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“Which is blurred right now. Because of you.” He looks around, then leans closer. “I need you to stay away from her. Tell me you will. You can deal with her assistant until this deal is over. Give her some time so she can think things over. Cool it. That’s the least you can do—for her and for me.”
“Why don’t we have her join this conversation?” I ask. Since we’re talking about her, it’d be only fair.
“All I’m asking is for you to give it a break. If you’re both so in love, then you’ll be fine. But I need some time to talk to her, and also have her think about this whole thing.”
I inhale deeply. I decided to take the blame for it, so I can’t backtrack now. Besides, he has a point. I’m more experienced. I could have said no, and acted distant like I did in the past. I was weak. An invisible vest of weight wraps itself around me, and even moving an inch right now hurts. I’m overwhelmed and already grieving what I’m about to say. What I’m about to do. “Fine. I’ll stay away from her.”
16
Whitney
I walk into the club,and the first thing I see is Astrid on the corner. Why didn’t she text me back?
I dash over to her, my gaze scanning for signs of Dan and Maddox, but because there are a few more patrons than usual, and I can’t find either. Thank goodness for Astrid’s hair color and bold fashion choices making her easy to find in a crowd.
“What’s up?” I ask her.
She peels her gaze from her phone then tilts her head at me. “Did you see your dad as you walked in? He just left.”
My dad? I thought he was with his team on the opposite side of the property. Busy. “No.”
“Maybe he took the other exit… the emergency one that leads right out of the hotel.”
My shoulders sag. Shit. Does my dad already know? I thought I’d buy some time, at least a couple of hours until he found out. I need to get to Maddox first, before Dad talks to him. Or maybe I’m too late already. Apprehension sweeps over me. I stand in front of her, finding it hard to sit, my body restless. “What’s going on?”
“Well girl, a shit ton is going on! First I was watching for a good picture of Dan Walters, but it was impossible to get one, because he didn’t stay for long. He talked to Maddox and must have pissed him off, because Maddox legit grabbed him by the collar and almost hit him.”
I step back, a sinking feeling coming down on me and prickling all my nerve endings. “What?”
“Yes. So Dan dashed, and in came your father. It was like a daytime soap opera.”
I clear my throat, not liking where any of it is going. Why in the hell did Maddox ruin our plan? “Then what?”
“Then your dad came and had a tense conversation with Maddox. I couldn’t hear what they were saying, and wasn’t in an angle where I could read lips.”
I stifle a laugh. Astrid has many hidden talents, that’s for sure. “Thanks for the detective work, Astrid. So then my dad left?”
“Yes.”
I nod. Maybe my dad was mad because of whatever Maddox told Dan. Maybe it has zero to do with me. I try to convince myself, but a small voice inside me laughs. Slim chance. “Where is Maddox?”
“Last I saw him, he was still sitting at the same spot. He did have like three drinks.” She pointed her finger at a booth on the far side of the room. “Over there.”
I narrow my eyes and tilt my head, searching for him. A few people move in my field of vision, but within ten feet of us, there he is. Looking down at the contents of his tumbler, with a dead serious expression on his face. A shiver rolls down my spine. “Okay. Well, you can go home. I’ll go talk to him.” I figure she’s done enough social sleuthing work.
She fishes her phone from her pocket. “Do you want to schedule a post about hmmm, the pictures you were tagged on?”
“No. I couldn’t care less at this point. I wasn’t doing anything illegal. I was on a date with my boyfriend.”
She puts her phone back in her pocket, then looks at me with a flicker of surprise in her blue eyes. “Boyfriend? Thisisa soap opera. I usually don’t enjoy them, but it’s different when you know the main characters.”
I roll my eyes. I bet I’d enjoy it too if I wasn’t one of the main characters. “Talk to you tomorrow, Astrid,” I say, and turn around. I beeline to his table, shoulders straight and heart pumping its way up my throat.
“Whitney,” he says when I slide into the booth and sit across from him.
“What happened with Dan?” I ask, the professional in me not wanting personal things to take priority. Even if my nerves are pulsing through invisible knots right now. I keep my hand under the table, tapping my fingers on my lap, fidgeting.
A flash of anger sparks in his eyes. “Dan is out. He’s an idiot and I didn’t remember how much. You don’t have to worry about him.”
