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Andy: Cynthia has uploaded the interview already.
I click the link, then watch with my mouth hanging open. She’s edited out almost everything I said about the company, cutting it together to make it seem like we just flirted, and that’s it.
“She asked me what I want in a woman,” I growl, showing Victor the screen. I was thinking about Sera when I said,“I want somebody I truly connect with. Somebody I can imagine spending a life with. And yes, I’ve already met her.”
“Are you talking about me, per chance?” Cynthia asks.
“Maybe I am…”
I pause the video. “That part, when I said maybe I am, I wasn’t even answeringthatquestion. They’ve spliced it up to make it seem like we flirted more than we did. Those bastards.”
“Relax,” Victor says. “Isn’t this what you wanted?”
“No,” I snarl. “If Sera sees this… Don’t look at me like that, Victor. I get it. I’m a gullible asshole. I should know better. But what if she’s just having phone problems? That could be why she’s not responding. And she said herself that she rarely uses social media.”
“Lot ofifsin that scenario,” Victor murmurs. “I just don’t want to see you get hurt.”
I text her again, but again, I get themessage undeliverednotification. “This would only happen if she blocked my number or if my cell phone was off.”
Victor hands me his phone. “Try calling her from my cell.”
I take it, type her number in. This time, the phone rings… but she doesn’t answer.
Darkness grips me.
“She blocked my number.”
“I’m sorry.”
I shake my head. “I need to talk with her. In person.”
“In person? When?”
“Now,” I snap.
I storm out of the gym before Victor can ask what I mean. Perhaps I’m being a fool. Maybe she’s secretly laughing at me behind my back. But I need to look her in the eye so she can tell me, to my face, that those life-changing days in Vegas meant nothing to her.
Chapter Nineteen
Sera
I sit outside a rundown bar. It looks abandoned. The sun has stained the exterior a blood-red color. Broken glass litters the surrounding street. The nearest building also looks abandoned as well. It’s like a little corner of the apocalypse.
Sera: Are you sure this is the place?
I text Luke, sending him a photo of the bar.
Sera: You said it was your ‘special little place’.
He replies right away.
Luke: Yes, that's it. I’m in here now.
I grind my teeth, thinking about the interview that was uploaded to Cynthia Linx’s online channel an hour ago.
Sera: Why did you say that stuff in the interview, and how did she upload it so fast?
Luke: We recorded it two days ago, sweet pea. I had to say what I had to say because it was what I had to say.