Page 69 of The Temptation of Truth

The way Aurora folds in on herself has me moving on instinct. I sit beside her on the couch and put my hand on her knee.

“Hey. It’s okay, all right? Everyone is fine.”

She nods again. “Okay.”

I squeeze her leg lightly. “Sav’s fine. Aren’t you, Sav?”

“I am,” Sav says, but I don’t look away from Aurora.

My chest aches with the need to comfort her, and my mind swirls with questions. With theories. Nothing about this makes sense yet, but I’m certain of one thing. Aurora isn’t happy. She’s been shoved into a box and told what to want. How to act and think. And from what I can tell, she’s outgrowing that box, and she’s terrified.

A familiar chiming noise grabs my attention, and I reluctantly look away from Aurora to Sav. She’s already scrolling on her phone.

“Did the Caveat boys do something stupid, or are you stalking someone new?”

I ask the question to lighten the mood, take some of the attention off Aurora, but I’m curious, too. Sav has internet alerts set for all of us, so she gets notified about any new media stories. Recently, she’s also been setting alerts for bands she’s considering signing to her label. Anything other than positive news about Heartless is rare these days, but the way Sav’s face contorts as she reads her phone screen has me sitting up straighter.

“Shit. What did they do?”

I’m half expecting her to tell me Ezra and Crue got arrested, but then Claire glances at the phone screen, too, and they both look at me with pity.

“What? What happened?”

I’m reaching for Sav’s phone before either of them says anything. Did the tabloids find out about my birth mother? Did someone overhear my conversation with my lawyer? I hold my breath as I flip the phone over and take in the article on the screen, then all the oxygen leaves me in one violentwoosh.

Pictures of my girlfriend are plastered all over a popular gossip blog. They’re blurry, obviously taken from a distance, but it’s not hard to see what’s happening.

Kat is locked in a passionate kiss with Kaz. Hands and lips in a tangle, I can’t tell where she ends and he begins. I blink several times, but the images don’t change. They just become morereal.

“I’m so fucking sorry, Mabes.”

I drag my eyes from the screen to Sav’s face. Her expression must mirror mine. Shock and pain, but there’s anger there, too. Anger I wish I could feel. It would be better than this. This throbbing heartache. This violent, stabbing sense of betrayal. I can almost taste it, copper and blood-like on my tongue.

Just once, just fuckingonce, I’d like to be first. I’d like to beenough. I don’t think that’s asking too much.

I manage a tight smile and push to standing, handing Sav’s phone back to her as I grab mine from the couch cushion.

“Excuse me, guys. I have to make a call.”

15

MABEL

“I can explain.”

Kat doesn’t even say hello when she answers. It’s nearly two in the morning in Los Angeles, so the fact that the phone only rang twice tells me she was waiting for my call. Doesn’t matter if she was sleeping or partying. She was ready, and from her tone, she’s already annoyed.

I drop my eyes to the ring on my middle finger and make a fist. The gem glints under the florescent lighting. It might as well be mocking me. I take a deep breath and push my toes into the soles of my platforms.

“Explain, then.”

“Kaz and I decided to be in a fake relationship. You know, to really lean into the public fascination. Give the people what they want, right? My agent is submitting me for this new runway competition show, and I could use the media attention. I’m pretending to date Kaz for op?—”

I huff a laugh, cutting her off. “Right. For optics.”

“It is. It’s all for appearances. Just until I get selected for the show.”

I lean against the wall and drop my head back on the cool brick. Caveat Lover’s set is ending, meaning it’s almost time for Heartless to take the stage. Instead of warming up or getting ready, though, I’m listening to my girlfriend attempt to explain away pictures of her with her tongue down some guy’s throat. The same guy she’s always claimed wasjust a friend. She always made me feel crazy for being jealous of him. For being suspicious of him. It wasmyproblem.Myinsecurities. Always me.