Page 31 of The Game Plan

The sleepy smile she gave him almost broke his control, but he managed to hold on as she got out and disappeared into her building.

He shifted as discreetly as possible into the chair at the memory and snuck a peek at Joel, whose attention was on the phone in his hand.

“Hey,” he said, holding it out to Reese, “isn’t this the foundation where Sutton works?”

“It is,” Reese replied, taking in the social media post. “It’s a charity ball?”

Joel nodded. “Looks like it’s next Thursday.” He looked up at Reese. “Did she tell you about this?”

Reese shook his head. “She didn’t. With the kids’ event Wednesday, I’d imagine she’s a bit busy.”

Reese was surprised by how quickly it had all come together.

Tito had called him on Friday afternoon to let him know it was all set up, and they would shoot the event with the families who were chosen from the foundation.

Reboot loved the idea of the community aspect, and since the Kings were now the champions bound for the big game, they were eager to do the event.

Reese was relatively certain they had a commercial slot, so this would get a lot of eyes on their new shoe line, making the company look good in the process.

She was busy with this charity ball, then I added the kids’ event to her plate.

He sighed, upset with himself.

“What’s the matter?”

He looked back at Joel. “I was so focused on getting this sponsorship that I didn’t even think about how it would affect her. She was busy with things and when I asked for her help, she didn’t even hesitate to say yes.”

Well, there was some hesitation, but in the end, it all worked out.

He couldn’t help feeling bad, though.

“Will you share it?” Reese asked. Joel shrugged with a nod. “Sure. Where to?”

“To your stories is fine. Make sure you tag the foundation, though.” Reese tugged his phone from his pocket and pulled up Instagram.

He searched for the foundation and pulled up the post. Clicking the share button, he posted it to his stories and tagged the foundation and Sutton’s personal account, having followed both of them after they set up their arrangement.

Looking at the post once more, he tucked his phone back into his pocket and went back to watching.

They were quiet for a few minutes before Joel asked, “Do you think she will invite you to it?”

Reese shrugged. “I don’t know. It’s a work thing, so she might not want me there.”

Joel gave him a look. “Why wouldn’t she want you there?”

Because our relationship is a sham.

“It’s a work thing, and not to toot my own horn or anything, but I am a little bit famous. I don’t want anything to take away from her night.”

Joel’s laugh filled the room. “What a humble man you are.”

“It’s true, though. I have celebrities that follow me,” Reese replied, tugging his phone from his pocket. He held it up. “Jace Austin, the country star, follows me.”

Joel rolled his eyes. “Get back to me when it’s a movie star or something.”

“That was cold, dude,” Reese said, looking back down at his phone.

One of Sutton’s photos from her personal account appeared as he scrolled, her blue eyes gazing back at him through the screen.