Page 85 of The Re-Proposal

“There wasn’t much else to watch on the television. Since all the ladies in my hospital room were Spanish, I started getting into telenovelas,” Joel explains. He stuffs his mouth with more food. “Getting into the shows kind of got me into the music.”

“You taught yourself how to mix?” Abe asks, looking impressed.

“I like making beats from scratch.”

“There’s beauty in making something from nothing, isn’t there?” Island smiles kindly.

“That’s a good skill.” Clay scrubs his cheek. “There are plenty of opportunities in the music industry. Especially now that the world is so global. You can work with artists from anywhere.”

Joel’s ears tinge pink. “I don’t know if I’m good enough to produce music for a living.”

“Why not?” I grunt. “You’re self-taught. Determined. If you decide to do it, you have a good chance of blowing up.”

His eyes shine in my direction.

I clarify myself before he gets too mushy. “When it comes to a career in the arts, you need talent and a good backstory to create a brand.” I gesture to his wheelchair. “You have the second one so you only need a small percentage of the first.”

“Wow. Thanks.” Joel frowns.

There’s an awkward lull until Regan starts talking about giraffes again. Joel politely tilts his head toward her and listens to every word. I’m sure he must be bored already, but his eyes never glaze over and he even asks questions.

The teen is good with kids.

Who would have thought?

After our meal, I help Island clear the dishes.

She pats my shoulder. “Joel’s very sweet.”

“Eh.” I make a so-so gesture.

“He must get that from you.” She bumps my shoulder. “He respects you so much, Cody. I can tell by the way he looks at you.”

She’s wrong. Joel wants me to suffocate in my sleep so he can move in and be with Clarissa.

Not that it’ll ever happen.

“We’re… adjusting to being around each other,” I mumble.

“Oh come on.”

“It’s true. We’re still working out a truce.”

“You care about him.”

I snort. “No I don’t.”

“Earlier, you noticed he was out of water, so you gave Abe a little nudge to refill his drink. You saw Regan getting hyper and bouncing on his wheelchair, so you told her to be careful.”

“I did?” I arch a brow.

“Little things like that show you care more deeply than you let on.” Island huffs. “I wish people could see this side of you. Those vile articles circulating about you being heartless and evil are infuriating. They have no idea who the real Cody Bolton is.”

“As long as the people I love are safe, they can publish what they want about me.”

“Speaking of the people you love…” Island extends a long fingernail. “Clay told me a little about your history with Clarissa.”

“Of course he did.” I groan.

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