I nodded. “Yeah, Ethan’s sister lives there, so we’re going to visit her. I sort of wanted to get away, and I’ve never been to San Francisco, so it seemed like a fun trip.”
I’d wanted to get away before I’d started seeing Jase again, but now I wasn’t so sure I wanted to leave for a weekend.
“Do you think Ethan would mind if I came with you guys?” he asked, and my eyebrows rose as a smile crept up on my face. “I mean, I don’t want to intrude, but going away with you sounds pretty amazing, and besides, I’m not sure how I feel about you sharing a hotel room with Ethan.”
I rolled my eyes. “Jase, I’ve shared beds with Ethan since I was seven. Trust me, there’s nothing between us. We’re strictly platonic, but aside from that, I’d much rather share a bed with you.”
“You are welcome in my bed anytime,” he said, leaning forward to kiss me gently.
God, I was falling hard for him.
“In that case, you’re definitely coming with me to San Fran. I know Ethan won’t care. Besides, I want you guys to get to know each other.” There was bad blood between them for too long, and I needed the two guys in my life to be friends. “So what movie premiere do you have?”
“A film I shot last year,” he said. “It’s called The Mulaneys. It’s about an Irish-American family living South Boston. It’s kind of like The Departed meets The Sopranos.”
“Who do you play?”
“I play Liam, the youngest brother who watches all his older brothers follow their father’s footsteps into the Irish mob, but I’m smart and have aspirations of going to college. It’s a pretty dark film, and there’s a lot of violence, especially between me and my brothers.”
Was there no end to his range?
“That sounds amazing.”
“We’ll see,” he said sheepishly, his green eyes locking with mine. “How would you feel about going to the premiere?”
My eyebrows rose. “Really?”
He nodded. “I’ll have to walk the red carpet and get my picture taken, but I can meet up with you afterward, and you can sit with us during the screening.”
I thought about what it would be like to watch Jase up on the big screen while sitting right next to him, and the thought gave me chills.
“Us?”
“Ellie,” he explained. “She’s my ‘date’ for the night.”
“Oh,” I said, feeling crestfallen, even though I knew I shouldn’t. Their dating was all for show. I really had nothing to be concerned about.
“That upsets you,” he said, reading my expression too clearly.
I shook my head. “It’s fine. It’s work, right. I know you have to do to what you have to do, so it’s fine.”
He raised his eyebrows. “You said ‘it’s fine’ twice. Are you sure?”
“Yes,” I said definitively. “As long as I get to go home with you, I’m good.”
Jase smiled. “I’ll be thinking about you the whole time, and you can even watch us walk the carpet if you want to, just so you can see that Ellie and I are totally platonic.”
“No, that’s fine. I trust you, Jase. I’ll just get some free popcorn and wait inside for you. It’s fine.”
I knew I’d said it again, but I couldn’t really think of anything else that might work. Not being seen in public with Jase was the price I paid to maintain some semblance of privacy in my life. It was worth it, even though the tug in my chest made me question my decision just a little.
“You are amazing,” Jase said, as he pulled me close and covered my mouth with his, making the questions in my head disappear altogether.
-22-
“Okay quick, tell me what you’re doing with Jason Brady!” Kelly hissed as soon as Jase had disappeared into the men’s room.
Beside me, Ethan huffed, and I elbowed him.
“Jase,” I corrected her. “And he’s my boyfriend.”
I couldn’t help the wide grin that spread over my face as I shared this with one of my oldest friends. Even though Kelly was almost ten years older, she’d always been like a sister to me.
Ethan huffed again and crossed his arms in front of his chest.
“Oh, my God!” she shrieked in hushed tones, as not to drawn attention to us.
We were in a coffee shop in San Francisco where we’d met her for lunch. She was taking the afternoon off work to show us around, and then we were meeting her fiancé, Devin, for dinner when he got off work later in the day.
“I cannot believe you are dating a movie star!”
“Your brother’s a movie star. It’s not that big of a deal,” Ethan muttered, taking a bite of his sandwich.
“Um, yeah it is,” Kelly defended, looking at her youngest brother like he was insane. “It’s Jason, sorry, Jase, Brady. He’s a huge star, and he’s soooo hot! Devin is going to flip out. He saw Radio Riot three times while it was in the theater. He’s obsessed with that movie, especially Jase’s character.”
Shit. I hoped Devin would keep his cool. He worked at a radio station in San Francisco, and was usually a really laid back guy, but I wasn’t sure if he’d be able to maintain his demeanor with his favorite movie star sitting across from him. I’d have to give Jase a heads-up just in case.
“It wasn’t that great of a movie,” Ethan said, shaking his head.
“What is your problem?” I asked, turning to face him.
“Yeah, E, what’s your deal?” Kelly asked. She, like me, was used to Ethan’s carefree, happy disposition, but it seemed like ever since we’d started school, his moods were all over the place.
“I don’t like him, that’s all,” Ethan grumbled.
“Why?” I demanded.
“Yeah, why?” Kelly asked. “He’s so nice and down-to-earth, and he obviously really likes Logan. What’s not to like?”
“Never mind,” Ethan said, glancing toward the men’s room where Jase was walking back to the table.
He was wearing a gray fedora over his dark hair as part of his disguise, but I was glad he’d taken off his sunglasses. I didn’t think anyone in the trendy café in Haight-Ashbury cared who he was. No one had even come up to us in the twenty minutes we’d been sitting at our table, and the waitress hadn’t even glanced twice at Jase as he’d ordered. It was a nice change.
We’d hung out a few times outside of his house in the past two weeks, and I’d gotten to witness just how popular he really was. Four teenage fans had drooled over him and begged for his autograph and took turns taking pictures with him when we’d gone out to lunch one day with his friend, Freddie, and Ellie. Then Jase had gotten offers from three women to ‘call them’ when a bunch of us had been out at a club one night. And when we’d gone to a Dodgers game with some of his friends, we’d had to bring security with us, and Jase had rented out a full luxury box just so we wouldn’t get mobbed.
Since I was spending more time with him, I realized just how recognizable he was, and how people had no shame in coming right up to him to talk to him, or ask for an autograph or a picture, but the creepiest thing was that they acted like they knew him from what they’d read in magazines.
The teenagers who’d been fawning all over him, gushed about what a bitch Chloe was, and how they hated her and would never see another one of her movies. They told him they’d never treat him like that if they were lucky enough to date him, and he’d discreetly glanced over at me and winked when they’d said that. I smiled back at him. I was lucky enough to date him, and I knew I’d never do anything to jeopardize what we had. Every day it things seemed to get better between us, and I’d never been happier.
“What did I miss?” Jase asked, sliding into the seat next to me. He squeezed my hand under the table for a second but dropped it instantly.
That was the only thing I didn’t like about our relationship, but it was a sacrifice I was willing to make. We didn’t touch in public, but we more than made up for it in private.
“Ethan was just telling us how he wants to tour Alcatraz,” I offered, and Ethan’s head popp
ed up in surprise. I gave him a look that told him I wasn’t happy with him and that he should just shut up.
“I’m up for anything,” Jase said, more than agreeable as usual. He was really easy-going.
“I’m good with that,” Kelly offered. “We can buy tickets down at Fisherman’s Wharf.”
“Let’s do it,” Jase said, smiling at her.
“Excuse me,” came a voice to my right, and I looked up to see a hipster guy around our age shifting nervously from foot to foot. “Are you Jason Brady?”
Jase nodded. “I am.”
The guy smiled. “Alright. Cool. Um, my girlfriend over there,” he said, gesturing to a red-head who was burying her head in her hands in embarrassment, “um, she’s a big fan of yours, and she wanted to know if you would autograph something for her.”
“Sure,” Jase said, and only because I knew him could I tell that he was bothered. I knew he wanted to just be left alone. It was our weekend away after all.
“Cool. Thanks man,” the guy said, thrusting a playbill for a play I’d never heard of into Jase’s hands. “Sorry, that’s all I have for you to write on.”
“Don’t you have any headshots you could sign for her?” Ethan asked, his voice full of snark.
I glared at him.
“It’s fine,” Jase said, taking the playbill and ignoring Ethan. “What’s your girlfriend’s name?”
“Rain,” he said, looking back at the girl who was staring at us, her face so bright red it nearly matched her hair. He smiled at her. “Come here, baby.”
Slowly she got to her feet and walked toward us. She was dressed in a baby doll dress and black high-top Dr. Martens, very Gwen Stefani, circa 1997. She didn’t look like one of Jase’s typical fans.
“Hi,” she said shyly, as Jase stuck his hand out to greet her. “It’s so nice to meet you. I’ve seen all of your movies. You’re an amazing actor.”
“Thank you,” Jase said, smiling warmly at her.
I glanced at Ethan, and he rolled his eyes, so I kicked him under the table.
“Urgh,” he said, and I realized I’d kicked him pretty hard.
“You okay, man?” Jase asked him.
“I’m fine,” Ethan said through gritted teeth, as he glared at me and rubbed his shin.
“Here you go,” Jase said, handing the personalized signed playbill to Rain. I noticed her name on the front, and I wondered if Jase had seen it too.
“She’s an actress too,” the guy chimed in, and Rain’s face flushed crimson again.
“Shut up, Robbie. He doesn’t need to know that.”
“That’s great,” Jase said kindly. “Good luck with your play.”
Apparently he’d seen it.
“You should come. There’s a show tonight at the theater across the street,” Robbie said, gesturing to a small, rundown looking theater.
“We actually have plans tonight,” Kelly jumped in, saving Jase so he didn’t have to look like a jerk and decline the invite. “But that was really nice of you to invite us.”
“No worries,” Robbie said brightly, and I was glad he didn’t feel slighted. “Just remember her name, Rain Winslow. She’s going to be as famous as you one day.”
“I hope so,” Jase said warmly. “Good luck, Rain.”
“Thank you,” she mumbled, as she and Robbie turned to walk back to their table, their heads huddled together as they read what Jase had written.
“You’re nice,” I said, leaning into his shoulder. I desperately wanted to kiss his cheek, but I couldn’t. He was ‘dating’ Ellie, so I had to be hands-off.
He leaned closer to me, his head almost touching mine and smiled. “I try,” he said genuinely.
“Okay, are we ready to go?” Ethan asked. “I really want to see Alcatraz.”
He pushed his chair back and walked to the front of the café without waiting for the rest of us.
“What is his problem?” Kelly asked.
I shook my head. “I have no idea, but frankly, if he’s going to be an ass, I don’t want to be around him.”
“Maybe he needs to get laid,” Kelly suggested.
I thought about the last time I knew Ethan had hooked up with a girl and realized it had been a few weeks since he’d talked about Lizzie. They’d been seeing each other in the most casual sense of the word, but that had sort of stopped around the time Jase and I had broken up. Since Jase and I had gotten back together, Ethan hadn’t mentioned Lizzie or anyone else. Maybe he did need to get laid.
“I’ll go talk to him,” Kelly offered then, as Jase slid his sunglasses back on and wrapped his scarf around his neck.
It was cold outside, and San Francisco was one of the windiest cities I’d even been to. As I slid my coat on, I watched Kelly and Ethan talking outside. He was shaking his head, and she was trying to appeal to him, but he didn’t seem to be listening. I really wished he’d at least give Jase a break. I wanted him to see the great guy Jase was, and I’d thought he’d seen that the night of Carter’s party, but I guess not. Whatever. I’d deal with him later. I wasn’t about to let him ruin my weekend.
***
Later that night, Jase and I laid side-by-side in the king size bed in our hotel room. Ethan had decided to sleep on the couch at Kelly and Devin’s apartment, so Jase and I had taken the room he’d reserved at the Hilton in the Financial District, near where Kelly and Devin lived.
“Tonight was fun,” Jase said, as I rested my head on his shoulder.
I was glad we could finally be alone together and had practically pounced on him once we’d gotten to our room. He must have felt the same way, because in about thirty seconds, my clothes were off, and his lips were on mine. Now we basked in the afterglow and watched the lights of the city outside our window.
“Devin’s a cool guy,” I said, as I drew swirl patterns on his bare chest.
“Yeah, he is.”
Devin was a free-spirit and somehow complimented Kelly’s preppy, driven persona even though they were polar opposites. He had dark brown skin and was over six feet tall with broad shoulders, and Kelly was petite and blond with a California girl tan. I loved that Devin wore his hair in dreadlocks and dressed as casually as possible, and Kelly wore clothes that looked straight from the runway and always wore her hair straight and to her shoulders. They were a giant contradiction of each other, but it was what made them so cute. They’d met in college and had been together ever since, and Devin had finally proposed the year before. I was in their wedding in the spring.
Thankfully Devin had remained silently in awe of my boyfriend’s notoriety throughout the night. I was proud of him for not gushing like I knew he wanted to. I could see it in his eyes and made a mental note to ask Jase to send him an autographed copy of Radio Riot when we got back to L.A. They had actually gotten along really well, so I knew Jase wouldn’t mind. Ethan had been sullenly silent throughout most of dinner, but we’d all just ignored him. I had plans to talk to him once we were back home, but outside of that, I wasn’t going to humor him and his moodiness.
“I’m sorry about Ethan,” I apologized again. “He’s being such a jerk lately.”
“He’s fine,” Jase said, and I knew he was lying, but I could also tell he didn’t want to talk about Ethan.
“I found a dress for your premiere,” I told him, changing the subject.
Henley and I had gone shopping the week before, and I’d found a charcoal gray dress that I loved. It was a strapless fit and flare style and had a shimmer to the fabric. I knew it would be just perfect for the event. And then Henley had talked me into buying a pair of red Jimmy Choo’s that were ridiculously high, but suited the dress just perfectly, so I knew I had to get them. I was excited for Jase to see me in my outfit.
“Oh yeah, how much skin am I going to get to see?” he asked, sounding like a typical guy.
I smiled. “A decent amount. You’ll like it.”
“I like you in anything,” he said. “You’re the most beautiful girl in the world, Logan.”<
br />
A warm feeling spread throughout my chest. He told me things like that all the time, and it always made me so self-conscious. I had a hard time believing someone as gorgeous as him could feel that way about me, but he did. I took a heavy breath in. I wanted to tell him something, because it had been eating away at me since we’d gotten back together, and I just needed to get it out, but I couldn’t have been more nervous.
I pushed up, so I could look at his face. “Hi,” I said, as I reached up to smooth his hair back.
“Hi,” he said, smiling at me. “You look serious.”
“I have to tell you something,” I said, swallowing hard.
Jase raised his eyebrows, no doubt prepping for bad news. “That doesn’t sound good.”
I leaned forward and kissed him deeply, hoping to quell some of my nerves. Then before I knew what was happening, Jase was rolling me over and staring down into my eyes, his arms braced on either side of my head.
“I love you,” I said quickly before I could change my mind, because as I stared into his mesmerizing green eyes, that was the only thing I could think.
I saw the surprise in his eyes before he relaxed and smiled. “I love you, too,” he said, before he leaned down and covered my mouth with his.
-23-
“Ethan! What is your problem?!” I screamed, throwing my arms in the air in frustration.
I’d gone over to see him after class on Monday afternoon and had found him surfing, so I’d waited on the beach for him to come to shore. I knew he saw me, but he made me wait for at least twenty minutes. That should have been my first clue that he was in a mood.
Then we’d argued for twenty minutes about Jase, and I still didn’t have a definitive answer as to why Ethan didn’t like him. He was being stubborn as hell.
“I just don’t like him,” was all he said, and I fought the urge to shove him in frustration. He was driving me insane.
He ran a hand back through his wet hair and stood there staring at me with his wet suit half-peeled off, the bright sun glistening off of his tanned skin. It was chilly out, but the cool air didn’t seem to be affecting him.
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