“I’m sorry, bruh, but I don’t believe that shit.” Andrew barked out a laugh. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?”
“It means what I said.” X shrugged. “You’ve devoted so much time to her career. Then, all of a sudden, you’re ‘stepping back’”—he threw up air quotes—“when she needed you the most? It’s bullshit.”
“I don’t know what you want me to say. It felt like the right thing to do at the time.” He paused, hesitant to finish his thought. In the end, he decided to say what had been on his mind. “Plus, it was killing me to see her hurt.”
X smirked. “Finally, you’re speaking the truth.”
“After the L.A. premiere of her last movie, and prior to the divorce filing, I realized one thing. Being in the room with her and Julius made everything worse. I wanted to kick his ass up and down the street, paparazzi be damned. Which would have put her in an uncomfortable position.”
“That’s understandable. What’s the problem now? The divorce is final. She’s not with him and the chances of you being in the same room with Julius are pretty slim, since his ass will probably be in jail soon.”
Andrew couldn’t think of an answer to the question. Correction, he couldn’t think of an answer that he wanted to share with X.
X must have caught on to Andrew’s dilemma because he said, “No comment?”
Still, Andrew didn’t respond.
Chuckling, X shook his head. “Okay, well . . . Let me know when you’re ready to talk. Trust me, I’ve been there, done that. Got the T-shirt, the wife, and the baby to prove it.”
Andrew blinked. “What the hell are you talking about?”
“You’re a smart man, bruh. It’s time to open your eyes and think about why you really haven’t been there for her. When we both know you wanted to.”
The waitress dropped the bill on the table and X told Drew he’d take care of it.
“I can get this one,” Andrew argued.
“Nah, I got it. I’m sure there will come a time when you’ll want to revisit this conversation. Then the drinks will be on you.”
Once the bill was settled, they left the restaurant. The valet ran off to get his rental. “You heading back to the office?” Drew asked.
“Nah, I’m done for the day. Have to stop at the grocery store. It’s my turn to cook.”
“Are you sure you want to risk giving Zara food poisoning?”
“You’re talking shit and you can’t even make a pot of grits?”
Andrew glared at him. “You can stop bringing that shit up. It was years ago.” He’d offered to bring grits to a breakfast potluck a long time ago. Unfortunately, they were too dry to eat.
“You’ll never live that down, bruh.” X cracked up. “And I can grill a damn hamburger and some asparagus.”
Chuckling, Andrew said, “Tell Zara I said good luck.”
His friend waved a dismissive hand. “Shut the hell up, man.”
Andrew glanced at his watch. When he’d contacted Tina to ask if he could come over and talk to her, she’d let him know she wouldn’t be home until late afternoon. He figured he’d go over around five o’clock—not too early and not too late.
“Give Zara my love, bruh.”
“I will. Tell Paige we’re here if she needs anything.” X clasped Drew’s shoulder. “Oh, and make sure you’re honest with her. She’ll spot your bullshit reason in a heartbeat.”
“You get married and suddenly you think you know everything.”
X grinned. “I always knew everything.”
Andrew covered “bullshit” in a fake cough. “I remember plenty of times when you didn’t know shit.”
“I graduated to Jedi Master, man. Ask Skye. I’ve been giving some pretty good advice for the past year.”
