Page 70 of In Love with Lewis Prescott
“You’re gonna lose your eight-pack,” I whisper to him. “Think of all the juices you’re going to have to drink after this!”
He stabs his fork into the steamy pile of cheesy bacon goodness. When he takes his first bite, he makes an “mmm” sound. “Worth it.”
Chapter Nineteen
Lewis
“Welp, so long, abs. You’ll be sorely missed.” I pat my stomach.
Harper laughs from the passenger seat of her car as I drive us back to Half Moon Bay.
“I’m sure they’ll be back soon. You spend your days doing intense physical labor for the renovation. You’ll burn off those carbs and cheese in no time.”
I scoop her hand in mine and press a kiss to her knuckles, still floating from the evening at her family’s house. I can’t believe how well it went—how amazing her family is. They welcomed me with open arms and treated me like I was one of them. Me, a total stranger. Just because I was with Harper.
An unfamiliar feeling washes over me. It’s like my chest is cracking in half, but in a good way.
“Sorry again for how over-the-top my family was,” Harper says, shaking her head.
“Don’t apologize. They’re great.” I smile thinking about how Jules insisted that I call her Mom.
“You’ve charmed my mom. And my great-uncle thinks you’re a superhero because you’re tall and can reach every shelf in the house.”
I laugh.
“And you handled my dad’s incessant questions about your job as a contractor like a champ.”
“I get it. He wants his daughter to be with someone responsible and gainfully employed. I’d want that too for my kid. Especially if they were as amazing and accomplished as you.”
I catch the expression on her face. It’s joy and something else. Disbelief, maybe?
She squeezes my hand and scoffs. “You’re one of the most accomplished people I’ve ever met. You’re a talented actor. And a contractor in your spare time. And you donate to charity. You’re incredible, Lewis.”
I loosen my hand and gently pull out of her hold. With both hands on the steering wheel, I focus on the darkened road ahead.
“I’m hardly incredible,” I mutter.
A long stretch of silence passes, and I look over at Harper. The slight frown on her face conveys concern.
“Why would you say that about yourself?” Her tone is a mix of confused and caring, and it makes me ache.
“You know how I got fired from my show?” I say after a moment.
“I mean, I know the reason that the entertainment news outlets reported. They said it was because you and the showrunner didn’t get along. You got into an argument, and he fired you.”
I exhale so sharply, my lungs sting. “That’s not entirely true. What actually happened was the showrunner was a sexually harassing piece of shit who was going after multiple people on the crew. I found out from my makeup artist, Katie. She’s a good friend of mine and was one of the people he was targeting. Apparently, he’s been doing it from the beginning of the show. I had no idea.”
My heart hammers at that thought of just how long that asshole got away with it—how he’s still getting away with it. I clench my jaw so hard the back of my neck starts to ache.
“I asked everyone on the crew who had been targeted by him if it was okay for me to confront him about it. They all said yes. So I did.”
“What happened?”
“I told him I knew what he was doing. I knew what a disgusting predator he was. I told him that his days of sexually harassing the crew were over as long as I was on that show. And he told me I was fired.”
“Jesus.”
“Part of me was shocked that he didn’t express one ounce of shame or regret. He didn’t even flinch—that’s how much he didn’t care about my threats. And then he got rid of me.”
