Page 66 of Better Left Unsaid

Maria:Allie, stop stirring up trouble.

Allegra:Rude. You’re the one lying to our sisters. And now I’m lying to them. You’ve made me an accessory to your crime.

Maria:It’s not a crime. You need to stop watching crime shows. And it’s not a lie.

Allegra:It’s a lie of omission.

Allegra:Fine. I’ll let it go. I just hope you know what you’re doing with Dom. Don’t get burned, that’s all I’m saying.

What was today, the day to warn Maria? I knew what I was doing.Weknew what we were doing.Weas in me and Dom. It was enough for us, so why couldn’t it be enough for them?

Chapter Twenty

Dominic

I knew whatyou were thinking—did Dom ever work?

The answer was yes, I did.

But the life and career of a model could be fickle.

Sometimes I worked once every three months, other times I had work three to four times a week. It all just depended on what the companies wanted. This was an industry where subjectivism ran strong.

I hadn’t had a gig since fashion week. Sometimes that happened. But Jeff submitted my tape and marketing materials for a couple auditions recently that led to gigs. One you knew about—the cologne campaign I’d be doing with Maria soon. The other I was doing today—modeling underwear for a big-name brand. My photo would be splattered on billboards across the country from New York City to Los Angeles.

It was scheduled as a ten-hour shoot with one break and eight underwear changes. Not the worst I’d done, but also not the best. The best would be an easy four-hour shoot with one or two outfit changes. Wanted to know the worst? Twelve hours, one break, and twenty-eight outfit changes. The payoff, though, especially for this underwear shoot, was worth it, and that was really all that mattered. Because, sure, I loved my job, but a man had to survive.

I walked into my dressing room at the studio and sat down, waiting for hair and makeup to come over and do their thing. Not ten seconds later, the girl came over to work on me, starting with my hair.

I’d never met her before, but she introduced herself to me and was nice as she got started, running her hands through my dark brown hair and applying some product to it. Nothing like Maria had done to poor Isabella’s hair for her dance recital. “You have great hair,” she noted casually.

“Thanks.” What was I supposed to say? I grow it myself?

While she continued working, I felt my phone vibrate with a text in my pocket, so I pulled it out.

Maria:I have a break at work and need to get Isabella’s birthday gift. Want to come with me?

Dominic:As much fun as shopping sounds, I have to pass. Sorry.

Maria:I’m shocked you don’t want to spend hours with me at a mall.

Dominic:I would because it’s for Isabella, but I’m working.

The truth was I detested shopping as much as the next guy, but I wasn’t lying when I said I would for Isabella. There was surprisingly little I wouldn’t do for that little girl. Or Maria.

Maria:I didn’t know. Why didn’t you say anything before now? What’s the job?

Dominic:Underwear shoot.

As I waited for her reply, I couldn’t help but wonder what she was thinking. Would she think it’s no big deal? Would she get jealous? And how fucked in the head was I that part of me wanted her to get jealous? Any reaction at all would’ve been good. Just something to tell me that maybe there could be a shift in the way things were between us. Don’t get me wrong, friends with benefits was great, and there was little I enjoyed more than entering Maria, praising her for taking me so well, feeling her slickness on my fingers as I drove multiple digits inside her, or watching her come, but I still loved the woman. I still wanted more. And that right there told me exactly what I needed to know—I had to tell her.

She needed to know the truth about my feelings. I was sick of keeping them from her. Yes, I’d broken a rule, but fuck the rules, I never cared much for rules anyway.

Maria:They have the right man for the job, that’s all I’m going to say. I can’t wait to see the photos.

I sat on that one for a minute, not sure how to respond. Mostly because I wasn’t sure what she was saying. Like most men, my read-between-the-lines skills could be crap—this was one of those times.

Maria:Should I wait for you to go shopping?

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