Page 104 of Just for the Cameras
“You live in her area?” he asks. “Not quite the kind of upscale living I’m sure you’re used to.”
I rub my lips together, trying not to shove his glasses through his skull. “Why don’t you mind your own fucking business?”
His eyes widen, and Maple quickly moves in close to me, placing her hand on my chest. “It’s fine, Hank. I have things to discuss with Graydon.”
He eyes us, and I dare him to challenge me.
Fucking dare him.
After a few seconds, he nods and then takes a step back. “I’ll catch you tomorrow.”
“Yup, see you tomorrow,” she says and then nudges me in the direction of the parking lot, but I give him one more glare before I take off with Maple at my side.
We make our way in silence until we reach my truck. I move to the passenger side and open the door for her, then offer my hand to help her up into the truck, not expecting her to take it, but when she does, there’s a sense of relief that pushes down the anger in my chest.
I set her bag down next to her feet and then shut her door as she buckles up.
When I get settled on my side, I start the truck and pull out of the parking lot.
“You know, he’s a good guy,” Maple says, making me want to twist the steering wheel in half.
“I’m sure,” I say through a clenched jaw because he’s the last person I want to talk about.
“He was one of the reasons why I was able to adjust so easily when I was in Peru,” she continues, ramping up the jealousy that I didn’t even know I possessed until this fucking woman came into my life.
But I swallow it back because I know for certain that it won’t help the situation. I’m not even sure what I want to get from this, from her, but what I do know is that showing jealousy and telling her how I want to rip that fuck’s nuts off won’t help me in any way.
So I decide to go for a different tactic that is way out of my wheelhouse.
“You’ve never told me about Peru.”
I can feel her eyes flash to me in surprise, because yeah, I guess we haven’t really talked about anything too personal. We’ve just been barking at each other.
“Oh, what do you want to know?”
I shrug. “Why did you go in the first place?”
“It was the opportunity of a lifetime,” she says in a dreamy voice. “When I was studying in college, the dream was always to get out in the wild and study the animals in their natural habitat, so when the opportunity came about, I was beside myself, hoping I would get picked.”
“How long were you there, again?”
“Three years. Life was so different. Slower, less chaotic. It made me see how…cluttered my life was here. Hence why my apartment wassparsein your eyes.”Colorlessandemptywould be my chosen descriptors, which simply don’t match this woman. “There were many days when I would just sit and observe, feeling nature surrounding me in the best way possible. Of course, there were days when I missed home, missed my family and friends, and that’s where Hank filled in and kept me comfortable.” Don’t like the sound of that. “So yeah, we have a bond because we went through such a unique experience together.”
I nod, not really wanting to talk about him at all.
“He’s protective,” she continues. “He was in Peru, and he is here now.”
“I can see that,” I say, keeping my eyes on the road.
“I told him that you were a good guy.” That causes my brow to raise. “Because he was asking about you. Wondering what I saw in you.”
“He asked that?” I shoot my eyes toward her. “Did you tell him it was a PR relationship?”
She shakes her head. “No, I signed an NDA, so I didn’t tell him. But he was confused because he didn’t understand what we had in common.”
“That’s none of his fucking business. Did you tell him that?”
“No,” she answers. “But I told him I saw a kindness in you that you don’t always show to everyone. That you’re protective as well, and even though there might be a preconceived notion of the person you are from your appearance alone, you’re not who you seem.”
