Tara flashed a knowing smile before answering Love’s unspoken question. “Zay flew back to L.A. a couple days ago. He hasn’t been back on set either.”
“Oh?” Love tried to hide how her chest squeezed before quickly shooting back, “I mean . . . I ain’t worried about him.”
“Yeah. I know,” Tara responded, still smiling. She was fully aware that Zay had, in fact, been the worry in Love’s thoughts.
Love’s brows furrowed as she sat puzzled.Is he done with the movie now? Is he pissed?
Tara read her mind and responded, as if on cue. “Kam says he’s basically living in the studio back in Cali. He’s still on for the project. So no meltdown necessary.”
She sat still as she watched the relief loosen in Love’s shoulders. There was a moment of silence between the two before Love replied.
“Thank you, Tara. For everything.”
Tara let out a breath, leaned over, and pulled her into a quick hug. “You got this, Love. Even when you swear you don’t. I’m always happy to help.”
“I truly appreciate you.” Love responded with tears in her eyes that threatened to spill.
“Do you, now?” she responded and pulled back from the hug. She looked Love in the eyes and smiled. “Just how much? I been meaning to talk to you about a raise . . .”
They both fell out from laughter, easing the moment. Before Love could answer, she heard the front door swing open without a knock. They both perked up and stared at the kitchen’s opening as the quick and heavy footsteps grew louder.
Juwon strode in, looking crisp from work. He wore a collared shirt that was open at the neck and an expensive watch that glinted in the lighting. The tension in his jaw and the vein that throbbed near his temple said this wasn’t going to be a good visit.
“Tara.” His voice echoed through the room. “I need to speak to my wife. Alone.”
Tara froze, glanced at Love who looked just as shocked as she did, then back at him.
“Oh, um, yeah. Okay.” She turned and patted Love’s shoulder then grabbed her purse from the island and turned on her heels. His eyes remained on Love, not even glancing Tara’s way as she walked past him to head out. “Text me. For more snacks, to talk, or . . . bail money, maybe? Whatever you need.”
Love didn’t respond to her. Her eyes were glued to Juwon’s with an angry expression that let Tara know to get out of there quickly. The next events wouldn’t be pretty.
When the door shut behind her, the lock’s soft click seemed to cut the thickness in the silence that followed.
“What the hell is your problem?” Love shot out.
Juwon stepped closer with his phone outstretched. On the screen was a clip from UrbanDrip Daily, a celeb gossip blog that she’d read a few stories from before. Her eyes squinted as she watched a video that looped. It was her, laughing with Zay at the café. Her eyes grew wide when she caught the headline that flashed at the top: “Old Flame or New Script? Zay Woods Spotted With Married Author Love T.—Sources Say It Wasn’t Just ‘Work’.”
“Explain this shit,” Juwon growled, voice low but coiled with rage.
Her chest tightened, but she forced herself to stand her ground. She stood up straight and looked him in his eyes. “It’s nothing. We’re working together. That’s it?—”
“Oh, working?” His laugh was sharp. “Right. So, you two just happen to be giggling and leaning into each other for work? That’s what you expect me to believe?”
She folded her arms. “Yes, that’s exactly what I’m saying. Believe whatever you want. You don’t get to question me?—”
“I don’t?” He stepped in closer, his voice sharp enough to slice the air between them. “I’ve been here, Love. I’ve been hereevery damn day while he was somewhere overseas, living his dream, forgetting you fuckin’ existed! I’m the one who stepped up. I’m the one who raised that little girl upstairs like she was my own!”
Love’s laugh cracked out, bitter and exhausted all at once. “You got some fuckin’ nerve! Don’t you stand here and throw that shit in my face. Don’t sit there actin’ holy when you went and did the exact same thing to me!”
“Oh, so now we comparing?—”
“Yes, we are!” she shouted. “You think you’re so much better? You think you’re some hero? You were so quick to jump in and be daddy of the year, but then you turned around and slept with your fucking assistant! So how are you any different from him, huh?”
He pointed at her with eyes that burned. “I didn’t run! I stayed. When he left you knocked up and heartbroken in a college dorm, I was there. When you were scared out of your mind about failing finals, who helped you study? Who held your hand at the doctors’ appointments?”
“I already thanked you for that!” Love cried, her voice booming through the room. “God knows I have thanked you for that my whole damn life, but you broke that up! You fucked up the trust when you went and betrayed me too! So, like I said, don’t stand here questioning me about shit I do—acting like you’re better than him!”
Juwon exhaled loud, ugly, and hurt, all at once. “So what is this shit then? He back in town, and suddenly, you forgetting who been feeding you, paying the mortgage, loving on your daughter—mydaughter?—”
