which only made the dark-haired man look even angrier as the car pulled into an insane amount of traffic.
“Uh, nice to meet you. I didn’t know you had a brother.” I felt like that was something that would’ve stuck in my memory. They didn’t really look anything alike aside from being heavily tattooed and in really good shape.
“I’m his former step-brother and his current business manager.” The guy lifted his dark eyebrows and asked, “Where can we drop you off?”
I didn’t want to have them take me all the way to Malibu since this escape was totally unplanned. I had an office space in downtown LA where I could hide until I called Arrow to come and get me and give me a ride home. I passed on the address and watched as Salinger grinned at his brother’s obvious ire. It was clear that I wasn’t the only one whose skin he liked to get under.
“Not that it matters now, but Piper showed up at the last minute and went looking for you.” Jeno shook his dark head and scowled at his older brother. “Guess I don’t have to tell you she didn’t love what she found. You really couldn’t have waited until her team sent the contract back before fucking up in such a public way?”
Salinger chuckled and slouched down in the leather seat. His gaze flickered over me and then shot back to his brother. The blond seemed totally relaxed while the dark-haired man was giving off murderous vibes. It was really uncomfortable to be caught between the two, yet oddly fascinating to watch.
They were clearly very close. I’d never seen anyone hold Salinger accountable before. Instead of throwing a fit and pushing back, he appeared slightly contrite, but not entirely apologetic, as he told his brother, “I know you put a lot of work into selling her on the project, but if she walked away because she saw me kissing someone, then it wasn’t the role she was interested in from the start. I have complete faith in your ability to find someone else, someone better for the part.”
I stiffened reflexively where I was perched on the edge of the seat next to Salinger. My hands twisted together as a tickle of something that felt like excitement pricked at my insides. “I thought you already had Piper attached as the lead.”
“We were this close. There were just a couple of details left to hammer out, but now she pretty much told me she’s out. You better hope that all the investors she brought along don’t walk with her, asshole.” He pointed a tattooed finger in Salinger’s direction. “You aren’t the only one with everything riding on this project, big brother.”
Big brother? How old was this guy? They were just kids but sounded like hardened Hollywood professionals. It was mind-boggling. Even when I’d been in my early twenties, I hadn’t had half the awareness these guys did or been through a third of life’s trials.
I made a noise and shifted uneasily, looking at my phone screen and hoping that I hadn’t woken Arrow up. She tended to be a night owl and was used to keeping odd hours to cater to whatever might pop up, but I wasn’t the type who typically asked her after hours to do anything that wasn’t previously planned.
“It’s a really good script. I agree with Salinger. You shouldn’t have a problem finding someone as good, if not better, than Piper.” I still thought she was too young and too polished for the role, but I wasn’t about to admit that while Salinger was within earshot.
Jeno snorted and slumped back in the seat, crossing his brawny arms over his chest. He didn’t look like a businessman. He looked like a professional athlete, or maybe the lead singer of a rock band. I would bet good money that he was a hit on social media, but since I didn’t have an account on any platform, there was no way to creep on him. I’d have to ask Arrow to check it out for me like I had her do with anything that caught my attention.
“Easy for you to say. You liked the script, the part was specifically written for you, yet you still turned it down. Don’t tell me you’re suddenly having FOMO.”
I blinked and looked at Salinger, but his head was turned, and he was looking out the darkly tinted window. It seemed like he had tuned the entire conversation out, so I couldn’t