* * * *
Susan couldn’t hold back the yawn that threatened to split her jaw. Her eyes watered, and she did her best to wipe them dry without smearing her eyeliner. She’d had to get up an hour earlier than normal, to drive into the valley, so she could practice before work. In a few days, she might summon the courage to risk running into Andrew. Or she’d steer clear of R&T until he was gone.
She yawned again. It sucked she couldn’t drink coffee on the clock without drawing a glare and disapproving sniff from Dad. Fortunately, it was lunchtime, she was meeting Olivia, and she was getting all the espresso and all the sweet to mask the bitter.
Susan parked in the lot one street over from Main Street, and made her way to the café where her lunch plans waited. Olivia was outside. They hugged, exchanged basic hello, and were seated. Susan ordered the biggest, strongest iced coffee on the menu, despite the temperature outside.
“Long night?” Olivia asked, a teasing glint in her eye.
“Not the way you’re thinking. How was Phoenix?”
“Hot. Dry. But promising. I should know in a couple of days if I got the job or not.”
“That’s awesome.” Susan hated to see another friend leave for distant places, but this was an amazing opportunity, and she hoped it panned out for Olivia.
Olivia poked an ice cube with her straw, and bubbles from her Coke fizzed around it. “What about you? How was the wedding? Fill me in on everything. Give me substance to block out a week straight of job interviews and schmoozing.”
So many responses ran through Susan’s head. The last week held more than she cared to think about. Mercy’s wedding, of course. The near-assault at the steakhouse. The failed audition with Ballet West. Instead of any of that, what came out was, “I met a guy.”
“But last night wasn’t that kind of night? He’s a guy guy, then? Not a fuck-toy guy?”
“Neither.” Now that Susan had a few extra seconds to assemble her thoughts, she could talk intelligently. One of the reasons she loved Olivia was there was no judgement about Susan’s sex life or lack thereof. Olivia understood the desire to find someone but not rush into getting laid. “A little bit the latter. But really, neither. He’s a friend of Mercy’s.”
“In town for the wedding? Sounds a lot like the second.”
“He’s a business partner. Her friend from when she traveled.”
Olivia’s eyes grew wide. “Porn guy?”
“One and the same.” She considered asking Olivia not to call him that to his face, but Andrew would probably be amused by it.
“So serious fuck-toy-ability.”
Susan nearly said I wish, and the sentiment caught her off-guard. Did she? It might be nice, learning from someone with that kind of experience. Who was she kidding? It would probably be amazing, but that didn’t make it a good idea. “Except that I’m his best friend and business partner’s little sister. But I mean it—not like that.” She related the past week of awkward run-ins but left out his stories that kept her company at night. She wasn’t sure why. Probably because she didn’t want to paint the situation as anything other than what it was, but definitely not because she liked the idea of keeping the tales for herself.
“So, basically, I found this one person who says he knows how to help me get past the mental block keeping me from getting a dancing job, and what did I do? Chickened out like a Class-A coward.” Susan hated admitting it.
Olivia raised her brows. “It sounds like he was a first-class ass.”
“He was. He is. I think he prefers it that way. But I know what he was going for, and when I think about it, it wouldn’t have killed me to do what he said. Not that there’s a chance of it ever coming up again. He and I are done.” He made that vividly clear.
“If he said yes once, he’ll do it again. You simply need a buffer.”
Susan stared at her, trying to make sense of the suggestion. “A what, now?”
“Someone else there to keep him from pushing your buttons.” Olivia made it sound like the answer was obvious.
That was such a bad idea, it wasn’t on the scale of worth considering. “I’m pretty sure the bigger his audience, the better. A buffer means he’ll seek out more embarrassing buttons.”
“Not for him. For you. People who have your back, so you don’t feel isolated.”
If Susan had friends around, she wouldn’t feel so out of sorts. Not that she thought he’d agree to the suggestion. Andrew seemed pretty set on the concept of his rules—his way. “What did you have in mind?”
“Jodie’s party, tomorrow night.”
“I don’t know…”
“Up to you.” Olivia shrugged. “If you think he has the solution to you landing a gig, beg him for another chance. Personally, I think he sounds like a pushy asshole, in that really sexy, dominant kind of way. If you’re not interested in him, you can introduce me.”