“Sure. Toast? Pancakes?”
“I’ll have pan—”
“White toast it is,” she agreed. “Be right back.” She tossed Rafe a wink.
“Coffee, too?” I called, but she didn’t seem like she heard.
I narrowed my eyes at Rafe, who wasn’t making any effort to hide his laughter anymore. “What was that?”
“What was what? Me ordering breakfast?” His innocent look was absolutely unattractive.
I shuddered. “I need another shower after watching you two. ‘What flavor topping would you like, handsome? Blueberry? Banana?Shelly?’”I mocked in a low voice.
“I was trying to divert her attention from your famous self, Jay Don. Since yousaidthat’s what you wanted. But I’m getting the distinct impression that you like being the center of attention.”
“Uh,no,I really don’t.” Or notShelly’sattention anyway. And wasn’t that a lowering realization? “I’m simply marveling at how weak your flirtation game is.”
“Of course it is.” Rafe raised one eyebrow. “And you think yours is superior?”
“Infinitely.”
“Right. Still a competitive bastard, I see.” Rafe licked his lips and smiled a slow smile. “By all means, then, feel free to show me how it’s done.”
“Iwould. I totally would. And it would be a shock-and-awe campaign the likes of which you’ve never seen—” Rafe’s laughter made my stomach spin again. “—but unlike some people, I don’t want to set expectations I don’t plan to fulfill.” I gave him an arch look.
“I think you’re lying. I think you’re not used to having to work to get attention anymore.” Rafe leaned toward me over the table. “I think it all comes a little too easily to you.”
I blinked at him. “You think it’s been easy for me?”
“Aside from the boob pics and the tabloids outing you? Yeah, kinda.” He shrugged. “I remember it was tough for you in the beginning, getting labels to listen to you and stuff. But now that you’ve hit it big? Everyone throws themselves at you, and—”
“You know what it’s like when you hit it big?” I whisper-hissed, leaning over the table. “You find yourself in your apartment, hearing that your album has gone gold, and you realize you don’t know who to celebrate with. So you decide to take your ass to a club, to get lost in a crowd. Except you’re an idiot who didn’t realize that having a gold album would mean people suddenlycaredwhat you were doing or with whom, or that you could wind up in some photographer’s money shot. Hitting it big is being one shitty song or bout of writer’s block away from being a joke. A one-hit wonder. Hitting it big is hustling every day and…” I broke off and blew out a breath. ”And if you ever dare to complain about any tiny part of it, people remind you how spoiled you are, and…” I broke off with a head shake and sat up straighter in my seat. “Whatever. Fine. Flirtation challenge accepted.
I was low-key horrified by how much I’d admitted, but I also had to bite my tongue to keep from telling him more. About how lonely it was, having handlers and managers and not friends. About how it had felt when I’d thought my only choices were making a giant statement about my personal life or living in constant fear of exposure. About the fear of being one underperforming album, one hot new replacement act, oryeah, one tabloid scandal, from being yesterday’s news.
Rafe didn’t care about any of that, I reminded myself.
He frowned. “I didn’t challenge you. And I never said you were spoiled either. I only said—”
Shelly came back with the food at that exact moment. She practically tossed my omelette on the table, with so much force the plate spun for half a second. Meanwhile, she set what must surely have been three orders of pancakes, three pigs’ worth of bacon, and ajugof blueberry topping in front of Rafe.
Rafe smiled in thanks and picked up his fork… but Shelly did not leave. Instead, she leaned both elbows on the edge of the table, which wasseriouslyinappropriate. Then she hunched over with her ass in the air and her chest resting perilously close to the jug of blueberry topping, which had to be some kind of health code violation.
I looked around for a damn comment card.
“Go on and tuck right in,” she told Rafe eagerly. “I can’t wait to see what you think.”
Rafe’s gaze darted from Shelly’s face, to her chest, to me, and then to his pancakes.
“Uh…” he began, and he was so predictable, I could practicallyseethe thoughts flashing through his mind as he replayed my words from earlier.
Washe leading her on and giving her expectations? The proximity of her mammary glands to his food suggestedyes.
AndwasI thinking about his earlierfree boobscomment and judging him harshly for staring at what Shelly was offering? Also yes.
I grinned evilly. He was so easy sometimes.
“Go on,handsome,” I said, deliberately making my voice even huskier than usual. “You look hungry. You should eat up.”
