AllFreeNovel
Share Us
"I'm listening."
I glanced at the hallway before shifting my eyes back to Harrison. "I marry Amara."
Harrison laughed before catching himself. "You're serious?"
"As a fucking heart attack."
He blew out a breath. "She doesn't want to be in the spotlight, though. Marrying her doesn't solve that. And if the media get wind of your marriage certificate, and they will, you two will be outed whether you want to or not."
"Like you said before, I'm not Zen. I'm not as popular as he is, and I like it that way. Once this whole thing blows over and people find something else to obsess about, no one will care. Right?"
He looked thoughtful. "I can't say for sure. Your popularity has gone up significantly being linked with Lexi, whether it was a good idea or not. Either way, it worked like I'd originally hoped in that way. People are hungry for dirt on you."
"I think the best thing I can do is be who I am. I'm tired of lying, of dodging Lexi, and being afraid of what might come out. I need to own what I want and go after it. What I want is Amara and our baby to be mine legally. I want to be honest with my fans about this ridiculous Lexi farce, so I can stop lying, and it takes the power from her. This whole thing felt wrong from the start because I wasn't being myself. I don't lie, and I don't hide shit, but that's all I've been doing, and I hate it. I won't do it anymore. No more lying and no more hiding."
Harrison's shoulders slumped. "As your friend, I'm with you all the way. As your publicist, I'm cringing right now, but I get it. It may undo everything we've done, and this will all have been for nothing. Are you prepared for that?"
"No matter what happens, it will have been worth it because now I'm crystal fucking clear on who I want to be as a human being and as an artist. I know where my boundaries are and what I'm comfortable with. I just hope Amara says yes." I chuckled.
He laughed. "Yeah, good luck with that, mate."
"I'm going to need it." I stood up and started to walk toward the kitchen before stopping and turning back toward him. "Do you have any idea how to propose to someone?"
He cracked a teasing grin. "Why, because I've proposed to so many women in my lifetime?"
I ran a hand through my hair. "Shit. I better text Z." Pulling out my phone, I sent Zen a text asking him to meet me this afternoon before sliding it into my pocket and moving into the kitchen to make breakfast.
* * *
A couple of hours later,I left Amara with her laptop in her lap so she could work while I met up with Zen at a local bar. I walked on the beach instead of the sidewalk, letting the waves and sand calm me from this morning. I still couldn't believe the Lexi situation had gotten so out of hand.
All I knew was that I wanted to officially make Amara mine. I hated hiding her and little P from the world. I wanted everyone to know how much I loved them. I hoped Amara felt the same way.
Stepping off the sand, I crossed the small concrete lot and pulled open the heavy door, stepping into the dark bar. It was early afternoon, but you'd never know it inside. The lack of windows and dim lighting made time irrelevant.
I glanced around before my eyes landed on Zen's tattooed arms and dark hair in a back booth. He smirked as I walked up and dropped on the bench across from him. "I'm surprised you dared to leave the house today with that shitshow on CNT this morning."
I groaned. "Ugh, don't remind me. What a fucking mess."
He lifted his beer to his mouth and took a sip. "I hope you don't mind, but I invited Maddox."
"I don't mind, but why?"
Zen lifted his shoulder before dropping it back down. "I think he needs to feel useful right now. He's seemed sort of, I don't know, off lately."
"Yeah, I've noticed it, too. He's not as cranky, but he's quieter."
"Right. So I thought he'd want to help."
I chuckled. "I don't exactly see Maddox as the soft and romantic type. He's more of ahit it and quit itkind of guy."
Zen choked on his beer, and I laughed. When he recovered, he said, "Wow, T."
I didn't have a chance to respond before the door opened, and Maddox made his way over to us, his usual broody expression in place.
"Hey, none of that glum bullshit today. We're here talking about happy things, and fuck knows I could use some goddamn happy right now." I clenched my hand around my bottle before sliding over so Maddox could drop down beside me.
He rolled his eyes and signaled to the waitress for a beer. I glanced at Zen, who raised his eyebrow at me. Maddox hadn't even tried to check out the waitress yet. "Shut the fuck up, daddy True. I can be in a bad mood and still be romantic as fuck. Just wait."
