Free The #5Star Affair (Love Hashtagged Book 1) by Allyson Lindt Page B

over. Nick called me on it, asked me to get over whatever my problem was. I couldn’t, so I walked out. Refused to answer his texts after I left. Made sure he didn’t know where I’d gone.”
    She exhaled, a strange kind of calm sinking over her. Now she’d told Ethan how irrational she was, he’d stop trying so hard to win her over.
    “Christ, Jace. I’m so sorry.”
    Her brain stalled on the words. “I… What?” She realized his hands were clenched so tightly, his knuckles had paled.
    “I can’t even…” He spoke through clenched teeth. “Tell me where this guy lives. I’ll talk to him.”
    No. That was the last thing she needed. If Kent didn’t already know where she was, after yesterday, there was no reason to draw attention to her. She reached across the table and covered his fist. The tremor in his hand vibrated through hers. “Don’t,” she said.
    “What?”
    “I’m not telling you this to sic you on Kent. I figured you deserve to know why I freaked out yesterday, but it’s not because I want you to do something.”
    He stared at her in disbelief. “He threatened you.”
    She turned her attention back to the tabletop. “He probably didn’t mean it.” Her voice wavered. “But better safe than sorry, right?”
    “Yes.” Ethan spat out the word more forcefully than he intended. “That’s why you can’t just let it slide.”
    “I don’t—” She snapped her jaw shut mid-shout. She didn’t know how better to get her point across. “I watch my back. That has to be enough.”
    “It’s not.” His phone chimed, and then a second and third time, and he growled. “I should have shut that off.” 
    “Answer it.”  She didn’t want to end the conversation this way, but she was struggling with her composure. “You’re not changing my mind on this. The conversation is over.”
     
    *
     
    Ethan didn’t want to drop the subject, but he also could see Jaycie was seconds away from shutting him out. He pulled up the new text messages, while his brain traipsed through ways to convince her to let him do something. Instead of helping him focus, the message from Rich sent his concern into overdrive.
    Your roommate tell you she was the enemy?
    Ethan’s gut sank. The next text wasn’t any better.
    She’s going down. Don’t fall with her.
    What the fuck did that mean?
    Jaycie’s, “Oh, God,” drilled into his thoughts.
    He looked up, to find her staring at her own phone, face even paler than a few minutes earlier, mouth pinched. Another text came in from Rich, this one just a link. Gaze alternating between Jaycie and the message, Ethan clicked through.
    The headline fueled the rage that had been simmering inside since she’d told him about Kent. Game Reviewer J-Dub—Trading Sex for Her Opinion? And Rich was the author.
    A quick scan showed the article painted a picture of a game developer who’d just been trying to get by. Working his ass off to do his job. And he’d been approached by a friend’s girl. According to Rich’s article, J-Dub had told him she could give him the best write-up his game had ever seen, if he was willing to help her fulfill a few fantasies. When he turned her down, she told him no one would take his games seriously again. Rich hadn’t believed her, but then he saw her review of his most recent game, especially compared to Enemies of Fortuna –from the same company, but by a developer she was much friendlier with…
    With each new word, Ethan’s rage grew another notch. He’d known Rich was an ass sometimes, but this bullshit was so far over the line, it was like the line didn’t even exist.
    “I’ll be in the car. Or I’ll call a cab, if you’re not ready to leave yet,” she said.
    He wasn’t sure if that was defeat or disappointment mingling with the raw fear in her voice, but he wanted to make all three vanish. Problem was, there was nothing nearby to punch, and he was seeing too much red to think of another solution. “Wait.”
    “No.” She