Page 17 of Unromance

Taking the list out of her pocket, she read over it once more. She wasn’t sure if it was enough, too much, or not enough. Grabbing a discarded pen, she wrote “end date???” at the bottom of her scrap of paper. Was this over when they finished the list or when they got sick of each other? Or was getting sick of each other when they needed to keep going, to put the final nails in the Coffin of Love?

“Book Angel,” Alex purred as he moved the sack of books to the back bar. He reached for a roll of silverware, but she held up her hand.

“Rain check,” she promised. “I needed to clear out my space so I could move a Christmas tree into my apartment this afternoon.”

Alex grinned. “Aren’t you adorable and Christmassy.”

Sawyer struck a pose. “Trying new things. I’ll tell you about it next time. It’s good.” Alex would appreciate her and Mason’s mission.

“Does it have anything to do with you leaving with Mason West last time you were in?” he asked conspiratorially.

She froze. MasonWest? Why did that name sound familiar? Trying to keep her tone casual, she feigned disinterest by inspecting her nails. “You know Mason?”

Alex’s brows rose. “Yeah, theDiagnosticscast comes in here a lot.They film at the hospital down the street. Why—why are you looking at me like that?”

Sawyer didn’t have cable, so she’d never seen the show, but she definitely knewofit. Lily was going to have a cow when she found out Sawyer had accidentally succeeded in meeting a member of the cast that had eluded them at this very same bar a year ago. And she’d done a lot more thanmeetone of them. Something was suddenly lodged in her throat. Perhaps a scream. Clearing her throat, she tucked her hair behind her ear as she regained her composure. “I, uh, I have to get going,” she managed. “Same time next month?”

Alex nodded slowly. “You alright?”

“Yeah,” she insisted. “I’m fine.” Totally fine, save for she apparently slept with someone very famous from a very popular show she didn’t watch because she hated procedurals and now she had to go see Mason and pretend she didn’t know who he was or that she hated his show. Okay,hatewas a strong word. She’d never actually seen his show. Maybe it was good.

She gave Alex a half-hearted wave as she backed away from the bar, hoping her mental spiral wasn’t written all over her face. She pushed the elevator button with more force than necessary, tugging her phone from her pocket with her other hand. As she waited, she pulled up Google and typed “Mason West Diagnostics.” Maybe there were two Mason Wests in Chicago.

There weren’t.

“Oh, fuck me,” she mumbled as she scrolled past a picture of him with Dakota Johnson. It was a goddamn bisexual thirst trap of a photo.

Her brain was melting.

Mason Álvarez, known professionally as Mason West…

He hadn’t lied about his name, but he hadn’t exactly told the truth either.

It didn’t matter.

Itshouldn’tmatter.

She was successful in her field—or had been—and he knew who she was. What difference did it make if the reason his place was so goddamn nice was due to him being an actor and not a trust fund baby? Though Google told her he wasalsolikely a trust fund baby. His mother, Moira West, was some famous soap opera actress. As the elevator doors dinged open, she closed out of Mason’s Wikipedia page and toggled over to Google Images as she walked blindly into the elevator and pushed the button for the lobby.

Mason West Fills Costar Kara Zhao’s Trailer with 1,000 Roses

A Sneak Peek at Mason West’s Romantic Valentine’s Day Plans

10 Things All Men Could Learn from Mason West: The Blueprint

Good gravy. He really was a walking, talking romance hero. The more recent articles sang a different tune, however.

Her attention snagged on a photo of him with the pretty girl she’d seen him with at the bar the night they met. Someone had photoshopped it to appear torn down the middle. The image had been recycled for multiple articles. At the top was “Mason West’s Long List of Ex-Lovers,” which was clever but cruel. The next headline was worse: “Kara Zhao LeavesDiagnosticsand Costar Mason West: Coincidence? TMZ Has the Inside Scoop…”

TMZ needed to mind its business. And so did Sawyer.

She forced herself to close out of Google before she could learn more than she should know. That didn’t stop all the pieces from falling into place in the back of her mind, however. His ex had been in LA for “work,” which Sawyer now surmised meant “filming.” Sheresisted the urge to reopen Google and read the first article. Her exes weren’t spelled out online, so it wasn’t fair that she should have access to that information when he did not. Besides, why did she care who he’d dated?

Shoving her phone into her pocket, she exhaled slowly. It didn’t matter that he was famous. It changed nothing—except that they might have to do a little sneaking around, which, frankly, sounded kinda fun. No wonder he hadn’t wanted to fake date her at a work party.Holy shit.Maybe after this, she could write a “secretly famous” book. She made a mental note to add it to her romance tropes encyclopedia later. It had started as research for the list, but the multipage Google Doc now had a permanent tab on her browser, each addition kindling to the near-dormant embers of her love of writing. She hoped it would catch fire soon, her fingers flying over the keyboard like they used to.

The elevator doors dinged open, and she spied a familiar gray coat by the revolving door.

Mason grinned warmly at her. “Figured it was easier if I just met you here,” he said brightly. Studying her face as she approached, his expression switched to one of concern. “You alright, Greene?”

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