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“Take your time.” I force another smile. “I’ll just be right back, okay?”
As soon as I’m done speaking, I practically make a run for it. I don’t even know where the bathroom is in this huge warehouse, but I know that I need to get far, far away from Harrison, and the only hope I have is if I successfully get lost in the crowd. As I try my best to look for the best placenotto be seen, I feel tears begin to sting behind my eyes, my body suddenly overcome with unexpected emotion.
I’m just another rabbit for another fox.
It repeats over and over in my mind as Harrison’s phantom hand on my waist feels like a ghost haunting my bones.
Chapter 15
Rhys
“…Alyssa?” I whisper down at her crumpled frame. She’s sitting on the curb in front of the warehouse, her face covered by her hands. She looks absolutely crushed, like she’s just received the worst news of her life, like someone has just died.
She then looks up at me, her eyes wet with tears, and a small smile comes through. I can’t tell if she’s relieved to see me or embarrassed to be seen like this. “Oh. Hey, Rhys.”
“Are you okay, dar—Alyssa?” I change my words as they come out of my mouth, knowing that Alyssa doesn’t want anything about us to come out just yet. After hearing what happened with Geesha when we got back together, it makes sense. Not many could abide my ex-hookup’s thinly veiled threat, but it convinced Alyssa that it’s better to stay away from me than run the risk of being trashed online and everywhere else.
“No,” she admits, with a small sniffle. “No, I’m not okay. Not at all.”
“What happened?”
“Some creep tried to make a move on me,” she answers, before letting out a pained laugh. “And because he’s some Hollywood bigshot, I didn’t know what I was supposed to do. If he wasn’t some important asshole, I would’ve just told him to fuck off, but…but I didn’t.”
She sighs, heavy and long, before she finishes with her thoughts. “For fuck’s sake, Rhys. I was actually having a nice night before all of that bullshit happened. I came here with Marina, and things kind of felt like they used to, before I ever came to L.A. But then…I don’t know. A jerk I never met before in my life decides to try and treat me like I’m a collector’s item. He doesn’t even know me, Rhys. He just…wanted me because of Gregory—”
“Wait,” I interrupt her, a flood of anger pouring through my veins. “Are you saying that Gregory has anything to do with some fucking creep inside?”
“No.” Alyssa shakes her head. “I don’t think Gregory put him up to it or anything. He was just talking about how Gregory spoke so highly of me all the time. And I think…I think the asshole in there just wants to get his hands on thenext big thing. Whatever that is. If that’s what life is like for the next big thing, I don’t want to be it. He told me if I made him feel good, we’d go platinum.” Her eyes are brimming with tears. I instinctively reach for a handkerchief but nothing is available but the silk scarf around my neck, which I hand to her. She looks at me gratefully and with another small smile, hands it back and reaches into her evening bag, eventually producing a tissue.
“…I’m sorry, darling,” I murmur, completely unable to prevent the tender nickname from spilling out as I take a seat next to her on the sidewalk. “I’m sorry you had to go through that.”
“It’s okay,” Alyssa murmurs, carefully wiping the tears from her eyes. “It’llbeokay, I mean. This is just part of the process, right?”
“What was his name?”
“Rhys, no.”
“Just tell me his name, darling,” I whisper. I stare over at her. “Please.”
“Fuck, fine…it was Harrison something,” she answers. “He said that he works with the press?”
“Got it.” I nod, hastily rising to my feet. “You should get Marina and go home, darling.”
“Rhys, please don’t do anything stupid—”
“I’m not going to do anything stupid.” I smile down at her. “But I think you’ve probably spent enough time at the party, my darling. Seriously, when you start crying on the sidewalk, I think it’s time to head back to your apartment, don’t you?”
“Rhys, I’m not kidding around, okay? You don’t need to do anything—”
“Go home, darling,” I instruct her. “And let me take care of the rest.”
Alyssa flashes me a suspicious look before she rises to her feet. She then pulls her phone out of her purse and hastily shoots off a text.
“Are you telling Marina to come meet you outside?” I ask.
“Yes, so we can go home,” she replies, without looking up at me. At that moment she seems very far away.
I try to lighten the moment. “I’m glad that Van isn’t the only one who can tell you what to do.”
