Mina had searched every square inch of the condo, and was certain she’d found every stray piece of clothing she’d misplaced over their long weekend in luxury. Which meant that she no longer had any reason for staying well-below Cam’s eye level.

And since he was off the clock until Friday, he was no longer working crazy hours and dealing with managerial responsibilities. Any knotty problems she threw at him wouldn’t be one more burden piled on an already challenging day.

In other words, Mina was all out of excuses.

She really wished she weren’t. Because the talk they needed to have wasn’t a talk she wanted to have. But Wednesday was coming up fast, and she was running out of time.

Dammit.

Her Los Angeles dream job had landed in her lap in the form of her new boss’s outgoing personal assistant calling on Sunday afternoon to offer her the pie-in-the-sky job she’d applied for a full three months ago. Hollywood. The Holy Grail she’d dreamt about forever. The Shangri-La where her classmates were making films and building careers.

As far as Mina was concerned, she was at the center of a full-blown miracle, and the one person she wanted to share her news with was the one person who wouldn’t want to hear it. Which was why she’d ended up calling Lydia instead.

How could good news feel so damn bad?

And how was she ever going to work up the courage to tell him?

“Are you planning on doing yoga or something?” Cam asked, a tease in his voice. “Because you’ve been on your knees on the floor now for at least fifteen minutes.”

She lifted her head, giving him a wry look. “Maybe.”

He grinned and reached a hand down to help her up.

“Listen,” they both said at the same time, then laughed.

Since she was getting good at avoidance, she motioned for him to go first.

“If Darryl’s up for watching a movie, I think we should bite the bullet and tell him we’re dating,” Cam said. “I’m tired of pretending like we’re just friends.” He moved closer, then gripped her upper arms. “Aren’t you?”

She nodded. No matter what she still had to tell him, that wasn’t a lie.

“After that, we can just let people figure it out. We don’t need an engraved announcement.”

“No.” Her voice cracked. “No, we don’t. But I…”

She trailed off, hating the words she had to say.

“What?”

“It’s just that I don’t really want to do movie night tonight.”

“Oh. Okay.”

“Oh, fuck.” The word burst out of her, as harsh as cannon fire. She was such a damn coward.

“Mina? What—”

“I don’t know how to tell you this,” she blurted. “And if I don’t spit it out, I’m never going to say it. I got a job in LA. An amazing freaking job. And I’m going to take it.” She drew a breath as she glanced at his face, but she couldn’t read a thing on it. His expression had gone completely blank.

“I see. Well, congratulations.” His forehead creased and his lips moved, as if trying to form either words or a frown and not managing either. Then he walked toward the window, giving her his back.

She took a step toward him, but didn’t go any closer. “Cam, please. Can’t we talk about this?”

When he turned toward her, she saw the flash of anger before he smothered it, his features once again turning bland. “Sounds like the time for talking is past. From where I’m standing, this sounds like a done deal.”

She said nothing.

His shoulders drooped. “How long have you known?”

“I got the call on Sunday when you were at The Fix. It’s a big deal, Cam, them calling me on a Sunday. It’s not a hire through Human Resources. I’m going to be a personal assistant to one of the studio’s top execs.”

“Fetching his coffee and picking up his dry cleaning. Sounds like exactly what you want.”

“That’s not fair.”

“Probably not,” he agreed, then cupped his hands on his head as he faced the floor. He looked back up again a moment later, his eyes narrow. “You knew before we went to Graffiti Park. You told Lydia before you told me.”

She nodded.

“And you’ve already accepted?”

“It was too good to pass up.”

He didn’t respond to that. Instead, he asked, “And the job here? You’re just blowing them off.” He didn’t say, The way you’re blowing me off, but she heard it anyway.

“I’m going to go talk to them tomorrow morning. I want to tell them in person. I don’t want to burn any bridges.”

“No, you wouldn’t want that.”

“Cam,” she began, but he cut her off with a sharp glance. She wished she could flip a switch and make him understand how amazing this was. This incredible job that she got on her own. Without her father or her brother or anyone pulling strings for her or stepping in as her safety net. Just her and her resume and the skill she brought to the table.

“How long before you go?”

Her stomach twisted. This felt like a job interview. Or a police interrogation.

“My plane leaves Wednesday morning.”

She saw the impact of her words reflect on his face.

“You’re blowing off The Fix? The contest? You’re not even going to say hello to Kiki?”

“I didn’t set the time frame,” she protested.

“No, you didn’t have anything to do with any of this.”

She said nothing. His words were true, but they hurt.

He rubbed the bridge of his nose, then took a breath. And when he took a single step toward her, she felt her heart fill with hope. “Baby, why didn’t you tell me?”

“Because they needed an answer right away. Because it’s my dream job. Because I knew you wouldn’t be happy for me. And because as much as I want the job, I don’t want to leave you.” She brushed away a tear, hating herself for crying.

His expression was gentle, but when he spoke the words sliced through her. “So your dream job has less responsibility than the one you have here?”

“You have no idea what responsibilities the job has.”

“I may not work in your industry, but I’m not an idiot. And I know that dry cleaning and coffee isn’t even close to an exaggeration. What happened to development? To being on the front lines?”

A hot wire of anger shot through her. “Don’t tell me what job I want.”

“I’m not. You’re the one who’s been telling me and Darryl for years. But you’re not looking at the job. If you were, you’d see that you already had the dream job. You’re just looking at the location.”

“Hollywood? A studio job? Hell, yeah, I’m looking at the location. And you know what? You should, too.”

“I should—what? What are you talking about?”

“You’re laying this all at my feet, but you’re not exactly tied to Austin. Kiki lives part time in LA, right? And you don’t have a job yet. But you’re making this all about me leaving you. Why don’t we make it about you coming with me?”

It should have occurred to her before, but she’d been so wrapped up in the horror of leaving him that she hadn’t thought it out. But it made perfect sense, and she told him so, relief flooding through her at having found a solution.

“And that’s what you want?”

“Are you kidding? Of course. Do you think I want to lose you? It’s perfect. I mean you could probably get a job at The Getty Center in a heartbeat.”

“And the fact that I’m starting work on my doctorate in the fall?”

“There are universities in Los Angeles. Excellent ones with programs in rare books and manuscripts.”

“And they’d probably even let me in. After I apply and wait a year. And what about my scholarship? It’s not like I can afford UCLA or USC without one. Especially since I wouldn’t have a job anymore.”

Kiki would pay, she knew. But she also knew he’d never accept. Going through school on his own was important to Cam, just like getting to Hollywood was important to her. If she saw that about him, why couldn’t he see it about her?

Frustrated, she sighed, then sat on the ottoman. “Well, then what do you want?”

It was a stupid thing to say, since she already knew the answer.

“I want you to stay here. I want you to work at the job you already accepted. The one that’s going to give you so much hands-on responsibility. I want you to sit down with me and tell our families that we’re dating. I want you in my bed every goddamn night. Hell, I just want to be with you, Mina. And I thought you wanted that, too.”

“I do,” she said, her voice so raw and hoarse she was afraid he couldn’t even hear it. “I do, but I want LA, too.”

“How exactly does that work, Mina? Because it seems to me that one cancels out the other.”

“I don’t know,” she said, tasting the flood of tears she’d been fighting. “All I know is that I want you. But I also know that I have to go.”