That sounds like something Connor would say. Right beside Rose, Connor actually pales, his lips parted in shock.
“I hate this guy,” Ryke says softly.
“You want to do something about it?” I hope he’s reached the point I have—ready to fight back, something more than just saying f**k off.
Ryke inhales deeply. “What can we do? We signed a f**king contract.”
“Plenty,” I retort.
“Don’t go down that road again, Lo. You need to bury those demons.”
I thought I’d never attack a guy after I apologized to Aaron Wells and shut the door on that feud. But isn’t this different?
Scott is waiting for us to explode. For ratings. He won’t stop until the show does. And Lily and I care too much about Rose to do that to her company. So Princesses of Philly has to continue.
Ending it isn’t an option.
“I’m still in love with her,” Scott says. “And I can’t help what I feel, but it’s there. I love Rose the way she deserves to be loved. I just…I just don’t see Connor being the best thing for her. He’s too self-absorbed to care for that girl the way I do. And I hope, over the course of living with her again, she’ll realize that we’re meant to be.”
My blood boils at each word. I shake my head and look to my brother. “The things we bury,” I say under my breath, “have a way of coming back to haunt us.”
Ryke can try to bury his problems.
I’m going to face mine.
Connor sits in the study room for an interview.
“What do you think of Scott?” Savannah asks.
“I find him comparable to a little teenager jimmying the lock of my house. He’s nothing more than a petty thief, trying to take what’s mine. Is that honest enough for you?”
“And what about Rose?”
“What about Rose?”
I frown. He said her name like she means nothing to him.
“Do you love her?” Savannah asks.
“Love is irrelative to some.”
“And is it to you?”
His fingers rest on his jaw in mock contemplation, and he smiles self-confidently. For the first time, his smile really rubs me wrong. “Yes,” he says. “Love holds no meaning in my life.”
What…the f**k.
The screens fade to black. That was it.
So many thoughts toss around my head while everyone claps. People start talking and heading to the bar for more drinks.
Ryke and I face Connor. I never thought production would’ve turned the seemingly nicest guy into the evilest. But they definitely did.
Rose plucks another champagne glass from a server’s tray and relaxes her back against Connor’s chest. He holds her in place since she’s buzzed. I can’t believe she’s okay with everything he just said in the show.
“So was that the real Connor Cobalt?” I ask, sliding my arm around Lily’s shoulders. Some of the scenes could’ve been fabricated by editing, but how much?
I hear my brother’s warning, about Connor not being open enough with me. I never thought he had a similar relationship with Rose, but she puts herself out there and he’s not even willing to admit that he loves her.
“I spoke honestly,” he says. “And that wasn’t the first time I’ve done so.”
“So you’ve never loved anyone?” I question. “Not another girlfriend, your mom, your dad or a friend?” I don’t want our relationship to be a game. I knew, in the beginning, that he was just collecting me like he did everyone else. He was upfront about it, which was why I liked him. I had money and connections, so that’s why he befriended me. But I thought we’d grown beyond that. Hadn’t we?
“No,” he says. “I’ve never loved anyone, Lo. I’m sorry.”
Rose points at me, her glass of champagne in hand. “Let it go, Loren. I have.”
“Why?” I snap. “Because you’re both cold androids?”
Her glare is softened by the booze. “It’s just how he is. If you even understood half of Connor Cobalt’s beliefs, your head would spin.”
“Rose,” Connor says, as though telling her to drop it.
I’ve never seen her give so much of herself to one person, and I fear, badly, that she’s being manipulated by him. Maybe, all this time, I have been too.
Rose still defends her boyfriend. “No, Connor has done nothing wrong.”
“He doesn’t love you,” I sneer. “He’s been with you for over a year, Rose.” He’s going to hurt her. A girl who never lets anyone get that far is letting the wrong person in. Why am I the only one who sees this?
“Lo,” Lily warns.
“No,” I say, “she needs to f**king hear this.” I point at Connor but speak to Rose. “What the hell kind of guy stays with a girl for that amount of time without anything in return? If he doesn’t love you, then he’s just waiting to f**k you.”
Connor stays calm. And this time, it really f**king irritates me. “She doesn’t need your protection,” he tells me. Rose sways in his arms, tipsy. “She knows who I am.”
“So you’re okay with that then?” I ask Rose. “He’s going to f**k you, and then he’s going to be out of here. Does that make you feel good, Rose? You’ve waited twenty-three goddamn years to lose it, and you’re going to give it to a guy who can’t even f**king admit that he loves you.”
He’s a coward. A guy that I thought was the best goddamn person in the world—is nothing but a fake.
Connor says, “I’m not going to admit something that I don’t feel.” I have a retort ready, but he beats me to it. “Would you like me to sit you down and fill your head with numbers and facts and relativities? You can’t stomach what I have to say because you won’t understand it, and I know that hurts you. But there’s nothing I can do to change the way things are. I am a product of a mother as brick-walled as me, and trust me when I say that you won’t ever see more than I give you. In order to be my friend, that has to be enough, Lo.”
I process each heavy word. I wish that he felt like I could handle all of him. I wish that I didn’t idolize him so much from the beginning. “And what about you, Rose?” I ask, turning to her. “Is that enough for you?”
Lily sidles next to Rose and holds her hand. The fact that Lily can even comfort someone after what’s happened to her tonight—it builds something pure inside of me.
Rose nods, her neck straightened and shoulders pulled back. But I catch her squeezing Lily’s hand. “I’m going to the bathroom. You guys can meet us at the car.” Lily braces Rose around the waist, and they weave between the scattering crowds.
I watch how Connor keeps his blue eyes locked on Rose. With more and more concern.
He is in love with her.
For once, in his life, Connor is blind.
When he meets my gaze, I say, “I just want you to know that I lost some respect for you tonight. And you’re not going to get it back so f**king easily.” I don’t want to play his games. I’m not an investor he needs to slip in his back pocket. I’m his friend. I just want him to be real with me.
“Sure,” he says softly. “I understand.”
His gaze drifts to the carpet in deep thought. A faraway look that I don’t often see from him. My stomach is in knots. I already want to forgive him, to say don’t worry about it. He has that power over people. It’s insane, and I realize how much I love the guy.