Page 54 of Sexy

“His pussy-whipped ass took a job in Reno because his girlfriend was bitching and moaning about the show. Didn’t he tell you?”

I know he didn’t. It was between us. But I know my time here is just about over. So fuck it. Chandler isn’t gonna pull rank and act like he cares what happens to this show. Not after all that’s happened this week.

“Is that true?” Mitch asks. “You’re bailing and you want us to basically throw the fight so you can… what? Get a severance bonus if the hotel gets a good ranking?”

Chandler stares at me with squinted eyes. I crossed a line with him. It was a secret. And he’s got plenty of secrets of mine too, so I should’ve been respectful of his. But the last man standing doesn’t get there by being a pussy. “Tell them, Chandler.”

“I’ll tell them a lot more than that, Novak.”

I throw out my arms. “Go ahead. It’s my last night, anyway.”

“OK,” Steve says, pushing himself between us, one hand on each of our chests. “Let’s just relax and get through the show. Then we can all have a day to cool off, and discuss it on Monday.” He looks at me. “And Fletcher, for fuck’s sake, you’re not getting fired. I heard Claudio talking you up on the phone earlier today to Preston. I think her father is a good guy.”

“So I’ve heard,” I say. But that asshole is gonna leave Tiffy alone in this world, struggling and afraid, just to make her prove herself. I can see a guy doing that to his sons. But girls need protection. They need safety nets. And it pisses me off that he’s fucking her over like that.

But I don’t say any of that. That really is crossing a line. Tiffy doesn’t deserve to find out about her dad from my big mouth. I’m not sure where I stand with her from one minute to the next, but I do know I don’t want to hurt her.

Chandler stares me down for a few more seconds and I wait to see if he’ll spill any of my secrets. But it’s one thing to tell the guys he’s leaving. We’ve been expecting it for a couple months. It’s something else to tell them what I’m up to.

So he takes a deep breath and turns away. “Fifteen minutes until show time. Keep it clean. That’s an order.” And then he walks out of the dressing room and slams the door behind him.

Chapter Nineteen

The atmosphere for the show is different today than it was on Wednesday. People are louder, more animated. Drunk. Lots of bachelorettes in this crowd, and I bet each one wants a piece of these men tonight.

I crinkle my nose at that thought, just as Claudio comes up and taps me on the shoulder. “Tiff,” he says in that voice I dread. It’s his concerned voice. One that immediately tells me that something is wrong.

“What?” I can’t hold back the trepidation that spreads throughout my body like a wave. “What’s happened?”

“Your dad isn’t feeling well. He said he’s going back to San Francisco tonight.”

My dad has been sick for months. He had a slight stroke last year and some heart problems the year before. And even though he recovered, he’s been having dizzy spells. And he doesn’t like to talk about it with me, so I’m always the last to know. “Maybe I should go with him? I’ll go pack my stuff.”

“No,” Claudio says, grabbing my arm. “He’s already gone, Tiff. And he said he needs you here to take care of the hotel. He said he’ll call you tomorrow.”

“He always says that, Claudio. If you know what’s going on, then tell me! It’s driving me—” I stop and watch Cole walk into the theater with a woman on his arm. “Who the hell is that?”

Claudio opens his mouth to answer, looking a little too relieved about the distraction. “Wait,” I say. “Tell me about my dad first. Is he sick?”

“Tiffy,” he says, sighing. “I don’t know. I think you need to talk to him about it. And he said he was going to call you tomorrow. So ask him then. And as for that tramp”—he motions his head towards the table we’re going to share with Cole and now this girl—“she’s new at the office.”

“Since when?”

“The day we got here.”

“Bullshit. Cole never hires people without telling me.”

“Well, he did this one. Made her his executive assistant.”

“Well, I guess that really is his decision. But…” My words trail off as he pulls the chair out and she takes a seat, smiling up at him like… “Do you think they’re dating?”

“Not yet. So if you want him, you better make a move soon, girlfriend. Because he’s about to make his and it won’t be you on his arm tonight.”

Holy shit. “I’ll be right back.”

I don’t even wait for Claudio to answer before I’m making a mad dash towards backstage. The security guy waves me through and I enter the dimly lit hallway and pass the dressing rooms as I make my way towards the back.

When I get to Fletcher’s door, I knock. “Fletch?” I call. “You in there?”