He’d had so many questions, I wondered if he’d been trying to break into the business himself. Maybe he could have, if he was packing below the belt. He was good looking enough in his face. When he’d asked to see me alone in his office after closing time, I was concerned he was going to hit on me. No one at Dune knew if he was into chicks or dudes . . . or both.
I gently snagged the elbow of Brie, a server who had a massive hard-on for our boss. She’d know where he was, guaranteed.
“Hey, you!” Brie said, smiling. “Coming in on your night off?”
“Yeah. I’m looking for Joseph.”
She glanced at Nina, down to our clasped hands, and then back to me, beaming. “Who’s this?”
I’d always been an open guy, which meant Brie and I talked freely about our relationships as we cleaned tables and stocked the bar afterhours. I’d heard all about her boyfriend who seemed unable to get his shit together, and she’d listened supportively to the Kendall-Scott shitshow.
“This is Nina,” I said. “My girlfriend.”
After the epic sex, we’d . . . hell. We’d cuddled for hours talking. I’d asked her to stay in my room while I made us dinner in my messy kitchen, and then we ate frozen pizza naked in my bed. She was sexy, and smart, and funny. I didn’t want the night to end.
The call came right after dinner. My friend said it was the water pump and Nina could drive the car safely to his garage, where he’d fix it in the morning.
“I like you,” Nina blurted out when we got in my truck, heading for the studio.
I could have made a joke how I already knew that, given all the sex we’d had, but I heard the nervous emotion in her words, which matched what I felt.
“Can I see you again?” She seemed to swallow hard.
Seriously? “Yeah. Yes. Fuck, yes.”
A huge smile broke on her face. “So, can I ask a favor?”
“Go for it.”
“Don’t kiss anyone else. Just me.”
I was about to put the truck in gear, and paused. “You mean, when I’m acting.”
“Yeah. Or, like, any other time.”
My heart went all out of rhythm for a moment. God, she was almost too good to be true. I’d told her how kissing was something I didn’t do unless it meant something. I’d figured after Kendall, I wouldn’t be able to have a standard relationship. Eventually, I was going to meet a girl and put myself in the awkward position of choosing between her and my acting career. Was Nina telling me I could have both?
“You’d be cool with it, though?” I asked. “With me doing all the other stuff with someone else?”
She considered it. “Would you, with me?”
Pleased disbelief flooded through me, and I nodded. “As long as you don’t kiss them, then yeah. I can handle it.”
“Okay,” she said. “Me, too.”
The memory made my lips lift into a smile, but then I refocused. “Nina, this is Brie.”
“Hi,” Nina said.
“Joseph?” I reminded Brie.
She flashed a smile, lighting up at his name. “He went to grab another case of Bud Lite from the back.”
Then, he appeared from the stockroom, a case of beer in his arms. I made my way toward him, towing Nina behind as we threaded through the crowd. Joseph set the case on the bar and one of the bartenders took it. Then, he brushed the dust off his dress shirt, turned, and peered at me. “Scott?”
“Hey, man. I know it’s busy, but I wanted you to meet someone.”
Joseph’s gaze turned to Nina. He was older than me by at least ten years, and altho