Page 622 of Manhattan Bossholes

Istared at the TV screen in shock. This wasn’t just salt in my wound, it was lemon juice. Battery acid.

Nuclear waste.

After the nightmare in the park with Cameron yesterday, watching Steven charm his way through an interview on The AM Show made me feel like the entire world was against me. Okay, maybe not the entire world, because I had a pretty vocal majority of support online from women who kept calling Cameron “Boss Baby.”

But still.

This interview was the last thing my battered spirit needed.

Steven had clearly hired a stylist because his teeth were whiter, his hair looked coiffed, and he was wearing a burgundy cashmere sweater he wouldn’t have been caught dead in back when we were together. The changes made him come across like one of those reality TV personalities: all style, no substance, spouting off the same practiced lines on every show they appeared on.

“Congrats to you, Steven,” the host, Jody Richards, said as the segment began. “Unhinged Heart is a mega-hit!”

“Boo,” I said under my breath, because Nina was still asleep for some reason.

“Yeah, it sure is,” Steven grinned at her, trying to look humble. “It’s so rewarding when hard work is acknowledged. I’m really gratified by the response.”

“I bet!” Jody said. “And am I hearing rumors about a possible film adaptation?”

My jaw dropped. No, please no.

“I can’t say a word about that,” Steven laughed flirtatiously and mimed locking his lips. “But I’ve heard the rumors, too. All I’ll say is we have to wait and see. Stay tuned!”

“Well, I’m on pins and needles about that possibility!” Judy adjusted her expression from a wide smile to faux concern. “Now let’s shift gears a little, Steven. Obviously, your book is a fictionalization, but it’s based on your real experiences from before you and Kira got together, is that right?” she said in a gentle tone.

The camera cut to Kira, who looked like someone had pieced together the best parts of every popular influencer of the moment. Smooth chestnut hair that gleamed under the studio lights, big black eyes ringed with a feather duster’s worth of eyelashes, a mouth of gorgeous Chicklet teeth.

“Yeah,” Stephen said, frowning at the floor. “Honestly, I was really freaked out after I broke up with Felicia. She was unhinged about me, hence the title of the book, and I wasn’t sure what she was capable of.”

I yelped at the screen in anger as Kira reached over to grab his hand.

“Were you scared for your life?” Jody asked.

Steven chuckled. “I mean, no? Look at me, Jody, I’m not exactly a weakling.” He laughed harder at the thought of it and Kira joined in. “Physically, I wasn’t worried at all. Felicia was a large woman, but I’m a much bigger man. No, it was the mental torture Felicia put me through that had me on edge. And I didn’t know if she was capable of hurting Kira. My princess is like a baby bird, look how tiny she is! Isn’t she precious?”

Kira giggled as Steven held up her delicate wrist as proof of her unthreatening petiteness as compared to my hulking big-lady-ness.

“No, but seriously,” Steven continued. “I was also worried that Felicia could somehow damage my good name in the publishing world by convincing trolls to sabotage my reviews. She worked in social media—she knows how to game the system.”

I winced, remembering how Cameron had offered to get the buzz behind the book killed. Back then, he’d seemed like he gave a damn about me. But then, there was a time when I believed Steve loved me—so maybe I was just hopelessly naïve when it came to love.

Jody turned to Kira. “You had to be concerned, Kira. I’m sure Felicia saw you as her replacement. Competition. You’re a stunning woman; who wouldn’t feel threatened by you? Did the two of you ever meet?”

“No,” I screamed at the TV, answering for her. “We didn’t meet because I was already over that jackass by the time the two of you got together! Steven’s timeline is just one of the many things that are total and complete fiction!”

Nina came running into the room still dressed in leggings and froze with her hands in karate position. “What’s going on in here? Who are you yelling at?”

I wordlessly pointed at the screen.

“Oh,” she said, her shoulders slumping when Steven’s stupid face appeared on screen again. “Shit. He made it to The AM Show?”

“He’s made it to every show.”

Nina stared at the TV. “He looks plastic.”

“Right?”

“And she looks, um…”