He flushed with a twist of his lips.
“Third, and most importantly,” she went on, “I could never be disappointed in you. I think that’syourtoxic trait. I run, and you run around trying to keep everyone happy for fear you’ll let them down.”
He huffed a quiet laugh and turned his head away.
“No, I’m serious,” she said, and hooked a finger under his chin to turn it back. “You lied to your parents because you didn’t want to disappoint them. You lied to me for the same reason. You’re always trying to fix everything. You hold yourself to this impossible standard like it’s your job to keep everyone happy, and that’s not fair.”
A flush curled into his face. “I guess I just want to be…good.”
“Chuck, youaregood. You’re an amazing son, an incredible big brother—to your sisterandher friends. You’re a talented actor, an inspiring coworker—do you want me to read the profile again? It’s all in there…” She sat up as if she was looking for it.
He squeezed her ribs and tumbled over sideways with her. “All right. Point made.”
“And, I might be biased, but you’re a pretty decent boyfriend too.”
“Decent?That’s the best you could do?”
“Stellar? Stupendous? Worth a million dollars?” She jabbed him in the ribs, knowing he was teasing.
He flinched with a laugh. “Oh, too soon.”
“Sorry. Bad joke. You’re not going to hold that against me forever, are you?”
“What, that you lost me a million bucks? Nah. Why wouldI care about that? I’m actually already over it,” he said with a sarcastically casual eye roll and shrug.
She softly punched him in the ribs again. “Shut up.”
He grinned a lopsided smile and then his face grew serious. “Speaking of the profile. That was very brave of you to write. That might be the nicest thing anyone’s ever done for me.”
“Does that mean you’re okay with me publishing it?”
He stared up at the ceiling and took a long, slow breath. He exhaled it in a rush and turned to her with a light in his eyes. “I mean, might as well, right? I’ve already blown up the rest of my life. Seems only right to pull the pin in the last grenade.”
She smiled at him, and he mussed her hair.
“And hey, it could end up working in my favor. A lot of people in this town hate Richard Sykes, including Isabel Ramírez, whose new movie I happen to have an audition for.” He dropped the news casually, and Olivia’s reaction was clearly what he’d been hoping for given the grin on his face.
She gasped a sincerely ecstatic sound. “You have an audition with Izzy Ramírez?” A glee as genuine as what she’d felt when he’d gotten the part forSafe Gamblefilled her full enough to burst.
Izzy Ramírez was a current It director in Hollywood. An indie darling who’d broken out big last year with a dark comedy box office smash. Studios took interest and started hurling money at her. She had her pick of projects and teams to work with. Olivia knew all this because she’d stepped in to finish aMixpiece on it when her coworker went on maternity leave.
“Mm-hmm,” Chuck confirmed with a proud hum. “Cameron set it up for me as soon as we got out of the house.”
Olivia gasped again and excitedly punched him in the chest. “Chuck! This is amazing!”
“Ow!” he said with a laugh, and clutched her fist. “Don’t get your hopes up. It’s a long shot, but if that profile manages to come out at the right time, things might go my way and I could be starring in next summer’s dark comedy hit.”
“I will hit publish tomorrow if that’s what you want,” Olivia said with a thrilled grin.
Another chuckle bounced his chest. “You have my permission. But really, the part would be a huge payday. Like ‘leaveName Your Pricein the dust’ payday.”
Her jaw dropped and she genuinely could not stop smiling. “I am so happy for you. Seriously.”
“Thank you. And I want to take a moment to say that I am sorry for all the times I got a little too obsessed with my career. I know I’ve made some insensitive decisions in the past, and I promise to be more aware of that going forward.”
Olivia gave him an impressed nod. “Much appreciated.”
He sighed a dreamy sound and stroked his fingers through her hair again. It sent her body tingling. “So, what have you been up to since you’re no longer under twenty-four-hour surveillance? I mean, other than writing hit pieces on sleazy industry men.”