by Claire, Ava
“Tea latte and a breve latte for Leila?”
The barista plunked the cups on the counter in front of me and I swiped them, feeling disappointed. I was done waiting. “Time’s up.”
“No, I wasn’t in the neighborhood,” he blurted.
I paused, glancing over my shoulder. “Are you following me, Cade?”
And there was the crack. His mouth opened, his eyes softening. “Yes.”
I walked to the condiment station, popping the lid off my latte and grabbing a raw sugar packet. I thought hearing him admit it would be infuriating. Make me chunk the coffee at his head and make a run for it—because stake outs and ‘accidentally’ running into people wasn’t normal. Maybe I was in shock, calmly opening the pack, brown sugar crystals raining on top of the frothy foam.
“I know this looks bad.”
“Bad?” I repeated, putting my lid back on and running my finger along the seam until I was sure that it was secure. “You following me is horrible, Cade. And slightly frightening.”
“Then let me explain.” When I arched an eyebrow, he added. “Five minutes. I’m not trying to throw a wrench in your love life, I swear.”
“You have until I put sugar and milk in Jacob’s tea.” I made sure I watched him when I said my boyfriend’s name. If he frowned, or even looked at me sideways, he wouldn’t even get that. I wouldn’t waste any more time if he couldn’t accept that me and him just weren’t going to happen. Even if he was my shadow until I drew my last breath.
But he didn’t even flinch, which was a start. I popped Jacob’s lid and listened to what Cade had to say.
“I want to apologize to you.”
“Again?” I said with an eye roll. “And then you’ll show me how you really mean it by doing something that completely contradicts your apology?” I thought back to his attempt at one when he’d come to pick up the gift baskets and atone for the mess he made after going ape shit on a dressing room. I thought back to when I made it clear that we were done, that I wanted him to leave and he followed it up by making me uncomfortable. “Like invading my personal space?” I dumped in a dollop of milk. “Or following me around?”
“Yes, I want to apologize again,” he reiterated, clenching his jaw. “And I know that I’m going to have to convince you that I mean it this time.”
“Step one,” I said curtly. “Don’t stalk me.”
“How else would I get you alone?” His eyes widened when he realized how bad that sounded. “Not for that. I meant, how would I get you alone so I could explain everything and not get in a brawl with Jacob or have you slap me and some photographer eat it up from behind his lens?” He paused. “Tomorrow’s the premiere and I’m keeping my nose clean. I swear it. I’ve done enough, risked enough. I won’t let my shit affect the movie release any more than it already has.”
I didn’t disagree with that, cringing inwardly as I remembered the number he did on the dressing room. Cade drunk as a skunk and opening up to me. Being vulnerable. Being human. I was letting him explain himself for that guy. The guy that clearly needed a friend.
“So you what?” I said after a moment. “Camped out in front of Jacob’s apartment building?”
I almost snapped the coffee stirrer in my hand in half, remembering what I’d been doing in plain sight on the balcony of Jacob’s place. I told myself that his surveillance operation couldn’t have included staking out and observing the coming and goings and activities that went on behind closed doors. He wouldn’t have been able to look at me without ‘I saw you naked’ being written all over his face.
“I was parked out front, yeah.”
I let out a sigh and went back to stirring.
“I almost went upstairs. To talk to both of you.”
“I’m glad you didn’t,” I said honestly. Even though Jacob made it clear that he could control himself in the name of professionalism, Cade showing up at his place would have been pushing his luck.
“Well, I’m going to need to talk to him at some pint. Every time Lisa tries to set something up, he’s busy or out of the office,” Cade said, leaning against an armchair a few feet away.
He’d been blacklisted, an honor Jacob bestowed on nagging members of the board and clients that got a little trigger happy with his contact information. The last client who’d been banished to the list was Rachel Laraby. Apparently, Cade was the latest addition.
But it didn’t do anyone any good to confirm the obvious fact that Jacob was dodging him, so I just shrugged. “He’s been busy since we got back from Italy.”
“Right.” The word was a tight, uncomfortable response that he cleared with a rumble of his throat. Cade wasn’t buying my excuse and probably wasn’t very appreciative of the fact that he had to blow up Whitmore and Creighton’s phone at all. Even though the nature of our business was handling clients and publicity situations, the word ‘handled’ left a bitter taste in the mouth. For a person used to being worshipped and having all the power, surrendering it and being powerless wasn’t easy to accept.
“I want to call a truce.”
I clicked the lid back on Jacob’s coffee. “I wasn’t aware we were fighting. I’m handicapped from the get go since you decide when you want to be a jerk and I’m supposed to just take it.”
“I’m trying here, Leila.”
I bit my lip, knowing he was right. I either needed to leave or let him explain. I decided on the first. “Fine.”
“I don’t have many friends,” he began. “I mean, I have guys I can call up for a beer every now and then. And girls that I can...” He trailed off, averting his eyes.
If he’d played that card a few months ago, I’d be all over it. But I was wary of him, wondering if he had an angle, waiting for me to put my guard down so he could set fire to my best intentions.
“I know them all through the business,” he continued. “And I know they’d all lose, block, or erase my number when the lights die down. Hell, half of the people in my contact book distanced themselves after I became box office poison.” It was clearly a sore subject because his eyes were flashing, a stormy sea of green and gray. “Fake as hell. Fair weather friends.” He exhaled. “But not you. You’re real.”
I wavered, but I didn’t let on. “Thank you.”
“And after everything I’ve put you through, I have no right to ask for your friendship, but...” He stuffed his hands in his pocket. “I’m asking.”
“When we met up for coffee, it was supposed to be ‘as friends’ and we both know how that turned out,” I said softly.
“I’m not perfect, Leila. Nowhere near it. And I’ll admit that at first, my intentions were anything but honorable.”
He was struggling, wanting to come closer but knowing that wouldn’t make it better. The Cade I’d been getting to know lately would have done it anyway. This Cade was respecting my boundaries. Or at least trying really hard to anyway.
“I think that when you meet people,” he went on. “Special people, it’s a good idea to hold onto them. And I could be a good friend to you, if you gave me the chance.”
I wanted to believe him. I wanted to trust that he was different and wasn’t trying to get close out of some deep desire to sabotage me and Jacob. That part wanted to say yes. To be his friend. But I wasn’t ready to make that leap. Not yet.
“I should get this coffee to him before it’s ice cold.” I scanned his face slowly and said something I hoped I wouldn’t regret. “I’d like to be your friend, Cade. But I need time to think about it.”
His lips broke into a grin and he was practically giddy with excitement until he reined it in with a curt nod, hiding it away. “Cool. That’s all I ask.”
I sunk my teeth into my lips to keep from smiling myself as I stepped out of the coffee shop. Hopeful.
****
Megan’s eyes nearly popped out of her skull. “I can’t believe it.”
I did a slow turn, the metallic, slinky material glittering and sweeping around my body. When I’d woken up it had
been hanging in the powder room, every inch of it shining like a diamond. It was an Aubri Rose dress, made by a local designer who made waves turning down A-listers that clamored to wear her designs. She chose her clients and Jacob had to make a personal appeal, describing what made me special for her to create my one of a kind gown.
“I know,” I sighed, almost clutching my warm cheeks before remembering the team that spent nearly an hour preening every bit of me, turning me into a Glamazon I hardly recognized when I looked in the mirror. They’d wanted to straighten my naturally wiry curls, but Jacob vetoed that. They’d swept them to one side instead, giving me a silver screen noir look that matched my Old Hollywood style dress and applied a deep, rouge lipstick that made my lips full and luscious. “It’s amazing, right? Like, Holy makeover magic, Batman!”
“You look great,” she nodded, stepping to the side to let me in. “But I’m more surprised that Jacob is letting you go to the Soldier’s Creed premiere at all. I kept expecting you to text me and say the whole thing was off.”
I bit the inside of my jaw to hold back the retort on my tongue. Let me? Jacob doesn’t have the power to let me do anything...but I knew that wasn’t true. I’d been just as surprised that he not only signed off on my attendance but insisted upon it.
After I commenced my freak out over my gorgeous dress, he took my face in his hands and said that he trusted me and it was wrong of him to take me off the Wallace case. He remembered the dressing room fiasco and how I made sure Cade avoided scandal and said I belonged on the red carpet just as much as anyone. While Jacob wasn’t one hundred percent sold when I told him about Cade’s olive branch, he told me he was going to start respecting my professional autonomy.
I shrugged a shoulder, pushing away her statement. “So what can I do to help?” Tonight was about us and I didn’t want to get into it. Not when she wasn’t even finished getting ready and the car was downstairs.
She ducked into the bathroom, applying blush as two rollers swayed and bobbed with her brisk movements. I unclipped them and red curls cascaded to join the others. I could tell she was nervous, her breathing rough around the edges.
“Everything alright?”
“It’s great,” she squeaked, then snapped her compact closed and slumped. “This blush is too much, isn’t it? And my ass looks huge and-”
“You look fantastic,” I assured her. And I wasn’t just saying it so we could get out the door. Her emerald sequined dress stopped just past her knees, clinging in all the right places. Her crimson hair hung in soft waves around her face. And while she was wearing twice as much makeup as usual, it was the right mix of color and drama for the occasion.
“No, you look great,” she groaned. “I look like I’m lost.”
She clearly wasn’t budging so I raked my mind for something, some way to help her see what I saw. “Come here.” I drug her by the hand, which was easier said than done since she towered above me in her stilettos.
She still wasn’t sold but she conceded with a sigh once we were in the hall. She wrenched her hand from mine, locking her apartment door. “Just hold on a-”
I was already two doors down, banging on the door before going to the next.
“Leila what do you...?” Her voice trailed off as doors swung open, heads popping out into the hall. A young girl, probably not older than six, was the first to step in the corridor, donning a Dora the Explorer t-shirt and a curious expression. An older woman remained in the safety of her apartment, her eyes narrow slits that rounded in surprise when she saw me and Megan. A college-aged guy stood in his doorway, eyeballing us.
Megan was glaring at me and mouthed, What the hell are you doing?
“Sorry to bother y’all,” I said with a big grin, taking in the audience. “This’ll just take a second.” I moved to Megan’s side and put a hand on the small of her back. “I just wanted to ask a question—how does Megan look?”
The little girl stepped closer, her wide eyes taking Megan in pensively. “She’s pretty like Ariel!” When her mother stepped into the hall with a frown, the little girl darted behind her legs, peeking out nervously.
Megan reddened, turning to the child’s mother. “I’m sorry, Mrs. Marsden—my friend and I were just leaving.”
The woman scooted her daughter back inside before giving Megan a nod. “You look lovely, dear.”
Megan pulled me toward the stairs, but there was still the older lady that stared at her like she brought back memories and the guy ogling her like she was the reason the word ‘sexy’ had been created in the first place.
I planted my feet, appealing to the woman first. “She looks amazing, right?”
She flashed a brief, nearly toothless grin. “Muy bonita.”
“Oh my God,” Megan hissed, tugging me closer to the exit. “It’s official, I’m embarrassed, can we just go?”
I shifted my attention to the guy and he licked his lips, stroking his chin like he was imagining all the things he wanted to with her—in and out of the dress. The door to his apartment swung open wider, a young woman joining his side.
“What’s going on here?” she said, not remotely friendly or in the mood for games.
The guy’s whole demeanor changed, tail firmly between his legs. “Uh, our neighbor was just asking about her dress.”
The girlfriend looked Megan and I up and down, setting us both on fire with her glare before turning the heat on her man. They disappeared back into their apartment, already arguing as I finally let Meg yank me down the stairs.
“Thanks for that,” she said over her shoulder. “I’m sure they’ll still be going at it when I get home.”
“Well, you didn’t believe me when I told you that you looked amazing.”
“Yeah, like any of them would have said that I looked like crap,” she snorted.
I paused at the landing. “We have two more floors before we get to the lobby. If you need a second, third, or tenth opinion-”
She stopped, turning slowly before blinking up at me. “You’d do that—embarrass the hell out of me, just to help me feel better?”
“To help you see that you look kick ass tonight,” I clarified, maneuvering past her. “That guy isn’t getting laid for like, two weeks because he couldn’t take his eyes off you.”
She went quiet and we finally made it downstairs. I worried that maybe I’d gone too far, especially considering the last time we saw each other we’d been at each other’s throats. “I thought I was helping. If it was too much, I’m sorry.”
“No, I’m sorry,” she said softly. “I know why you did it and it was really sweet.” She started fanning her eyes, trying to keep the tears at bay. “Just don’t ever do it again, okay? And about Lucy’s-”
I felt tears of my own pool and my throat tightened. Now I was going to cry. “It’s okay. I was out of line and you needed a friend and I was being a horrible one.”
She gave me a tight hug then pulled open the door. “Let’s get out of here before we both ruin our makeup.”
The limo pulled onto the street, each slap of the tire against the asphalt bringing us closer to the theater that was hosting the premiere.
“I wasn’t kidding about what I said back at the apartment, Leila.”
I snapped my compact closed and sliced my eyes over to her. “You look great, Megan.”
“Not about that,” she said with a snicker. “So don’t get the driver to pull over so you can wrangle a herd of strangers to boost my confidence.” She slid her gloss back into her clutch then hesitantly met my eyes. “I’m talking about you and Jacob. Tonight’s not the result of some argument and you’re trying to just piss him off by going to Cade’s event, right?”
I raised my eyebrows. “Wow. I really must have been a bitch lately if that seems like a remote possibility.”
She settled back in her seat, a smirk on her glossy lips. “Your word, not mine.”
“Sorry,” I said with a weak smile. I couldn’t fault her for being shocked. Run-ins with Cade
had been the source of a lot of contention between me and Jacob. And considering it had been The Leila Show 24/7 ever since I climbed on the Whitmore jet, bitch was being kind. I could tell her how I thought that Jacob and I had worked things out, but it was time for me to be the friend she’d been to me. The best friend she deserved.
“Tell me what’s going on with you and the new guy you’re seeing,” I said, remembering what she said in the restaurant.
“Nothing to tell.” She managed to keep her voice light, and if I didn’t know her, I might have let her shrug it off, but there was an undercurrent of anger. Of hurt.
“I think we both know that’s not exactly true.”
The nonchalant gleam in her eyes frosted over to an unmistakable ‘Danger Ahead’. “There’s nothing going on with any guy of any sort.”
“Nothing?” I said, not budging. “You were downing margaritas like they were cups of water. You’re a one-and-done kind of girl when it comes to drinking.”
“I thought we were talking about you and Jacob. Why are you trying to change the subject?”
“Why are you?” I fired back.
She flipped her hair and glanced out the window. After a moment she turned back to the front, then picked at invisible lint on her dress; anything except looking me full-on. This guy, whoever he was, had really gotten under her skin.
“We don’t have time for it right now.” When the car slowed to a stop, we looked out and saw that downtown was officially a parking lot.
“Well, would you look at that!” I said, crossing my arms. “Looks like we have plenty of time.”
“You’re really not gonna drop this?”
“Nope.”
She let out a frustrated sigh. “Fine. There is no guy. There was a guy, but now there’s just me. I’m over it, I’m fine. End of story.”
“A story generally has a beginning, middle, and end.”