bills on the bar, I stumble toward the door. Once outside, I hail a cab and head home where there’s more than one bottle of whiskey waiting for me.
And every one of them has Alexandra Romanov’s name on it.
Chapter Thirty-Six
Angel
“Don’t you have to be on set today or something?”
“Huh?” Glancing up, I pause mid-type and offer a half-hearted smile. “Oh, not today. Unions—got to love them. Even Rosten can’t impose a seven-day work week on us.”
Before she can ask another question, I return to my phone, finish typing, and hit send on the fifth text I’ve sent Dominic in the last three hours.
Where are you? I’m starting to worry.
I stare at it, willing him to answer. Of course, he doesn’t. I called him twice after Violet and I got back home from Amalia, and both times it went straight to voicemail. Between the nightmares and worry, I barely slept anyway, so I started again early this morning with the same result.
It’s not like him, and I can’t shake the feeling that something is very wrong.
Feeling Violet’s eyes burning into the side of my face, I lift my coffee mug to my lips and stare out from the balcony. She tried bringing up my relationship with Dominic a few times last night, but I evaded her questions with two bottles of wine.
“How close are you and McCallum?” Swiveling around, she plants her feet in between our chairs. “And no changing the subject this time. I want a straight answer.”
Shit.
I didn’t want to have this conversation without talking to Dominic first, but Violet’s my best friend. She knows me better than anyone. “Pretty close.”
“Are you fucking him?”
“Violet!”
“What?” she asks, landing a hard gaze on me. “It's a valid question. You don’t do dates, or hook-ups or one-nighters, Ang. So, if you let this guy in your pants, it’s not casual.”
I was right. She does know me. Letting Dominic touch me that night at his house was so out of character I swore I’d never do it again. But I did. Over and over until I became addicted. It’s not casual. I don’t think it ever has been.
Flustered, I stare into my coffee. “I feel safe with him, Vi.”
Violet digs her feet into the floor, pushing the chaise back at least a foot. “Oh my God. You’re in love with him.”
My eyes widen. “No, it’s not like—”
“Don’t deny it.” Leaping to her feet, she points a finger at me. “It’s written all over your face with little fucking hearts.” Palming her forehead, she curses while pacing the balcony. “Did you not hear a word I said? Did you have cotton in your ears?”
My eyebrows knit together. “What are you talking about?”
She spins around mid-pace. “I told you before you left to be careful. I warned you that a man who plays people for a living has two faces, and you never see the ugly one until it’s too late. I told you as long as you don’t fall blindly in love with the pretty one you’d be okay.”
Words I repeated to myself over and over…until I forgot them.
“Vi—”
“And what did you do?” Letting out a shrill cackle, she throws her hands in the air. “You shit all over everything I said and fell in love with the pretty face.”
“Stop it!” The outburst comes out of nowhere, and Violet’s eyes widen. “I understand you want to look out for me, but you’re out of line. You’re making generalizations.” I shake my head. “You don’t know him like I do.”
But she doesn’t back down. “You’ve never been one to follow anyone blindly like this. It’s like you’re a little wind-up toy that keeps dancing as long as he turns your crank.”
“Was that meant to be as offensive as it sounded?”
Letting out a long sigh, Violet lowers beside me. I’m about to tell her this conversation is over when she tilts her chin, and I see the ravaged look on her face. “The deal was for you to split the money and cut ties. You get the name and the mansion, and he gets to not be a loser. This was never part of the plan.”
“This was never part of the plan.”
“They were never part of the plan.”
“You were never part of the plan.”
It’s faint at first. The scratching. Like a tree branch grazing a window in a storm. But then it gets louder and louder until it becomes a thousand knives being dragged across asphalt.
One. Two. Three. Four. Five.
I close my eyes, barely hearing my