lips pressed into a thin line. Elle could read her mind easily. She wasn’t buying it. But instead of getting defensive, Elle shared something she thought Whitney would appreciate.
“You’ll meet him at the Globes.”
Instead of an excited smile, her best friend glared at her. “Wait. You’re bringing him?”
“Well, yeah.”
“To the Globes?”
“Yes, Whitney. I’m bringing Troy as my date to the Globes.”
“But Luke will be sitting at the same table. Don’t you think that’s a little cruel?”
Elle crossed her arms, tilting her chin toward the ceiling. “He broke my heart. Don’t you think that’s a little cruel?”
“Oh my God . . . you’re trying to hurt him, aren’t you? You’re trying to make him jealous.” Whitney’s eyes widened, but instead of anger, she appeared proud of Elle. “You little tart! This is brilliant.”
“No, you don’t understand, I’m not trying to do anything to Luke. I just want Troy to come with me, to experience the Globes.”
“Uh-huh.” Whitney pursed her lips, then winked. “I understand completely. And just for the record, I’d do the exact same thing if I were in your shoes. If I could find a date to piss off Nolan, I totally would. But I’m afraid that’s not in the cards. Mind if I borrow Luke?”
Elle glared at Whitney.
“Kidding, kidding!”
Elle knew there was no sense in arguing with Whitney over her intentions in inviting Troy to the award show. And if she was being honest with herself, there was a part of her that would delight in making Luke regret his decision to walk away from her. She didn’t want to use Troy, or exact revenge. Her feelings for him were genuine, and she would never hurt him intentionally. But the hole Luke left was significant and the idea of regaining the upper hand in that scenario was too enticing to reject.
She could only hope sitting at a table with Luke, Troy, Gina, Whitney, and Nolan would not be the most uncomfortable four hours of her life. But somehow, she knew it would be exactly that.
Luke sat in the limousine, his hands trembling as he gazed out at the mob of photographers surrounding the red carpet of the Golden Globes at The Beverly Hilton. The normally laid-back actor had dreamed of this moment for most of his life. He was a successful actor on the hottest drama on television, arriving at his very first award show. His hands should have been trembling with excitement and nervous energy over this monumental event in his professional life.
But that wasn’t the source of his trembling hands. Instead, all he could think about was Elle. Gorgeous, headstrong, stubborn Elle. Three weeks prior, his temper allowed her to slip through his fingers. And tonight he would see her in some gorgeous dress, looking as hot as humanly possible, and he would want to take her hand in his, sit together at the table, drink wine, laugh, and celebrate the success of the show. And when the curtain closed and they retreated to the after-party at the estate of the president of the network, they’d lounge together on a couch near the pool, drinking champagne and toasting the awards received that evening. Elle would make a comment about how next year, Luke would be holding a statue of his own. They’d retreat to his home, where they’d cap off the evening with a late-night swim in the ocean and cuddling in his hammock.
But that wasn’t going to happen.
None of it.
Instead, he was mentally preparing for an evening of uncomfortable glances and stifled conversation during the agonizing four-hour taping of the award show. If he was lucky, Elle would sit beside him and they would get past their fight and petty miscommunication. Elle would see Gina was crazy, that he never cooperated with her on any of her crazy schemes, and that his love for her was truer than anything else in his life. He loved her. And he’d never loved anyone before. Not like this.
And right then, he made the decision to win her back, to apologize for walking away. She was right—he told her she was worth waiting for and yet he abruptly stopped waiting. Well, not anymore. He would stand by her side and convince her they belonged together, even if it took all night.
Just as his newly confident self grabbed the handle of the limousine door, a swarm of photographers surrounded his vehicle, as if somehow they knew he was about to emerge. With confidence, he stepped from the limousine, doing his