The Hating Season (Seasons #2) - K.A.Linde Page 0,52
it had gone straight to miserable.
I still couldn’t decide if it was worse that Max kept trying to convince me that Josh was a good guy and people just “made mistakes” or the number of times Max tried to get in my pants. Either way, I’d handled him. He hadn’t botched his round of interviews for his movie. And he was off his merry way, back to LA, where he could be Winnie’s problem again.
But now that Court was working, I saw him a lot less. I suddenly had free days like crazy. And I needed to talk to him.
I knew that, every Monday, he got off work at three and went with Camden to this traditional gentlemen’s club. I’d assumed it was a strip club until I’d looked it up. Apparently, it was this super-snooty aristocratic social club that favored Ivy League educations and bank accounts in the nine- to ten-digit range.
The likelihood that I could get into this place was basically zero. But I’d shown up anyway in the hopes that they would send for him or some bullshit. Since I didn’t want to interrupt his work and I didn’t think just waltzing into his apartment was a good idea. All things considered.
But after a solid thirty-minute wait outside the gentlemen’s club, it wasn’t Court that appeared. It was Camden.
“English,” he said with a hard, steady gaze and next to no kindness in his voice. “What are you doing here?”
“I’m here to see Court.”
He arched an eyebrow. “He isn’t here.”
“He’s been coming here every Monday for a month,” I told him.
“I can assure you that Court has not nor has he ever come here on a Monday afternoon. He doesn’t actually care about keeping up connections or appearances,” he said stiffly.
“If he’s not here, then where the hell is he every Monday? This is what’s on his calendar.”
Camden just stared at me. “How should I know?”
A bad feeling settled into the pit of my stomach. Why would Court lie about what he was doing? Was he seeing another woman? It would make sense based on his past actions. But he had said that he hadn’t been with anyone else. He had no reason to lie about that. But still… I was uneasy.
“I don’t know. You’re his best friend.”
“And you’re his publicist.”
I was. And I had somehow managed to lose my client.
“Well, thanks, Camden,” I said, putting on my best publicist voice and smiling at him. “I appreciate your help.”
“Was I helpful?”
“I know he’s not here. That’s more than I knew before.”
Camden took a step forward. He was so domineering. A power unto himself. An asshole, but to get to the position that he was in, he likely had to be. “Be careful, English.”
A shiver trailed down my back. It sounded more like a threat than anything. “Careful with what?”
He shrugged. “You tell me.”
So… he knew.
Court had told him.
Was he saying that I should be careful with my heart because Court would break it? Or something more sinister?
“I don’t know,” I finally said. “But… I’ll keep it in mind.”
“You do that.” He stepped back. “Now, you’ll have to excuse me. You interrupted a meeting.”
Then, he walked into the club without a backward glanced. Leaving me to feel chilled and uncomfortable. Camden Percy was slightly terrifying.
I strode away from the entrance to the gentlemen’s club and paced the sidewalk. How the hell was I going to find out where Court was? And what would I find when I did? I couldn’t stop imagining him with another woman, and despite it all, it made my stomach turn.
I scrolled through the calendar, checking over the last couple of Mondays. Nothing unusual. They all said they’d be here. He’d even said that. He’d lied to me, even when he claimed to hate lying. But… why?
Another thought hit me. When Court had started working at Kensington Corporation, I’d hired a full-time car service for him. Before, he’d been content to get around with cabs or on foot, but with the job, it looked good for him to have the car.
And that car service came with an app. Its main function was like Uber or Lyft. You could flag your service down, see where the car was parked, communicate with the driver, and the like. I had the app as well as Court so that I could call the car for him. I’d used the same thing with other clients on occasion and found it convenient.