Page 55 of Breaking the Alpha
“Yup.”
“Market her.”
“No.”
Angelina knew her eyes were wide as saucers as the back and forth continued, with Jodie firing off questions and River responding mostly in one-word answers.The topic switched to money and deals, with Jodie warning of the percentage cut River might face in his current condition.But she made no comment about him losing work, simply stating his upcoming jobs while he confirmed.
Although her head hurt trying to keep up, she noticed River had no problem.He was wholly absorbed in the grilling, focused and alert and quick.There was no hint of hesitation or uncertainty in his replies, no glimpse of the insecurities she knew he had.
He knew this life.Knew it, and thrived in it.
It was, without a doubt, the starkest reminder that his life wasn’t here.He was happy enough at Serpent’s Tongue, but there was a spark in his eyes as he verbally sparred with his agent.He wanted to get back to work.Maybe needed to.
Their meals arrived and Jodie snapped her napkin onto her lap, her entire demeanor shifting as she turned to Angelina.“We had to clear up a few things.Now that business is done, let’s enjoy this.”
*
River waved Jodieand her luxury rental car off and turned to Angelina, catching the slight downturn of her lips before she gave him a smile that didn’t reach her eyes.“Are you sure you need to get back to the store so quick?We should probably talk before I fly out.”
She rose up on her toes and kissed his cheek.“Come over tonight after Birch gets back.”
“Over where?”he asked, frowning when he realized what she meant.“You’re going home?”
With a nod, she got into her car.“Text me when you see how Grey is, okay?I’m going out for a coffee with Zoe after work but I’ll be home before seven.”And then, almost as an afterthought, she looked up at him.“I love you.I’ll see you later.”
“Yeah,” he murmured as her door shut.“I love you too.”
He leaned on his crutches and watched her drive off, an ache forming in his chest as Birch walked out of Serpent’s Tongue to take him back to the house to see Grey.
“Your agent gone?”his brother asked as they hit the road.“Shit, that woman was terrifying.I still have the shakes.”
He scoffed and nodded.“She is.I’m supposed to fly out tomorrow morning to meet up with a few campaign organizers.We need to make sure they can work with all this damaged shit.”
“Good,” Birch said, turning toward the water tower.“Grey is going to be fine, and with Jocelyn able to work from home, he won’t be alone until he’s ready to be.And you need to get back on the ladder.”With a grin, he pulled into the driveway.“As disturbing as it is to see your half-naked ass plastered all over the place, I can’t wait to see what else you do.”
Easing out of the truck, he accepted the crutches Birch passed over.“Guess we’ll see soon, huh?”
“Damn right we will.”His brother’s face became serious.“And don’t you worry about Angelina, okay?She understands your job.You saw that today.You’ll get to see her during downtimes and shit.You can fly here, or she can fly there.It’ll be good.”
“Good, yeah,” he echoed.“See you later.”
Birch had no idea how right he was.
Angelina did understand his job.And he did see that today.
Just not when his agent was on her knees with her hands on his thighs like Birch was thinking.He saw it when Jodie was ploughing through everything that he’d put off dealing with.He saw the shift in Angelina’s expression when his ex-wife’s new social media attack was mentioned, saw her uncertainty when Jodie laid out the money his new injuries might cost, saw her face change from surprised to worried to sad before it settled on a hardened resolve.
She’d made up in her mind about their future in the restaurant booth this afternoon.He’d known before the check hit the table.And he had a sinking feeling he wasn’t going to like what she decided.
Remembering he didn’t have a house key on him, he knocked on the door and waited for Jocelyn to open it.
“Thank god you’re here,” she huffed, stepping aside to let him in.“Grey wants to watch another sci-fi movie and I’m buried under a million emails.Go.Entertain him.”
Leaving his crutches at the front door, he limped into the living room and collapsed on the sofa beside his brother.“How are you holding up?”
“I should ask you,” Grey replied, turning up the volume a bit.“You look like someone ate your dog.”
“I don’t have a dog.”
