8. Deacon
What started out as an idea to keep any food from ruining Andrea’s manicure turned into an unexpected seduction. Each small bite she took caused her to make a tantalizing hum of pleasure. Jesus, even watching her chew was turning me on.
After three bites and a drink of water, she stepped back. “I should’ve asked: do I look okay for tonight?”
“You look beautiful.” I had been struck by how stunning she was when I’d first walked into the room, but I hadn’t wanted our audience to discover how attracted I was to her. “Are you nervous?”
“A little. Although I’m sure this is hard to believe considering I put my life on reality TV, I’m more introvert than extrovert.”
I finished off her half of the sandwich and glanced at her before starting on the other one. “Most days, I’d rather be home than out too.”
Her brows rose. “I wouldn’t have pictured you a homebody, but I suppose a public image is never reflective of the real person.”
“No, it isn’t. Admittedly, in my twenties, I spent my fair share of time at parties and had more late nights than I could count. But acting like a human garbage disposal for fast food and alcohol took a toll. I started running out of breath during concerts, had trouble sleeping, and was on the edge of burnout. After turning thirty, I cleaned up my diet and started working out regularly. As a result, I turned out my best albums and tours to date. More energy, less anxiety, and found myself more present in everything I do.”
I had no idea what had me oversharing like this considering I typically kept things to myself, having learned the hard way how easily things got leaked to the press. But something about Andrea made me trust her.
“What a wonderful turning point for you. Not everyone gains that type of self-awareness to recognize when it’s time for a life change.”
She laid her hand on mine, the depths of her sincerity reflected in her eyes. Jesus, Ollie hadn’t been joking when he’d said she was special.
“Do you plan on staying in LA?” I queried, curious to find out more about this woman.
Her hand retracted. “Not any longer than I have to, but I imagine it’ll take a while to get through the divorce and settle our assets.”
“You think he’ll draw it out?”
“He’s already gone around the house putting sticky notes on all the things he’s claiming, so yeah.”
“Seriously?” How fucking petty could someone be especially when he’d been the one to turn her life upside down.
“Afraid so, but can I ask you a favor?”
Usually when someone asked me for a favor, it involved money or an introduction to someone in the business, yet when Andrea asked, I didn’t hesitate to say, “Name it.”
“Tonight we don’t talk about my ex or the impending ridiculous fight over my sofa pillows.”
My lips twitched into a grin. “Deal, but unfortunately I can’t promise you the same reprieve this evening.”
“Speaking of which, what should I expect?”
I sighed, wishing we could skip the wedding and just stay here instead. We’d turn on a movie, order pizza, and sit around talking. “On the bright side you’ll meet my mom. She’ll be over the moon that I’m bringing a date and will probably have twenty questions for you. My stepfather, Rob, will talk to you about his smoker and how he’s perfecting his barbeque sauce for ribs. My stepbrother, Bryce, will be happy to see you because, although he wants to believe his fiancée is madly in love with him, that means I’ve moved on.”
“And Nina will be a wild card?”
“Wild card is an understatement. She knows I’m bringing a plus-one, but my guess is she assumes it’s my manager or a friend.”
“She’ll be jealous to see you with me?”
“Considering it’s her wedding day, I sincerely hope not. My goal isn’t to make her jealous; it’s to quell any rumors that I’m still hung up on her. Don’t worry. We won’t spend long at the reception.”
I appreciated that his motivation was only to squash rumors and not make his ex react to him having a date.
He put all of the fixings for the sandwiches away before straightening his tie. “You ready for night one?”