HDU (37 page)

“That wasn’t what I was – ”

“No, it was.
 
That’s what you were implying,” Ian said in an icy tone that matched his
stare.
 
Though after a second, he
sighed and looked down at his feet, sticking his quivery hands in his
pockets.
 
His voice softened.
 
“I can feel everyone staring.
 
Can I talk to you in private?”
 
He lowered his voice even more.
 
“Please? It’s important and I shouldn’t
have kept it from you, but she made me.”

Amanda opened her mouth to say “yes” but was suddenly
distracted as she looked around.
 
Everyone was in fact staring.
 
They looked the opposite of how they had a minute earlier, when they’d
fondly watched her and Liam laugh with his co-stars.
 
Now they were all appalled, afraid or angry.

“What are
you
doing here?”

Liam’s steely voice came from behind Amanda.
 
She turned around to see him staring
hard at Ian.
 
Behind him, his
castmates all stood watching.
 
At
this point, everyone was.

“I’m not here for you, so mind your business and back
off,” Ian retorted, though his volume was controlled and his eyes darted
self-consciously around the quiet room.
 
He was embarrassed, Amanda could tell.

Liam sneered.
 
He took Amanda’s hand and pulled her back so he could stand between them.
 
“Just leave,” was all he said.
 

“Like I have to listen to you.
 
Fuck off, asshole,” Ian mumbled,
shoving Liam as hard as he could in order to get past.
 
It was for nothing – Liam quickly
caught his arm and gripped tight so that he couldn’t move.

“Guys…” Amanda started.
 
Her heart had begun pounding, barely relaxing even as Ian’s
shoulders slumped, seemingly too tired to fight.

“Amanda, can you tell him to let go of me, please? I
just need one minute to talk to you.
 
Please?”

The crowd tittered.
 
He was begging for mercy in front of the entire industry,
and they were enjoying every bit of it.
 
He’d been arrogant and cocky in their town without earning the right to
be.
 
Now, he just looked weak and
strung out and utterly pathetic.
 
Maybe this is rock bottom
, Amanda hoped
as she watched Ian plead with his eyes, looking pitiful as Liam held him still
with one hand.
 
It was too hard to
watch.

“Let go of him, Liam,” she finally said.
 

The crowd silenced.
 
“What?” Liam turned to her.
 
  

She was hurting his ego.
 
She knew it.
 
He
was defending her, his friends and co-stars were watching, and all she could do
was tell him to stop.
 
“Just let
him go,” Amanda repeated, barely able to look him in the eye.
 
She could hear the amusement of the men
in the crowd as they waited to see if he would yield to her.
 
Liam looked up at the ceiling in
disbelief, his smile scornful.
 
Abruptly, he let go of Ian’s arm.

“Okay,” Amanda exhaled with relief, stepping towards
them.
 
“Okay, Ian, now let’s just
– ”

“
Watch out
!”

The voice had come from the crowd.
 
Instinctively, Amanda ducked.
 
Over her head, she saw Ian swinging the
hand that gripped his beer bottle.
 
It was headed for the same spot he’d clipped Liam at last
week – the side of his head.

“No!” she squeezed her eyes shut.
 
The sound that followed was the
collective gasp of the crowd.
 
Amanda looked up in sheer panic, but all she saw was Liam’s hand wrapped
around the bottle.
 
He had caught the swing
.
 
And before he could return it, security
came.

“Get over here,” the big bouncer barked at Ian,
easily yanking him away.
 
Amanda
stood frozen in shock as she watched the scene.
 

“Tell them just one second, I swear to God it’s
important!” Ian tried one last time, staring desperately at her.
 
She stared back in disbelief before
feeling her head shake “no.”
 
She
had tried to give him that second and he’d beyond ruined it.

The two bouncers glanced over their shoulders at her
but turned back when she didn’t move or speak.
 
Ian’s big eyes stayed fixed on her even as they manhandled
him, even as Desiree Silver came running over to shout something about how they
were over.
 
Like everyone else, Amanda
could only watch.

But once Ian was gone, she felt her feet start
moving.
 
She needed to be
elsewhere.
 
People were trying to
talk to her, trying to comfort her, but none of them were Liam and she didn’t
want to be near anyone anyway.
 
Her
throat was tightening and her eyes were welling, threatening to spill tears in
public unless her heeled feet moved faster.
 
They managed to, sending her flying in a lavender blur down
a staircase and into a corridor full of doors.
 
The bathrooms.
 
She picked the first one and went straight in, wanting nothing more than
to just collapse, even if it meant on the floor.

Luckily, there was a chaise lounge.
 
Casey
had
told her about that feature.
 
Amanda was grateful for it now as she lay down and covered
her face with her hands.
 
She felt
both angry and sad about Ian.
 
Why did he have to swing that bottle?
Everything was about to be fine!
And Liam – Amanda wished he hadn’t
stood up to protect her in the first place.
 
The situation had become needlessly complicated.
 
None of it needed to happen.
 

“Amanda? Are you in there? Let me in.
 
It’s Casey.”

Shit
,
Amanda groaned inwardly.
 
Aside
from the fact that she’d humiliated both Ian and Liam, she’d unwillingly stolen
the spotlight from Casey’s Best Actress win.
 
It was the first bit of good press she’d gotten since Ian’s
film of her released, and Amanda had truncated it.
 
She opened the door out of guilt.
 
“Hey.”

Casey stepped in and shut the door behind her.
 
Amanda lay back down on the chaise.

“People have sex on that thing, so you shouldn’t let
the pillows touch your face,” Casey said.
 
Amanda blinked, not expecting those to be her first words.
 
Suddenly, Casey burst out
laughing.
 
Amanda stared.

“What’s funny right now?” she asked.

“Everything!” Casey plucked delightedly at her fringe
dress.

Amanda sniffed.
 
“Of course you’re happy about what just happened with Ian.”

“I’m not
happy
.”

“Then what? You’re just drunk?” Amanda asked,
surprising herself.
 
Casey
responded by folding her hands in her lap.

“I’m not allowed to be drunk.
 
I’m a recovering alcoholic and a
substance abuser.
 
Remember?” she said
with a smirk.
 
“I wouldn’t say I’m
happy
per se, I’m just… didn’t I tell
you about Ian? He’d only drag you and your friends down.
 
He got me and he just got Liam, and
it’s all because you’re letting him.”
 
Amanda swallowed hard but the knot in her throat remained.
 
Casey wasn’t wrong.
 
There was no way Ian would have any
effect on either of their lives if she didn’t first bring him into the
picture.
 
“You should’ve left him
behind and got famous without him.”
 

I couldn’t have
,
Amanda thought.
 
He had guided the
entire way.
 
She didn’t try to
explain it though.

“Don’t worry,” Casey said, plopping onto the chaise
and blithely braiding the fringes on her dress.
 
“Everyone will forget about this at some point.
 
Scandal happens in this town but
another one always replaces it.”

It was true.
 
Tonight’s fiasco would probably push Casey’s addiction story out of the
headlines.
 
Maybe that explained
her giddiness.

“Anyway, doll, I’ll go.
 
Just wanted to make sure you were fine,” Casey surrendered,
standing up.
 
“Anything I can do
for you before I leave?”

Amanda glanced at her warily.
 
“Can you help me find, Liam?” She had
thought to call him before remembering that she hadn’t carried a purse and thus
put her cell phone in his jacket pocket.
 

“No worries, doll.
 
I’ll find your man.” And with that, Casey disappeared.
 
Amanda breathed a little sigh of
relief.
 
All she wanted was to talk
to him, to explain her logic.
 
She
hadn’t anticipated that his letting go of Ian would result in a near bottle to
the head.
 
It wasn’t supposed to
end that way.

Within a few minutes, Amanda was able to hear
movement outside the door again, but none of the voices sounded like
Liam’s.
 
The two giggly ones
belonged to Casey and Jaime, and the only one not giggling had a British
accent.
 
Oh no
.

“Found your man!”

The door opened and Amanda looked up to see Casey and
Jaime shoving a puzzled Dylan into the bathroom.
 
They yanked the door shut and he naturally reached to try
and open it, but twisting the knob did nothing.
 
Amanda watched with pure mortification as he gave it a few
more shakes before turning around, surprising himself when he saw her sitting
there.

“Amanda!” he said with wide eyes.
 
His gaze fluttered down to her dress for
a moment.
 
“Wow, you look beautiful.”
 
He smiled politely, though his face was
still twisted with confusion.
 
“How,
um… how are you? On this fine evening.
 
In the restroom.”
 
She
stared at him.
 
Amanda wanted to
laugh because he was adorable, but she still felt such tension.
 
At least he didn’t seem to have a clue
as to what had just transpired upstairs.

“I’ve been better,” she admitted.
 

“Same! I was for some reason just dragged from the
bar and forcefully shoved into this room.”

“I saw that,” Amanda said, amused.
 

“Right.
 
Though I realize it could be much worse, since at least I have you,” he said,
making one last attempt at the door before giving up.
 
He turned to face her with a bright smile.
 
“Actually, this is an ideal situation
because it was getting a bit loud up there and I’ve been needing a moment to
just sit down and rest.
 
So really,
I should thank Casey for this little recess and,” he gestured towards her.
 
“The lovely company she chose for
me.
 
Though I’m still not sure I
understand her motivations.”
 
He
scratched his head, mussing his perfectly styled hair.
 
Amanda blinked at him for a second
before breaking into a big smile at his rambling.
 
Dylan looked both embarrassed and relieved by it.
 
“That was long-winded, wasn’t it?” he
asked sheepishly.
 
“I’m sorry.
 
Nerves.”

“Why are you nervous?” Amanda asked incredulously.
 

He ran both hands through his hair, obliterating its
‘50s vibe.
 
But the new disheveled
look was cute on him because, of course, anything was.

“I don’t know.
 
Are there not implications to sharing a public restroom with a pretty
girl?”

Amanda blushed.
 
There obviously were or Casey wouldn’t have put them there, but it was
his compliment that made her stutter.

“I, um, think… yeah, there are.
 
Yes.”

He nodded.
 
“Do you know if Casey knew that when she put me here with you?”

“She did.”

Dylan bit both lips back, looking suddenly embarrassed.
 
“Alright then.
 
I guess that means she figured it out
and told you.”
 
He grimaced a bit and
gave a laugh of disbelief.
 
“She
must be… exceedingly perceptive then because I could’ve sworn I was being quite
subtle about my feelings.”
 
He
glanced up apologetically.
 
“Since you’re
attached and I’m certainly not the type of person to meddle.
 
Not to mention the fact that I’m acquainted
with your boyfriend.”

Amanda squinted.
 
“
What
?”

He raised his eyebrows.
 
“What?”

A smile curled her lips.
 
Had Dylan just implied what she thought he did?
 
“If Casey figured anything out, which I
don’t think she did,” Amanda said slowly.
 
“She didn’t tell me.”