Page 91 of Backhanded Compliments

She pinches the inside of her elbow to ground herself and focuses her gaze away from the concrete pad of cameras and lighting equipment until she spots Nicky’s bright splash of red hair on the grass. “I’m going to talk to Nicky,” she tells Vladimir.

Luca knows she’s been withdrawn from Nicky and has not answered a single one of his texts. It isn’t uncommon; she is historically bad at texting. Still, her stomach twists in anxious knots as she walks across the lawn. Nicky has always been understanding of her tendency to avoid interactions when she’s too busy or stressed. And he knows she prefers to talk in person.

Luca calls out to him, but he doesn’t turn his head. Magnus Akerman, Nicky’s on-again, off-again partner, glances up and flicks Luca a wave. He sits next to Nicky, long legs sprawled out and his knee barely nudging Nicky’s.

“Hey,” Luca says, and Nicky’s head turns slowly, tilting up as he squints at Luca.

“Oh, are we friends now, Kacic?” Nicky asks, an undertone of ice sending a shiver down her spine.

“What the hell are you talking about?” Luca asks, glancing at Magnus.

Magnus’s brow scrunches, but as always, he says nothing. He’s always been one to simply skirt in the shadows of Nicky’s light, following him around like a dutiful wolf. The commentators love to call him the Swedish Servebot, but he’s only just made his debut in the Top Ten last month.

Nicky’s mouth twists. “What do you think?” He scrambles to hisfeet and brushes the grass off his shorts. “Friends usually tell friends when they’re dating someone,” he hisses, glaring at Luca.

“What?” Luca’s stomach bottoms out.

“And the fact that I found out you’ve been screwing Juliette Ricci from Twitter?” Nicky rakes his hands through his hair, sending it into fiery disarray.

Luca doesn’t know how to process any of the words coming out of Nicky’s mouth. “They shouldn’t know about that,” Luca whispers because that is the thing currently digging holes in her brain.

Nicky chokes on a nearly hysterical laugh. “So it’s true?”

Luca knows she needs to say something else, but the sun is too bright and her focus slips to Nicky’s clenched fists.

“I don’t understand,” Luca whispers.

Nicky shakes his head. Magnus stands and touches Nicky’s shoulder, but he brushes him off. “It’s your life and I shouldn’t be so upset about this, but fuck, Lou, after everything we’ve been through, you can’t tell me what’s going on with you and Ricci?”

Luca tries to take a deep breath, but it’s hard with the pressure crushing her lungs. “This isn’t really about Jules and me, is it?” Luca murmurs.

Nicky’s facade of anger shatters into hurt. He looks away and crosses his arms over his chest, defensive in a way that Luca has never seen before. “Whatever. It doesn’t matter now.”

Luca follows Nicky’s gaze and sees that several players and media interns are glancing at them out of the corner of their eyes. Luca’s skin crawls, distinctly aware that this isn’t a conversation to have in public, but her stomach aches to think that she hurt Nicky.

“It does matter,” Luca starts, but a springy ponytailed woman with too much energy bounces up to them.

“Nicholas Andrews? We’re ready for you,” she says with a bright smile.

Luca watches as Nicky’s face transforms from barely concealed hurt to a bright, cheerful smile. After years of practice, it’s a smooth transition, but Luca still sees how much Nicky hides behind his eyes. Because she’s known him since they were sixteen and he was the onlyperson at tennis camp who would talk to her. Because she’s seen him hide his emotions from everyone, but never from her. He always confided in her abouteverything, but now, she’s pushed him so far away that he won’t talk to her.

“What is happening?” She turns on Magnus as soon as Nicky is out of earshot.

Magnus’s shoulders hitch up to his ears and he holds up his palms in surrender. “I have no idea.”

Luca pinches the bridge of her nose. “Shouldn’t you know? What’s been going on with him?”

Magnus shrugs. “I’ve been asking him that all week. He won’t talk to me.” He stares after Nicky, who is clearly and shamelessly flirting with the producer lacing a microphone through his collar. “Are you going to Remi’s boat party?”

Luca nods, looking away from Nicky. Her stomach churns. This isherfault. How is she going to fix this?

“Talk to him there, Luca.” Magnus clasps her shoulder and gives her a little shake, which Luca knows is meant to make her feel better, but it intensifies her nausea.

Usually, she would’ve dismissed the haunting paranoia in her chest as her typical anxious thoughts, but she can’t help but worry this party is going to end in sinking ships.

JULIETTE

“Drama on the Miami lawn this afternoon,” Claudia says as she sashays into Octavia’s room.

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