Connor rubs his eyes and shakes his head.
Lily looks petrified.
Daisy’s face is frozen solid.
“I’vetaken multiple law classes atPrinceton,” I refute. “I understood every lineof that contract.” I’ve always shared Achilles’ fatal flaw. Hubris. Excessive pride. I couldn’t look weak in front of Scott, so I decided to do everything myself. I needed no one’s help.
And if I misread any line in that contract, it’s going to cost me. And Connor.
My dad lets out a disgruntled sound. “It’ll…be complicated from here on out, Rose. I’ll talk to you when the lawyers have read through the contracts in detail.”
“Wait,” I say. “How’s Mother handling this?”
“Terrific, actually. She’s been slinging Scott’s name in the mud all around the house. She said she’d call and apologize to you later today, Connor.” I can hear my father smile by the end of that statement. Connor shares it. Her precious Scott showed his true self today. I’m glad that my mother is back on my boyfriend’s team.
“Stay safe. All of you,” my father says.
With this, he hangs up. No mention of the actual sex tape, no chiding. He only seemed disappointed by my refusal to grab a lawyer.
Connor gives me a reprimanding look as he hands the phone back to Lily. “I thought you took my lawyer to the meeting, and I thought he read the contracts.”
“I thought I told you I left him behind.”
Connor shakes his head. “You must have mentioned that to someone else, darling.” He takes my wine glass again and finishes it off with one long gulp.
“What the hell was that?” Loren asks Connor. “Greg gives me a two hour speech about sobriety after our scandal, and he doesn’t even acknowledge yours.”
“To be fair,” Connor says, “you lied to Greg and Samantha about being addicts. That news is a bit more jarring than a sex tape…” His voice drifts off on the last words.
We all turn to see what stole his attention.
There he is.
Standing by the staircase like nothing’s wrong.
Scott Van fucking Wright.
The room silences in an uncomfortable wave. My body is vibrating in rage, and I realize I’m squeezing Sadie too tight when she lets out a small, dissatisfactory hiss.
Scott looks between all of us, and then his lips lift into that shit-eating grin. “Did I miss something?”
Before I can respond, Connor walkscasuallytowards Scott, my boyfriend’s face utterly blank and unreadable. I can’t predict anything, and that unknown has all of us on edge, no one but him making a sound or a move. I just hear Connor’s expensive shoes tap the hardwood until he stops right in front of Scott.
And then Connor holds out his hand, like he wants to shake the producer’s. “Congratulations,” Connor says. “You outsmarted me. Not many people ever do. And I admit…I never saw this coming.”
His wooden voice frightens me.
Scott stares at his hand and then back at his face. He shrugs likewhat the hell?and then he clasps Connor’s palm.
What is this? A truce?—
And then Connor decks Scott in the jaw with his free fist. Scott slams into the wall forcefully. “That’s from me,” Connor says, anger lacing his voice.
Scott gathers himself quickly and swings back.
Connor dodges the attack and then kicks Scott,hard, in the penis. Scott groans in horrific pain.Fuck yes!I am cheering on the inside. There are cannons shooting out confetti in my brain. Halle-fucking-luiah.
“That’s from Rose.”
