Pros: Money ($200k...), a head-start on my designer career, free stuff.
I sarcastically put an asterisk around free stuff; I knew Jas would tell me to make that my number one consideration. I loved her to bits, but in someways she was barely human.
Cons: Couldn’t be with Hugh & Cameron.
“What you up to?” I jumped as Hugh placed his hand on my thigh. Quickly, I locked my phone and shoved it in my pocket before turning back to him with an innocent smile.
“Nothing, only a grocery list. Ready to go? I think sleepyhead needs his bed.”
Hugh yawned, stretching his toned arms over his head as he did so. “You’re right there. I’m an old man now; I can’t stay out too late.”
“Hey. Less of the ‘old,’ please.” I swatted him playfully in the chest. “We’re the same age, remember?”
“Ah, well, women age at a different rate to men, you see...”
His attempt to dig himself out of the hole made me laugh, and I grabbed his hand and hauled him up to stop him from saying any more.
The car was only a short walk away, thankfully, as I needed to get back to my list and finally make a decision.
Almost as soon as we climbed inside, Hugh started to fall asleep again. I clicked my fingers in front of his face to wake him.
“Hey, hey. I don’t exactly remember how to get back to your place? Unless you want to go back to your parents?”
“No way, I’ve had enough of my mom for one day, thanks. Just head along this road for a couple of miles; I’ll tell you where to turn.” I started to wonder what the inside if Hugh’s apartment looked like; all white, was my guess, with a few tasteful monochrome photos dotted around the walls.
“Right, I’m going to need some of that crappy music you like if I’m going to stay awake.” He grabbed my phone from the dashboard before I could stop him. “You know, it’s really bad not to have a passcode on your phone. You’d better hope there aren’t nudes on here for some scumbag to ste— hey, what’s this?”
I turned to see Hugh’s face become steely and serious, and I instantly knew I’d left the Notes app up.
“That’s private. Put it down.”
“My name’s on here, and my mom’s.”
“It’s nothing; it’s just—”
“What’s this TV show, Muri?”
I gritted my teeth, furious that he’d read the list when I told him not to. Of course, if I stumbled across a note like that with my name on it there wasn’t a chance in hell I wouldn’t read it too, but being angry was easier than dealing with my guilt.
“It’s none of your business.”
“I repeat, my name is on here, as well as Cameron’s.” He spoke calmly, which only made me more flustered. “Just tell me what’s going on.”
“It’s... I’ve been offered the chance to do a reality show in LA,” I admitted.
“La-di-da,” Hugh said sarcastically.
“And it would be the chance of a lifetime, except the producers want access to every area of my life—”
“—and you wouldn’t want the world to know about us?”
I sighed. “I don’t know. I guess not. Do you blame me?”
He shrugged. “Turn here.”
I did as I was told while fighting off the tears that threatened to make my night vision even worse.
“There’s no way you’d be getting me on a shitty TV show, so your dirty little secret would be safe anyway. But after the day we’ve just spent together, why didn’t you tell me about this?”
“I did think about it, I... there’s a lot on my mind.”
“Clearly. I can see here that you have to weigh up hot sex versus money and free stuff’.”
He spat out those last words with a level of disdain I’d never heard from him before.
“It’s not like that, Hugh. The list isn’t finished. You woke up before I—”
“Oh, I’m so sorry for waking up.”
Goddammit, this man’s sarcasm was going to be the death of me.
“—Before I could finish the list. It’s how I work things through in my head, and you really shouldn’t have snooped anyway.”
“Yeah, well, I’ve paid the price for it, haven’t I? You know how close I came to telling my mom about you today?”
I snorted. “You’re a twenty-three-year-old man, Hugh; I’m not going to be impressed by you telling your mom about a girlfriend.”
“You aren’t my girlfriend,” he replied, not sarcastically or with anger this time, only sadness. “Your a woman who isn’t sure if she’d prefer free stuff or hot sex.”
My tears started to flow for real, and my hand couldn’t wipe them away fast enough. My driving slowed to a crawl.
“When do you go back to LA?”
“I haven’t decided to go back yet.”
“When?”
I sniffed back a sob. “Tomorrow morning.”
“Cameron’s expecting you tomorrow night.”
I didn’t have a response. I could have told them everything when Cameron invited me, but I didn’t, for reasons I couldn’t even remember. We drove in silence except for the occasional direction until Hugh started to play with his police scanner.