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I frown. “I’m just really trying to focus on my work.” That is the truth, after all.
He studies me closely and then leans in so that his mouth is close to my ear. “Well, let me know when you change your mind.”
When. Not if. He’s certainly sure of himself.
I stand unmoving as he walks away without another word. My eyes instinctively travel back to the wing. Maureen is gone, but Kai is still there. He’s watching Nick retreat with his eyebrows pulled together.
Is he disappointed with me for talking to Nick? With Nick for talking to me? I’m not sure. But it’s none of his business, so I leave the stage and walk to the green room without another glance.
***
Later at lunch, Maureen sits with me, pushing bites of salad around in her bowl. “God, Kai is so awkward with me today.”
I nod absently, staring down at my own bowl.
“I’ve gotta talk to him about it soon and see what he’s thinking,” she continues.
Good luck with that. Trying to decipher Kai’s thoughts is like trying to read a foreign manuscript.
“Maybe he thought I wasn’t into him?” she muses.
I don’t respond. I don’t have anything valuable to contribute.
“He’s been so quiet,” she says slowly.
I look up at her, hoping she’ll just quit talking. “Maybe he’ll come to you when he’s ready.”
She thinks for a moment and then shakes her head. “No, I bet he’s playing some kind of hard-to-get game.” She blinks as if a lightbulb goes off in her head. “Yeah, I bet that’s it exactly. That night was a test. Now he wants me to come to him. It makes so much sense!”
I shake my head at my bowl. While I don’t know why he ditched her that night, I have a feeling that playing hard-to-get isn’t his game.
Maureen looks around the room. “Do you know where he is?”
“Nope,” I reply simply. I’m doing my best to keep my distance from him today, and I’m actually succeeding for once.
Maureen gets up and tosses her leftover salad into the nearby trash. “I’m gonna go find him. I’ll let you know what he says later.”
“Please don’t,” I reply so quietly she can’t hear it as she walks away.
I like Maureen well enough, but if she’s about to traverse the road of becoming intimate with Kai, she’s going to have to spare me the details. I can be a good friend, but I have to draw a line somewhere. There are at least three months of this left ahead of me, and it’s now my job to ensure that Kai can easily keep his promise. That will mean only discussing business matters with him, and consequently, Maureen will have to keep her stories and her thoughts to herself, lest I let myself become too involved again.
I won’t make the same mistake twice.
EIGHTEEN
Kai
“Kai, are you coming downtown with us tonight for Nick’s birthday?” Maureen asks from beside me.
We’re all backstage, seated in folding chairs, waiting our turns to speak with the press. I’ve picked a spot away from everyone else, but Maureen has dragged a chair over next to mine.
“Yeah, I’ll be there,” I reply simply, thumbing through my script and trying to appear disinterested. I think it’s particularly odd that she finds it so easy to make small talk after what happened the other night.
“Do you want to share a ride?”
I stare at a blank spot on the page, wishing I had a reason to say no. But nothing comes to mind, so I shrug and nod.
Maureen shuffles her chair even closer to mine, dragging its feet loudly across the cement floor. I tense as she leans in closer, but Brent saves the day, suddenly appearing in front of us. He has a doughnut in one hand and his script in another. He grins down at Maureen. “So, we’re meeting at Boulevard 3 tonight, right?”
