Chapter 2
Chapter two
Leo
NOW
Istretched my arms above my head, rolling out the shoulder kinks from tiling for the past hour.
My crew had agreed to work on Thanksgiving morning since the homeowners said they’d pay us double to keep the project moving.
I still planned to make it to my parents’ house tonight for turkey and pie, but otherwise, I’d be spending most of the long holiday weekend at the jobsite.
Gathering up my tools at the end of the shift, my world tilted on its axis when I overheard a conversation between two of my crew members.
“Who do you think @theadventurousmiranda is?” Amala asked.
I halted at the mention of Miranda’s Instagram handle.
“I dunno,” Lisa replied. “But that Hawaii pic was from March, so whoever she is, she’s been in Stone’s pants a long time.”
Placing my toolbox on an empty pallet, I tried to act casual as I walked closer to the bench where they sat looking at their phones. “Hey. What are you talking about?”
“Oh, hi, Leo,” Amala said. “Just some hot celebrity goss.” She laughed lightly. “Not your thing, I know.”
“You never can tell,” I said with a shrug. Clearing my throat, I added, “You’re talking about Stone Caseman, right? … I, um, I’m a fan.”
Amala eyed me skeptically. “Really?”
“Mm-hmm.” I hung my thumbs on my belt loops.
She didn’t look convinced but answered gamely. “Well, you might be less of a fan when you find out he apparently cheated on Naomi Butler—you know they’re dating, right?—with some random hoochie mid-wannabe-influencer.”
“Oh, wow.” The shocked face I conjured wasn’t entirely contrived. Miranda had been so careful. “Do they know who the, uh, random hoochie is?”
“Nuh-uh,” Lisa replied. “Just her Insta handle. And the only thing you can tell from the profile is that she’s an action-adventure type. She doesn’t give away anything personal in the captions.”
“Her bio says she’s based in Los Angeles,” Amala put in.
I was familiar with Miranda’s Instagram feed. I looked at it more often than I probably should. In addition to amazing sunsets and lush landscapes, there were plenty of selfies. It didn’t sound like her identity was public yet, but obviously, it would be soon.
“Maybe it’s a misunderstanding,” I offered.
“Or maybe Stone is a rat bastard cheating bitch,” Amala said forcefully. “And this adventurous Miranda person is a ho.”
Ouch.
I wanted to ask more questions, but my coworkers were already looking at me like I’d been body-snatched.
After waving a quick goodbye to the crew, I hurried to my truck and pulled out my phone.
I found several Reddit forums synthesizing what happened.
Luckily, next to politics, crime, and news about bigger celebrities, the story of Stone and Miranda seemed to be a relatively niche topic.
That it wasn’t dominating my social feeds was a good sign.
But even without dominating, it was still there.
I let out a groan. I’d known something like this would happen.
As soon as Miranda started dating that dipshit, a ticking clock began. Eventually, being with someone who got famous by drinking hot sauce and cannonballing off rooftops into backyard pools was going to blow up in her face.
Especially when that someone insisted on keeping their relationship hidden.
I’d only known Miranda for two years, but our bond was already truer and deeper than any other relationship in my life.
From the beginning, she’d understood me like no one else.
Her sister Maureen joked that our closeness stemmed from the fact that Miranda and I were essentially the same person, except I was the massive thirty-six-year-old male version, and she was the spritely twenty-seven-year-old female version.
Miranda’s approach to the world mirrored my own—drink deeply from life, be happy, and express gratitude for whatever good you encounter. Don’t sweat the small stuff.
Stone coming into Miranda’s life nine months after she and I met had been a hiccup, further complicated when he started fake dating Naomi Butler, but mostly, we’d weathered it.
But ever since Miranda graduated from her MBA program and started working her first career job at a big marketing firm, something had been off. With both of us.
Things really came unglued a month ago, on Halloween.
The memory of our call that night still sat in my stomach like lead. We were as honest as we’d ever been, and we’d paid a hefty price for it. I’d clumsily said too many things she hadn’t been ready to hear.
The next day, I called her, hoping twelve hours to cool off had put us back on level ground.
Her phone rang three times before it picked up.
“Hey, man. I saw it was you, so I answered. Mir’s in the shower.”
“Stone?”
“Yeah. Is it urgent? I can grab her if it is. Or you can call back and leave a voicemail if it’s private.”
I hated it when Stone was considerate. He’d been cool with me ever since I stumbled onto his and Miranda’s relationship, trusting me to keep their secret.
And to the best of my knowledge, he was respectful of our friendship.
It annoyed me sometimes to realize he wasn’t a bad guy.
Just a thoughtless one. But I’d never apologize for wanting better than thoughtless for Miranda.
His presence in Miranda’s apartment—with her in the shower—hit me like a bitter dose of reality. After everything I’d said, she’d gone to him.
“No. No message. I’ll shoot her a text later.”
I hadn’t texted.
And neither had she.
Now it looked like I had no choice but to break the stalemate. I thought about my coworkers unknowingly calling my best friend a ho. I couldn’t sit idly by while Miranda became a target of internet trolls.
Even though I lived in Tacoma and she lived in Los Angeles, we’d been good at making that distance disappear.
I wanted her to know that no matter what was going on between us right now, I would always be in her corner.
Especially since I knew her sisters were currently out of reach, at a cabin in the middle of nowhere.
I cradled my phone in my palm. If it was awkward, so be it. She needed me.
But before I could press the dial button, it buzzed.
MIRANDA: Hey Leo. I know things are weird with us ATM. But can I call you in a sec?
ME: Of course. Weirdness can take a back seat for now. I saw what happened. Are you ok?
MIRANDA: Glad you saw. I didn’t want to have to explain. And honestly, dude, I could be having a better day *winky side-eye emoji*
At least she seemed to have a sense of humor about it.
ME: I’m really sorry. Anything I can do?
MIRANDA: That’s why I want to talk. I think I might have come up with a way to do damage control and clean this up. But I’m gonna need your help. And I want to ask in person. If it’s okay with you, I’d like to fly up for a couple days.
She needed to come here? To have a conversation? It wasn’t unlike her to travel spontaneously, but still.
ME: I’m supposed to work but I can see about getting a sub.
MIRANDA: Working Thanksgiving weekend? Shoot. I thought it would be okay.
ME: Special job. But let me check. You’re more important.
MIRANDA: Thanks L. I needed to hear that.
ME: Anytime
MIRANDA: I’ll call you in a few minutes. I’m still waiting to hear back from Stone’s PA on some things.
I took a deep breath. Just seeing his name on my screen irritated me.
ME: Is Stone with you?
MIRANDA: In Vancouver on a shoot. Closer to you than me *smiley emoji* But he and I talked this morning.
ME: Okay. Well I’m done working for the day. Just call me when you can.
MIRANDA: Thank you again. And Happy Thanksgiving.
ME: You too
The phone stayed warm in my hand as I watched the three dots appear and disappear for long minutes. I wondered what other things she’d written and erased before a message finally came through.
MIRANDA: I’ve missed you, Leo-Bear. Talk soon.