Among the Echoes(72)

"I’m pretty sure it was a fan. Watch." He presses play.

The man walks past, but as soon as the glass door opens, it catches his attention and he backs up with a broad smile. He instantly digs through his pocket for his phone and snaps a picture. But as I walk away, he never tears his eyes from Slate.

"Slate needs a girlfriend," I say as he rewinds the video, zooming in on the fan’s face.

"Threesome? That’s hot, babe. But I’m not sure Andrews could handle two of you." He turns to face me with a questioning look.

"No. Seriously. If he started publicly dating a short woman with brown hair, no one would question it. He was exposed by that picture, so let’s out him completely."

"Have you lost your f*cking mind?" Slate appears behind me, dressed in a pair of sweats riding low on his hips.

"Think about it," I plead, looking between the two men. "You could go to LA for a week, not three months, go out on a couple of very public dates, get your picture taken, and then come back home to me. No one has to leave and the paparazzi would stop trying to figure out who you are dating."

"That’s probably the most ridiculous plan I have ever heard in my life," Slate replies, but my eyes never leave Leo, who is surprisingly silent.

"Tell him it would work," I beg.

"It would probably work." He shrugs. "And if it didn’t, it couldn’t hurt anything," he answers, turning his attention to Slate.

"No f*cking way! Who exactly do you propose I date for a week?"

"I don’t know. I’m sure we can find someone who would want to be seen with you." I smile, but he doesn’t look even remotely entertained.

"I’m not doing it," he bites out while turning to walk away.

"It would buy us some time!" Leo shouts behind him, but Slate doesn’t respond. He turns his attention back to me. "He’s right you know—it’s a ridiculous idea."

"But it will work."

"Maybe." He shrugs again. "Now, you just have to talk your boyfriend into cheating on you."

"It’s not cheating," I say dismissively.

"It will be for him."

I wave him off and head back down the hall after Slate. When I walk back into our room, he’s pacing around.

"Hey," I say as I shut the door behind me.

"I have spent my entire career avoiding the celebrity life."

"I know." I walk forward, wrapping my arms around his waist.

"I love you. I really do. But I’m not sure I can do this. I don’t think just being seen with a woman on my arm will do it, beautiful."

"I know," I lie, suddenly realizing I didn’t think this plan out very well. Managing my jealousy, while pushing him off on another woman, is not going to be easy.

He lets out a resigned breath. "The fight for my vacant title is next week. They would go nuts if I showed up with a woman," he says absently. It’s as if he is forming the plan in his head even though he has absolutely zero intentions of following through with it. "I’m not sure I can do a week, but I can probably do a night."

I swallow around the lump in my throat and look up into his eyes. "Really?"

"One night, but if your harebrained plan doesn’t work, we move on to mine. Deal?"

I smile in agreement but suddenly get very nervous. "What if she’s amazing and you fall in love with her and never want to come back to me?" I try to lighten the mood, but it’s a very real worry for me.

He laughs and pushes me back toward the bed. "Erica, I’m trying to figure out how to keep myself from cringing when she touches me and you are worrying that I’ll fall in love with her?"

I fall against the bed, and he quickly covers me, sealing a kiss over my mouth while reaching toward the nightstand. He snatches his phone and dials while supporting himself on his elbows above me. I nibble on his neck as he begins talking.

"Mitch, it’s Andrews. I need a date for the fight. Five four, brunette, dark eyes." He pauses to glance down at me, shaking his head. I can hear the man loudly chattering on the other end of the line, but Slate quickly cuts him off. "Yeah, yeah, yeah. Just make it happen." He hangs up and tosses it up the bed.

"Thank you," I whisper.

"Get naked. You can thank me that way." He smiles, pushing open my bathrobe with one hand.