Page 8 of The Jaded Notes

“He didn’t either. He was fine?—”

“Until Zara. We both know if she got him to cheat when he supposedly hated her, it wouldn’t take much for him to do it again.”

“Livianna, you need to understand something.”

“I do understand, Bren. Callum has issues, and that’s why I’m staying firm in my decision. When you get to Paris, I won’t be at your concert. I love you. I’ll buy all your albums and even the best ticket offered, but I won’t be there. Not in person, anyway.”

There’s a long beat before Bren speaks. “One day you’ll hear me out, and maybe you’ll see things differently. Until then, I’ll respect you and not push.”

“Thank you. It’s time for me to mend my broken pieces, and this is what it’s going to take to do just that.” I wander into the kitchen and stare at the calendar. “It’s been a long time coming.”

“If you say so.”

“I do, and that brings me to the next topic I want to talk to you about.” My voice sings with mischief.

“I can tell by the tone in your voice I’m not gonna approve.”

“Yeah, you probably won’t, but it’s almost Valentine’s Day and my vow this year is to let myself live to the fullest.”

“Oh, Jesus. What are you planning?”

“I talked with Mateo Beckett last week.”

“Why?”

“Remember when I told you I hung out with him on New Year’s Eve last year?”

“Yeah, how could I forget? The shit Cash pulled that night took me months to recover from.”

I bite my lip and stave off the sting of the memory of that night. “I’m sorry I held that against you for a while.”

“Don’t be. I get why you were hurt.” A low growl vibrates through the line. “Tell me about Mateo.”

“I’m only telling you this because I need your advice.”

“Fuck, Liv. This sounds like it’s going in a dangerous direction.”

I laugh to release both trepidation and total elation. “There’s an Elite-Sinsations here in Paris. I asked Mateo if I could check it out. He’s willing to let me look into it for a few weeks to see if I’d purchase a membership.”

“Isn’t that expensive?”

“So you have heard about his clubs?”

“Of course I have. Who hasn’t in our line of work?”

“Is it something you would do?”

“Join? No, I get all the women I want. I’m not about to pay a couple million just for privacy. Besides, my reputation doesn’t require it.”

I shrug even though Bren can’t see me. “True, but what would you do if you were in my shoes?”

He groans. “This is not the conversation I wanna have with you.”

“I don’t have anyone else I trust to talk about this with. I need your advice. Should I go, or is it a bad idea?”

“I’m biased, Livianna. You’re my sister, so I’m gonna say it’s a terrible thought.”

“If I weren’t your sister, what would you think?”