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“I-I was just joking. I mean, you know how guys talk,” he sputters.
“I have no clue how guys talk. But men don’t talk about women like they’re just a walking, talking piece of ass,” I sneer.
“Listen, no offense. I forgot Apollo’s like a sister to you, right? I wasn’t thinking. I’m sorry.” He gives me a weak smile and tries to shrug. He laughs nervously, his eyes darting around like he’s looking for help. I give his lapels a tug, and his eyes come back to me.
This guy.
“Man, are you fucking blind? On what planet do you think Apollo is like a sister to me? I know about your little arrangement. But don’t think that somehow you’re ever going to be her man again.”
“You said y’all were best friends. I mean, I just … look, I respect Apollo.” His voice cracks as he stammers.
“She is my best friend. But she’s a lot more than that, too.”
His eyes widen, but he nods. His quick surrender disgusts me. Any man who lets Apollo go without a fight doesn’t deserve her.
I let go of his lapels and step back.
“Nice to see you. Glad we got to chat.” I pat him on the shoulder and smile pleasantly.
He smiles back. Though, the wide, terrified eyes, make it look more like a grimace than a smile.
“You, too,” he says shakily.
I walk past him down the hall to Apollo’s place. I hear him behind me, and I turn around and shoot him a glance. He points to the door across from Apollos’s with a nervous grin. “I live there.”
“Right, I forgot.” I shrug and turn to ring Apollo’s bell.
“Hey.” He clears his throat behind me. I turn around thinking I’ve underestimated him and that he’s about to tell me to fuck off and leave his girl alone.
“Yeah?” I raise my eyebrows when he just smiles at me.
“I, uh … about lunch? Are you free to meet?”
I reach into my pocket and pull out a business card. “Call my assistant on Monday. We can try to set something up.”
My assistant is an efficient and low-maintenance man named Darren. He lives in LA, and he would know when this call came through that my calendar wouldn’t have any openings for the foreseeable future.
“Wow, that’s great. Thanks,” he says and with a wave, opens his door and disappears inside.
I ring Apollo’s doorbell again and am about to pull out my phone to call her when it flies open. She’s soaking wet and wrapped in a thin, light yellow robe that leaves too much to the imagination.
“Graham, what are you doing here?” She sticks her head out into the hallway and looks around before she shoves me inside and shuts the door behind her.
“Looking for Lucas? He went inside.” I prop one shoulder against her wall and cross my arms in front of my chest and watch as she processes what I said.
She groans and hangs her head. “I was going to tell you,” she moans and walks over to her couch, covers her face with her hands and sits down.
“It doesn’t really matter. He’s irrelevant. Why are you so upset?” I sit next to her and pull her hands away from her face.
She turns miserable, contrite eyes to me. Her face is glowing, and her lips are pink and puffy like she scrubbed them.
“I’m sorry. Really. It just didn’t occur to me to mention it. I never see him. He’s seeing someone ...” She trails off and stares at her lap.
“How’s your headache?” I ask and watch her drop her head into her hands. The hairs on the back of my neck stand up.
“What’s wrong, baby?” I ask, even though I’m pretty sure I’ll wish I didn’t know as soon as she’s finished telling.
“I don’t have a headache,” she says without looking at me. She hands her phone over to me. “I saw Nanette today, and it reminded me of something.” I take her phone automatically, but I don’t look at it.
