Page 19 of Irredeemable

“Sounds like you have boring clients. What’s the point of hiring a publicist, then?”

She snorts. “The point is to keep you out of headlines, not clean up messes after the fact. My boss wants me to drop you so bad.”

Yawning, I sit up before passing out again like I did on the flight. “Your boss is a dick. Hey, is it true his brother is divorcing his wife? Hasn’t it been like twenty years together?”

“I don’t know. I don’t concern myself with Derek Holloway. Nate is already too much in my business.”

I hum in agreement.

Jasmine groans again, picking her phone back up. “Just making sure I have permission to post on your behalf.”

“That’s what I pay you for. Can I have my phone back?”

“No. Go shower instead. Wake up, get your shit together, and let me make sure the network doesn’t drop your movie.”

I glare at her, and she raises her eyebrow. Huffing, I get up and go do what she says. Showering while hungover is actually a therapeutic experience. A close second to when you finally pee after holding it for a long time.

She has a smoothie ready for me when I make it out to the kitchen in a pajama set. I don’t have plans to leave my apartment any time soon.

When someone knocks at my door, I look at her expectingly. “Who did you call in?”

“Someone who can maybe put you in your place,” She grumbles as she opens the door.

“I’ll be back in a few hours. You hurt her again, and I’ll bury you and your fucking company in a scandal so bad, not even your father could pay his way out. Capiche?” Jasmine threatens him before turning back to me and giving me a pointed look. Without another word, she walks out, and Tanner closes the door behind her.

“What are you doing here?”

Tanner doesn’t move from the door, his gaze roaming over my casual outfit. “I saw the articles.”

“Oh, so you came to gloat. Alright, let’s get this over with.” I pull my damp hair into a ponytail and roll up the sleeves of my hoodie, turning to face him.

He swallows, his gaze dropping to the floor. “No, Sammie.”

“No?”

Tanner’s eyes catch mine, but his are cracked wide open straight to his soul. Regret and longing are etched on his face. “I came over to ask you to stop this game between us. I thought I wanted to play this. But I don’t. I just want you, I want to be with you.”

Something in my chest flutters, and I struggle not to say something snappy. There is a vulnerability in his voice that reminds me of when we were younger. And honestly, I am tired, I am so tired of having to be on guard all the time. I take a deep breath and go to what hurt me the most during the past few weeks. “But Granny’s ring. You were going to give it to Madeline.”

“I’ll take you to the safe right now. I never pulled it out,” He says vehemently, and then he walks over. “And… Madeline was someone I picked out for your attention.”

“What?!” I exclaim.

He laughs humorlessly. “Everyone knows you only fuck taken men. It’s not exactly a secret, so I made myself your type so you could finally fucking notice me.”

“But you dated her for months while I was gone.” My heart pounds. I shouldn’t be flattered at what he's revealing.

“Yeah. Because months told you it was serious. If I had a girlfriend of a few weeks, you wouldn’t have cared. Am I wrong?”

I shake my head, my mouth drying as he continues.

“And Madeline Waldorf was someone of a social status that you could envy. It couldn’t be someone below you, then it wouldn’t have been unworthy of a challenge.”

“It’s just hard to believe you stayed faithful for months with no pussy,” I say half-jokingly.

Tanner’s neck turns red, and if I didn’t know better, I would swear he was blushing. He scratches his scalp before pulling out his phone. “I had things to help. I can stay faithful in a relationship, Sammie. The problem is, can you?”

Sweat breaks down my back, and I turn away from him. I bit my tongue to stop from lashing out. I knew he wasn’t trying to be cruel with his words. There is a hopefulness in his tone that makes my stomach twist.

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