Hollywood Roommates

13

“And now you can relax instead.” He wears a black baseball cap pulled low that does a terrible job of hiding who he is. He’d need a full Darth Vader costume to stop people from recognizing him.

Matt returns with a pink drink in a martini glass with a rim covered in sugar. “Enjoy.” “What’s this?” I ask. The drink is so pretty I want to snap a photo of it and put it on i********:.

“Strawberry limoncello martini. It’s my own specialty.”

Luke snorts. “That’s the drink he gives women to get them in bed with him. Watch out.”

“No, that’s the Screaming Orgasm.” Matt winks at me. “I can give you one of those later though.”

I shake my head with a smile as I grab the drink. It’s a little sweet and a little sour and absolutely perfect. “Wow, this is amazing.”

“I knew you’d like it.” He slides a whiskey over to Luke, without even asking what he wants, and Luke nods in thanks. Matt then heads to the other end of the bar, where a woman in a red dress is waving him over.

“So let me guess,” Luke drawls, as he sips his whiskey and eyes me. “My brother told you to come here tonight and find a guy to help you forget about your ex and now you’re regretting listening to him.”

“Yep, that about sums it up.” I take another sip of my divine drink. Matt may be struggling as an actor, but he is definitely an incredibly talented bartender. And with his looks and charm, I bet he’s never hurting for tips either.

“That’s exactly the kind of thing Matt would tell you to do. And trust me, I tried his way too after Lana.”

Lana. His ex, the famous actress. My eyes widen at the mention of her. I’m surprised he’s bringing her up at all.

“But sleeping around never helped,” Luke continues, staring into his whiskey. “Neither did the drinking.”

“What did help?” I ask.

“Time and distance. That’s about it.” He rests an elbow on the bar, gazing into my eyes. “You’ve been betrayed by the person you loved. That’s a terrible thing for anyone to go through. Cut yourself some slack and allow yourself to be sad about it. And if you can, try to get closure.”

I’m not sure how to do that. Parker kicked me out, after all. “Did you ever get closure?”

His face darkens and he looks away. “I did. When we signed the divorce papers. That’s when I was finally over her for good.”

“I’m sorry. That must have been tough for you. Especially since it was so public.”

“I won’t lie, it’s been a rough year. I can’t go into the store without seeing my ex’s face everywhere, or go online without hearing about her new movie. Leaving the country to film a movie helped. Staying off the internet did too. But that’s part of being an actor and living in the spotlight. Everyone knows all of your business, or thinks they do anyway.” He drains the whiskey and slams it down on the bar.

“I can’t imagine how hard it must be to live in the spotlight all the time like that.”

“Don’t get me wrong, being an actor has its perks too. I signed up for this life and I’m not complaining. It’s just that when s**t hits the fan, everyone wants to take photos of it.” He gives me a devastatingly handsome smile. “But I got through it, and you will too.”

His words and his smile begin to unravel the knot of anxiety inside me. “Thanks for talking to me about all this. It helps.”

“I’m glad.” He rests his large hand over mine on the counter. “And remember, you’re not in this alone. Even though you only moved in yesterday, we’re here for you. All three of us.”

“I appreciate that. Although I don’t think Shane particularly wants me in his house.”

“He does. A little too much, maybe.” He leans forward, so his lips are almost brushing mine. “We all do.”

With that, he slides off the barstool and walks outside to the patio, leaving me speechless.

Chapter Ten

ALLIE

As I settle in to the house and get used to living there, the guy’s aren’t around much over the next few days. They’re all busy with their own lives and I see their assistants and staff members more than I see them. Shane is filming his TV show, spending long hours on set and coming home exhausted and cranky. Matt spends his nights at the bar and his days either sleeping or auditioning. Luke has to fly to London for reshoots of his movie at a moment’s notice and we have no idea when he’ll get back.

The peaceful solitude of the house is good for me though. It gives me time to get over Parker, which I’ve done by taping a giant picture of his face to my wall and throwing darts at it. After three days, I’ve gotten pretty good at hitting him right between the eyes. It’s oddly therapeutic, although I cringe to think what Shane will say when he sees the little holes in his wall.

It helps that the house is truly an amazing place to live too. Every night as I fall asleep I can hear the waves gently lapping at the shore. In the morning, the crisp fog over the water is the perfect thing to wake up to. And in the evening, the sunsets are truly inspiring.

Not to mention, all the amenities of this place blow me away. In the theater I can watch movies for hours and it’s like being at an actual cinema. The humongous kitchen is to die for, and the beach access and giant pool are unbelievable. My favorite thing is to sit outside under an umbrella, reading a romance novel and breathing in the ocean air. It’s going to be hard to give this place up once I start teaching again and find my own apartment.