Chapter 11
Chapter Eleven
“One of my favorite movies of all time!” Annika said.
“An absolute classic,” Lana added.
Sitting on the couch, Trevon nodded. “Man, it gets me every time.” He dabbed a tear from his right eye.
Briggs looked at him.
Trevon spread his hands. “What? Nick and Liz were made for each other. It was meant to be.”
Briggs nodded. “You’re right.”
Trevon looked serious as he said, “But don’t tell everyone I cried. I’m not ashamed of my sensitive side. That doesn’t mean everyone needs to know, though.”
“Don’t worry, Uncle Trevon. We won’t tell anyone!” Cami said.
Briggs looked at all the Littles and smiled. He loved being around them, even though they all had Daddies.
Those Daddies—part of the fabled Daddy Guard—were out on assignment, helping someone. So, Athena had invited the ladies over for movie night. And she’d talked Briggs into coming over too.
Once he’d gone home, showered, and changed clothes, he’d gone right back to the mansion for pizza, popcorn, and a film.
It did his heart good to be around them, but he couldn’t help but wish Riley was there.
“I can’t believe our Daddies still aren’t back,” Iris said as she plopped down in a chair and aimed the remote at the TV. “What do you all want to watch now that the movie is over?”
She started flipping channels.
An old sitcom flickered by, followed by a random action movie and then a twenty-four-hour news station. Next came one of those celebrity gossip shows and they had a live feed on.
“Breaking news?” Iris said. “Did someone break up with someone?”
The group laughed.
But the images on the TV looked much more serious than that.
An expensive car—Ferrari, from the looks of it—was stalled in front of a tree on a dark, residential street. The front end was smashed and it didn’t take a detective to realize the driver had crashed.
“Hey, that’s Rowan Keene,” Samantha said. “Me and Kendrick just went to see his latest movie. I hope he’s okay!”
Briggs stepped closer to the screen and watched. The actor seemed to be inebriated. Blue and red lights dazzled in the night, no doubt coming from emergency vehicles that were unseen on the camera’s zoomed-in view but clearly close by.
A woman was there, seeming out of place in her sleek evening dress. Squinting, Briggs leaned in.
“Hey, is that…”
A moment passed before Athena said what Briggs had been wondering.
“Riley!”
Iris turned the volume up as Briggs stepped away as to not block anyone else’s view.
An off-camera reporter’s voice said, “Sources tell us Riley and Rowan attended a party tonight at the Beverly Hills Hotel where they had some sort of argument. Rowan left in his own car with Riley chasing him in hers. We’re not sure if that’s what led to the crash, or if alcohol was involved, but authorities are on the scene now, trying to make sense of all this. ”
Iris turned the volume down as the story switched over to some reality TV star’s dating life.
“Riley went on a date with Rowan Keene?” Annika asked.
“Annika!” Cami whispered loudly. “Shhh.”
Despite how he felt, Briggs couldn’t help but chuckle, knowing Annika was being shushed for his benefit. “It’s okay. Riley’s just a friend of mine. I barely know her.”
It was now obvious that his affections had been noticed by more than just Athena, though. The Littles had probably been talking about it quite a bit.
“Are you okay?” Athena asked him.
He waved off the notion that his answer would be anything other than yes.
“Of course. Like I said, we’re just friends. She’s free to date anyone she wants to.”
It felt like all eyes were on him, and Briggs found himself suddenly very self-conscious.
“All right, cuties. Enough TV,” Athena said. “Why don’t you all go pick a board game and we’ll play it at the kitchen table.”
The Littles cheered, got up, and hurried from the cozy den.
“But no running!” Athena called after them.
Once the sound of their feet stomping atop the hardwood floor faded, she turned her focus back on Briggs. “Are you sure you’re okay?”
“I’m all good. Seriously.” He shrugged. “It’s not like we’re together or anything.
” He flicked his eyes toward the television even though it was now dark.
“I just hope she’s okay. I’m not exactly sure where that was, but I think the crawl at the bottom of the screen said it was in Beverly Hills.
Shouldn’t be too hard to find. Maybe I should go check on her. ”
But he answered his own idea before Athena had a chance to respond.
“Nah. She’s okay. I need to give her space.”
Trevon was standing now, too. “You all good, man?”
“Yep.” He stretched and then said, “I need to get home and get some sleep so I can start back on this place nice and early in the morning. Thanks for inviting me. This was wonderful.”
He hugged Athena and then shook Trevon’s hand.
“You sure you’re good?” Trevon asked. “Need some company?”
“No. But thank you. You two are the best.”
They said goodbye and Briggs left while Athena stood on the porch and watched him walk to his car. He knew she was worried about him, but there wasn’t any reason to be.
Again, it wasn’t like he and Riley were together. They never would be. She dated movie stars like Rowan Keene. Not house painters like Briggs Mullaney.
Still, he cared about her, and hoped their friendship grew.
And he would drive through Beverly Hills, looking for her, but wouldn’t stop. He just needed to know she was okay.
For his own peace of mind.