Celeb Crush (4 page)

I stare at him blankly while he vomits words at me.  Like talking faster is going to have less of a negative impact.  But I simply have no idea what he’s trying to get at.

Bran abruptly falls silent, begging me with his eyes to understand.  “So why doesn’t Megan ask her friends to help her out?” I wonder.  “Does she still hang out with what’s-their-faces?  Simone and Annie?”

“Ally.”  He nods his head to confirm.  “Yeah, they’re all still best friends.  But the both of them are leaving with their boyfriends for Europe on Saturday.  They’ll be gone the whole summer.”

“What, they can’t cancel, or postpone it?”

“They planned this trip for months.  And Meg isn’t close enough with her other friends to ask them to help plan her wedding.”

“But she’s okay with having you ask me to help her out,” I conclude.

“I know we have no right to ask you.”  He leans down to scratch under the top of his beat-up cast.  “But we’re running out of time.  And it would mean so much to Susan if you were a part of this.”

I sigh heavily, staring off into space.  I can’t believe this shit.  “Fine.  I’ll help.”

Bran lights up like a Christmas tree.  “Seriously?  Andi, thank you!  You—”

I put up my hand like a traffic cop.  “I don’t want to hear it.”

He swallows the rest of his stupid comments, and flashes me a weak smile.  “Okay.  Well, when do you think you can come up to Sea Wind?  That’s where we’re having it.”

“I don’t know.”  I frown.  “I have to make arrangements with my…job.”

“Oh, right.”  Bran suddenly straightens.  “Sure.  And, hey, if you have a boyfriend he’s welcome to come.”

“I do have a boyfriend,” my mouth—without the consent of my brain—volunteers.  “But I doubt he’ll come.  He’s a famous actor so he has a very busy schedule.”

“Really?”  Both Bran’s eyebrows rise—skeptically?  “Who is he, if you don’t mind me asking?”

I squeeze my eyes shut for a brief second.  “Lucas Greyson,” I claim almost painfully.

His jaw drops.  “Are you serious?  Lucas Greyson?!  But he’s, like—”

“What, you don’t believe me?”  I glare at Bran as I whip out my phone.  I swipe it open and go to my gallery.

I have tons of pictures of us on vacation at various exotic locales to back up my claim.  Granted, I’m only in some of them since I’m usually the one taking them.  And the few pictures I am in, Luke and I don’t look very couple-y.  In fact, Nate is usually between us.

“Who is that guy?” Bran asks, pointing to the image of Nate pretending to lick the side of Luke’s face.

“That’s just Nate,” I say dismissively.  “He’s our side piece.  It’s a Hollywood thing.”

“Oh,” he murmurs, trying not to appear too embarrassed and shocked.  He continues to swipe through my pics, enthralled.  “Holy shit, I cannot believe you’re dating Lucas Greyson!  How did you guys meet?”

“On a beach,” I reply succinctly.  “And don’t go blabbing it around town.  We’re kind of keeping it a secret.”

“No—of course.  But definitely invite him to the wedding!  Meg’s gonna freak!  You know how obsessed she is with the dude.”  Bran chuckles.  “Remember how she used to make us watch all his movies over and over?  And she still has all the My Soul for You posters taped up in our bedroom…”

“Yup,” I cut him off, annoyed.  “Look, he’s pretty busy.  He’s out of the country right now, so I doubt he’ll be able to make it to your stupid wedding.”

“Oh, yeah—no, I totally understand.  But if there’s any way—it’d be awesome to have him there.  He can be my best man!”

“In hell.”  I abruptly stand up.  “I have to go.  I’ll try to get to Sea Wind as soon as my schedule allows me.  Bye.”

“Wait a second.”  Bran grabs his crutches and struggles to his feet.  “Is it okay if—?”

“I said
bye
.”

I walk briskly away, muttering to myself.  This time, I’m pissed at me.  What the hell?  Why did I even lie about me and Luke being together?  Why do I even care what Bran thinks?  What’s that stupid ticket doing on my windshield?

I haven’t even told my aunt that I work for Luke.  I don’t really tell her much of anything.  We’ve never been super close, so our weekly phone calls can get kind of tortuous.  We can’t talk about Megan, and there’s only so much we can talk about the weather.  The only other safe topic we have is Talon, and I now know more about that kid’s life than I ever wanted to.  He still pees the bed.

Swallowing my pride and bitterness is the least I can do for Aunt Susan.   My parents died in a car crash when I was twelve.  I didn’t have any other family in Boise, so I was sent to Sea Wind, Oregon to live with my dad’s twin brother and his family.  Talon was just a baby at the time, and Aunt Susan was busy with him and her job, and driving Megan to soccer practice and dance class.  The last thing she needed was an antisocial preteen who wasn’t even her blood relative.  She was nice to me, though, and always made sure I was welcome and had everything I needed.

So I’ve got to play nice with everyone.  I owe it to her.

Oh, and I still have to tell Luke I’m not going to make it to Lemage.  I wonder if he’ll dock my pay.  That would be the icing on the shit cake.

Chapter 4

“—and then I said, ‘You set my world on fire; now I’m gonna burn yours down.’  Then I dropped the match on the bed.”

“You didn’t.”

“I did.”

Luke bursts out laughing.  “Holy shit, Tiger!  If it was anyone else, I’d say they were lying—but I can totally see you doing that.  So what happened after?”

I shrug, even though he can’t see me.  “Well, the whole bed caught fire from the gasoline.  They freaked out and ran out of the apartment, all naked and stuff.  I got in my car and drove away.  You know the rest.”

“Yeah, but you never told me about setting the bed on fire.”  Luke’s tone is admiring.  “Man, I can’t believe you’re going up there to help those assholes out.”

“I’m not doing it for them, I’m doing it for my aunt,” I reply sharply.  Then in a softer voice, I add, “She’s not doing well.”

“I’m sorry, Andi.”  Luke’s voice gets quieter, too.  “Hey, if there’s anything you need, don’t hesitate to ask, okay?  You know I’d do anything for you.”

I clear my throat.  Because it’s dry.  “Thanks.”

“Don’t mention it.  So where are you staying?  Not with them, right?  I could give Erica Jane a call and she could arrange for you to stay at the best hotel they have there in Sea Horse.”

I laugh.  “Sea Wind.  And thanks, but no.  I’m staying with my grandma Ellen.”

“That’s the one that’s, like, thirty years younger than your grandpa?”

“No, that’s his third wife, Gina.  Ellen was his second wife.”  I shift my phone to my other ear.  “She’s got an awesome little house right on the beach.”

“Yeah?  Cool.  Maybe your pale ass will get a tan this summer after all.”  Luke chuckles.

“Maybe.  And maybe your ass will get bit off by a shark,” I retort.

“Nah, they don’t like the taste of me.  As soon as that wedding’s done, you’re flying up, yeah?  I’ll save the shark swimming for when you get here.”

“Gee, thanks.”  I roll my eyes, knowing he’ll be able to magically sense it over the phone.  “I gotta go.  Tell Nate and those other guys I said hey.”

“Only if you tell your ex-boyfriend I said he’s a douche.”

I end the call with a smile.  I can always count on Luke to be on my side no matter what psycho thing I admit to.  He even knows about that thing with Dr. Pawlak.  And you could torture me, but I would never tell him how much I like listening to him talk.  His voice is distinctive and husky, slightly raspy like he’s just getting over a cold.  And there’s always that hint of warm laughter in it.  It’s se—nice.

Now that I think about it, setting the bed on fire was a pretty extreme thing to do.  I’d like to say I was crazed with grief, but…I was thinking pretty clearly at the time.  I got the can of gasoline that Bran kept on the patio and a box of matches from the kitchen; then I walked back into the bedroom I shared with him and poured the gas all over the bed while a naked Bran and a naked Megan screamed nonsensical things at me like, “What are you doing?!” and “Please stop!”  Then I said what I said—what a lame line, I don’t know what I was thinking—and I dropped the lit match.  And poof.

I guess Bran and Megan never told anyone about what I did because no one ever came after me, or said anything to me about it.  You know, Megan was the one who introduced me to Bran right after I moved in.  We started hanging out and eventually became a couple.  Yes, he was my first—and last boyfriend.  Sad.  He and Megan were a good influence on me.

Ha ha.

It’s a very long but nice drive to the coastal town of Sea Wind, Oregon.  I’ve made the trip a few times over the past couple of years, but usually by plane.  I don’t stay for very long, not wanting to risk running into the traitors.   A couple of times, I’ve picked Talon up and flew him back with me, and we do all the theme park—which is why he thinks I’m the man.  Also, he can curse like a pirate in front of me, and I won’t care.  To be honest, it never occurred to me to scold him when he first starting swearing in front of me.  If it makes him happy saying “shit” and “ass” here and there, who am I to judge?  I was saying a lot worse when I was five.  I was precocious.

It’s about noon when I roll into town.  It’s a nice sunny day and the shops lining the street directly across the beach are littered with tourists.  I have my window rolled down so the scents of the sea mixed with caramel popcorn and dead fish fill the car.  No, it doesn’t invoke a sense of nostalgia in me, though I do consider Sea Wind my hometown—and not Boise, where I’m originally from.  I like Sea Wind well enough.  It’s a good-sized town, and while there’s not much to do during the off-season months, it’s still a picturesque little place.  Bran and I (and sometimes Megan, when she wasn’t busy with her other friends) used to hang out at the beach a lot.  It was always a calming experience for me to sit on the sand and watch the waves crash onto the shore.

I drive past Libby’s Diner, recognizable by the giant crab painted on the big front windows, and notice a man walking out the side door.  He’s red-haired with ruddy skin, and I’d know him anywhere.

I quickly pull into the parking lot, cutting him off with my car.  “Dr. Pawlak!” I call, sticking my head out the window.

Startled, he jumps back, his eyes bulging at me through his glasses.  I can tell when he recognizes me because his pale eyes widen and his face loses color.

“Good lord!” he blurts out.  “You’re back!”

“Not for keeps,” I say with a friendly smile.  And I don’t do friendly for just anybody.  “I’m just visiting.  How have you been?”

“Good, good.”  He fidgets, playing with the band of his silver watch.  “And yourself?”

“Great,” I say brightly.  “So, I’m going to be in town for a few weeks.  We should get together some time.  For lunch, or something.”

Dr. Pawlak starts to blink, continuously and so rapidly that I feel like I’m going to have a seizure watching him.  Then he coughs—or chokes, maybe?  “Oh, yes, well—that would be…awful.  I really need to get back to the office.  I have a patient coming in just after lunch.”

“Oh, sure.  It was nice to see you.”

“You, too,” he mumbles, and practically makes a run for it.

Dr. Elijah Pawlak is the therapist Aunt Susan made me see when I came to Sea Wind.  He’s actually pretty cool to talk to—though he does have a habit of watching porn on his laptop when he’s supposed to be listening to a patient.  I snuck Bran into his office once to record him during one of our sessions.  I have to clarify—I wasn’t really blackmailing him. I only did it to make sure he gave my aunt and uncle nothing but good reports on my progress.  See, Dr. Pawlak thought my issues went deeper than the abrupt loss of my parents, and tried to delve into my early childhood years.  I don’t like nosy people.  I showed him the video, and we came to an accord.  He let me control the direction of our talks, and I like to think we learned a lot of fun stuff about each other during those fifty eight minutes, three times a week.  I only saw him for a year—and I gave him my copy of the video I took, so I feel like it should be water under the bridge by now.  He shouldn’t be so frightened of me. 

I make a right turn on Dawson Street, into the middle class neighborhood where my aunt and uncle live.  I’m going to do a drive-by of the house.  If I see Bran’s car parked out there, I’m going to turn around and go straight to Ellen’s.  I can’t deal with those guys after such a long drive.

I turn on to Sunnyside Court, and the familiar blue Victorian comes into view.  I see the family’s dark green minivan parked in the driveway, but no sign of Bran’s Civic, or Uncle Charlie’s work truck.  I park at the curb but I don’t get out right away.  I’m feeling very vulnerable right now.  I need to prepare myself.

Shit, I’ve been spotted.  The front door of the house is thrown open and my nine-year old cousin comes flying out of the house, shouting my name.

“Andi!  You’re here!”

Talon runs up to my car before I can get out, a huge grin nearly splitting his face in two.  He’s a cute kid, small for his age, with pale yellow hair and the delicate features of his mother.  He does
not
like to be called cute or pretty.