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Fuck my life.
Bryce reaches for my hand and clasps it with his large one.
The contact puts an end to my rumination. I pull my attention away from the window of the chauffeured car I’ve been staring at for a while and meet his blue eyes.
“You’re lost in thought,” he says.
“I have a lot on my mind.”
“Talk to me.”
“You already have enough on your plate.”
He cocks a brow. “That’s for me to decide.”
I shake my head. “It’s nothing.”
“If it were nothing, you wouldn’t have that tormented expression on your face.”
“Is it okay if we don’t talk about it?”
He considers me. “The only reason I don’t insist is because we don’t have a lot of time together before I have to return to the airport later to catch a flight to West Coast.”
“You’re leaving? Today?”
“I didn’t want to ruin our time together, but while you were texting Todd”—I had to bite the bullet and buy a new work phone. My crabby booking manager wouldn’t replace it, since I’m to blame for losing it—“my executive assistant texted me to let me know we have a new crisis on our hands.”
“Is it about Derek?”
“It is. And it makes what we’ve been dealing with look like a weekend in Disney World.”
“What happened?”
His nostrils flare. “A reporter published a sordid tale of Derek’s hidden sex life. Another one of his boy toys is talking to the press.”
“Shit.”
“Indeed, more shit hits the fan.” His tone is sarcastic. Not that I blame him. “It’s unclear if there’s any truth to anything this second lover is saying, but I don’t want to be caught with my pants down. I have to fly back to Silicon Valley to assess the damage to my company’s reputation. Furthermore, now that two lovers came out, how many more will do the same?” Yikes. “We need to be prepared for a potential shit storm.”
“I’m sorry you're dealing with all of this, Bryce.”
“If someone had told me one day I’d be dealing with this kind of drama surrounding Derek, I would’ve lost good money on a bet,” he scowls. “I’ve known the guy for years.”
“We all have secrets.”
He harrumphs. “I don’t appreciate when someone else’s secrets are biting me in the ass.” He shakes his head. “This duplicitous life he was leading and the level of deception are making my head spin.”
“He should’ve had more respect for his wife by being honest with her.”
“He did her wrong. He did all of us wrong.”
Bryce and I don’t speak for several miles.
I’m lost in thought.
I suspect it’s the same for him.
I muster up the courage to ask a question that’s burning my tongue. “How long will you be gone for?”
