“Fuck if I know, brother.” He turned to look at Jace, his eyes a swirl of emotion. “Maybe she’s figured out that love is more trouble than it’s worth.”
With that, Andre headed toward his bedroom and shut the door behind him, the quiet snick more deafening than if he’d slammed it.
TWENTY-THREE
Evan stormed into the house, seeing red. How she’d managed to drive home without breaking every traffic rule in the book was a miracle. Her knuckles ached from gripping the steering wheel so hard. How dare he? How dare Daniel talk to her like that, break her camera, throw a fucking hissy fit like he was her real lover?
She shoved open the door to Daniel’s office, the heavy wooden door hitting the wall with a loud thud. Both Daniel and Marcus jerked their heads up from what they were viewing on Daniel’s computer screen. Daniel rose from behind his desk. “Evan—”
“What in the hell was that?” she demanded, cutting him off.
Daniel’s fist hit the desk. “You’re asking me that? You were the one fucking your brains out with some stranger in front of a goddamned camera.”
Marcus stepped around the desk and sat in a chair on the opposite side, obviously wanting out of the line of fire.
She threw her hands out to her sides. “And what the hell difference does that make? You wanted me to find a lover. I did.”
“At a club. A private club where no one would see you.”
“He’s from the club. And no one saw us except you.”
Daniel turned, ripped a page from his printer, and slammed it down on the desk. “Tonight. But what about when you decided to screw Jace Austin? You know who saw you then?” His booming voice rattled her eardrums. “Somebody with a goddamned hi-res camera!”
She stared down at the photo he’d laid out on the desk, her profile coming into focus. Her skirt hiked up her thighs, head tipped back in pleasure, Jace’s hand between her legs. Jace’s face was obscured by the thin metal railings of the balcony, but there was no denying the clarity with which they’d captured her own visage. She gasped, her hand going to her mouth. “How did you get that?”
“The gossip site that’s running the story tomorrow sent me a heads-up. An anonymous source sold them the picture. They haven’t figured out who the guy in the picture is yet—though Marcus could tell right away—but there’s no denying it’s you. They wanted to know if I had a statement.” He sank into his chair and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Jesus, Evan. The newspapers will pick up on it after that.”
“Daniel, I—I don’t know what to say. I thought the balcony was private.”
He glanced up. “How could you be so careless? This could blow up everything.”
Her stomach flipped over as she found her way into the chair next to Marcus. “I’m so sorry.”
Marcus put a hand on her knee and squeezed. “Take a breather. Both of you. This isn’t a done deal yet. We just have to spin this. Make it work for us instead of against us.”
“And how do we do that?” Daniel snapped. “I’m supposed to be the fucking relationship doctor!”
“Calm down, Danny,” Marcus said, eyeing Daniel with what Evan now recognized as the look of a dominant giving his sub an order. “People in relationships cheat sometimes. It happens. So we have Evan admit that she’s made a mistake. You admit that with all the travel, you’ve been neglecting your own relationship. And then you both talk about how you are committed to each other and are going to work it out.”
“Wait a second,” Evan said, her eyes widening. “I have to be painted as a cheater.”
Marcus’s brows furrowed. “Well, of course. There’s no other way.”
She looked from him to Daniel with disbelief. “Oh, yes there is. Like we have an open relationship. Or, I don’t know, how ’bout some honesty for a change and you tell people you’ve discovered you prefer men.”
“Absolutely not.”
“No!”
Both men shut her down in unison, and she wanted to knock their heads together.
“Evan, I can’t do that,” Daniel said, his tone lowering from pissed to pleading. “People aren’t going to accept either one of those. I’ll lose all but my most liberal of fans. Everyone else will write us off. We’ll lose the TV deal before we can even blink.”
“So instead we’ll just sacrifice my reputation? Make me out to be the whore who cheated on my oh-so-perfect fiancé?”
“I’ll take the blame for neglecting you. Talk about how sometimes cheating is a couple’s problem, not just the individual who strayed.” He reached for her hand across the desk. “Sweets, I know it’s a lot to ask, but I need you to go along with this. Don’t kill our future before we even get started. Will you do this for me?”
She stared down at his offered hand, her insides twisting into a sickening knot. Daniel had saved her once upon a time. Had protected her with unwavering ferocity when they were on the streets. The reason she’d never been raped, beaten, or killed while they were out there was because of him. The big brother she’d never had.