AllFreeNovel
Share Us
And yes, Austin had insulted her and walked out at that point.
“That’s horrible.” Why was I the only one who looked bothered by the story of a young girl going missing?
Austin nodded. “It was terrifying. We found her though and she was fine. Thank God.”
“The good news is, your story matches Carly’s,” Lyndsay said.
Ah. So they already knew this one. “You didn’t think Austin was lying.”
Lyndsay shrugged. “I was pretty sure he wasn’t an asshole. I knew the blog post was bullshit. But there’s no way to tell how he remembered things. Not that the internet cares, but it’s always easier to work with someone who doesn’t insist on spinning everything.”
We spent the next few hours doing what Lyndsay told us, everyone tag-teaming assignments to make sure Austin could handle this.
This was a side of things I never missed, being where I was in Hollywood, but for him, I didn’t hesitate.
He smiled and laughed through the whole thing, but there was a thread of stress underneath, especially every time he checked into a social media account and got a glimpse of someone else tearing him down.
The one thing none of us could really help with, and I hated each time a frown whispered across his face.
Kandace fielded a handful of calls as well, all asking about her involvement. In each case, she spit out a carefully crafted response Lyndsay had given her, but she also stood by Austin without hesitation. The longer the morning wore on, the deeper the lines in her forehead grew.
My phone chimed with a new text and I read the message aloud. “Andrew sayslooks like we have to recast Tara.”
“Not that I disagree, but does he say why?” Austin asked.
I read the follow-up note. “Because there’s no way the twat who maligned my sister is working on my fucking movie.” Well said.
One corner of Kandace’s mouth tugged up, and the dark clouds lingering around Austin vanished with his grin.
It was a nice moment of levity, but I still hated how bad this looked for Austin. For everyone, but especially him. Because he’d done a fun, nice thing. Because he’d acted without thinkingmaybe this person doesn’t have the purest intentions.
We were most of the way through distributing responses to all the right outlets, and had told Lucas multiple times that he didn’t have to run and get us coffee. He didn’t have to make us snacks. He was allowed to just hang out with us without being our gopher.
At the sound of the doorbell, he was on his feet in an instant. “I’ll get it. If it’s the paparazzi I’ll tell them to fuck off.”
“It’s not the paparazzi.” Lyndsay didn’t look up from her computer. “Though, give them a couple more hours and one or two might trickle in.” She glanced at Austin. “You’re a massive name again. But probably not in the way you expected.”
“As long as they all come to my restaurant when it opens.” Austin’s joke was strained.
“Hey, Cash.” Lucas’s greeting came from the door.
Lyndsay went about three shades paler.
“Hey. Your car’s ready,” a new male voice said, accompanied by the jingle of keys.
I glanced over my shoulder past Lucas to see a man with shoulders almost as broad as the doorway. He was the kind of burly I would’ve thrown myself at once upon a time. But he was focused on someone else. “Hey, Lynds. Didn’t expect to see you here.”
“My car’s out front.” Lyndsay’s tone was hard to read.
“Is it?” Cash’s surprise didn’t sound sincere in any way. “Am I interrupting? Early Saturday party?” He sounded friendly. Warm.
Lucas moved aside and opened the door wider. “This is the guy I left my car with.”
Cash took a step into the room.
“This is my ex-husband’s brother.” Lyndsay’s reply explained so much about the difference in her attitude and his. She finally focused on Cash. “We’re super busy right now.”
Kandace crossed the room, purse in hand. “Thank you for delivering the car in person. How much do I owe you?”
