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"If you say so." She looked at her phone and then back up at me. "Aren't you going to put the tie on?"
I sighed. "Fine. But no more talking about my private life. And after tonight, I'm done."
"Yeah, fine. Whatever." She buried her face in her phone, and I pulled my tie off and replaced it with the new one.
"Better?"
Lexi glanced up, and a smug smile crossed her face. I didn't like it. "Much."
The limo pulled up to the front of the theater at the edge of the red carpet. Photographers lined each side of the walkway, waiting for us to exit. I'd never been one of those people who sought out fame. Sure, I wanted to make music professionally and live comfortably doing it. Fame was just sort of a side effect of that. A necessary evil.
But to Lexi? That shit was fuel. It was her lifeblood. A picture was never just a picture. That meant I had to throw a fake-ass smile on my face and act like the doting boyfriend I'd never be to her.
"Ready to do this?" I asked, sliding off the seat toward the door. The driver stood just outside, ready to open it on our signal.
Her eyes were bright as she nodded. I tapped my knuckles lightly on the glass, and the door swung open. Stepping out, I stood and resisted shielding my eyes from all the flashes going off around me. I smiled and waved like the good little boyfriend I wasn't, waiting for Lexi to exit the car.
As she did, her slinky silver dress clung to her body while she plastered herself to my side. She wrapped her arm around my waist with a huge grin on her face, waving at the crowd. I reached my hand behind my back and grabbed her hand, tugging her forward. We slowly made our way down the carpet, answering questions along the way.
I had to admit this part was good for my career. Several reporters asked about the song releasing next week, my album, and when the band would have a new record out. It took a while for us to make our way down the carpet because we both wanted to milk this appearance for every drop of publicity we could squeeze out of it.
At least the two of us were on the same page when it came to that part of our deal.
Finally, we reached the end and made our way into the theater, the smell of buttery popcorn made my mouth water. I hadn't eaten dinner because my stomach had been churning all day, but now I was regretting not eating as my stomach growled. "Want some popcorn?" I asked Lexi.
She scrunched her nose up. "Ew, no. Carbs."
I rolled my eyes. "Okay, want me to meet you in there? Or do you want to wait?"
She reached into her handbag again and pulled out a flask, unscrewing the lid and tipping it back. "I'll wait so we can find seats together."
"Fine." I turned and walked to the concession counter, grabbing some popcorn and water before finding Lexi. She was standing by herself, taking another swig from her flask and scrolling her phone at the same time.
"Ready to grab our seats?"
She nodded, and we made our way into the darkened theater. I followed her toward the back where there weren't many people sitting. I lowered my voice to a whisper. "Don't you want to sit closer? Or in the middle?"
She shook her head, and a mischievous smile broke out on her face. "Noooo." Fuck, she sounded like she was at least halfway to drunk already. Maybe more. Definitely tipsy.
We sat in a row by ourselves, and she leaned into me. I reached between us and lowered the armrest to try and put a barrier between us, but she reached underneath and rested her hand on my thigh. I glanced around the theater, trying to decide if it'd be worth the risk of outing our relationship as less than official if I moved a seat or two away from her.
"Lexi," I warned.
"What?" Her eyes were wide, and her voice innocent.
I moved my hand down and grabbed hers, placing it back in her lap before letting go. I pulled my popcorn onto my lap in the hopes of deterring her from trying that shit again.
Epic music played, and the lights went down, bathing the theater in darkness as the movie began. As the film played, I finished my popcorn, and Lexi kept to herself, so I moved the bucket off of my lap and settled in for the second half.
I'd just started to relax when her fingers crept up my thigh. I stiffened and shifted, trying to discourage her, but she persisted. I glanced at her, and she was emptying the last of her flask into her mouth and seemingly not paying any attention to me despite her wandering hand. She tossed the empty flask into her purse and turned to me with a glassy-eyed smile.
Fuck, this was not going to be good. How could I keep her from causing a scene?
She leaned toward me, and the smell of alcohol made my eyes water. She lifted the armrest and slid even closer, her hand now on my belt. I reached down and gripped her wrist. "Lexi, stop."
"Shhh." She was practically sitting in my lap now, trying to kiss my neck as I leaned away from her. I tried to hold her wrist without hurting her. She twisted and her other hand landed on my stomach and slid down my abs as she shoved it down my pants. It happened so fast I didn't react at first because I couldn't believe it.
Once my mind caught up with what was happening, I jumped up, and she almost fell out of her seat. Thankfully, she hadn't managed to actually grab ahold of my dick, but she'd come close. I saw red. How many times had I told her I had a girlfriend? That I wasn't interested? That she needed to back the fuck off?
