ALL NIGHT I have obsessed over Gia Whitt’s Insta like a crazed stalker, hoping to spot what she and Zayn were doing on their date tonight. I wish I hadn’t overheard Gia telling Cindy about it because then I could have spent my evening blissfully ignorant instead of my brain picturing a million scenarios involving Gia and Zayn.
“Do you want any more of the rice?” Bella asks, eyeing the container of rice sitting on the coffee table. When I shake my head, she picks it up and shovels the rest of the contents onto her plate. “Damn, Vivi. You need to give the refresh button a rest.”
“Ugh,” I groan as I lay my phone down and pick up my half-eaten plate of chicken fried rice. “I can’t believe Zayn’s out on a date with her.”
She frowns. “Me either. He’s lost some serious points with me after I found out he’s been sexting with Gia. That’s just fucking disgusting.”
“Tell me about it,” I grumble. “It’s a nightmare.”
“I bet. I’ve never even slept with the man, and the thought of him with anyone other than you turns my stomach, especially with that bitch, Gia.”
I eat a bite and then say, “I don’t get why she hasn’t posted something yet on her social media. The whole point of forcing Zayn into dating her was to boost her platforms because she knows people would love to see photos of him outside of playing football because he’s so notoriously private. I don’t understand why she’s not bragging for the world to see about this already.”
“I’m sure it’s coming, but knowing Gia, she’s waiting for something gasp-worthy to gain traction on her accounts. We both know how thirsty she is for attention. She’s waiting to post the right photo to get as much of it as she can in one pop.”
I roll my eyes. “She’s a fucking fame-whore.”
“That she is,” Bella agrees. “She doesn’t act for the money because we now know her family is loaded. Gia wants to be somebody, and she doesn’t like waiting for that to happen. She wants instant popularity, and she believes Zayn is her ticket to get it.”
“I hate that she found a way to get what she wanted through her grandfather.”
“I know, and I doubt Zayn would’ve ever agreed to dating her after the way he shot her down when she hit on him so openly the first time she met him.”
I sigh as I hit refresh yet again. “I would like to believe that, but given they’ve been sexting, I don’t know if I ever truly knew Zayn at all. He could’ve just been a jerk to her before for my benefit, but now that he’s down with me, he feels free to move on and take Gia up on her offer.”
Bella’s pretty face sours. “I would like to think Zayn is a good guy, and Gia is just spouting off a bunch of bullshit when she knows you’ll hear it since you told her Zayn isn’t interested in her.”
My brows draw in. “She still thinks Zayn is my uncle, so she would have no reason to try to make me jealous if she believes that. I think she enjoys showing off, and it doesn’t matter who it’s to.”
“You’re right about that,” Bella agrees as she finishes the last bite of her food.
I hit refresh once more and then sigh. “I think I’m going to head to bed because otherwise, I’m only going to drive myself batty staring at this phone.”
“It’s only nine o’clock,” she points out.
I shrug as I pick up my plate and carry it to the kitchen. “Might as well get caught up on my sleep because we get up so damn early.”
“This is true,” Bella agrees. “Good night.”
I head to the bedroom Bella and I share. The room isn’t nearly as big as the one I had back at Zayn’s place, but there’s enough room for two twin beds and a nightstand, which is all the room Bella and I need. I tug my shirt over my head and shimmy out of my pants before I toss them into my laundry hamper. After slipping into a pair of sleeping shorts and a tank top, I make my way into the bathroom to brush my teeth.
My fingers itch to hit refresh on my phone as I stare at it while I scrub my teeth. I mentally scold myself for obsessing over Zayn and Gia’s date, knowing I should stop, but I can’t help myself. I have to know what they’re doing.
I spit some of the toothpaste into the sink and then rise it down before I give into the urge and hit refresh on Gia’s Instagram. I gasp the moment my eyes land on a new photo, and as expected, it’s of her and Zayn. I examine the photo, and my eyes zero in on Zayn’s large hand on the bare flesh of Gia’s lower back as he leads her into some nightclub. Gia’s all smiles as she gazes up at Zayn, like he lights up her entire world.
Makes me want to fucking puke.
Zayn doesn’t seem to return the same admiration because he’s not even sparing a glance in Gia’s direction. His gray eyes are hard and focused in front of him. He doesn’t look like he’s enjoying the date at all and is counting down the minutes until it’s over.
At least that’s something or it could be he’s wanting to hurry and get Gia back to his place so she can do all the nasty shit she’s been texting him about.
The crowd of people around them is all staring at the two of them with an expression of astonishment. Obviously, Gia isn’t the one taking the photo, so I imagine it’s some friend of hers whose job it is to follow Gia around and snap photos to post on her social media. Gia is getting what she wants—instant fame courtesy of being on Zayn’s arm.
Seeing the two of them together causes a strange sensation in my chest—a crushing pain I’ve never felt before. Damn Zayn for hurting me. I wish I’d never slept with him. People believed him to be an uncontrolled animal around women. Maybe they were right because right now he’s breaking my heart by being with someone other than me.
Bella nudges my leg with hers, pointing out how my leg has been bouncing, a nervous habit I developed back in middle school and could never shake. “Are you sure this is a good idea? You can just go to the premier with me and blow Robert off.”
I shake my head. “No. I can’t back out of this now. Besides, Robert will be here any minute.”
Bella shoves her hands on her hips, alerting me she’s about to say something sassy. “I get you want to shove it in Zayn’s face if he’s out with someone, you can go out to, but what if Zayn goes apeshit and beats the hell out of Robert?”
“He won’t. If he’s as into Gia as the way she’s been bragging at work since they went out to that club together, he won’t give a shit I’m out with Robert. Zayn has clearly moved on, so I need to do the same.”
“Moving on with someone new, maybe, but Robert was a dick to you once, so I don’t think he deserves a second chance with you.”
While I don’t disagree with Bella, I don’t want to admit out loud I’m only using Robert for tonight and have no intention of getting back together with him. Also, having Robert with me is a deterrent to keep my director at bay. I have had no run-ins with him on set, but I’ve kept my distance and made sure to never be alone with the man again.
Bella stares at me with a frown on her face. “I know Zayn hurt you, but reopening the old wound Robert left you with may make things worse. I don’t want you to make an already bad situation even more horrible for you.”
I give her a sad smile. “I appreciate you being concerned, but I promise, I can handle Robert.”
“Are you sure?” she asks.
I nod and open my mouth to reassure her when a knock on the door grabs our attention.
Bella turns back to me. “Last chance. I can tell him to go fly a fucking kite if you want me to?”
I shake my head. “I got this. Everything will be okay.”
I rush over to the door, minding the bottom of my long black gown carefully not to step on it and ruin it. Bella again hooked me up with another exquisite dress from wardrobe and took the time to help me curl my hair and apply flawless makeup. I feel beautiful, very princess-like in the sleek material, and I hope it’s enough to remind Zayn how much he’s losing by letting me go.
I swing the door open, and Robert’s brown eyes widen when his eyes land on me. “Wow. Vivi…you’re stunning.”
I smile at his compliment. Robert’s never referred to me as stunning before. Cute? Yes, but never stunning. But in all fairness, this is the most dressed up he’s ever seen me.
“Thanks,” I tell him as I eye the plain black suit that hangs a little too loose on his frame. He doesn’t fill his clothes out quite like Zayn does, but in all fairness, I’m not sure many men would look as good as Zayn does in formal attire.
Robert pushes his brown hair over from across his forehead and then readjusts his gold-rimmed glasses as his gaze bounces from me to Bella and then back to me. “I feel slightly underdressed. Should I have rented a tux?”
“You look fine.” I pick up the small black clutch on the table next to the door that holds my debit card and phone. “You ready?”
“Yeah. Okay. Let’s go,” he answers.
“I’ll meet you there,” Bella calls as I step out of the door and tell her goodbye.
We sit in an odd silence in Robert’s small rental car as he drives us to the event hall where the premier party for Love in the Sands is being held. It’s been a few months since I’ve been alone with Robert, and the usual ease I felt being around him has been replaced with tension. He and I have a lot of resolved issues, and the thought of working through them right now exhausts me. Getting back with Robert isn’t an option—not after what he did to me. I don’t think I have it in me to forgive him and move past the fact he wrote me off so easily. I no longer trust him, and that’s a must in any relationship.
Robert rocks his head on his neck and then clears his throat. “Are you excited to see the final product of the show? I know it’s been your dream to see one of your projects on the big screen.”
I narrow my eyes, and I turn to look at him. “This isn’t my project. I was merely a glorified gopher, getting coffee, keeping the stars dressed, and cleaning up the set. I can’t take any credit for doing anything important artistically wise for this show, so don’t call it my project.”
I shouldn’t be so snappy with him, but when he says stupid shit like this, it’s further proof he never listened to me. Simply working on the production of a project isn’t my dream. My dream is to become a screenwriter and direct the stories I create myself. I’m a long way off from that happening, and if Robert paid attention to me at all when I spoke about this job and how it would help me with my goals for the future, he would know right now I’m only getting my feet wet in the industry.
He flexes his fingers up off the steering wheel in a defensive pose. “Okay. I’m sorry. Let me rephrase my previous statement. Are you excited to see the final production of a show you worked on the set of?”
I nod. “Yes. I am, actually. It would be nice to see how some scenes look after the final edit.”
“Are you learning a lot?” he asks, trying to continue the conversation so we don’t go back to awkward silence. Even though I know he’s not interested in the film industry. He’s told me before he thinks the business is dumb, and I should find a different career to pursue.
I sigh. “Can we not talk about my job? I know you’re not interested, so you don’t have to pretend to be now.”
“I’m not pretending,” he argues. “I’m curious to know how you’ve been spending your time here.”
I chew on the inside of my lower lip. He doesn’t want to know the answer to that question.
Robert sighs when he realizes I’m not going to freely talk about my time here in Florida without him. “I understand you’re angry with me, Vivi, and I deserve it, but I’m here to get you back. I’m sorry I didn’t come with you, but I thought if I backed out of coming here that you would stay behind too. Things blew up in my face, and after there was no sign of you coming back because you wouldn’t answer my texts, I knew I screwed things up with you. I’m here to make things right between us, and I need you to give me a chance to do that.”
His words hang in the air like a looming cloud over us. If this conversation happened a few days after I arrived in Florida, I would have been more open to a reconciliation, but now I’m tangled up in this web with Zayn, and that complicates everything. My heart no longer beats for Robert because Zayn occupies every spare moment in my brain.
“It doesn’t work like that, Robert. We don’t just start our relationship over because you decide you want me back. You hurt me, and I don’t think I can get past it.” I don’t admit the entire truth to him because, frankly, informing him I’ve been sleeping with his uncle doesn’t seem like a good way to start the evening. I need things cordial between us. As petty as it is, I want Zayn to see me with Robert.
I want to piss Zayn off and give him a taste of what it’s like to see someone you’re currently…My mind trails off. What is this thing between us? We’re not exactly dating because we’ve never publicly been out together, so I guess if I had to label what we are, I guess we’re secret fuck buddies. The title feels shameful, and I don’t like it.
Robert takes a deep breath. “I still love you, Vivi, and if time is what you need, then I’ll give it to you, but I don’t plan on leaving Florida without you.”
I don’t have a rebuttal to that statement. If I admit my heart is now with someone else, I’ll have a lot of explaining to do, and now is not the time to fight with Robert.
When we arrive at the venue, I’m impressed with the sheer amount of press covering the event. There’s a long, red carpet rolled out with the logo of the show on a gigantic banner with some sponsors along one side of the carpet while a burgundy, velvet rope holds back the photographers. A multitude of flashes erupts from the cameras, and chattering of people calling for Gia and Zayn to look their way catches my attention.
I turn to look down the carpet, and my heart does a double thump as I spot Zayn, his tall frame towering over the crowd as he faces the cameras while Gia clings to his side, popping her hip out to pose for the audience.
Zayn looks spectacular in a black tuxedo and crisp white dress shirt that hides the vast array of tattoos covering his muscled arms and chest. His dark hair is slicked back, and his face is void of emotions as he allows the press to photograph him. Zayn is a beautiful man with a strong jawline that could rival any of the world’s top male models, and as Gia hoped, the public is eating up the two of them being together.
“What’s Zayn doing here?” Robert questions as he takes a few more steps toward the carpet.
I lift my chin. “He’s escorting the star of our show. That’s Gia Whitt.”
Robert nods as we step onto the carpet. “They make a good pair. Ouch!” he complains. “You’re squeezing the hell out of my arm.”
I relax my arm looped through his, trying to push away the idea of Zayn and Gia being an ‘It’ couple out of my mind. “Sorry. This dress makes me nervous.”
He chuckles. “Don’t worry. I won’t let you fall.”
“Thanks,” I tell him with a slight smile, and it’s the first time I’ve smiled at him since he’s been here in Florida.
When I turn my gaze back in Zayn’s direction, my breath catches because he’s no longer paying attention to the photographers. His gray eyes are locked on mine, and he looks pissed.
