CHAPTER 44
Theo
“We look forward to seeing you again in a couple weeks, Theo.” Rocky Maine, the director of photography, squeezed my hand and gave it a few pumps before he walked out the door with his crew.
We’d finished our meal along with the after-dinner schmoozing just past eleven o’clock. I was ready to dart out the door and get home to Lex when Winter gave me a look that made me sit back down.
“Give us a minute,” she said to Alison, who proceeded to send me an apologetic glance. The next thing I knew, Alison was walking out the door with Winter’s two bodyguards.
“Geez, Winter. You look like you’re about to murder someone.”
Her eyes narrowed into tiny slits, and her nose flared. “I am.”
I glanced at her empty wineglass, wondering how many she’d had. “Maybe you should lay off the booze for the rest of the night. We have an early flight.”
She crossed her arms and rolled her eyes. “I’m fine. How long, Theo?”
Her question didn’t register immediately, but I felt the inklings of guilt for whatever she thought I’d done wrong. With Winter, it could have been anything. Did I forget to turn in paperwork? Did I say something wrong during dinner? “I’m not following.”
She blew out a breath. “You and Lex. How long?”
Shit. My chest swelled with heat. My mouth fell open, but words weren’t coming out. I needed time to figure out how to answer her. What could I say that wouldn’t ruin everything? What could I say? If I admitted anything, Lex would get fired, and I couldn’t let that happen. But I couldn’t lie either. Winter already knew. How long has it been going on? I wasn’t sure how to answer that. One week, I guess, but there had been something from the moment I laid eyes on Lex.
“Clearly, you’ve got me cornered here. I won’t lie to you, but I don’t feel comfortable talking about this with you either.”
“Well, too fucking bad.”
“How did you even find out?”
She let out a patronizing laugh. “Your girlfriend got a little sloppy on social media today.” Winter pulled out her phone and swiped until she got to a certain photo then handed the phone to me over the table. “Anyone who’s been to your house can recognize that’s your pool. What the fuck was one of my dancers doing at your house?”
My heart had stopped beating at some point after seeing the photo. It was clearly Lex, giving a peace sign in the same white bikini she was wearing when I left her. A bikini I bought her. Only a portion of her was in the frame, but Winter was right. The tile that rimmed the pool was an unusual red and yellow. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. I reached for my phone. “I’ll tell her to delete it.”
“Already done. Deleted it without her even knowing. Covered your ass again, Theo. You can thank me later.” Winter yanked her phone from me and set it on the table. “All dancers will be getting a reminder about the policies they agreed to follow by signing that contract. As will you.” Which means Lex isn’t getting fired. I hoped.
Her eyes narrowed again. I could practically see the steam billowing from her head. “From your expression, I take it you’re aware she was at your house.”
“Yes,” I replied as I ground my teeth. “I knew.”
“Well, that’s better than my initial thought. I’d hate to think you have a hard-on for the stalker types.” Her head tipped to the side, as if she’d just thought of something else. “Is she still at your house?”
Fuck. “She has nowhere else to go.” I wouldn’t elaborate. Even saying that was too much.
Winter threw her head back and laughed like a fucking lunatic. “Just like she didn’t have a car to take her to the studio? You are such a gullible bastard.”
I stood up, the tops of my thighs crashing against the table and spilling my unfinished wine. “Fuck off, Winter. Believe what you want. I’m out of here.” I shoved my phone in my pocket and started for the door.
“You know,” Winter began in a seething tone that halted me in my tracks, “I’d hate for Lex to miss out on an opportunity like this just because her choreographer couldn’t keep it in his pants.”
I swiveled around to face her. “So, what are you going to do, Winter? Fire her? Fire me?”
She stood and stepped closer. “Here’s the thing. If I let her go, the other dancers are going to ask questions. Lex might talk. And we’ll have a hole to fill. I don’t want to fire her, but I will if you don’t end it.”
“It’s already done.” My chest felt hot and heavy beneath my ribs at the reality of my words.
Winter’s face twisted. “That was fast. A little too fast.”
“We made a decision before it all began that we would end it before Vegas. It’s already done.”
Her jaw hardened. “You better be telling me the truth. Look, Theo. You’re a grown-ass man with needs. I get it. But the rules are there for a reason. The whole Mallory situation stayed private, thank God, but if something like that happened on my show, it would be everywhere.”
Her words slammed into me. I couldn’t argue with a single point. She wasn’t threatening me. She was delivering the reality check that I desperately needed. Lex deserved this opportunity, and I couldn’t be responsible for destroying her reputation as a dancer before it had even begun.
She was moonlight and magic when she danced, leaving stardust in her wake. And she was only getting started.
Which was exactly why I had to let her go.