Page 74 of Something Cheeky

“Except Greg.”

“We can explain it to him until we’re blue in the face, but he’ll continue to believe what he wants.”

Zoe pursed her lips together. Her eyes shone. Were those tears?

“Z.” He rushed over to her. “I’m sorry I didn’t push back harder. I was still in shock.”

She crossed her arms and blinked quickly.

“Let me make it up to you? I’ll come over and bring dinner. Plus some tuna in water for Mr. Bobbins.” He reached for her hand again. This time she didn’t pull away.

“I thought you were scared of him,” she said quietly without looking at him.

“How can a little kitty scare me?” Derek lied as he puffed up his chest and placed his free hand on his hip in a superhero pose.

Derek was still scared of the damned cat. That thing hated him, which was why he’d convinced Zoe to spend the night at his apartment every night for the past ten days. It’d been under the guise of how his apartment was only a few blocks away so why fight traffic to Falls Church when they were both so tired?

Zoe gave a weak laugh. He sighed with relief. Maybe this meant she was no longer mad. He hated seeing her unhappy, especially if he was the reason for it.

“Maybe I’ll wear flip-flops tonight,” he half-joked.

“But you hate flip-flops.”

“I don’t wear them in New York, but I’ll do it for you.” He’d made that mistake only once in his first month in the city and ended up stepping in a questionable liquid when someone’s book bag whacked him in the back.

Her eyes narrowed in skepticism.

“Fine. Flip-flops are self-defense so I can keep my Chucks safe from any further vandalism,” he admitted.

“He’s only a cat, Derek. He didn’t do it on purpose.” Zoe rubbed her thumb on the inside of his palm as if to comfort him.

“You say that but I know how he looked at me.” He shuddered dramatically.

Her laughter was music to his ears. He slipped his arm around her waist and pulled her to him until their foreheads touched. When she finally looked him in the eyes, he smiled.

“Everything will be okay. Do you believe me?” he asked.

His head bobbed with hers as she nodded. For as long as he’d known her, Zoe had exuded strength and confidence, but now there was worry in her eyes.

He kissed her gently, as if she might break. Her breath faltered at first but she returned his kiss. She’d put her faith in him and his vision when she agreed to work on the musical. If she broke down like she had in college, it’d be his fault and not their professor’s. He would never let things get that bad. This was their dream production.

“I won’t let anything bad happen to you while I’m at Prestige. I promise.”

It was a promise to himself as much as it was to her.

Chapter 33

“Are you sure you don’t want me to wait until Derek gets here?” Trixie asked Zoe for the second time.

Zoe reconsidered her roommate’s offer after she recounted how awful Greg had been earlier that afternoon. When she’d gotten home, Zoe had taken a long shower to wash off the disgust that Greg had left on her. She felt much better in her cozy tunic and leggings as she stroked Mr. Bobbins, who was purring contentedly in her lap.

“No, you’ve done enough by taking care of my little floof ball the past week.” Zoe kissed the cat’s head. “You and Andre need time together.”

“I’m prepared to go mama bear on him for not defending you to Craig.” Luckily Trixie hadn’t had much interaction with the artistic director in her role as the show’s intimacy coordinator.

“Greg. His name is Gregory A. Powers.” Zoe laughed.

“Whatever.” Trixie rolled her eyes. “Does the ‘A’ stand for Asshole?”

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