“You were in a pantry together.”
“We were talking—”
“You were doing something with your mouths—”
“Grow up, Matt,” I chide and push past him as he continues to chuckle to himself.
I head back to the boardroom with Matt following as everyone says goodbye to Ria. She seems to notice me walk in and makes an effort to smile directly at me and nod an acknowledgment,this time in front of everyone. I smile back, feeling better that she’s at least trying.
“Okay, well, I’d better be off. I have an interview I need to get to, but I’ll see you all when I see you,” she says, waving her hand to her PA, Mindy, who picks up her things, and they head for the door.
Before leaving, Ria walks up to me and leans in, kissing my cheek. Then she proceeds to squeeze my hand, and I can’t stop my wide smile before she winks and continues out the door. The room is silent while everyone looks at me with wide eyes, and I exhale.
Rolling my eyes in response, I walk over and take a seat at the table. “What?” I ask.
Lunar chuckles. “A kiss on the cheek?” she asks.
“It’s a friendly gesture,” I say.
“Mm-hmm,” Lunar and Tillie both murmur.
“Just keep it in your pants until after we’ve filmed the video, then you can cause trouble. Okay, Nate?” Oliver tells me, and I furrow my brows at him.
Great!
Goddammit! I love that he thinks so highly of me that I would use and abuse Ria in some way to cause issues for the band.
Thanks for the vote of confidence, Oliver!
“Yeah,” I simply reply in a clipped tone.
“Speaking of keeping it in your pants. What kind of intimate stuff are we talking about here, Oliver, for the video?” Lunar asks.
Danger shifts uncomfortably in his seat as I watch Lunar observing him from the corner of her eyes.
“There will be some body contact.”
Lunar sighs. “Kissing?”
Danger sits up taller. “I know Zaria would be fine with kissing, but I’m not really happy to do that. If we can get away without it, I’d prefer it that way.”
Lunar tries to hide her smile, and I actually feel a little bit of relief, not just for me but for Lunar as well.
“Okay, I’ll see what I can do,” Oliver says.
“They won’t have to be like fully naked, will they?” Lunar asks.
Oliver smiles. “No.”
“It’ll be fine, babe, you’ll see,” Danger says, comforting Lunar.
She nods, taking his hand in hers. In a show of affection and reassurance, he pulls her hand up to his lips, kissing the back of it tenderly. I exhale, wondering if heisthe right guy for her after all. My adoration for Lunar is fading the more time I spend with Ria, but it doesn’t mean I still don’t want the best for Lunar.
“Okay, let’s get out of here,” Oliver says, and we all nod, standing.
The others file out, and Matt comes up to me. “I’ll see you at home?”
Pursing my lips, I shake my head. “Nah, I’m gonna go out for a bit.”
