“So, how do you like Philadelphia?” Cory asked as they finished the main course, forcing her to return her attention to him.
It shouldn’t have been difficult. She should’ve enjoyed the conversation with a man who’d summited Everest and skied Kilimanjaro. And who hadn’t managed to act like an ass when he talked about those accomplishments. She didn’t know much about Cory, but what she did know she found fascinating.
And yet, she couldn’t stop worrying about Sebastian.
“I like it,” she forced herself to answer, smiling up at Cory with what she hoped was a genuine expression. “I wasn’t sure I would right away. It takes awhile getting used to all the little streets and the alleys. And how close the buildings are to each other and all the brick. And there’s still cobblestone in some of the streets. And, oh my god, George Washington really did sleep here. It’s kind of wild.”
Cory was laughing by the time she finished, and her attraction to him chugged back to life, almost stealing her full attention.
“You get kind of immune to the history when you live here. But it’s still pretty cool. Maybe we could meet for lunch someday. I could show you around, give you an insider’s tour.”
He shouldn’t have caught her off guard like that. If she hadn’t been keeping one eye on Sebastian, she probably would’ve seen where he was going with this.
As it was, she wanted to say yes.
“I’ll have to check my calendar,” was what came out of her mouth. “I mean, I’d love to. Thank you for the offer. We’re just so busy right now I’m not sure when—”
“No rush.” Cory smiled. “We’ll figure something out.”
She knew she should smile back. Knew her stomach should be fluttery and her heartbeat a little faster.
But beside her, she swore she felt Sebastian’s anxiety rolling off him in waves.
What the hell was up with him? Something definitely was, and her own worry started to build.
Greg said something and Cory turned to respond. Which allowed her to turn toward Sebastian.
JoJo continued to monopolize his attention, as she had all night. Tru could barely hear what the other woman was saying as she leaned in once again to speak as closely to Sebastian’s ear as she could without touching, conveniently baring even more of those boobs as she did so.
Trying not to make it obvious, Tru turned toward him, attempting to hear what they were talking about.
Across the table, Sabrina caught her gaze and raised her eyebrows, her concern for Sebastian obvious.
That sealed it. As managing director of ManDown, part of her job was taking care of the talent. No matter what that entailed.
She turned to face Sabrina more fully. “So, are Jared and Annabelle back from their honeymoon yet?”
Sabrina’s gaze narrowed for a brief second before she took Tru’s cue and shook her head. “Not until next week, no.”
With a deliberately sloppy movement, she lifted her hand from the table as if to gesture and “accidentally” flipped her fork straight into Sebastian’s lap.
Causing him to jump as if she’d shocked him.
“Oh, wow. I’m so sorry.”
Sebastian shook his head, taking a deep breath as he looked at his pant leg.
“It’s okay—”
“I can’t believe I did that. I’m so clumsy.” She flashed the table a crooked grin as she grabbed Sebastian’s arm and tugged. “Come on. Let’s get that taken care of before it stains. We’ll be right back.”
She’d added that for JoJo’s benefit, who was glaring at Tru like she’d taken away her new favorite toy.
Sebastian stood immediately. “Yeah, sure.”
He didn’t even bother to smile as he turned and walked away, leaving Tru to follow along behind him. He didn’t stop until they reached the front room of the restaurant. Then he turned from side to side, looking for something.
She found the bathroom first, tugging on his elbow.
“This way. Come with me.”
He swallowed hard but let her lead him.
Once they got there . . . well, damn. They both couldn’t go into the same bathroom. It’d look skeevy if anyone saw them. But she didn’t want to leave him alone. He looked about ready to crawl out of his skin. And now she was really worried about him.
“Give me your keys.” She held out her hand. “We’re getting out of here.”
Sebastian shook his head. “I’m fine. I’m just . . . I just need . . . some air.” With a heavy sigh, he stopped in the middle of the hall, hands on his hips, head down, eyes closed. “Fuck. Yeah. Let’s get the hell out of here.”
He turned and started for the front door, hands shoved in his pockets and his head down. He didn’t look anywhere but straight ahead, and she had to lengthen her strides to catch up, hoping she didn’t look like she was running after him.
She flashed a smile at the maître d, who did a double take as Sebastian passed by him, but she didn’t stop.
Her entire focus was on Sebastian as he hit the sidewalk and headed in the opposite direction of the parking lot.
He was pulling ahead of her. People on the sidewalk kept getting in her way. And the heels slowed her down.
“Sebastian.”
He kept walking.
“Sebastian!”
He came to an abrupt stop at the next corner, facing away from her. She didn’t know if he’d heard her call out to him or if he’d just realized he couldn’t walk out into traffic without getting hit.
When she caught up to him, she had time to suck in a quick breath before he turned to her. “Take the car. I’ll walk back to Haven.”
Her eyebrows rose. Seriously? He actually thought she was going to leave him alone in this state?
“Why don’t you walk back to the parking lot with me and I’ll drive you back to Haven?”
His jaw clenched and he ran a hand through his too-long hair. “Maybe I need a little fucking space.”
The few people within hearing distance gave surreptitious glances in their direction. A few of the men glanced her way, then back at Sebastian. Did they think he’d get violent?
She had no fear of that. He may be a pain-in-the-ass smart-ass prick some of the time, but she knew he wouldn’t hurt her.
“You can have all the space you want when I get you back to Haven.”
She didn’t think he was going to answer her at first. She expected him to start walking again.
Instead he took another breath, his eyes closing as he sucked in air, then released it.
Finally, he looked down at her. “You wanna shadow me, fine. Just don’t expect me to be your fucking guide dog.”
He took off again but his pace slowed now, as if he was waiting for her. And when she stepped up to his side and stayed right next to him, he slowed a little more.
The walk became less of a run and more of a stroll, but he obviously had a destination in mind. Several blocks later, he finally stopped somewhere on Walnut Street.
Looking up, she realized it was a bar with live music, the kind of music Sebastian probably loved. Music that would make her want to rip her ears off after listening for any extended amount of time.
“You coming?”
His tone clearly indicated he didn’t think she had the balls to follow him into this place because it so wasn’t her type of place. Which was probably why he’d chosen it. He expected her to balk.
Fuck that.
She merely raised an eyebrow at him. And waited for him to open the door for her.
He grabbed the door, yanked it open, and ushered her through.
* * *
Fuck, yes.
The music hit Baz instantly. The beat of the drum in his gut. The screaming guitars making his fingers twitch to play. The throb of the bass in the back of his head felt like getting hit with a bat.
He wanted to wade into the crowd and get lost in the sound. Let it wash out everything in his head until he only heard the music.
Which, he realized belatedly, he recognized. The band onstage had played one of the festivals Baseline Sins had headlined a couple of years ago. Which meant there were people in the audience who’d recognize him.