifts a finger. “And don’t think I’m taking his side… maybe he just didn’t want your dad to know.”

I give her a look. “So, what you’re saying is, either he’s just a dick… or he’s a dick that’s scared of my father?”

She grins, glancing at her watch like she’s trying not to laugh. “Yeah…I suppose I am, but you’ve also got to understand how the dynamics work here.”

“Fuck the dynamics, you were right the first time. Men are all dicks!”

I stop outside my office door, heat crawling under my skin. My fingers twitch around the strap of my bag like I want to throw it at something.

The nerve of him. Ghosting me like I was a nobody, after the way he—

Riley opens her mouth to say something else, but my phone buzzes in my pocket like it knows it’s the worst time.

“Okay, I’m leaving now,” Riley says. “I’ll see you in the morning.”

“Night.” I fish out my phone and glance at the screen.

Oh, perfect. Jaxon Reid, my ex. Because today clearly didn’t have enough male bullshit in it.

I grab the keycard on the retractable badge reel clipped to my belt and swipe it through the reader. The card snaps back with a sharp zip as I push the door open and step inside.

I answer the call before the door even swings shut behind me. “WHAT DO YOU WANT, JAXON?”

There’s a pause, like he’s pretending to be surprised by my tone. Like I haven’t picked up the phone the exact same way for the last two weeks. “Listen, don’t hang up.”

“Jaxon. You keep calling me. What is it, every three days? Do you have an alert set on your phone or something? 'Annoy Cassy: Recurring Event'?”

“I hear you, okay? But I’m in Vegas right now. Just… meet me. Please? One meal. Just to talk.”

Jesus. He just doesn’t give up.