Page 99 of Broken Romeo

I cross my arms. “You’re going to hold cupcakes hostage?”

He sighs and a weariness passes over his face as he lowers his voice. “Truth? You may be fine... but I’m not. I’m not really used to being that exposed in a rehearsal. And since we’re supposed to be leaning on each other in this show—”

“I’m so sorry, Nolan.” Shit. I pinch the bridge of my nose. “I’ve been so self-absorbed with my own bullshit, I didn’t even think to check on how you’re doing.”

I hadn’t done the one thing Holden asked of us after rehearsal: to take care of each other. Nolan had taken care of me—but maybe it had been a cry for help, his way of asking me to do the same for him.

“You want to come in for a while?” I open the door wider and gesture for him to enter.

“We’re going to watch Les Mis,” Jill says. “And mock Russel Crowe mercilessly.”

Nolan’s grin widens. “Well, how can I say no to that?”

* * *

What is my life right now? How is it that Nolan freaking Brooks, Broadway star, is sitting beside me on my shitty Ikea couch beneath my tattered fleece blanket?

“You seriously haven’t caught a single piece of popcorn tonight!” Nolan teases me with a poke to my ribs.

“It’s not so easy!” I defend myself.

Jill snorts and shakes her head. “Sure it is. Watch!”

She tosses a piece of popcorn at Nolan and without a single flinch, he opens his mouth and catches it perfectly on his tongue. With an eyebrow wiggle, he eats it and winks at me.

“See?” he says with a laugh, holding a kernel of popcorn between his pinched fingers. “Your turn now.”

Before I’m ready, he throws the popcorn at my face and it bounces off my cheek.

“I wasn’t ready!” I cry out as Jill and Nolan crack up.

Nolan reaches over with a pinch to my cheek. “You’re adorable. How is it, you’re so graceful on a stage and yet so uncoordinated with popcorn?”

I roll my eyes and pick a piece of popcorn out of my hair that had been there for God knows how long. “Who says I’m graceful on stage?”

“Um, everyone,” Nolan says. “You should hear how the crew is raving about you. Everyone’s wondering where the hell Holden’s been hiding you all these years.”

Heat flushes my cheeks as Jill and I share a quick look.

“Well, you’ll soon learn that Katie is her own harshest critic,” Jill says and I’m grateful to my best friend for the millionth time in our lives.

“I can see that,” Nolan says.

The atmosphere in the room shifts, tension vibrating the air between us. I stare at the movie, pretending not to notice Nolan’s eyes locked onto me.

His laser focus is so intense that when my phone vibrates with a call, I jump up, relieved at a distraction to release the pressure of his stare. Without looking at the number, I answer, stepping behind the couch.

“Kate.” The deep voice on the other end of the line has me freezing mid-step.

“Holden?” I pull the phone away from my ear briefly, shocked to see Holden’s name illuminated on the screen. Dammit. The one time I don’t look before answering.

“I wanted to check on you. After that exercise—”

“That’s Holden?” Nolan calls from over his shoulder. “Tell him I think we were all too harsh on Russell Crowe! He’s not as bad as I remember.”

Holden goes silent on the other end of the line. I clear my throat, praying he didn’t hear that.

Finally, he says, “Nolan’s there? At your apartment.”

---