Page 26 of After the Snap

It’s hard to find my voice because he’s looking at me like he did earlier, and it scrambles all the thoughts from my head.

“Maybe you should be as amazing as he is,” I whisper.

He narrows his eyes and I see the unspoken words. Challenge accepted.

“Let’s go meet him,” he says, already sweeping me along with him as he makes his way toward Heath Monroe.

“What!” I squeak. I can’t meet Heath Monroe. What would I even say? Oh my God, he’s right there.

I swoon a little as he smiles at the camera, and then Dom calls his name as if they’re buddies even though I know they’re not—I’d kill Dom if he kept that kind of secret from me when he knows how much I love Heath.

“Heath, I’m Dom Smith, and this is my friend Alayna Pritchard. She’s a big fan.” I’m sure no one else notices, but I know him well enough to practically hear the eye roll as he says it.

Heath turns the full weight of his stare to me, and I nearly collapse under the heaviness of his green-eyed gaze. “I-I’m a huge f-fan.”

Oh my God, Laney, pull yourself together.

I clear my throat and try again. “I loved you in A Winter’s War. The way you portrayed that character was incredible.”

His smile grows and then he nods. “I know, honey. That’s why I won an Oscar for it. Do you want an autograph or something? I need to keep moving, so the cameras get me while my makeup is pristine.”

My smile falters for a moment. “Oh, um, right. Would you be willing to take a picture?”

“Sure thing, honey. Come on over here.” He spreads his arm wide to make room for me to snuggle against his side, but I hesitate because he’s giving off smarmy vibes that I did not expect from Heath Monroe.

Brushing it off as just a by-product of being off-kilter from the intensity between Dom and me, I move to stand next to him, and he immediately slides his arm down my back until it rests high on my ass.

My smile freezes completely and my cheeks heat with embarrassment. What the hell is happening? Dom’s gaze narrows and he arches one brow in question, but I shake it off and push my shoulders back, trying not to be so stiff.

Then Heath has to go and open his mouth and shatter whatever illusions I had that he was a good guy. “Ditch your football fool and meet me in my hotel room,” he whispers in my ear, prattling off the hotel he’s apparently staying at—which seems weird since he lives in Los Angeles—and his room number.

“All good?” he asks Dom as I remain frozen and speechless next to him.

Dom nods but his concerned gaze never leaves mine.

And then as if he needed to add a cherry on top, Heath Monroe smacks my ass and walks away as if nothing happened.

Dom glowers, and his fists clench at his side as he moves toward me. “Did he just do what I think he did?” he asks, his voice low and threatening.

Oh shit, I know that tone. That’s his I’m-going-to-lay-some-asshole-out voice.

Time to go.

Forget the premiere. I’m not feeling it anymore anyway. It takes some convincing, but eventually Dom acquiesces, and we ditch the premiere before the movie ever starts. We were seen and photographed which is really all Shawna wanted anyway, I’m sure.

And I learned another valuable lesson. Never meet your heroes.

Sixteen

I’ve got a reality TV star at the table to my left and a Hollywood A-lister at the table to my right. Alayna sits across from me, staring resolutely at the menu while camera lights flash from outside. I have no idea if they’re taking pictures of us or the celebrities on either side of me, but I’m starting to resent Shawna’s choice in restaurant. I might’ve been a party boy, but this restaurant is way too flashy for even me. I need to have a conversation with her and Trey about how much input she’ll have in our dates, because this is the third one that’s been a bust, and I’m losing my patience.

What’s worse is I know how uncomfortable Alayna is with all the attention, even if she’s playing it off like a champ. She hasn’t said anything about the flowers I sent her before our first date, or the bouquet I sent after that creep Heath Monroe ruined the movie premiere for her. I’ve never sent a girl flowers in my life, but I know I need to step out of my comfort zone for her. I have a lot of work to do to prove how much she means to me.

“What are you going to order?”

She doesn’t look up from the menu as she says, “Hmm…the salmon sounds pretty good, so I might have that.”

I fight a shudder. “I don’t know how you can eat that. Fish is gross.”

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