Page 83 of Off Limits Mogul

“That’s true friendship,” Arianne says. “Is your brother in the music industry as well?”

I shake my head. “Along with being my big brother, Noah became my guardian at a young age?—”

“What?” Arianne stares at me, incredulous.

“When our mom died, our maternal grandmother became next of kin. When she died, Noah was forced to give up his NFL dreams. He had everything to make it pro, but I was a kid when we lost our last living relative.”

“What about your dad?”

“Our mom was a single mom.” I give her a sanitized version of the truth.

Phoebe nods. “Got it.”

“Had Noah not being of age, we would’ve ended up in foster care. He wasn’t even old enough to buy liquor, but he became a parent. My big brother hung his cleats and took on odd jobs to put food on the table and keep a roof over our heads. I was only thirteen, so I couldn’t contribute. Not that he would’ve let me if I could. He wanted me to focus on school.”

“He carried a lot on his shoulders,” Arianne says.

I nod. “I liked to tease him and say that God gave him broad shoulders for a reason.”

Arianne and Phoebe offer a warm smile.

“What kind of work did he have to do to get by? He didn’t have much experience at the time. It must’ve been grunt work,” Phoebe says.

“My big brother worked in the movie and TV industry because the hours were flexible. Since he was below the line, aka he was part of the crew of people that moved stuff around on a set, the work didn’t require overtime. Over the years, he collected a bunch of online degrees and worked his way up the food chain. Now, he’s a special effects supervisor for UTV.com.”

“Both Noah and Rhys are resilient,” Phoebe says.

“Yes, they are.”

“Your brother will never know what kind of football career he could’ve had, but in terms of second career, he landed in a pretty good spot. Same for Rhys.”

“You’re right, Arianne. When Rhys lost his fame status, he thought it was over for him. Nothing would ever measure up to that defining one-hit. The massive success of SCORE proved him wrong.” I try hard not to gush.

“Hence, why he can now afford a membership at an exclusive sex club.”

Arianne and I laugh.

Leave it to Phoebe to come to that conclusion.

“I guess so,” I say.

“Speaking of kinky hangouts, I’m totally adding Dark Compulsion to my bucket list.” Phoebe claps.

“Sorry to burst your bubble, but you’ll need a black American Express card to pay for the membership,” Arianne says.

“We can always use hers?” Phoebe points at me.

My head whips in her direction. “Hell no. Rhys would kill me.”

When Rhys handed me the card on Friday, I nearly passed out.

“I’m okay with him killing you as long as I get the membership,” Phoebe says.

I play-punch her arm. “Hey, I thought we were friends?”

“We are, but I’m dying to know what happens at that club,” she says. “If you have to be a casualty, so be it.”

I roll my eyes. “Let’s keep the game going.”