Once I’m done cleansing his face and applying the mask everywhere except his beard, I let him pick a nail polish color. He settles on dark navy blue, and I get to work.
Since we’re at the end of the coffee table, a little isolated from the rest, I feel free to speak and say, “Do you remember that time I painted your nails fuchsia while we were doing overtime?”
“Of course.”
“That’s when I started actually liking you. That day with you brought me an entirely new perspective on who you were. You told me about your family, and you opened up, showing me a vulnerability I hadn’t seen until then.”
“We’d already had sex by then.”
“I didn’tlikeyou when that happened. I wanted you, respected you, even appreciated you in a way, but I didn’t like-like you.”
“For the record, I liked-liked you by the time we first had sex.”
“What can I say? You’re the smart one, and I’m the likable one.”
Lex sits through both coats of nail polish, somewhat watching our silly little movie. I’m a little too drunk to do it well, but I don’t think he cares. By the time I’m done, his mask is ready to be peeled, so I do it for him, slowly enough not to hurt him.
Once I’ve unveiled the tanned and clean skin underneath, I say, “There, all perfect.”
“I would offer to do your nails in return, but I’m worried the outcome wouldn’t be very good.”
“How about you nailmelater instead?” His breathy laugh delights me, and I gently peck him.
“Maybe I’ll give you a facial in return,” he jokes, so quietly no one else could have heard.
It’s my turn to giggle. “I’d love that. Some of the girls are sleeping over, though. We’ll have to be discreet.”
“I’ll gag you, don’t worry.”
And just like that, I’m not really interested in watching the rest of the movie. But I stay strong, and when Lex discreetly makes his exit, I don’t follow him. I stay with my friends instead, and we finish the movie before starting the sequel. One does not simply pass up an opportunity to stare at young Chris Pine.
Halfway into the movie, Mouly returns from the kitchen saying, “We’re out of margaritas, guys.”
“Where’s the margarita man?” Mason shouts, hoping to catch Lex’s attention from his office.
When there’s no reaction and the door doesn’t open, I clumsily stand up. “I’ll handle it,” I offer.
Everything is still out, so I have a batch ready in no time. I go refill my friends’ glasses, pour mine halfway through, and when there’s still enough left for one more glass, I fill up a clean one and bring it to Lex’s office.
As expected, I find him on his computer, adamantly focused on what’s on his screen. What I didn’t expect was the pair of headphones he has on. When he notices me, he presses pause on whatever he’s watching and pulls the headphones back. “Are you watching a movie all by yourself?”
“Not exactly,” he counters, nodding at his screen.
I come around the desk to see what he’s talking about and hand him his drink once I’m by his side. On his monitor, there’s a video of Becker’s security playing. Two people are coming in, one of whom is the asshole himself, and the other is a woman, blonde, slender, and young.
“Is this live?” I ask.
“No, I’ve been going over the backup footage. This was about ten days ago.”
“This isn’t his wife.”
“No, it’s not. His wife was on a luxurious vacation in Hawaii at that time.”
“Is there more?”
“Yes. He leads her upstairs to a room without cameras, and she comes out about three hours later.”
Lex opens another file and skips through the video until the blonde woman appears in a hallway, looking disheveled and ruffled. Jesus, she’s limping so much, she can barely walk. Still, it looks like she’s in a hurry to leave, distraught and upset. “Have you found out who she is?”
