Scrambling - Lex Valentine Page 0,2

decide whether you want to tell him. You need to give me until a few days before training camp begins to find out if this is going to work out.” She gave them a stern look. “I know I signed your confidentiality agreement, but I have to discuss this with the owners, the coaches, and the rest of the PR department. They aren’t going to tell anyone about this. Too much is at stake. But you have understand that management needs to approve such a radical move.”

“They can’t tell me not to come out,” Reed protested.

Darcy held up a hand for silence. “Not exactly. But you should read your contracts. There are clauses in there about doing things that reflect poorly on the team. Do you want to have to give back the signing bonus and leave the team for breach of contract?”

Reed looked from her to Evan and back again. He let out a frustrated sound. “No. Of course, we don’t want that. We want to play.”

She nodded crisply. “Then give me some time to come up with a game plan and present it to management. If they agree, we three will talk again before training camp starts. Meanwhile, I want you to go to dinner tonight with a friend of mine.”

Darcy dialed a number and spoke quietly in the phone. She made some notes on a slip of paper and then hung up. She passed the paper to Evan.

“Rio Restaurant in Sherman Oaks. It’s on the Boulevard. Seven o’clock sharp.”

Reed frowned. “Who are we meeting?”

Darcy grinned. “Don’t worry. You’ll know him when you see him.”

Age 22 - New York City

For Evan, the world had always revolved around football. At least, it had from the moment he’d stepped onto the PeeWee league field at age six and met a budding quarterback named Reed Matthews. The two had been inseparable from that day forward both on and off the field. But the NFL draft had truly been a game changer for Evan. It made him a professional ball player, and with the achievement of that dream, Evan realized he wanted more out of life than just to play football.

Initially, he’d been scared to death of the draft, afraid he and Reed would be separated, drafted to different teams. Walking the red carpet at Radio City Music Hall with Reed and the other possible first-round picks had been surreal. Reed, who’d been a runner-up for the Heisman Trophy, and Evan, as the winner of the Rimington Trophy for outstanding collegiate center, were among the favorites to be picked in the first round. Both of them held other awards as well: Reed as MVP of the Rose Bowl and Evan as PAC-12 Offensive Player of the Year.

They had brought fame and glory to that year’s UCLA football team, and the media loved them. All eyes were on the two guys who’d played together since they were kids and had been dubbed the “Dynamic Duo” by the press. Their success had brought agents and scouts sniffing around, and when the Los Angeles Stars became a reality, Evan and Reed made the decision that they wanted to play for their hometown.

While being scouted by the Stars at UCLA’s Pro Day and the NFL Combine, they’d made their preferences clear to the team and the media. They wanted to be together on their local team. That had upped the media frenzy around them. The Stars’ scouts gave them the distinct impression that sixteen years playing together had significance, and they seemed to view Evan and Reed as a matched set. Which was the complete and utter truth.

With the clock ticking for the Stars, who by virtue of being a new team had first pick, Evan and Reed had practically held their breath until Reed’s cell phone rang. A few minutes later, he closed his phone, grin widening impossibly as the announcement came from the stage that the Los Angeles Stars had chosen Reed Matthews as their first pick. The crowd sent up a huge roar, and the media and NFL big wigs converged on Reed.

Evan sat in silence, fear licking like flames inside him as he felt his life changing uncontrollably. He stared at the big-screen TV, seeing Reed posing on stage with a red and blue Stars hat on his head, holding a Stars jersey with his number eleven below his last name. Evan grew very afraid that he’d just lost his best friend.

On one screen, the ESPN commentators had begun to debate the