Chills slither their way down my arms. This interview hastaken an unexpected turn, and I want to stop it. I want to pull Holt back, but I can’t. Not when the cameras are rolling and everyone’s eyes are on him. I bite the tip of my tongue, hoping Holt’s answer will be short and to the point. But knowing how haunted Holt remains over his mother’s death, I’m afraid he won’t be.
“Murdered, yes,” Holt answers.
“I’ll admit, I read a few articles covering the story when I was considering working here,” Cory tells him. “I’m so sorry for her passing. I don’t know if this helps, but I’m hoping that knowing the ones who committed this heinous crime were caught has given you and your family a sense of justice.”
Holt’s grip on my knee tightens.
I open my mouth to speak, to stop this before Holt has another chance to continue this conversation, but he’s too quick.
“I don’t believe they caught the killers.”
The air is sucked out of the room.
“You don’t?” Cory’s eyes widen.
“No. I never have,” Holt declares. “I was there the night she was killed. I remember everything I heard and saw that night, and I haven’t given up in my search. I’ll never give up.”
Cory’s face pales, and he gulps. His eyes nervously dart between Holt and me.
I give him a subtle shake of the head, hoping he understands what message I’m trying to send him.Shift the topic. My stomach turns, thinking about how this is going to be posted out to the public later. Bile rises in my throat, but I force it down.
“I don’t doubt your vigilance and commitment,” Cory says before looking down at his phone. “Speaking of commitment, Scribe Magazine’s annual masquerade ball was originally set for this weekend.” Cory eyes us both before continuing. “Considering how you started the annual masquerade ball when youannounced your anonymous column, and with everything going on regardingthat, is it still on?”
“Of course it is. The annual masquerade ball has become a corner stone for the magazine. Recent events won’t change that.”
“Right.” Cory’s mouth twitches with a tiny smile. “Normally, all of New York’s top celebrities and personalities would be there. Is it safe to say you two will be attending together, officially?”
Holt glances over his shoulder, wink at me in a way that makes me fucking weak in the knees. I’m grateful for Cory’s swift shift in topic, lightening the mood. I can even sense the tension dissolving from Treena across the room.
“Is that a serious question, Cory?” Holt muses, returning to his usual lightheartedness. “Selene is it for me. She’s the only one you’ll ever see me walking beside.”
Cory coughs into a closed fist, hiding his smile.
“Are you okay?” I ask Cory, unable to drop my smile.
“Yeah.” He nods. “It’s just strange hearing my boss talk this way.”
“What?” I nudge Holt’s shoulder with mine. “You mean he doesn’t always talk like this?”
“No.” Cory shakes his head and laughs. “No, he doesn’t.”
I hum in amusement, still unable to wipe the grin from my face. My cheeks are sore, but seeing the difference in Holt makes my heart flutter with excitement. I still can’t ignore my instinct to second guess everything, but the instant I even get close to letting that show, Holt pulls me right back.
He quickly turns my way before whispering in my ear, “I love you, Wallflower.”
Goosebumps spread across my skin, and for the rest of the interview, I don’t let my smile drop. How can I when HoltCapuleti basically just announced to the entire world that he’s in love with me?
TWENTY-SIX
HOLT
“We only have five minutes left before everyone is expecting us to be there.”
“They can wait,” I breathe, grabbing her hip and pulling her onto my lap.
Her black, sequined gown parts, allowing her bare thighs to wrap around mine. My dick wakes right the fuck up, hardening the second she rocks and rolls her hips, rubbing her sweet pussy along my length.
“Howard can hear everything, Holt.” She wraps her hands around my neck as I gaze up at her.
