Page 71 of The Close-Up
I straighten up to get a better look at the guy Simon’s addressing, but I can barely see the top of his head.
“It’s just... I know we didn’t have the cleanest start,” the guy says, his tone dialed down. “But we just found out she’s pregnant. And I don’t want to fight like this in front of our child. I want to be in a good place for our baby.”
“Okay, that makes sense. That’s a wonderful reason to be here today—to create a healthier environment for your child,” Simon says. “Part of that is trying to understand where your girlfriend is coming from. She was the one you were seeing in secret while you were in a relationship with someone else. Can you at least acknowledge her feelings of concern regarding that?”
“Yeah, I guess so,” the guy mutters.
“It doesn’t mean you’re an evil person. It just means you have an issue to work through.”
“Okay, yeah, fine. I get that.”
“Have you two considered seeing a therapist together?”
I straighten up as far as I can reach and finally get a look at the guy and instantly freeze.
It’s Brody. My ex.
I fall back in my chair, coughing through a breath. My hearing goes fuzzy and I can’t process anything else that happens for the rest of the seminar other than this: my cheating ex is going to be a dad.
The seminar ends and I shut off the camera. I quickly pack up my gear while everyone mills around.
I do my best to stay out of sight—I don’t want to risk Brody spotting me.
I wait a couple of minutes, then sling my camera bag over my shoulder, grab my purse, and scurry along the back wall of the room. I pull out my phone and dial Harper, hoping that if I’m in the middle of a phone conversation, Brody won’t bother me even if he does spot me. But when she doesn’t answer, I swallow back a groan. Instead I text her, hoping that staring at my phone will deter him from coming up to me.
OMFG CALL ME AS SOON AS YOU CAN YOU WON’T BELIEVE WHO I JUST SAW
I’m nearly to the door when I hear my name.
Spinning around, I see Brody, his eyes wide and his mouth half-open.
“I thought that was you,” he says, clearly in disbelief. He tugs a hand through his shaggy dark hair. “What are you doing here?”
Gripping onto the strap of my camera bag, I take a breath and contemplate offering him a polite smile, but my mouth twitches with the effort. And then my nerve catches up with me. I don’t have to explain myself to Brody, not with the way things ended between us.
“I could ask you the same question,” I say, my tone teetering on the edge of hard.
He frowns and tugs on the bottom of his shirt, the fair skin on his face flushing pink.
“Yeah, well. Trying to be a better man, I suppose,” he mumbles.
For a second we stand and stare at each other. Harper’s words echo in my mind the longer I look at Brody.
You weren’t right for each other in the first place.
I let out a sigh. There’s no use in being bitter anymore. The least I could do is try to make this interaction between us courteous.
“I’m filming a series about Simon for work,” I finally say.
“Oh. Nice.” The tight expression on Brody’s face eases. He’s probably relieved that I’m choosing to have a polite conversation instead of ripping into him.
He hunches his shoulders. “Look, I’m sorry for the way things ended between us.”
I bite my tongue to keep from saying, “I don’t want to hear your shitty excuse for an apology.” Even though it’s deserved, it wouldn’t make things better right now. And despite how he hurt me, I sincerely hope that he and his girlfriend work through whatever issues they have so they can provide a stable environment for their baby. It’s sad to think of a child growing up with parents arguing all the time.
His phone buzzes, interrupting us. His eyes go wide as he looks at the screen. “Shit.”
“What is it?” I ask.
