Page 79 of You Rock My World
“Sounds incredible,” I say a little dreamily. “I don’t know how you switch from that high to, well, everyday life.”
“It’s a balancing act.” He shrugs, eyes crinkling as he cuts me a side glance. “The day-to-day can be as exciting, depending on who you’re sharing it with.”
Damn me, I blush. Dorian in real life is nothing compared to video-call Dorian. I haven’t forgotten how it is to be face to face with him because I could never. But after several weeks apart, I’m feeling his proximity extra hard tonight.
“Right.”
“What about you?” Dorian sprawls deeper into the couch, one arm still draped along the back, fingers idly tracing the stitching. “Anything new?”
“You mean since we spent three hours on the phone two days ago?” I tilt my head, raising a brow.
His lips curve. “A lot can happen in forty-eight hours.”
I grin wide because something has happened, and I’ve waited to tell him in person. “I have news, actually.”
Dorian leans in. “Should I be nervous?”
I shrug. “Depends. How good are you at writing heartfelt recommendation letters?”
His brows pull together. “Who am I addressing them to?”
I wave a hand. “My potential new employee. I have a job interview on Monday.”
I’ve spent the last month and a half sending out applications. After the VMAs, I knew I couldn’t wait a year—technically, eight to ten months now—to be with him. I want it sooner. I want it yesterday. If my sister’s tragedy taught me anything, it is that life is short. Shorter than we think.
Dorian blinks, processing, then gasps dramatically. “You’re leaving me PR-less? Just like that?”
I smirk. “I figured you’d manage.”
“Unbelievable. I open my home to you, I offer you a couch—and soon, a movie—and this is how you repay me?” Dorian drapes himself across the couch, pretending I’ve ruined his life. “Leaving me a struggling musician with no media shield.”
I lift my eyebrows. “Struggling?”
“Emotionally,” he deadpans. “Now that you’re abandoning me.”
I nudge his thigh with my foot. “Only professionally.”
He catches my ankle before I can pull back, his palm warm where it wraps around me. Dorian rubs a slow, absentminded circle over my sock. “You’re sure about this? The job?”
I nod. “I don’t want to wait.”
He searches my face, probably wanting to double-check I’m really okay with the potential career move, then nods too. “You’ll get it.” He squeezes my ankle before letting go. “They’d be idiots not to hire you.”
I silently hope he’s right and clear my throat. “So. Movie?”
He grabs the remote from the coffee table. “What are you in the mood for?”
“Something funny—Will Ferrell?”
“Yeah, come here.” He opens his arms for me and I scoot closer.
As the movie starts, I nestle into Dorian’s side, thinking how perfect this is. How perfectheis. I wonder if—and hopethat—soon we’ll be able to be together most nights, in the open, without worrying about me losing everything if we get discovered.
After we take Penny trick-or-treating tomorrow night, I’m going to spend the entire weekend prepping for my interview. If I get the job, we can try this for real, without sneaking around. I’ll also be changing my entire life for a man I’ve never even kissed. That should terrify me. Instead, it feels like the only thing that makes sense.
* * *
When the movie ends, I’m already half-asleep. I’m not looking forward to the drive home, even if Ned will take me. But above everything else, I don’t want to leave Dorian. Not so soon after getting him back.
