Chapter 16
CHAPTER 16
brITTANY
H er hands were shaking when Brittany shut the bedroom door behind her. She’d had time to think while Gus had been out telling Val whatever it was that meant Curtis would leave with only a nod, so she assumed he took back quitting. And while she had set up for her stream, she went over the events of the night before. Brittany cringed when she thought of what she had said to him at the party in that Photo Booth. She had meant it at the time, but she realized now it was a defense mechanism. She didn’t want to be the one to get between brothers.
But she also couldn’t help herself around Gus, as showcased by how she shamelessly begged him to touch her last night. And the memory of him stroking himself off in front of her was going to be in her spank bank forever. They had a chemistry that she no longer thought she was strong enough to deny.
In thinking about it, she assumed he must have called his boss after their argument at the party, and that made sense. She had asked him to back off, after all. Brittany couldn’t be mad about that. She shouldn’t be.
But she was.
Brittany adjusted her outfit, pulling on some knee-length socks to wear with her sneakers. Brittany still wasn’t certain she could rock heels with her ankle, but she could definitely play into her online name.
As she checked her hair, Brittany’s phone dinged with a message from Kyle. She opened it to find a picture of the door to the hotel room she had been staying at with him—the floor now covered in shredded flowers. There were tears in the wallpaper that looked like they were done with a razor blade, scratching deeply into the walls. And taped to the door was a card with her name on it in very, very familiar writing. Kyle’s message was a simple “what the fuk?” Brittany didn’t know what to tell him. Her stalker was still in town, and he was apparently super, super pissed.
With a quick application of her “Dirty Talk” red lipstick, and a deep breath to steady herself, Brittany stepped out of the bedroom to find Gus there, his hair still damp from the shower, leaning against the kitchen counter. His eyes found her almost immediately, raking her from head to toe in a way she felt in her blood.
“So I’m not allowed to touch you, but you’re going to dress like that?”
Brittany stuck up her nose. “Like what?”
“Like every wet dream I’ve ever had come to life.”
She ignored his comment, handing him her phone.
“There’s been a development.”
He studied the picture as Brittany grabbed her small backpack and strapped it on. When she looked back at him, Gus had a frown on his face and was texting on his phone.
“Curtis is going to meet your roommate to check this out and deal with hotel security.”
Brittany nodded, feeling numb, and Gus stopped to grab her shoulders, pulling her closer.
“Hey,” he said, his voice soft and kind. “You’re safe. Curtis will handle this. The asshole’s mad because he hasn’t gotten to you yet, and we’re going to make sure he doesn’t. Don’t let him ruin your day.”
She nodded, feeling emotional but agreeing. Brittany bumped her hand into his hard chest, aiming for humor.
“Keep it in your pants, Lozano. We got a full day ahead of us.”
He held open the door for her, smirking a little, probably recognizing how full of shit she was.
“Yes, ma’am.”
They headed out onto the crowded streets of Kimball. It was Saturday, the busiest day, and even though they were blocks from the convention center, the excitement and sheer amount of people hit Brittany like a blast of hot air.
It was still a little early, though, and Brittany had plans with Min, so they walked toward the restaurant. She and Gus weren’t speaking, weren’t touching, but Brittany couldn’t think of anything else. That’s how aware she was of his presence. Lord, she was going out of her mind.
They somehow made it to Insatiable, and Brittany stepped inside, glancing around for Min, who she found tucked away in the corner.
She turned to Gus, who was casing the place as if masked gunmen were going to come for her at any angle.
“This is supposed to be a private girlfriend brunch. No boys allowed.”
Gus’s eyebrows went up. “I’ll find a place at the bar if that makes you more comfortable.”
She nodded. “Good.”
“But you should probably know I’m already hard for you again.”
He was doing this on purpose, annoyed that she hadn’t let him touch her earlier, and also distracting her from the latest from her stalker. She knew it, but it still made her heart beat like crazy. She glanced down at his crotch, then immediately glanced away.
“Fucking Christ, Gus.”
“Can’t help it. You drive me crazy, killer.”
“Go douse yourself in cold water or something.”
Without looking back, she strode toward Min, doing her best to keep her shoulders straight and look unaffected. But when she finally made it to Min, she practically collapsed in her chair, putting her head on the table. Min was surprised.
“Rough morning?”
“You could say that.”
“Anything to do with that gorgeous mountain of a man you walked in with who is currently fucking you with his eyes from the bar.”
Brittany sat up, looking only at Min, who was definitely amused by the situation.
“Min, I don’t know what to do.”
“Looks like he has a few ideas.”
“It wasn’t supposed to be like this. He’s Robbie’s brother. What am I doing?”
“I’m hoping you’re realizing that you’re worthy of love and affection and great sex, just like everyone else. And if that’s the man who gets your motor running, maybe the drama is worth the ride.”
Before Brittany could answer, the third chair at their table is slid out, and a large man in a chef’s jacket and a ponytail collapsed into it.
“I hate my life,” he announced.
Min smiled at him. “You’re just saying that because you hate working mornings.”
“Brunch is an overrated invention of the wealthy looking to waste their money on something they could just eat at home but instead will lord over others in social media posts filled with pretension.”
“At least you get to charge them a lot?” Brittany offered. Theo turned his dark eyes to her, and Brittany smiled. They had become friendly over the year since Min and Hayden had started dating, the two of them thrown together often in social situations. Brittany knew that Min secretly harbored fantasies of her and Theo getting together, but Brittany had never felt anything more than brotherly affection for the volatile chef.
Unlike a certain broody security guard who she could feel glaring at her from the bar.
“Brittany,” Theo said. “Have you fixed your palate yet?”
She snorted. “Theo, I can’t fix a genetic predisposition to hate cilantro.”
“Have you even tried?”
“Not once.”
“It’s a shame the flavor combinations you’re missing out on.”
“The second you make soap taste good, I swear I’ll eat it.”
Shaking his head, he turned back to Min.
“Min, you have to convince my brother she isn’t working out.”
Min didn’t even blink. “Rosa? I heard she’s amazing. I heard the dinner service she covered for you ran the smoothest the restaurant has ever run.”
“First of all, restaurants are supposed to be chaos. Second, do you know what she did?”
“Ground up your wagyu?” Brittany guessed.
“Baked pasta without cooking it first?” Min grinned.
“Cut your onions unevenly?”
“Used canola instead of grapeseed?”
“I know you’re making fun of me,” Theo said. “But all of those are horrifying, and I need you to stop before I get nightmares.”
Min took pity on him. “What did she do that was so horrible?”
“She put ricotta in the ravioli.”
Brittany blinked, meeting Min’s confused eyes.
“And that’s… bad?”
“It’s a simple recipe. Ricotta changes the entire concept of the dish.”
“Could you… serve both ravioli?”
But Gus wasn’t listening, already on to the next grievance. “She moved all the utensils in the kitchen. Said it was better for the workflow, whatever that means.”
Min was bewildered. “Umm…”
“And she changed the spice racks around. Grouped them by flavor profile. Who does that?”
“I’m not seeing the problems here, Theo.”
“It’s just not working out. You’ll have to trust me. She needs to go.”
Min gently placed her hand over his.
“Theo, she is the fourth chef you’ve tried in this position. She’s damn good, she has amazing ideas, and she puts up with your shit. You can’t fire her.”
“I’m not that difficult to work with.”
There was really nothing to say to that, so both women stayed silent. Theo slapped the table.
“Fine. But when my kitchen is a disorganized mess because of her, you’re the one that has to help me fix it.”
“Deal.”
With that, he was gone, off to torture the new chef in fun and exciting ways, and Brittany silently congratulated herself on not going into the culinary industry.
Picking up her menu, she glanced over to the door just as it opened. And that’s when her whole body froze.
“Holy shit,” Min said. “Is that Robbie?”
It was. Robbie had just walked into the restaurant, his arm around a young, beautiful,
Asian woman that Brittany recognized as a makeup influencer she had met briefly at a networking event a few months ago, known as Diamond. Her eyes flew to where Gus was sitting to see he had spotted his brother as well, his whole body stiff.
As Brittany stared, Robbie spotted Gus, and they walked toward him. Brittany wondered if Gus had this planned for the day before dismissing the idea. This must just be the universe fucking with both of them.
“Brittany?”
Brittany snapped her attention back to Min, who nodded at the server who must have approached at some point.
“Ready to order?”
Brittany pointed to the omelet on the menu and then took a deep sip of her coffee, trying to balance her nerves.
“Are you okay?”
Brittany heard the sympathy in Min’s voice and nodded, keeping her own voice down.
“Yeah, I’m just worried about Gus.”
Min’s eyes went behind her, back to the trio at the bar.
“He seems to be handling it well.”
Brittany glanced over to see now that Diamond was laughing at something Gus said, placing her hand on his arm, and while it was a perfectly innocent touch, Brittany couldn’t help but feel something clawing inside her at the sight. Something ugly.
As she watched, the three of them were led to a table. Apparently her bodyguard was going to use this opportunity to have brunch with his brother. Which was fine, but the way the influencer was sizing up Gus made Brittany’s blood heat.
Brittany hadn’t felt jealous the entire time she dated Robbie. Women would flirt with him on stream, at parties, and everywhere he went, attention seemed to follow him. And that never bothered her. It was simply part of who he was.
But now this beautiful woman was laughing at something Gus said, was watching him with a look that said that she wasn’t stupid, she knew quality when she saw it, and Gus was the absolute best man at that table.
And all Brittany could do was sit there and stew about it.
“Brittany, you can’t cause a scene here just because some woman touched your man.”
“She’s not just some woman,” Brittany shot back. “Diamond’s one of the most popular cosmetic influencers in the country. She does work for charities, works with brands on their sustainability practices, hosts functions to benefit the homeless.”
“Oh. She’s perfect.”
“Yes.”
“I hate her.”
Brittany snorted, happy to have a loyal friend like Min, even during these more irrational moments.
“You wouldn’t if you met her. She’s one of the kindest people I’ve ever met in my life.”
“Ugh, the worst.”
“She’s perfect for Gus.”
“Hey.” Brittany looked up at Min’s sharp tone of voice. “If Gus likes her more than you, then he can go fuck himself. I don’t care how nice she is, or how much good she’s doing in the world.”
“You have to say that because you’re my friend.”
“No, I get to say it because you’re my friend.”
Their food arrived then, saving Brittany from the overwhelming feeling engulfing her. Once the server left, Min got right back into it.
“I also find it interesting that of the three people there, you’re more worried she’s flirting with Gus than you are that she’s clearly dating your ex.”
That made Brittany pause. When she had first heard Robbie had cheated on her, the thought of him dating other women the entire time they were together had made her feral. But now, confronted in person with a woman he was clearly getting naked with or wanted to get naked with, she didn’t care. All that was running through her head was that woman’s hand on Gus’s arm, touching him like she was allowed, an arm that only hours earlier Brittany had fantasized about wrapping around her while she ground herself in Gus’s lap.
Brittany dropped her head in her hands with despair.
“What the fuck am I doing?”
Min gave her a sympathetic look. “Eating breakfast.”
“And then?”
“And then you’re going to go make sure that man knows he’s claimed.”
“Am I even allowed to claim him?”
“Brittany, I don’t know how you keep missing these cues, but from where I’m sitting, I think he desperately wants you to.”
Brittany finally took a bite of her food, thinking. Her options were to pretend that everything was fine, to play it all casual and not get mad when he looked at other completely perfect and gorgeous women. Or she had to tell him she wanted to try being together, and that meant other women can’t touch him.
She stood up suddenly, not sure what she was doing but knowing she needed a second alone.
“I need the bathroom.”
“Are you okay?”
“Yeah, I just need a minute.”
She beat a hasty escape to one of the single-stall restrooms in the joint, breathing deeply as she paced the floor. It was only a moment before there was a knock at the door. She yelled, tired of all people everywhere.
“Occupied.”
“Brittany.”
She’d recognize that voice anywhere. She unlocked the door, opening it a few inches to stare up into Gus’s hard, unsmiling face.
“Let me in, killer.”
She stared at him a moment, and he let her, giving her that time to think, not rushing her until she finally pulled the door open the rest of the way and he stepped inside.
“What are you doing, Britt?”
“I’m in the bathroom. What do you think I’m doing?”
“Are you okay?”
Brittany looked away from him, leaning against the sink and crossing her arms.
“I’m fine. Having a great time. The best.”
“Anyone ever tell you that you suck at lying?”
“Everyone I’ve ever met.”
He nodded, moving closer and leaning over her, caging her near the sink as he propped his hands lean on either side of her.
“Why are we in here?” he asked.
“You let her touch you.”
Brittany knew it was going to sound ridiculous, and it definitely did, but she couldn’t help it. The moment kept replaying in her mind, making her angrier with each repetition.
Gus lifted a hand and touched her cheek gently, stroking back toward her ear.
“Diamond is a toucher. She doesn’t mean anything by it.”
“She shouldn’t be touching you.”
“Oh yeah?” His hand cupped the back of her head, burying itself in her hair, and he leaned so close she could feel his breath on her lips. “Why’s that?”
Brittany thought about it, realizing something stupid and wonderful. He was hers, and she didn’t want someone else touching him, and she no longer cared if that was weird or over the top. She stared at Gus, her eyes wide with shock, her mouth a little open, and he must have realized her thought process because he was smiling a little.
“We haven’t even kissed yet,” is what she ended up saying.
“Brittany, when I kiss you, I’m not going to stop. So you better be absolutely certain this is what you want, because there is no going back for me.”
She stared at him, still trying to figure out how this happened, still trying to figure out how she missed all the signs, but one thing became very, suddenly clear.
“Gus, if you don’t kiss me right now, I’m going to punch you in the nuts.”
He breathed a sigh of relief. “I thought you’d never say that.”
And then his mouth met hers, and she was fucking done. Fireworks exploded in her head as the hand at the back of her head held her firmly in place, tilting her so he could get a better angle. His tongue invaded, claiming her mouth, stealing her breath, marking her as his in a way that made her want to melt into a puddle. Her hands went to his chest, then slid up, wrapping around his neck and pulling to get him closer, closer, wanting to feel his heat and electricity, wanting him practically inside her, engulfing her, never wanting him to stop.
He reached down with his free hand, grabbing behind one leg and pulling her up, landing her butt on the narrow ledge of the sink and then stepping between her legs.
“You drive me fucking crazy,” he growled in her ear. “With your red fucking lips and these tiny shorts and those fuck-me knee-highs. I’ve been dying to feel your skin since you left me this morning. Can I please touch you?”
“God, yes,” she moaned into his mouth, pulling up his T-shirt so he could feel her nylon socks against his skin as she wrapped her legs around him, and he groaned.
His hand dipped low on her back to keep her balanced against him and then dipped lower, sliding under her waistband, slipping into her panties and grabbing a handful of her ass and squeezing. Brittany’s nails dug into his back where she was gripping him, gasping for breath as his mouth left hers to find her cheek, her ear, her neck, giving each place its own little bite.
“You taste so fucking good. Tell me you’re wet for me, Brittany. I need to feel you.”
She couldn’t answer, so lost in the sensation of his teeth nipping her just above her breast, the buttons of her blouse somehow open and exposing her bra. His hand on her ass slipped out of her shorts, and she felt its loss for only a moment before he zipped open her shorts and slid his hand down exactly where she needed him. He caught her moan with a kiss, swallowing it.
“Keep it down, killer. I’m guessing this would ruin Theo’s yelp rating.”
But Brittany couldn’t think about anything but Gus. “Touch me before I die.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
His whole hand cupped her, grabbing her, his grip pulsing on her in a way that she would’ve said she hated in concept but in practice had her back arching, her breasts thrusting in his face. He gladly took the hint, sucking one nipple into his mouth.
“That’s it. Take what you need.”
His fingers began moving in circles, slow to start and then speeding up until she was panting, her nails gripping his shoulder, the wave of sensation rising within her as she thought of how this was Gus’s hand touching her, Gus’s mouth on her breast, Gus’s hard cock pressed into her thigh.
And then he slid a finger inside her and she saw stars.
Her breath stuttered as he rubbed against that magic spot, the one that very few men had found at this point in Brittany’s life, and he must have sensed her spiral because he slowed his finger.
“Not yet, killer,” he breathed into her breast. “I’m not done. You can’t come yet. You have to wait a little longer.”
“I can’t.”
“You can and you will. I promise I’ll make it worth your while.”
Her fingers clenched in his hair, not letting him move from where he was teasing her nipple with his teeth, but she nodded.
With a grunt of approval, Gus moved his hand again, this time slower, stroking inside of her, teasing that spot just as his thumb found the perfect angle to drive her clit crazy. Faintly, Brittany heard herself panting, whimpering, but all she could do was hold on to him and focus on the sensations he was causing inside her. Just as he slid a second finger in, he moved to her other nipple in his mouth and sucked hard, creating a tug that ran through her entire body straight from his mouth to her pussy.
“Please,” she heard herself beg. At that moment, she couldn’t even find it in herself to be embarrassed. She just desperately needed him to make her come.
He lifted his head, looking into her eyes, and she saw everything at once: his desire, his heat, his care, and something else, something deep that she wasn’t quite ready for.
“Come for me, Brittany. I want to watch you break apart.”
He punctuated his words by thrusting a third finger inside her, hard and deep and at the exact angle she needed to explode.
She was lost to her shivers, her muscles contracting around his fingers, her wetness sliding between them as he kept working that spot, not letting her move away, watching her every reaction as he held Brittany tight against him. And when she finally fell limp in his arms, he cradled her to his chest, matching his breath with hers, the smell of him filling her every sense, and she realized with a panic that she was not going to be able to let this man walk away. There was no getting over him if he decided to leave.
Dazed from both the orgasm and the revelation, Brittany looked up to meet his eyes, realizing vaguely that his fingers were still inside her, that his other arm was keeping her balanced against the sink. Her red lipstick was smudged on his face, and he was looking at her with such a tender expression she was certain her heart would break.
“You did so well,” he whispered, pulling his fingers out of her, out of her panties, and she whimpered with the loss even as all of her bones felt like liquid. As she watched, he raised his hand to his mouth, sucking a finger inside, tasting her juices while never taking his eyes on her and she felt desire flicker inside her again.
He removed his finger from his mouth with a pop and then held his hand toward her, waiting. Not saying anything, but he didn’t need to. She instinctively opened her mouth, and he dipped his middle finger inside, letting her taste herself. She let her tongue wrap around his finger, moaning at how dirty the act itself made her feel. The twitch she felt between her legs, where his cock was pressing against his jeans, let her know that he felt the same way.
Brittany reached down to touch him, but he stepped back before she could make contact, his other finger still in her mouth, now holding her there.
“People are probably looking for us.” His voice was raspy, torn, clearly wanted to stay in that bathroom forever, and boy, was she eager to agree. “We should go before they get more suspicious.”
And then he stepped back, his finger slipping from her mouth down to her waist to help steady her as she lost the anchor of his body, helping her back down to her feet. With shaky hands, she buttoned up her shorts, turning to check her makeup, her hair, and grimacing as she realized Min was definitely going to know what had happened. Brittany had that ‘just got my back blown out’ look to her, and there was no way she was going to be able to hide it.
In the mirror, she watched Gus adjust himself, running his hands through his hair to try to repair the damage she had done with her hands buried in it, wiping his face where her lipstick had lived up to the hype and stained his skin. Their eyes met in the mirror.
“Don’t let her touch you again.” Brittany’s voice sounded suddenly loud in the bathroom, but she couldn’t help it.
He met her glare with a calm look. “Stop flirting with Theo.”
“Theo flirts with parked cars.”
“He can flirt with anyone else. Just not you. Not anymore.”
There was a challenge in his eyes as if he expected her to lose her temper of this control he was trying to establish. But she wasn’t angry. She almost craved it, craved him claiming her as his so thoroughly that no one would question it.
“Deal.”
Gus nodded once, and with a final glance raking over her body, he unbolted the bathroom and opened the door.
Only to find Robbie standing there, looking pissed as hell.
“Nothing going on, huh?” Robbie sneered, betrayal and anger and a lot of other petty emotions crossing his face, his jaw locked, his eyes on Gus.
Gus’s jaw clenched, but otherwise his expression stayed the same.
“Things have changed.”
“No fucking shit.” Robbie took a step forward into Gus’s space, a move that was threatening and male and everything Brittany hated about men. Gus stood his ground, letting his brother get closer.
“If you need to hit me, go ahead and hit me.”
“I need you to stop fucking my ex, Gus.”
“That’s not up to you anymore, Robbie.”
Robbie really didn’t like that, and Brittany wasn’t interested in having some stupid fight ruin her post-orgasm euphoria, so she slid closer, standing near Gus.
“Don’t be a dick, Robbie.”
“You’re one to talk. Hopping from brother to brother. Guess I should’ve known when I first took you home. Couldn’t take your eyes off of him, from what I recall.”
Brittany’s memory of meeting Gus for the first time was Robbie introducing them and then ditching her to stream for hours. Gus chatted with her at the time, served her some lemonade, and seemed more like he pitied her than anything else.
Brittany really should’ve seen the red flags then.
Gus maneuvered himself between her and Robbie.
“You don’t talk to her like that,” he said.
“Or what? You’re going to hit me?”
“Or I’m going to teach you the lesson in manners you should’ve learned a really long time ago, Robbie.”
Brittany grabbed Gus’s arm just as movement behind Robbie caught her eye. There was a small, Latinx woman in a chef’s jacket, her hair pulled up into a dark bun, holding a kitchen knife and looking pissed as hell.
“Look, dickwads,” she said. “I don’t know what’s going on here, but if you don’t get your asses the fuck out of this restaurant and deal with whatever male machismo bullshit this is far away from here, I’m going to call the cops and then show you why I got high marks in knife skills in culinary school.”
Brittany gaped at her, instantly falling in love with her energy. And then Theo appeared, looming behind her from the hall.
“You heard her,” he said, his voice devoid of his usual exasperating playfulness. “Your food is in boxes. Take it elsewhere, and don’t come back until you sort this shit out.”
For a moment, it looked like Robbie and Gus weren’t listening, hadn’t heard anything for the last minute or so. But then Gus very deliberately turned his head to where Brittany was standing behind him and held out his hand to her. She took it on instinct, and he pulled her out of the bathroom, down the hall toward the exit. As they were passing Robbie, he couldn’t take his eyes off Gus.
“This really how you want to do this?”
“It’s the only way you’ve left me, Robbie.”
Keeping a firm grip on her hand, Gus pulled Brittany with him out of the bathroom hall, stopping to say something to Theo that Brittany didn’t hear. When they reached the dining room, Gus headed for the door, but Brittany tugged his hand until he glanced back.
“Min.”
Gus nodded to the front of the restaurant, where Min was standing holding a couple to-go boxes and Brittany’s bag. Brittany allowed him to pull her closer to the door, where Min smirked at her, her eyes sliding down to where Gus still had a grip on Brittany’s hand.
“You were gone for a while. Everything okay?”
“There may have been a bit of a scene.”
“In a good way or a bad way.”
“Both.” She and Gus said the word at the same time and then stared at each other. Min snorted.
“Well, let’s go before Theo starts throwing bread around. He doesn’t like people ruining the vibe of his restaurant.”
They stepped outside, and Brittany let the sun hit her, feeling warm and luscious after such a weird, tense encounter.
“Didn’t he once have a shouting match with a food blogger who gave him a bad review while sitting in the dining room?”
“He only likes it when he’s the one causing drama.”
Outside, Gus stepped away to give her a moment with Min, who handed Brittany her bag and box of food.
“So,” Min said in a suspiciously innocent tone. “Anything you want to talk about? Or are we going to pretend everything’s the same as always?”
Brittany loved Min, but really, this was ridiculous.
“As I recall, you didn’t even tell me someone broke into your hotel room and trashed the place, much less that you were hooking up with your sworn nemesis until you both had broken up.”
“Fine. Throw my own actions in my face. Be that way.”
They smiled at each other, and then both went in for a hug.
“I love you, you know.”
“I know.”
Min laughed and pulled back. She glanced at Gus and then got serious.
“But for real, if you need anything, if it gets too much, or he starts being an ass or something, call me.”
“You’ll be my first text. Ride or die. Accomplice to arson.”
“That’s all I ask.”
One more quick hug, and then Min headed off with a wave, leaving Brittany and Gus alone for the first time since she came on his fingers in the bathroom. Suddenly not sure what to do with her hands, she clasped them together in front of her.
“So,” she ventured. “How’s your morning going?”
The corner of his mouth twitched. “A bit of a mixed bag, to be honest. How about you?”
Before she could answer, the door to Insatiable opened, and Diamond stepped out. She blinked at them, clearly surprised to find that they were still there, but then steeled herself and approached.
“Hey. You have time to talk for a minute?”
Brittany felt her stomach drop. Did she want to talk with the woman Robbie was dating? The answer was obviously no, but here she was.
“Honestly, I don’t have a lot of time. I have to get to the convention center.”
“It’ll only take a minute.”
Brittany peered around her.
“Where’s Robbie?”
“He left out the back.”
“Did he send you out here for this?”
“No.”
Finally, Brittany nodded, stepping away from Gus to be away from the door, somewhere not necessarily private, but about as private as Brittany was willing to get.
Diamond started talking once they settled.
“I didn’t know.”
Brittany blinked at her. “You didn’t know what?”
“That he had cheated on you. I wouldn’t have given him the time of day if I had known. I don’t fuck with cheaters.”
Brittany nodded, trying to process. She had never really blamed the women Robbie had hooked up with for his cheating, so it wasn’t like she felt that Diamond owed her an apology. But Diamond clearly felt that way, so Brittany was willing to listen.
Diamond continued. “We were dating when the… incident happened with his equipment. He told me you were crazy, unhinged. And I believed him at first. But I started asking around and doing some digging and finally connected with someone who told me the real timeline of your breakup.”
Brittany felt awkward, not knowing what to say. “Okay.”
“I just wanted to say I’m sorry. For believing him. Sorry that he treated you like that.”
Brittany sighed a little. There was no relief here, probably because Diamond wasn’t the one she wanted an apology from.
“He’s the one that cheated, he’s the one that should apologize.”
Diamond nodded, relieved.
“I dumped him when I found out. A man with a history of cheating lies like that to your face, there’s no way to trust him afterward.”
“But you’re here with him?”
Diamond looked a little embarrassed. “He said he wanted a chance to get me back, and in a weak moment, I said yes. And then he threw that scene in there. I told him to lose my number.”
“For what it’s worth, you deserve better.”
“So do you, but I suspect you’ve known that for a while.” Diamond glanced at where Gus was on the sidewalk, keeping his distance so they could talk privately, but staying close enough in case Brittany suddenly needed saving or something. Diamond leaned closer.
“He’s a good one.”
Brittany glanced at Gus. “He is.”
“But he loves Robbie.”
“I know.”
Diamond nodded, and Brittany pulled her into a hug.
After that, Diamond said her goodbyes, stopping to say something to Gus, and left with a wave. Brittany gave him a curious look.
“What was that about?”
“Nothing important. We should go.”
Brittany glanced at her phone.
“Shit, I’m running late.”