A few days of vacation reminded Dean how winded he was in practice.

After doing various strength and conditioning drills on the ice, followed by more in the gym, Dean was exhausted. He pigged out and really overindulged while he visited Sydney but it was time to get his head back into the game. Playoffs were just a few months away and Dean needed to be focused. Everyone was depending on him to lead the Kings to another championship and he truly felt the weight of his multimillion-dollar contract on his shoulders.

It was something he could work with. He felt his best performances came out when he was under pressure and had all eyes on him. He could handle that. The issue that really wrecked his brain was something entirely different.

Renee.

He called her to schedule a dinner so they could talk. He also politely warned her he didn't want to be surprised with any paparazzi at the restaurant. He wanted peace and quiet as he prepared for the Category 5 natural disaster that was going to be Renee's falling out.

The dinner was that night.

He just wished Sydney a safe return flight that morning and he was going to have dinner with his ex that evening. It didn't sound right in Dean's head and honestly, he was second-guessing if having dinner with Renee was even a smart idea. But he was never one to end a relationship in any form other than face-to-face. He wanted to make it clear to Renee they were done and both needed to move on.

"Men and their toys. If it's not Tonka trucks or video games, it's definitely cell phones and other things."

He played with his phone at the Sentiment restaurant when he noticed Renee'd arrived in front of him. She was breathtakingly gorgeous in a tight red dress and matching heels. Her blonde curls flowed at her shoulders and she carried a small black clutch.

He got up and gave her a polite hug before he sat back down and Renee followed his lead. "How are you, Dean?" She smiled.

"I'm great," he returned the smile, "how are you doing?"

"Better than ever!" She beamed. "Things are going very well for me. It seems things are picking up for me."

"How are the auditions coming along?"

"They're coming along," she took a sip of water and nodded, "my manager is working on a few leads right now. I have a couple of small roles here and there. I don't know if being an actress is in my cards, but maybe a producer. I'm more interested in behind-the-scenes."

"That's great!" He replied, with sincerity in his voice. "I hope everything works out for you."

"Thank you," she rested her head on her left palm, "so what brings this visit? I thought you would be too busy to see me for a short while."

"I am but this is important," he noted. A waiter came by and the pair made their respective orders. Dean waited for the waiter to leave before he continued. "We can't see each other anymore."

Renee's heart sank to the pit of her stomach. For the first time, she no longer cared about the storyline for her show or her artist pretending scheme. Dean was going to be gone from her life and it was unbearable to think about. "What? What do you mean?"

"When I was out of town, it was to visit Sydney," he began, "I asked her to marry me. She said yes."

Renee quickly replayed the recent conversations she's had with Dean in her head. They made sense to her now.

"Where are you?" She asked. "Are you visiting family?"

"You can say that."

They were already engaged by the time Renee called him. Renee felt her eyes water and she quickly swallowed her emotions. "I see. Congratulations."

"Out of respect for my fiancée, I don't think it's a good idea that we're in contact. It's not fair to her and honestly, I wouldn't like it if she had her ex meddling into our business." Dean felt his fists tighten into small balls just on the sheer thought of Roman. "So I have to cut off ties."

"Who's idea was this?" Renee asked. "This doesn't sound like it was yours."

"It was mine," Dean answered. It was a half-truth. He was not about to confess Roman's influence.

Renee slowly nodded. Dean was never a strong liar. His decision had Sydney written all over it. She wondered how much she'd threatened Dean before he relented. Ultimatums never worked in any relationship and theirs wouldn't be any different. The only thing Sydney did was just set the ball in motion.

She briefly wondered if Sydney was the mysterious artist behind the drawings and Renee quickly concluded she couldn't have been. She would've said something already if that were the case and Bonita sounded nothing like Sydney.

"So who's this Bonita Applebum character?" Renee asked.

Dean choked on his beer mid-sip and quickly wiped his mouth. "Um, she's a friend." It wasn't a lie.

"I see," Renee tried to put all of the pieces together, "so you have some chick drawing your dick and putting it online for the world to see but I'm a threat to you and Sydney? She's okay that you have a side piece?"

Dean took another sip of beer to stop the smile from spreading across his lips. If Renee'd only knew what she was really talking about. "This isn't about what goes on between me and Sydney, Renee. This is just us."

"You're being unfair, Ambrose." Renee shook her head. "I have done everything for you and this is what you pay me back with!"

"Renee, I never said I didn't appreciate what you've done," Dean calmly argued, "I will be forever grateful to you. But it's time for me to move on. I want to be with Sydney and make her my wife. I can't be in contact with you past this dinner."

"But you're keeping Bonita around?" She argued.

Dean leaned over and rubbed his forehead as the smile again threatened to escape. "I'm getting rid of Bonita as well."

"Oh yeah? Well, what if I told you I was Bonita Applebum!"

Dean could no longer contain his laughter. It started at the pit of his stomach and it came out in a loud and hearty breath. Other patrons looked over to see the ruckus and Dean waved them off. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"

"This isn't funny, Dean!" She chided. "I drew those pictures for you! I wanted to show the world my love for you."

Dean's laughter subsided and he wiped tears from his eyes. He took another sip of beer and made eye contact with Renee. Her face flickered between anger and sadness and while he was having a blast at her lies, it was clear she was serious. He swallowed his ego and held hands with her. "Truthfully, that was you?"

Renee slowly nodded as a single tear rolled down her cheek. "I swear on everything, Dean."

He gave another loud sigh. "Okay." He got up and took out some money, leaving it on the table. "I lost my appetite." He walked over and kissed her. "You take care of yourself, doll." He thumbed away her tear and left the restaurant.

Renee took out her cell phone. She dialed the paparazzi that were hiding in the bushes outside of the restaurant. "Did you get all of the pictures?"

"We got 'em."

"Even the ones where we're kissing. Those are important!" She demanded.

"Don't worry, we got 'em."