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My gaze snaps toward him and he’s studying me, almost surprised. “Come on! You’re smart. Surely, you’ve noticed it.”
“Evan is not in love with me. He’s so caught up in his work that he uses an escort service to have sex. Trust me, he’s not interested in any woman, much less me.”
Aaron smiles and swallows another bite before wiping his mouth with the napkin. “Evan has all these rules about never mixing personal life with work life andblah blah blah. The truth is he’s never had any woman knock him off his feet before you.”
My eyes widen like saucers. “You’re completely crazy.”
“He pummeled my father’s face. Do you think he did that just because he didn’t want him touching hisassistant?”
It crossed my mind that his reaction was a bit exaggerated, especially since he knows I sleep with other men. “He did it because he holds a grudge against your father, and, to tell the truth, I can’t really blame him. As you said, your old man destroyed everything Evan tried to build. I’m part of the world he set up in New York, and your father was trying to stain that.”
He shrugs and looks at me for a long time. “To say that bad blood is flowing between the two is an understatement, but it’s not just that. When you came to the restaurant wrapped in that dress, I saw the look in his eyes. The jealousy he showed had nothing to do with work. He was a beast ready to attack anyone who approached you. Not just my father.”
I sip my smoothie and pause to think about his words. I don’t even want to imagine the implications of what he’s insinuating. I always assumed that Evan was off-limits, and I always pushed the attraction I felt for him to the corner of my brain, labeling it “he’s your boss, stay away.”
“You have way too many opinions about love to be branded by the media as Hollywood’s most eligible bachelor,” I mumble, making him smile.
“A relationship isn’t on my priority list right now, but it doesn’t mean I can’t read people.”
I want to ask him why he gave up looking for a woman—was it because of a past heartbreak or, like his brother, no time to devote to his private life. But he gets up, picking up lunch leftovers, and I understand that the conversation is over. My confession time has ended, leaving me with more doubts and questions than when I entered this room.
***
I enter the apartment that one of Aaron’s companies put me up in for free until I find a place and head to the kitchen. I open the freezer, pull out the box of cookie dough, vanilla ice cream, and a spoon from the drawer, and sit on the sofa. My conversation with Aaron upset me so much I turned off my phone, afraid Evan might call me, even though I know it’s highly unlikely since we haven’t spoken since our fight. I don’t know how to have a conversation with him after what Aaron insinuated this afternoon.
I was so depressed today about it that Aaron invited me to a party at one of his director friends’ place that will keep the Hollywood Hills awake tonight.
I sink the spoon into the box, ready to drown my sorrows, but a knock on the door stops me midway to my mouth.
“Aaron, go away. I told you I don’t want to go to that party!” I shout as I place the ice cream on the coffee table and reluctantly get up.
I’m surprised when I open the door.
“What the hell are you doing here?”
“Don’t be so excited to see me. You’ll embarrass me with all this affection.” Nicholas smiles before asking if he can come in.
I step aside and let him enter. “Okay, so I was a bit rude, but really, what are you doing here?”
He frowns and sits on the couch like he owns the place. At first, I struggled to get used to how the Jailbirds are a huge extended family where everyone feels comfortable invading each other’s space, but I don’t mind it anymore. Nicholas has become part of this strange family of strays who feel comfortable everywhere as long as the right people are with them.
“Did you really think you could disappear for fifteen days and no one would come looking for you?” Simon’s boyfriend asks as I return to the kitchen to get a second spoon for the ice cream.
“Actually, I was hoping for that,” I admit, handing the spoon and sitting next to him.
“You’re lucky I’m in Los Angeles for work and they sent me instead of all of them knocking down your door and invading your apartment. Iris said if she finds you, she’ll tear your hair out one by one for making her worry.”
“I have no doubt about Iris’s threats.” I sink the spoon and bring it to my lips, full of the ice cream I’ve been dreaming about since this afternoon. Los Angeles is far too hot for my taste.
“Can I ask what the hell happened? If I leave here without an answer, they’ll tear me apart,” he asks while savoring the ice cream.
I shrug my shoulders and sigh. “Evan and I argued.”
“We figured that, even if he won’t say anything. But why?” He raises an eyebrow while putting a spoonful of ice cream in his mouth.
“Nothing important,” I answer too quickly.
Nicholas studies me with sad eyes. He’s never been one to talk much, but he is definitely someone who has the patience to listen. He’s the best person to confide in and help take the massive weight off your chest. It’s like being in Simon’s company: he’s a calm person who doesn’t judge, who waits until you’ve found the courage to speak without forcing you. I immediately felt comfortable with his gentle, unassuming demeanor.
