I never much liked sharing. Not when it came to women anyway. Gavin lamented the fact that his two best friends were such staunch monogamists—though the word he used was “boring.” But somehow, that night with my friends hadn’t been a problem. Seeing Allie come apart at our combined efforts had only added to the experience. Had only made me awed at her power, her beauty, the confidence with which she owned her sexuality.
But I knew something like that—sharing a beautiful woman’s body with my friends—wasn’t realistic long-term. Hell, it was the definition of the old cliché about what happens in Vegas. And it made no goddamn sense for me to want to bring that energy,so unique to the City of Sin and the recklessness of youth and the particular place of vulnerable heartbrokenness I’d had that night, into the present. Things were completely different now.
Hell, I might even be a father.
15
GAVIN
This stupid meeting with Jack Bloom had my stomach churning with anticipation and dread in equal measure. I’d been thinking about Allie nonstop since the night at Lenny’s. Her warm voice ringing through the familiar setting, the way she bared her soul through song—it had rattled me in ways I wasn’t ready to admit.
And that wasn’t even to mention what had happened afterward. Rather than satisfying my need for her body, her touch, our quickie in the bathroom just made my body hunger with more fury. I wanted her, damn it, more than I’d ever wanted anyone.
But I also knew that the last time I’d let things get too physical between us, everything had unraveled right afterward. Learning about Allie’s daughter, the kid who may or may not be mine, had thrown me completely off-balance. I’d freaked out, and I still wasn’t sure if I’d been justified in my anger or if I owed Allie an apology. Hell, I didn’t know if I should even be allowed to want Allie after the way I’d pissed her off. There were plenty of other women who didn’t come with complicated baggage. And yet, here I was, hopelessly fixated on her.
Cade, Luca, and I all sat in the waiting room of Jack Bloom’s cramped LA office—a place that, fittingly, reeked of stale cigarette smoke and desperation—while my mind ran wild. Allie’s mild lateness wasn’t helping. When she finally showed up, looking frazzled but somehow still gorgeous with her red hair pulled back in a messy afterthought of a ponytail, I couldn’t keep myself from frowning.
“Sorry, I know I’m late,” she said, and it sounded like something she found herself saying a lot. “Kid emergency. There were cheerios in places cheerios never should be. Trust me, you don’t want to know,” she shuddered, and even as she recounted this unglamorous part of her single motherhood, the adoration she had for her child shone through. “My kid’s lucky she’s cute.”
Mykid, she said. Because at this point, that was the only thing we knew for sure. But at least today we’d be getting to the bottom of a different mystery.
“Let’s just get this over with,” I announced. I strode forward and knocked on the frosted glass door of Jack’s office, earning a barked, “Come in.”
I hadn’t seen the man in person before, but somehow, Jack Bloom, PI, looked exactly as reputable as I expected. Which was to say, not much. He wore a beige polo shirt tucked into ill-fitting chinos, his nearly bald head pitifully adorned with a comb-over straight out of my nightmares and more gel than his double-digit number of hairs could justify. He had a crooked set to his mouth that I wasn’t sure was genetic or put-upon, and he looked at us like he could hear the jingling of money in our pockets.
He also very much seemed like the type who still carried around cash. Coins even. In a ratty old wallet he’d call a “billfold” and lose every time he put it down.
“Come in, come in,” Jack emphasized as he waved us toward the metal frame chairs in front of his beige laminate desk. Hetook some time to lower himself into his own well-worn office chair, adjusting for an uncomfortably long time before he finally seemed to realize we didn’t have all day.
Jack Bloom cleared his throat, his tone as bland as the threadbare carpet beneath our feet. “Alright, gentlemen—and Miss Tate,” he said, shuffling some papers on his desk. “I’ve done my due diligence. You all doubted me, didn’t you? But I got the answers we’re all looking for. Wasn’t easy, let me tell you.”
I felt these dramatics were part of his scheme to milk as much money out of me as possible. I didn’t entertain his blatant urging for us to ask about his harrowing paperwork journey though. Instead, I said in a clipped tone, “Get to the point. Which of us is married?”
“Yeesh, can’t let a guy have some build up, huh?” He looked at me. I stared, not giving him any kind of reaction. He threw up his hands in defeat.
“Fine, fine, I’ve got your information.” He paused, and I felt my heart rate spike. “The records show that the marriage license was issued under the name of Luca Branchini—and Allie Tate, of course.”
I watched as Luca’s eyes flicked toward Allie, and she squeezed his hand in a gesture that spoke volumes. My gut twisted. I’d never been jealous before, not in this way, and hell, I should’ve been relieved to not have to deal with any legal fallout. I forced myself to breathe slowly, trying to remember that I was the CEO of a record label, a man who’d never been bested by matters of the heart.
But it stung for some godforsaken reason anyway.
“So…Cade and I are in the clear,” I speculated, trying to see the bright side even as my jaw clenched.You’re in the clear, Gavin. This is what you wanted.At least on the marriage front, if not on the issue of paternity.
Jack nodded, not meeting my eyes. “That’s the way the cookie has crumbled, so to speak. Sorry, Luca. Or, I guess, congratulations.”
I looked at Allie. Her blue eyes darted to Luca, and for a moment, I saw her vulnerability, the thread of anxiety this revelation had only pulled taught, not completely snapped. Luca, for his part, kept his expression guarded, but there was something in the way he slightly shifted in his seat that made me feel like he was conflicted on some level too.
Cade cleared his throat, breaking the silence. “So, what’s the next step?” He wanted to help Luca, and I did too. We were in this together, just like we’d been in on that night in Vegas together.
Jack shrugged, a gesture that made him seem almost indifferent. “I’m not a lawyer, fellas. But from what I gather, you need to get a proper attorney to handle the annulment. Gavin, you’re the one with the deep pockets, so I assume you’ll take care of it, eh?”
Resentment flared. Of course I would pay. I’d always taken care of my friends monetarily without even needing to be asked, but that didn’t mean I took kindly to a man like Jack Bloom treating me like a bottomless wallet. My money, mydad’smoney, wasn’t for him to dictate.
“I’ll handle it,” I said through gritted teeth.
“See? Easy peasy. Nothing for you all to worry your pretty, impulsive little heads about.” Jack’s grin made me feel slimy, and when he looked at Allie, I followed his gaze to see a softness in her face I didn’t expect. Even less expected, she was looking at me.
“Thank you,” she told me with a tone that was almost surprised. Awed, really. I squirmed under her gaze even as my body reacted to her scrutiny.
