Page 98 of Strut

I headed for the kitchen to make another coffee, debating whether to simply push through the closed door and join Alec in the bedroom when I heard his cell go off. The sound startled me, and I fought back another sting of hurt as I wondered just how long he’d been sitting in there after ending his call with Tui. Then it hit me. What were the odds he’d been scrolling through all that crap on social media without me?Fuck.I wouldn’t take that bet. It’s what I would’ve done.

Dammit.

I rushed to the bedroom door, but it swung open before I got there and Alec strode out looking ashen-faced and emotionally wrecked. He was dressed in old black sweats and a heavy grey jersey, blond hair tangled and uncombed, his eyes deep-blue pools of misery. He took one look at me standing there, winced, and veered around me, heading for the front door.

“Alec, stop.” I grabbed his shoulders but he jerked away. “Where are you going?”

He ignored me.

“Alec! Is this about what people are saying?” I followed him. “They’re just arsehole opinions, you know that. Weexpectedthat. You can’t let them get to you. This type of thing brings out the worst in people. The people who know you, the people who matter, we all know it’s crap.”

He shot me a hunted look as he pulled on his boots. “It’s not just people who don’t know me, Hunter. I’ve got texts and messages from people I thoughtdidknow me—friends from back home, even some family, and models I thought were friends—all asking me if it’s true. Some shitting on me for trying to sleep my way to the top. Others saying I was an idiot for turning Darcy down or that I should just shut up whining when I probably sleep with guys all the time and don’t complain. Some even said that being a model is a whore’s job anyway.” He choked the last out.

Fuck.“Alec... shit.”What the hell did I say to that?“Those people don’t care about you. You can’t listen to their bullshit.”

“Well, apparently Cage doesn’t agree with you. It seemstheycare about those arsehole opinions because that was them on the phone. As of today, they’re done with me. I’m officially having a detrimental effect on their business.”

“What?” I blinked, stunned. “They dropped you? Because of the MeToo thing?” I couldn’t believe it.

“No.” Alec shot me a caustic look. “Or that’s not how they’re spinning it. Apparently, they’re getting calls from litigation-averse clients wanting to know what’s going on and should they be worried. Some of those I have bookings with. Cage’s view is, they don’t employ me, they just represent me, and that relationship is no longer to their advantage.”

“They can’t do that!” I protested.

“They just did,” Alec fired back. “Grow up, Hunter. He’s won.” He grabbed his coat and I shot forward again.

“Where are you going?”

“Out.”

“I’ll come with you.”

“No!” Alec reeled and gave me an icy stare that almost dropped me to my knees. “You can’t make this better, Hunter.”

I flinched. “You’re not even letting me try, dammit.”

Apology flashed in his eyes, then was gone. “Don’t you get it? I have no contract, which means no modelling jobs, and no bar job since I will very soon have no visa. No apartment since I have to be out by Sunday. No money to speak of other than a small savings account. Nothingexcept my bare-naked body flashed all over social media and a reputation in the gutter.”

“Alec, we’ll get through this.” I risked a hand on his arm.

He stared at me, then sighed like he had nothing left to give. “What do you want from me, Hunter? Everything we’d planned is gone. I’m not the guy I was last week. And if you hang around me, you’re gonna catch the fallout as well. Did you see the posts that talked about us, about how I cheated on you and how sad they were for you? And someone put up an edited video of me punching Darcy at the park with none of the lead-up, making me look like the arsehole.”

I winced because, yeah, I’d avoided showing him those.

He saw and rolled his eyes. “Everyone thinks you’re crazy just for being with me.”

“Not everyone,” I was quick to correct. “Not even most.Mostpeople who know me trust me,andby extension, they’ll believe you.”

His lips pressed into a thin line and he shook his head. “Maybe. But there’s still enough vitriol in those threads to hurt your business. Don’t you see? It doesn’t matter what the truth is, it only matters that anyone who looks at hiring you after this knows that it probably comes with a level of scrutiny they won’t want. Or maybe they simply won’t want to piss Darcy off if there’s bad blood between you. So, do yourself a favour and lie low. Stay away from all this and you’ll be fine.” He pulled the door open and left me gaping.

What the actual fuck?

“What the hell does that mean?” I grabbed the door before it shut and followed him into the hall, shouting to his back. “Where the hell are you going? You realise all your stuff is still here?”

He didn’t even look back as he disappeared down the stairwell.

“Fuck!” I slammed my palm against the neighbour’s wall. “Don’t let him push you away.”I raced back into the apartment and pulled on my coat and shoes before haring after the idiot. By the time I made it three flights down and burst onto the street, I’d lost him. At almost nine on a Tuesday morning, the street’s normally quiet sidewalks were bustling.

I ignored the curious glances thrown my way and ran for the intersection, my undone coat flying in the breeze. The subway was my best bet. In old jeans and a woollen jacket, sockless, and with bed-head hair standing to attention and my face unshaved, I had to look like some wild-eyed vagrant, which to be honest wasn’t that far from the truth, since my newly discoveredhomehad just turned up his nose and walked out the door in an Oscar-worthy performance.

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