Shit. He’d been so busy trying to tamp down his fury he hadn’t seen her come up to him.
He met her concerned eyes. Shit. “Adam, goodbye. Do your job or I’ll find someone else to do it.”
“What’s going on?” she asked as soon as he pressed the icon to end the call.
Truth was always his calling card. “My agent is an asshole.” He quickly relayed Adam’s thoughts and how he’d rejected them.
Distress spread across her face. “I don’t want to put you in a position where you’re at odds with people in your life because of me.”
Donovan shook his head. “Don’t worry. You’re not. Adam cares about money, which is why I hired him, but he can go too far. It’s not the first time. Won’t be the last. But I set him straight.” He touched her arm. He couldn’t help himself. “I got you. This isn’t your fault.”
She nodded, but doubt lingered in her gaze. What had happened to her to make her doubt herself? Solving the puzzle that was Jada had become his number one goal in life.
* * *
“Are you really going to make us do this?” August asked, his disgust clear.
“This” being binge-watching My One and Only.
“Sure am,” Donovan cheerfully replied from his kitchen where he was gathering snacks and beer. “And you came, so you can’t complain.”
He’d ordered August and Nicholas to show up to his place after Sugar Blitz closed for the night, but who cared about the details?
“The hell I can’t,” August muttered. But he didn’t move from his perch on Donovan’s sofa.
“Won’t do you any good,” Nicholas called from where he was sprawled across the love seat. “I already tried.”
Donovan crossed into the living room and deposited the chips, popcorn, and drinks on the coffee table before slapping Nicholas on the back of his head. He two-stepped out of the way before his friend could retaliate. “My man here is correct.”
And he knew they would have his back, no matter what. They would support him in any way he needed. Even if that included watching a reality TV dating show. Also, they were nosy motherfuckers. Well, Nicholas was, anyway.
He definitely needed their support as he tortured himself by watching Jada fall in love with another man in 4K. Still, Donovan was resolute, if a little queasy.
He needed to understand Jada. It was no longer about wanting to understand her. He needed to understand her like he needed air to survive.
The need—the desire—to fully understand her and all she’d been through weighed on him.
Which is why he’d enlisted his boys for this mission. He trusted his best friends’ opinions and knew they would likely pick up on something he wouldn’t. He was logical, went with the facts, which he didn’t consider a problem, but according to the people closest to him, his mindset made him unmindful to the whys and hows people made the messy decisions they did.
All those facts didn’t stop the doubts and the “what the fuck was he doing?” from sounding on a loop in his brain, however.
“This better be good,” Nicholas said. “I canceled a date to be here.”
Now, that was brotherhood. “Thanks, man.”
He joined August on the couch. He’d already pulled the show up on the streaming platform on his TV. All he had to do was press play. He stuffed some chips in his mouth and passed Nicholas a beer instead.
“Stop procrastinating,” August said.
Damn, sometimes it sucked having friends who knew you better than you knew yourself.
“I’m not—”
“You are.” Nicholas pointed to the TV.
“Fine.”
Showtime. He pressed play. The season was only six episodes long. He could get through this, and hey, if he needed to fast-forward through some scenes, then oh well.
The opening credits played with a light, upbeat musical beat that was undoubtedly supposed to put the audience in a good mood. Too bad it had the opposite effect on Donovan. But this was his idea, so he’d see it through the bitter end.
“Who is this douche?” Nicholas asked, in between bites of popcorn, about the host.
The guy oozed smarm with his too-wide grin and veneers and fake “aww, shucks” manner. Donovan made a face. “Vince Baker.”
Nicholas and August burst into laughter when the lead of the show, Doctor John Timmerman, esteemed anesthesiologist, was introduced. “Is there a reason they need to take video of him showering to prove what a good doctor he is?” Nicholas asked.