“He’s been in a ton of legal battles with these women who claim he did terrible things—heclaims they’ve been stalking him and they never even met. No one has been willing to cast him in anything inyears. There are, like, several documentaries on how drastic his fall from grace was. I can’t believe you don’t know this.”

“You’re right. This stuff really is right up my alley,” he deadpans.

I lift my chin. “You pretend to be above it, yet you recognized a picture of him immediately.”

He smirks and heads toward his truck in the parking lot. “So are we happy he got it or not?”

“I don’t know.” The teenage girl version of me who was mildly obsessed with him? Absolutely. The version of me now who isn’t sure if he did those things…andthere’s a chance—even if it’s microscopic—that Marti could end up working with him? Conflicted.

She seemed excited about it based on the texts though. Shewassaying on a video chat the other day her agent thought she had a much better chance at the role if they secured a big name for the male lead. If they have one well-known actor to help draw an audience, they might be more willing to take a chance on someone like her.

“Heard Leo and Keava are driving up to Philly for the weekend,” Liam adds.

“Her sister’s wedding,” I say absently as I chew on my thumbnail. “They’re heading out tonight for the rehearsal dinner.”

“We can throw your bike in the back.”

Once I get the lock undone, I reach down to carry it over, but Liam beats me to it and hefts the bike into the truck bed.

“You throwing a party while he’s gone?”

“As if I’d tell you. You’d report back to Leo.”

“That sounds like a yes to me.”

“No. I’m just glad he won’t be around tonight to interrogate Miles,” I mutter under my breath.

Liam goes still. “Miles Cushing?”

Shit, I have no idea why I said that.

“You know him?” I ask lightly, though of course he does. Miles is friends with his brother, not to mention the first timeImet him was in Liam’s shop. I try to laugh it off. “Oh wait, never mind.”

He meets my eyes as he opens the car door for me, and I can’t quite read the look on his face. The humor in his eyes is gone now though. “I didn’t realize you two…talked.”

I shrug as I climb into the truck. “He’s taking me to dinner tonight.”

Liam hesitates before closing the door, then he’s back to scowling as he rounds the truck and climbs in the driver’s side. “Where are you going?”

“Um, I can’t remember the name. It’s not in town.”

A strange tension descends over us as he starts the car, and his jaw keeps flexing like he’s holding back from saying something.

“What is it? Youdon’t approve?” I tease.

His scowl deepens as he pulls onto the road. “All I know is every time my brother’s gotten into trouble, Miles has been right at his side.”

A flash of last night appears in my head. How casually Asher whipped out drugs, like he does it all the time. And maybe he does.

But Miles had seemed uncomfortable. And he said no.

Maybe Asher is the bad influenceis on the tip of my tongue, but I don’t know if that’s crossing a line. Liam doesn’t talk about his siblings much. I have no idea how close they are.

“Luckily I only agreed to dinner, not a marriage. Yet.”

He gives me an unamused sideways glance. But to my relief, he drops it. “You’re not planning on posting these all over the new website, are you?”

I bat my eyelashes. “Only if you’re mean to me.”