Chapter 41
LUKE
“Derek, there you are,” Chris, the producer, called.
I stared at Aspen. Her mouth hung open and tears slid down her cheeks. She wiped at them and took a breath.
Shit. Now? Now Chris wanted to talk to me? When I had to explain to Aspen what I’d done and why, but I couldn’t. I had no choice but to turn around, paste on a smile, all the while I was angry and hurt and every fucking emotion at once. I shook Chris’s hand.
This was why I was here. This was the moment.
I took Aspen’s shaking hand and introduced her.
“It’s great to meet you,” he told her, then gave me his full attention. “It’s official, the gossip about you was wrong.”
“It usually is,” I replied, through gritted teeth.
“The senator told me you were here.” He smiled, slapped me on the shoulder. “Let’s talk Living Dangerously and your role in it. Since your stint in rehab was gossip, filming starts in India. Got your passport handy?”
I squeezed Aspen’s fingers. Holy shit. I got it. I got exactly what I wanted. The film role.
She pulled free. I looked to her, wanting to explain. To tell her the truth. She smiled brightly. “Congratulations. You got exactly what you wanted.”
“Let’s get a drink and talk logistics and malaria shots ‘cause I need you on a plane in forty-eight hours,” Chris said, completely unaware of the undercurrent of emotion between me and Aspen.
She took the opportunity to leave, fleeing out the open front doors.
As Chris led me back into the party, I watched Aspen disappear.
She’d fulfilled her role. Her part was over. As she said, I got exactly what I wanted. Then why did it feel like I lost everything?