Free Rumor Has It (Limelight) by Elisabeth Grace Page B

that maybe all the money, fame, and opportunities it provided were actually keeping something of value from me.
    We didn’t speak on the ride home. I didn’t even turn the stereo on. The silence was deafening.
    As her mom’s place came into view I tried to think of something to say. Some logical reason why everything she’d said about my life was wrong, but I couldn’t come up with one.
    I stopped the car in the driveway and she immediately unbelted herself. She couldn’t get away from me fast enough.
    “Thanks for tonight, Mason. I’m sorry about everything but it was really nice meeting you. Good luck with everything.”
    She didn’t wait for me to respond. She bolted from the car into the house, out of my life for good.

 
    CHAPTER TEN
     
    Skye, Katie and I had decided to meet up at Preston’s Pub. It was a down-to-earth place with a comfortable vibe and inexpensive food.
    I was already sitting with Katie at one of the high tables in the bar area when Skye torpedoed into the room. She looked great as always with her long blond hair pulled back into a high ponytail. She wore a boho chic sundress with a cropped denim vest over top and metallic gladiator sandals. I’d admired her sense of style since college, which was why I always solicited her advice on what to wear on dates. That girl knew how to put an outfit together.
    Her blue eyes sparkled with mischief as she plopped her purse down on the empty chair and took a seat at our table. She looked to the bartender across the room. “Rum and Coke please,” and turned back to our table.
    “Hey, Skye, good to see you again,” Katie said.
    “Same here,” she said to Katie and then swiveled her head in my direction. “Now. Tell me you didn’t start spilling your guts before I got here. Because if you did you’re just going to have to back that train up and start from the beginning again.”
    I chuckled but my heart was still heavy from last night’s events.
    “I’ve been trying to pry it out of her but she only wants to tell the story once so we’ve been waiting for you. You were late,” Katie said in her typical blunt fashion.
    “I know. Sorry, guys. Vic and I got in an argument before I left.” She waved it off with her hand like it was no big deal but I saw a shadow pass over her face.
    “Everything okay?” I asked. She’d been seeing Vic for a while now and I wasn’t a fan from the get-go. I’d found him possessive and controlling, and I worried for her. She always insisted he was just misunderstood.
    “Peachy. Now, how was date number two?” she replied.
    I hesitated for a moment.
    “Uh-oh,” they said in unison.
    I sighed and then filled them in on all that had happened. When I was done rambling the other two were quiet for a minute until Katie broke the silence.
    “Holy shit! He’s that Mason Nash? Hip-hop superstar?” Katie just about yelled through the bar.
    “Shhh,” I said, looking around to make sure no one had overheard us. “I take it you know who he is?”
    Skye sat with a stunned look on her face. I don’t think she’d blinked at all for the duration of my story.
    “Of course. Don’t you?” The tone of her voice implied that I was an idiot for not knowing exactly who Mason was when I met him.
    I shrugged. “Not really. Only what he told me. And that he’s famous enough that people came up to the table to get an autograph.”
    “You seriously need to Google him. He’s got awesome tunes. And he’s dated some celebrities you’d definitely recognize.”
    “Wonderful.” Equal parts jealousy and insecurity worked their way through my system as I pictured him with an actress or a model on his arm. Which was the exact reason I hadn’t Googled him yet. I wasn’t a masochist by nature. The last thing I needed was a stream of candid shots of him with a plethora of different women running through my head all day.
    “He’s one fine piece of ass. Why the hell would you tell a guy like that you don’t want to see him?