by Anna Paige
Jared: Would you pleeeease hurry the fuck up and get here? Lenn and Kade are driving me crazy.
I answered Jared first.
Me: I’ll be there tomorrow night to save you from the stupidity.
Jared: Thx, E. Right now, I need a shot or two and some sleep. Long ass day. No clubbing for me. Hit me up when you land.
Having finished with him, I went through the rest of the messages and decided to do a group text to cover all my bases, so I could get back to Emily.
Me to Kade, Kane, and Lenn: Shut. Up. (And yes, I know you didn’t say anything Kane, but it was coming, and we both know it.) For fuck’s sake, go to the club and let me paint in peace, you gigantic pains in my ass.
I turned my phone off and slipped it back in my pocket just as Emily was finishing a text to Dana.
They didn’t need to know I wasn’t really painting.
Emily slid her phone into her purse and dropped it back onto the table where I’d placed it. “Well, she’s full of questions. Apparently, she called the gallery, and Arthur told her I left hours ago with a male friend.”
I grinned and waggled my brows. “I wonder what he thinks we’re doing.”
Just as I anticipated, she blushed furiously, but the little shudder that came after wasn’t one of pleasure. “Dear God, I don’t want to even consider the fact that he even knows what sex is, much less that he might be picturing us doing it.”
I scoffed at the look on her face. “He’s got to be in his mid-sixties, right?”
“Something like that.”
“And you think he’s a virgin?”
She put her hands up, pleading. “Don’t. I’ll never be able to look him in the eye again.”
I laughed, shaking my head. “So, you can’t picture your friends as sexual beings? I don’t think that bodes well for our ‘flirty friends’ status.”
Her cheeks reached an even deeper shade of crimson. “I can picture you just fine. But Arthur? Um, no. And I prefer not thinking about it; it allows me to retain the will to live.”
“What about the rest of your co-workers? Or the gallery owner?” She was so much fun to tease, I couldn’t help myself.
“There aren’t many on staff, really. That’s why I have so many titles. As for the owner, he’s rarely there. He’s barely forty, so the ‘grandpa’ vibe isn’t a problem like it is with Arthur.”
I hadn’t met the owner; being that most of our correspondence had been through my agent and lawyers. Something clicked in my mind, and my thoughts immediately jumped track. “Wait a minute. I just realized…”
She raised a brow. “Realized what?”
“You said you could picture me just fine.” I gave her a slow once-over, loving the sound of her ragged inhalation. “What exactly are you picturing?”
She didn’t respond, just looked me in the eye and let a slow smile spread over her face.
Jesus, I was so fucking into this girl.
Chapter Sixteen
Ethan
“You’re awfully quiet tonight.” Aubrey was leaning against my side to be heard over the music. I’d barely been back in town two hours, but it was Friday, and the guys had insisted on trying out yet another new club now that the gang was all here. The flashing lights over the dance floor were lighting up Aubrey’s features in alternating shades of pink and purple, but the concern on her face showed through anyway.
Bodies swayed and melted into one huge cluster of movement, the bar was surrounded by a sea of people waiting for their liquid entertainment, and we were on the upper level, able to look down on it all from one of eight glass-walled VIP rooms. There was so much to see, so much to engage the senses, but I was a million miles away.
“Just processing everything.” I shrugged her question off.
She threw an arm over my shoulder and squeezed me in a sideways hug. “So, when am I going to get to see your latest…” She trailed off and looked around a moment. “Project?”
I couldn’t help the smile that crept out. The last thing I’d worked on was the painting of Emily. I’d even gotten a little more of it completed after I took her home. I hadn’t wanted her to leave, but she needed to salvage as much of her tradition with Dana as possible. We made a mad dash at the last minute, and I’d had to remind her to change her shirt immediately, or it would totally give her away. She was sure she could bullshit her way out of explaining what Arthur had told Dana on the phone, but if Dana walked in there and caught her in one of my shirts? Probably no good way to explain that one. Though, the shirt had looked damn good on her.
I only wished I could have seen her in only that shirt.
But I was right to slow it all down. There was too much on the line for me to fuck it up.
“Ethan?” Aubrey squinted over at me a moment while I tried to remember what we were talking about.
“Um, sorry. What were you saying?”
She gave a half smile and raised one brow. “What’s her name?”
I sat up, startled, and turned to look at her fully. “Huh?”
She rolled her eyes in a way that suggested I’d insulted her intelligence. “Don’t bullshit me. I know the look of infatuation when I see it. You’re distractedly staring off into space and randomly smiling for no apparent reason—especially when you’re on your phone. Now, either the voices in your head are vying for control again, or you met a girl.”
“Who met a girl?” Kane asked, plopping down on the other side of me with a longneck in his hand.
“No one,” I lied.
Aubrey sat back, crossing her arms over her chest and talking across my back to her husband’s twin. “He’s full of shit, Kane. It’s written all over his face. Trust me, a woman knows these things.”
I looked around for someone to bail me out, but Kade was giving me a ‘good luck with that’ look from beside his wife, and Lennox was in the back corner of the room with some chick straddling his lap while he kneaded her ass cheeks with both hands. Christ. I really wished Jared would hurry the fuck up. He would have bailed me out, except he was running late and promised to meet up with us later.
Something was going on with him, but I knew he wouldn’t talk about it until he was good and ready. We had that in common.
I ran a hand through my hair and nodded to the bottle of scotch on the table. Aubrey gleefully poured me a fresh one and handed it over, waiting for me to spill my guts. I downed the drink in one long, burning swallow and toyed with the glass, swirling the ice around and around until Kane finally got impatient and snatched it away.
“Speak, dammit,” he barked.
“Blow me.” I didn’t even look over at him. Nosy fucker.
“Behave, boys,” Aubrey chided absently, still focused on my face. “So?”
“The art show last month?” I waited for her to nod that she knew. Of course, she did, she’d wanted to go—they all had—but I talked them out of it by saying it was too risky and would make people wonder about their connection to the artist.
“The one you didn’t let me go to?” She nudged me playfully, letting me know there were no hard feelings.
“That’s the one.” I nodded, looking over at her and taking a deep breath. “Her name is Emily, and she was the one in charge of the exhibition.”
Aubrey’s eyes lit up, and she clasped her hands together in excitement. “How perfect is that? It’s so Shakespearean. The art lover unknowingly falling for the anonymous artist whose work she admires.” She was practically squealing with delight.
Too bad I had to burst her bubble. “One—no one has fallen for anyone. And two—she’s aware of who I am. I told her the night of the show. And yesterday, I took her to see my studio.”
Kane nearly spat his drink across the room, and Aubrey’s eyes were wide as saucers. Neither spoke.
Kade, however, was never one to leave anything unsaid.
“Are you fucking crazy? How could you put yourself at risk like that?” He glanced back at Lennox’s companion, making sure we weren’t being ove
rheard. “After everything we’ve all done to keep Conspicuous decidedly inconspicuous, you went and told some strange chick who you really are? The fuck were you thinking?”
“Kade, stop.” Aubrey swatted his knee. “He’s a grown man and not a stupid one. If he trusts her with this, it’s not our place to question that. It’s his life.” She turned back to me. “Emily is her name?”
I nodded, infinitely grateful that she’d backed me up.
She smiled up at me. “I’d love the chance to meet her. Maybe you could bring her out with us next time we’re all in New York?”
Just then, my phone vibrated in my pocket, saving me from having to answer as I pulled it free and checked the new text that had come in. Speak of the devil…
Emily: Dana thinks I’m pulling her leg. Can you video call me so she’ll quit talking about me needing a psych eval?
Me: Given that you’re voluntarily spending time with me, a psych eval might not be a bad idea.
Emily: Not funny.
Me: I beg to differ. Calling now.
I looked up to find Aubrey and the twins all staring at me in a way that made it clear I’d been smiling the ‘goofy’ smile again. I ignored their pointed looks and told Aubrey, “Looks like you can meet her right now, but no Conspicuous talk; she’s not alone. Give me a sec.”
I placed the call and positioned the camera so that only I was visible to Emily, at least until we got Dana sorted, after that I would give Aubrey a moment to say hello.
She answered, and I saw a brief flash of her gorgeous green eyes before a dark-haired, wide-eyed woman filled the screen, her mouth agape. She muttered, “Son of a bitch,” and disappeared from the frame.
Emily came back on laughing hysterically and shaking her head. “God, I wish I could have recorded that.”
I chuckled, enjoying the sound of her laughter. “Me too.” Not because it was funny, but because her laugh was the best thing I’d heard in forever.
“Sorry I had to put you through that. She was seriously convinced that I’d had some sort of breakdown, complete with hallucinations and/or imaginary friends.”
“I’m definitely not imaginary.” I winked. “Where’d she go so fast?”
“Oh, she’s got her face buried in her hands and is quietly whispering to herself about how stupid she must look.”
“If she’s talking to herself, maybe she needs the evaluation,” I quipped, studiously ignoring Aubrey, who was making motions for me to let her talk.
Emily squinted into the camera. “It’s really loud there. You out clubbing?”
“Yeah. Hanging out with the band. Well, except Jared. He’ll be here later, though.”
She just nodded. “Dana and I are still waiting for our food, which is taking forever, but Dana knows the bartender—the only one in town she trusts—and she’s hooking up our drinks, so I’m not complaining.”
Aubrey was bouncing on the couch beside me like a Chihuahua on speed, so I grudgingly said, “Kade’s wife is driving me batshit. Please say hello to her before all her bouncing gives me motion sickness.”
I’d barely gotten the words out, much less gotten an okay from Emily, before Aubrey commandeered my phone.
“Hi!” she gushed enthusiastically.
I couldn’t see Emily, since Aubrey was hogging the damn phone, but I heard her give a surprised hello in return.
“So, you’re Ethan’s friend? I’m so happy to meet you. I’m Aubrey, his adopted sister-in-law or something like that.”
For fuck’s sake, it was worse than when my mom gave my junior prom date the first degree.
I gave Kade a pleading look, but the bastard was laughing so hard he didn’t see me. Kane was equally amused by the situation. I turned to him and punched his arm hard enough to leave a bone bruise. “Let’s see how you like it when your turn rolls around, prick.”
“Not going to happen because there won’t be anyone for her to embarrass me in front of. I’m too smart for that shit. Thought you were, too.” He went back to laughing between long pulls on his beer.
Fuckface.
“So, if you’re free the week of Thanksgiving, you should come out with us. We know a lot of amazing clubs in New York, and I’d love to meet you in person.”
Oh, shit.
No.
Emily said something I couldn’t quite make out over the blood roaring in my ears.
“Come on, it’ll be fun.”
“Aubrey…” I warned, trying to catch her eye.
“Okay, I’ll put Ethan back on. But you really should come. I’m always so bored without another girl to talk to. Like tonight, for example. It’s just the guys and me—well, and Lennox’s date.” She quirked a brow and shook her head, tilting the phone to give Em a good shot of Lenn basically getting a lap dance. “But she’s not really into socializing with anyone but Lennox, so it’s basically Ethan, the twins, and me.”
Emily said something I didn’t quite catch, and Aubrey smiled, handing the phone back to me and mouthing “she’s hot.”
Kane groaned behind me, interrupting my train of thought with his loudness. “Kade, your wife just called Ethan’s girlfriend hot. Make her stop before the mental images kick in.”
She turned to Kade and smirked. “Yeah, jerk face, make me stop.” There was no mistaking the challenge in her voice.
Kade stood and picked her up off the couch, tossing her over his shoulder like a goddamn caveman and carrying her off to the nearest closet, bathroom, or sufficiently darkened corner.
Oh, for fuck’s sake.
“Ethan?”
Emily was looking up at me from my phone’s screen, confusion and embarrassment on her face. “Did Kade Edenfield’s wife really say I’m hot?”
“Are you surprised? Or maybe unfamiliar with mirrors?”
“Funny.” She cast a distracted look over at where her friend appeared to be sitting. “Dana heard all of that and is in fangirl nuclear meltdown. I can’t even imagine how she’d be with meeting you in person, especially if there’s alcohol involved. So, as much as I’d like to take Aubrey up on her offer, I think maybe I should keep Dana at a distance while she processes everything. If she levels off in the next couple of weeks, maybe we can hang out—preferably somewhere quiet, with no alcohol.” She chuckled as Dana muttered something in the background.
“Probably a good idea.” I was both relieved and disappointed. I wanted to see Emily again. Hell, I hadn’t wanted her to leave in the first place, but I also didn’t necessarily want her to see me in this kind of setting. I wasn’t able to be me in public. I was always Ethan Chase of Thrill of the Chase: the rock star party boy who had to hide from the paparazzi and sidestep swarms of fans just to have a night out.
I had to be that person in public because that’s all anyone knew me to be. But she knew better, and I wanted her to continue to see me as more than that.
Emily kept eyeing her friend worriedly, probably wondering if she was going to embarrass herself again. She couldn’t really relax in that situation, so I decided to let her off the hook. “Why don’t you take care of Dana and call me later? We can even video chat again, if you want.”
She smiled widely and gave me an appreciative look. “That sounds perfect. I’ll text first to make sure you’re up.”
“I’ll wait up for you. Just call,” I told her with a smile of my own.
“Okay. Thanks, Ethan. I’ll talk to you soon.”
“Looking forward to it, Emily.”
She hung up, and I sat there for a minute, still picturing that sweet smile.
“Jesus, dude. When you fall, you fall hard as fuck, don’t you?” Kane studied me with a somewhat disappointed look on his face.
“I guess so,” I admitted, remembering saying those same words to someone more than a decade before. “It must run in the family.”
Chapter Seventeen
Ethan
“You’ve got to be kidding.” I stared at my brother like he’d lost his damn mind.
“Nope.�
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I sat up a little straighter in my seat, having perched myself on the ragged, ripped leather atrocity of a couch to watch him paint. He’d claimed our basement as his studio, and no one complained because it was just a place to collect old junk anyway. No one really used it. “You backed out of going to the prom with the head cheerleader a week before the dance? Are you insane? After all that time chasing her, you just walked away? What the hell is wrong with you?”
“You wouldn’t understand.” He tapped his brush on a spool of cloth at the base of his easel and went back to making small strokes on the canvas. I couldn’t tell what it was supposed to be yet, but he clearly knew what he was doing.
“Try me.”
“Why do you care so much?”
“For one, your former date has a sister in my grade who I kind of like. Now that you pissed off Christina, how will I ever get her sister to go out with me?”
He didn’t seem apologetic in the least. “I did what I had to do.”
“Why did you have to do it? Why? You’ve hooked up with half the girls at the high school without ever backing down. Why now? Why’d you have to ditch this girl and sink me with her little sister?” I was whining, and I didn’t give a shit. Christina’s sister was fucking hot.
“She’s not the one.”
I nearly swallowed my tongue. “The one? What the hell are you talking about?”
“I’m with someone now.”
I rolled my eyes and picked up one of his discarded brushes, throwing it at his back. “You’re always with someone. Always. Sometimes more than one someone at a time. What’s your point?”
As a lowly freshman, I hadn’t been around the high school long, but I’d seen more than enough at home. My brother wasn’t just a player, he was the goddamn MVP—a legend whose name would live in infamy long after he accepted his diploma next month. And now he was talking about ‘the one?’ He had to be high or something.
“Dude, did you take something? What was it? Acid? Are you seeing purple elephants?”