All of those had been common occurrences with Josh. And unlike my ex, Tripp had a right to my time and attention. He was my boss. He was paying for it.
Payingwaytoo much.
When I’d checked my bank account earlier that afternoon, I’d thought there was a mistake. My deposit that week was even higher than the already high pay.
Like, hemp poncho, hacky sack, Cheech and Chonghigh.
I’d contacted the payroll company so they could fix it, but according to the email I’d received a bit ago, it was a raise to cover my new social media responsibilities.
Responsibilities that included the hard task of pressing repost and like.
I’d agreed to take over Tripp’s socials to try to bridge the gap between what I earned and the exorbitant amount he paid, not for him to pay me more and make it wider.
And now he was ignoring my calls and texts because he knew I was mad.
Or he was ignoring them because I’d made it awkward by unloading my crazy in one breathless rant before trying to kiss him.
Either way, it wasn’t good.
I still couldn’t believe I’d done that. Tripp was the hottest man I’d ever seen in my life, but it was more than that. The way he’d been so supportive. So understanding. I must’ve been more starved for attention than I realized because it’d been too easy to forget that he probably made everyone he talked to feel like they were his sole focus. I needed to be smarter than that.
Otherwise, I would buy into the smiles and intense appeal that’d made him famous. My body had already shown that it wanted to twist every glance, touch, and innocuous phrasing into something more. I didn’t need my emotions to follow suit.
I didn’t want to get involved with anyone, but catching feelings for a man like Tripp?
I would have to be a masochist.
Pacing my living room, I ignored my schoolwork that was still spread on the table where I’d left it the night before. I knew I wouldn’t be able to focus on anything else until I talked to Tripp.
First, to confirm I still had a job.
Then, to demand he pay me less for that job.
If only he would answer his damn phone. Going to his place was an option, but it was a long drive to take if he wasn’t home.
I gnawed my lip as I stared at my phone.
This is kind of an emergency…
Giving in, I opened the tracking app.
Good thing I checked.
He wasn’t home.
And he also wasn’t alone.
Tripp
Entering Gilded didn’thave the same effect it usually did.
It didn’t ease the tension that was knotted between my shoulders. It didn’t heat the blood in my veins. It didn’t make me feel slightly less alone being surrounded by people who wouldn’t try to photograph me. Who wouldn’t hound me for anautograph, an audition, or a script read. People who’d let their inhibitions down, knowing they were safe to be themselves.
Instead, my gut remained clenched as I scanned the crowded bar.
Unsurprisingly, I came up empty.
I wouldn’t be able to see who I was looking for until I got closer. The tables and chairs would undoubtedly block her current position.
