Page 55 of Endeavor

“Someone threw a brick through my window last night,” he says with a sigh. I place my coffee mug back on the counter.

“A brick?”

“Yeah.”

“Wow, sorry, that sucks. Are you OK?” I question.

“Yeah, I’m fine. Just…don’t worry about it. I’m fine. Calvin has us meeting with our new security firm tomorrow. So, that’ll be good. And hopefully, they catch the asshole who keeps doing shit like this.”

“I hope they can too.”

“You want to grab some coffee today?”

I look at the stack of books on my coffee table. It’s like they are mocking me. But my heart wins out over my head.

“Sure.”

“Great. I’ll come to get you in about an hour.”

“Sounds like a plan,” I reply. “See you in a bit.”

“Bye, Emma.”

I hang up and stare at my coffee. Guess I’ll leave it for later. I’m gonna need it tonight, I think as I glance once more at my homework before heading to shower.

Promptly forty-five minutes after my shower, there’s a knock at my door. I open it to find a grinning Grady.

“You ready?” he asks, giving me a panty-melting smile. I can see why girls flock to him. He’s ridiculously handsome in that boy-next-door, not-even-trying way.

“Yeah,” I mutter as I grab my purse and shut my door. We walk to the café a few blocks from my apartment. He tells me more about the incident at his home.

“I don’t know how celebrities do it,” I say once he finishes.

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, deal with all of that. Stalkers, the press, everything.”

He shrugs. “You just do. It’s part of it. There’s good and bad.”

“I suppose,” I agree as he holds the door to the café open. We order lattes and find a quiet table in the corner. No one bats an eye at him or me. It’s nice, normal even.

“Can I ask your advice about something?”

His question catches me off guard. “Uh, s-sure,” I say, stumbling over the words.

“I…God, I don’t even know where to start.”

I haven’t seen him flustered like this since he apologized for breaking things off with me. I reach across the table and place my hand over his. “Take your time. Maybe, start at the beginning.”

He looks up at me, his head slightly bowed. His beautiful eyes look so, sad.

“What I’m about to tell you is…” He looks around but the café is nearly empty, and no one is sitting close to us. “Promise you won’t say a word to anyone. I can trust you, right?”

His face is earnest, so hopeful. It makes me wonder what others have done to him to have him question my trust. I realize we haven’t known each other for long, but the thought that he is so protected is a reminder of his fame and the unfortunate downside of the life he’s lived.

“Of course, you can,” I say, squeezing his hand before grabbing my coffee.

“I have a brother,” he whispers, looking around again.

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