Total pages in book: 57
Estimated words: 52440 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 262(@200wpm)___ 210(@250wpm)___ 175(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 52440 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 262(@200wpm)___ 210(@250wpm)___ 175(@300wpm)
"What is she saying?" Zoya whispers, sitting beside me to lean in. I angle the phone so she can hear too.
"Starting bar fights isn't going to help keep him on the roster," Olive continues. "You know I love you, so this comes from a place of concern, but are you really sure you want your name linked to his like this, Nadia? You've made it this far without courting scandal or bad press. Getting involved with someone like him is a surefire way to break the image you've built for yourself."
"We aren't involved," I mutter defensively.
"You were making out in a parking lot, hon. That seems pretty involved to me."
"It's complicated." I expel a sharp breath, squeezing my eyes closed. "I'll take care of it, Olive."
"You sure? I can put out a statement, say he was just messing with the paps to get a rise out of them, and you two are just old friends…"
"No," I say quickly. "Let me handle it."
The last thing I need is for them to realize that there's more to the story than we're saying. At this point, the press figuring out that Teo and I grew up together feels inevitable. But I don't want my own damn manager to be the one shining a light on the whole pathetic story of the pop princess who got left behind and never got over it. I don't need her to be the reason they find out about the accident and the PTSD and rehab. Those are pieces of my past I never wanted to share—things that are my business and no one else's. I do not need them coming out because of my own damn manager.
"Okay," Olive says reluctantly. "But be careful with him, Nadia. You don't want Teo Kirby to be your defining moment after all the work you've put in."
Where was she when I was three? Because her advice is about twenty years too late. Loving him has been the defining moment of my entire life. And trying to forget him has been my own personal purgatory.
I disconnect the call, dropping my phone onto my lap with a heavy sigh. For six damn years, he's kept his distance. Why is he back now? What does he want? And why in the hell is he telling the world that we're dating? I don't know the answers to any of those questions, but I intend to find out.
I glance over at Zoya. "Do you have his phone number?"
She hesitates for a long moment.
"Zoya, I'm not in the mood," I warn her. "Please just answer the question."
"I have his new one," she whispers, guilt flickering in her eyes. "But you don't need it, Nadia. He still has the old one."
I stare at her levelly. "Why does he need two numbers?"
"Seriously?" She rolls her eyes. "He kept it for you, Nadia. In case you ever decided you needed him. Just like you still have your old phone number on the off chance that he ever decided to pick up the phone and call you. The two of you have been pushing each other away for years, but you still cling so hard that you're the only two who don't see what's right in front of you."
"There's nothing in front of me," I mutter, my heart in a vise.
"Right." She hops up from the floor, tossing her head angrily. "Just like you've never dated because you're focused on the music. And he's never dated because he's focused on the game. It's all bullshit. You two never got over one another, and you never will." She glances down at me, scowling. "Honestly, I don't know what's sadder. The fact that you'd both rather punish yourselves than forgive yourselves for being stupid kids. Or the fact that you've done it for so long that you don't know how to stop."
"I'm not punishing myself."
"Yeah, you are. You pushed him away because you were hurt, and part of you hates yourself for doing it. And he let you do it, and he'll never forgive himself for that, either." She shakes her head at me, her expression sad. "You two never stopped loving each other, even after six years apart."
"He never loved me, Zoya," I snap, my voice raw. "He picked football and didn't have the nerve to tell me. And then he didn't even freaking show up at the hospital when I was dying."
She gapes at me. "Is that really what you think happened?"
"It is what happened."
"No, it isn't," she says sadly.
"I was there. I remember! Everyone was there except him."
"You were dying, Nadia. You may think you remember, but I promise you, you don't," she says.
"What are you talking about?"
She hesitates for a minute and then shakes her head. "We tried to tell you back then, but you didn't want to hear anything about him. If we brought him up, you shut down. And you shut us down, too. You freaking moved out to prove your point. So I'm not doing it now. If you want to know, ask him." She turns toward the door. "I'm getting an Uber back to your place. I'll see you back there when you're done here."