Page 63 of Faking It

I wait for him to go on, but he waves to the server for the bill. “It’s time to go.”

Chapter 23

Ana

We drive in silence toward my apartment until Gideon mumbles, “Can you do me a favor?”

Wanting to ease the tension in the car, I joke, “Does it involve giving one of my kidneys?”

He actually chuckles, and it fills me with relief. “Nah, I’d planned to ask for that next week.”

I join him in laughter, and when it subsides, he glances over at me. “Whatever we discuss, I’d appreciate if it stays between us.”

It’s an understandable request, so I nod. “Definitely.”

He smiles, then turns his attention back on the road. “Thank you.”

Another round of silence. He sucks in a loud breath as we slow down at a stoplight, then slowly lets it out. “Have you ever carried a burden so heavy, but you’re afraid to put it down?”

My head snaps around at him. Wide eyes assess the emotion on his face. For a split second, I fear that his earlier digging revealed something and that his words were an attempt to make me come clean. Staring at him, I see that burden on his shoulders, too. This isn’t about me. It’s all about him.

“Yes,” I simply reply.

He nods as the car moves off again, prompted by the green light. “There’s some shit going on in my life, Ana. Shit I could never talk about. Everyone in my circle is connected to my dad. If I talk, and it gets back to him, there’s no telling what he’ll do.”

I recall my conversation with Jared earlier and the question he’d refused to answer. I’m even more curious now. “You’re an adult, though. What’s the worst he could do? It’s not like he can spank you or anything.”

Gideon’s serious gaze remains on the road. “A spanking would be the least of my problems.”

Not earning the right to ask makes me keep silent, staring at him, willing for him to go on.

“Promise me,” he mutters. “Swear that whatever I say will stay between us.”

“I swear, Gideon.”

I wanted to add,‘I’m the best at keeping secrets. Rest assured, yours is safe with me.’

“Everyone assumes my mom is on an extended vacation in Rome, but she’s in a private care facility in Atherton. My dad had her committed a year ago. This after two years of alcohol abuse that got swept under the rug by NDAs and payoffs. I didn’t know this until she tried to off herself last year.”

Last year.Gideon retired from acting two years ago. Based on what he said earlier about his mother’s alcohol drinking forcing him to grow up, it seems both situations are connected. Did her attempted suicide give him a wake-up call? Is that why he came back? That makes no sense, considering how unhappy he looked when I asked him if he enjoyed acting. I’m even more curious now.

“Mom spent her entire marriage putting on appearances. From doing surgeries to keeping herself looking young to compete with the twenty-somethings my father kept on the side, to turning a blind eye when he brought them over. She suffered for years, drinking to keep from losing her mind. Then Dad met Amelia, a twenty-three-year-old video vixen, and they started a relationship. Not a fling like the others. An actual relationship. He moved her in and made her occupy the ground floor, with Mom taking the second floor. Mom tried to put up with it. Her drinking got worse. She got out of control.”

“Oh, my God. That’s terrible,” I mumble, pitying his mom. I can’t imagine the shame she endured.

“Disgusting, that’s what it was. I’m still kicking myself. I feel guilty for not being around. It was a few months after I retired, and I’d been living in Rome for a while, trying to figure out my way forward. I should’ve been here, not miles away, where phone calls to my mom revealed nothing. She always sounded so cheerful. I didn’t know what was going on, not until—” He swallows, gripping the steering wheel. “I almost lost the only person who truly loves me.”

The raw emotion in his voice twists my stomach. I want to reach over and hug him. I squeeze his thigh instead. He makes a sound in his throat and puts his hand over mine. A satisfying sensation runs through me.

“I’m sorry about what happened to your mom,” I console him. “Not really having that mother’s love makes it hard to relate, but I love Tori, and I can’t imagine losing her. On that basis, I understand how you feel.”

“Thank you,” he whispers.

“And I’m sorry in advance, but this needs to be said. Your dad is a fucking monster.”

“Yeah, I definitely agree. He’s also a monster who’ll take everything from me if this gets out.”

Take what?“I don’t understand.”

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