Page 30 of Room 1212

Once I was able to calm down, I was embarrassed for how I’d acted. I pulled away from Drew, patting at the wet spots I’d left on his shirt. “I am so sorry, Drew. I shouldn’t have shown up at your work like this.”

“You absolutely should have. I’d be upset if you hadn’t.” He brushed my lingering tears away with his thumbs, then kissed each cheek softly. “It’s okay, I told Noelle I was taking a break. Whenever you need me, I’m here.”

The guilt speared at me again. He was always here for me, but when was I here for him? I just showed up when I needed something and then left when it suited me. I was a shit human being, selfish and self-centered.

“You know what? It’s okay. I’ll be fine. I’ll just talk to you later, okay?” I said, but when I tried to push off his chest, he simply tightened his arms around me, cinching tight.

“Not so fast. Tell me what happened first. Then I’ll decide if I should let you go.”

“Bossy,” I muttered, but it was clear he wasn’t going to release me until I’d told him, so I said, “It’s no big deal. I just got in a fight with my agent.”

“You’ve fought with him before. What did you fight about this time?”

“He… he didn’t like my book.” I shrugged like it was no big deal.

He raised an eyebrow, giving me a look like he wasn’t buying it. “And? I doubt this is the first time you two have disagreed about a book’s plot before.”

“True,” I admitted, “but this was the first time he’d refused to bring it to the publisher. He told me he couldn’t sell that. He… gagged.”

He looked surprised by that. “That’s ridiculous! And he calls himself a professional? That’s no way to talk to anyone.”

I appreciated his indignation on my behalf. I knew I should tell him the rest of what happened, but I was worried he would think I was overreacting.

He seemed to catch on to what I was thinking. “What else happened? What aren’t you telling me?”

I took a shaky breath. “I may have fired him.”

He chuckled lightly. “You don’t do anything by half measures, do you?”

I barked out a surprised laugh. “No, I guess I don’t.” My relationship with Drew was evidence of that. I needed to do research, so instead of just reading any one of a million books written on the subject, I convinced him to have sex with me. Who did that?

Drew brushed the hair back from my forehead. “Look, why don’t you come in for a bit?” he suggested, nodding toward the center. “You know the residents would love to see you again. They’ll help cheer you up.”

“Maybe I don’t want to be cheered up,” I said grumpily, sticking out my lip in an exaggerated pout.

“Don’t be silly,” he said, biting my lip, making me pull it back in. “We have a cat; his name is Felix. And later, the kids’ choir is coming from the school down the street. You should stay for the concert.”

“Yeah? Nobody would mind?”

“Mind? Are you kidding? Everyone would love it!”

While it would only be postponing my problems to be dealt with later, I found I was okay with putting it off. My heart couldn’t handle the big decisions that needed to be made, and this felt like just the right medicine.

“Okay,” I agreed, and from the wattage of Drew’s smile, I knew it was the right choice.

16

Drew

Iheldthepackageto my chest, nearly giddy with excitement. This was it. This was what Jordan had worked so hard for.

“Don’t just sit there. Open it!” Betty said impatiently. She was reaching for something to throw at me, so I held my hands up in surrender.

“Okay, okay! I’m opening it!”

I peeled the paper back to see the cover. A Ballad of Thieves by Jordan Kepler. I held the book up for the residents to see, and they all gave appropriate murmurs of approval, though I couldn’t miss their confused expressions.

“Where’s the naked guy?” Roger griped. “Jordan’s book covers always have more skin.”

---