Page 29 of Bound By Brielle (Crave & Cure Productions)

Brielle clears her throat, coming into the office, stepping directly between us. Her voice is quiet, but her cheeks are rich with flush as she asks, “What does he need that you can’t give him and…can I help?”

I look at her, then Lance.

And suddenly,everything is different.

thirteen

I want to be a third, not a third wheel

brielle

I thinkthis is the only time in my life that I’m not offended by having a door slammed in my face. I mean, my confidence isn’t soaring, but I also know that it was aboutthem, not me.

The thing that has me pacing the hallway isn’t the door slam.

It’s the big thing I floated out there before they slammed the door in my face. The whole “I’ll be part of your supremely messed up situation if you’ll have me” is what has me fighting IBS and cold sweats.

Whydid I say that?Why? Slamming the door in my face was the nicest response they could give, honestly. I bring my balled fists to my temples, squeezing my eyes shut as I drop my forehead to the wall, groaning.

“Ahh, what’s the matter?” Vienna approaches me, an apron smeared with casting compound strapped to her body, dark hair in a bouncy ponytail. She drops her bubbly voice to a whisper, looking over her shoulder conspiratorially before bringing her gaze back to me. “Listen, if it’s Lance—he’s not really a jerk. He just… well,” she wobbles her head thoughtfully for a moment, “They’re both just intense. That’s all. I swear it just takes warming up to them.”

I sigh. I like Vienna but I can’t bring myself to tell her what I said, not to mention—doessheknow about Aug and Lance? Surely it’s not a secret, especially if these two have worked together for years. Still. I can’t risk yet another foot-in-mouth situation. I’m stuffed as it is. “Oh, it’s not them. Just… me.” I tap the side of my head. “Just a me thing.”

She nods, smiling. “I get that. Well, I’m walking to Rise & Grind to pick up a latte and a box of muffins for Tuck. Wanna walk with me?”

I glance at my watch. I have two hours before the night shoot. “Sure,” I sigh, knowing there’s no possible way I could nap in my car with all this shameful adrenaline.

Why did I say what I said? Seriously? They probably think I’m an immature moron. They’re in the middle of a real, deep argument and I’m all,hey, can I join?

I slap my forehead from the delayed cringe, and Vienna turns her head as we walk, surveying me. “Whatever it is, tomorrow’s a new day,” she says, beaming. I’d probably sell a nipple for an ounce of her positivity right now.

I grin when we approach Rise, seeing Winnie huddled up with her laptop and many baked goods in the corner. She didn’t tell me she was going to be here. The bell on the door clatters as I pull it open, gathering my best friend’s attention. She leaps from her seat, eyes wide and full of shock at seeing me, and I drag Vienna by the wrist, excited for my two worlds to meet.

“Vienna, this is my best friend Winnie. She’s a graduate student at UCSF, too.” I blink at my gorgeous, fun, talented friend. “And Winnie, this is Vienna, the girl I was telling you about. She works at Crave. She’s married to one of the actors.”

Vienna drapes her hand on my forearm, giving it a soft squeeze. “Thanks for not saying porn star,” she says quietly before turning her flittering smile to Winnie. Winnie’s extended hand crashes into Vienna’s chest as she pulls her into a deep hug. “Oh Winnie!” she exclaims. “It’s so good to meet a friend of B’s.”

Winnie’s curls tangle with the hook on Vienna’s overalls as they pull apart. “I call her B, too!” my bestie grins, pulling out the two chairs across from hers. The three of us sit, and Winnie quickly stashes her phone away to make room. My stupidity from earlier temporarily disappears as my bestie and work friend get to know one another while I sip a latte.

“So how long have you worked at Crave?” Winnie inquires, head tipped to the side with genuine curiosity. My friend may have teased me about Crave initially but the truth is, she was never closed off to it the way I was. And reading her body language, I see she’s genuinely interested in Vienna and her story. I’m suddenly ashamed of myself for the things I thought about Crave just months back.

Mr. Leon was right all along. Iamlearning, and Idolike it.

Vienna and Winnie trade facts for the next few minutes as I mull over my behavior options when returning to the night shoot. I decide to act completely natural as if nothing happened. Ididn’twalk in on them arguing, Iam notprivy to any informationand I most certainlydid notinsert myself into a mature but fractured relationship.

Nope.

Clean slate. That’s how I’m rolling in.

Thank God for the purple haze of dusk. My armpits are seriously so sweaty. And I’m freezing my tits off out here in the alley behind Crave.

Turns out, we all decided to pull the clean slate card, the three of us trading controlled, newscaster smiles while sidestepping one another on set. I caught Tuck asking Aug if he felt fine—so I know it’s not in my head. We’re all being weird.

But tomorrow is a new day and all that. I just need to finish this night shoot and first thing tomorrow we can all act normal and ignore everything that this day was.

Except, I can’t leave well enough alone.

Lance bumps Aug after repositioning Tuck on his mark, and Aug jumps back from the contact like he’s been branded with a hot iron. He knocks over a camera, and when I reach down to prevent the very expensive item from smashing against the concrete into a million sad pieces, I topple forward, smashing both the camera and myself into the ground.

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