To Hate Adam Connor

Lucy

As I expected, the cops couldn’t do much about my little altercation with Jake Callum. Truth be told, I went there already knowing that, but, hell, I wasn’t expecting them to suggest that maybe I’d had too much to drink and wasn’t remembering everything that had happened.

You’d know if you gave some sleazeball who thought he was the king of the world permission to put his tongue in your mouth after you hadn’t kissed someone for weeks, wouldn’t you? According to them, I wouldn’t.

As if that wasn’t enough, they said sometimes “parties like that” could get out of hand.

That was when Dan the Man stepped forward and took over. In the end, they promised they’d follow up and would talk to Adam and Jake, but couldn’t make any promises that something would come out of it.

While it wasn’t the best outcome, at least they’d have a police report on Jake Callum and if he ever crossed that line with someone else—though I hoped he wouldn’t—they could come back to the police report and know it wasn’t his first rodeo.

And you know what? Dan the Man wasn’t the worst human being after all. He even laughed at my jokes a few times, and by laugh I mean his lips twitched and he shook his head. In my book, that counted as a laugh.

“What are you thinking?” Olive asked, bringing me out of my thoughts.

“Nothing important.” I swirled my wine glass and watched the red liquid spin around. “I’m not sure if I’m a huge fan of wine.”

She looked at me over her laptop. “That is your second glass; you are a huge fan of it.”

It was a Friday night, and we were working on Olive’s next novel, plotting and taking notes. It was a glamorous night for us. It reminded me of old times, like our second year in college, the first time she had sent me a chapter and had me begging for the next one.

“That’s it though. I had two, but I’m not convinced yet. I mean, it’s classy, but is it me? And sure it’s giving me a buzz, but the taste? Not sure about that either. I don’t think I’m feeling all that great.”

“Then stop drinking.”

“Then what will I do? I think we’re out of beer. Did you write down the next scene? Let me see it.”

“Not yet. Let me read it again and see if it’s any good. If you want beer, why don’t you ask our neighbor?” she added casually. “Maybe he’ll give it to you.”

“Oh, the things your neighbor could give me,” I mumbled to myself, my eyes still following the wine.

Olive sat up straighter but kept her face hidden behind the screen. “What?” As if she could trick me by acting all mellow.

“Catherine called again,” I mentioned casually, ignoring her question.

When I didn’t continue on about Adam, she slumped back in her seat. “What did she want this time?” she mumbled.

“I didn’t answer.” I shrugged, sniffing my glass and then taking another sip. “She was probably calling to ask why I skipped the job interview she so graciously set up for me.”

“You should’ve answered and told her you were my agent now.” She got up, put the laptop on the coffee table, and headed for the kitchen. “I’m getting water, you want?”

“No to water, and I’m your temporary agent,” I corrected her. “I’m still looking for a job, but I’m not gonna take anything else from her.” I reached out for the laptop. “And I’m reading the scene.”

“No,” she shouted, slamming the fridge door closed. “I’m not done yet!”

I drew my hand back and looked at her over my shoulder. “Do you know how long it’s been since I’ve read anything you wrote? I’m having withdrawals here. Have a heart.”

She came back with a water bottle in her hand. “The new one is almost ready. As soon as Jasmine is done reading it, I’ll send it to you.”

Slowly, I uncurled my legs from under me and leaned forward to put my wine glass on the coaster. Clearing my throat, I asked, “Excuse me? Can you repeat that to me again? Jasmine? Who the hell is Jasmine and why the hell is she reading it before me?”

After drinking half of her bottled water, she gave me a smug look. “She is my beta reader—or maybe I should call her my alpha.”

I slid forward in my seat and gave all my attention to her. “She is your what?”

“You know, beta reader, the lovely person who reads the book after it’s done and points out things you should fix, or leaves encouraging notes. I do love my encouraging notes.”

Was she fucking with me?

“Is this a joke?” She gave me a questioning look. “I know what a beta reader is, Olive. I was your one and only beta reader, remember those days? How could you betray me like this?”

“I guess you do know what it is,” she said as if it meant nothing to her.

It was the worst betrayal in my book. How could she let someone else read it before me?

“I’m speechless. I’ve been waiting to read it for two months. How dare you?”

“Do you also know what a best friend is? Sister from another mister?”

I narrowed my eyes at her. “I could ask you the same question right now, my little green Olive.”

“It doesn’t feel all that great, does it?” she asked, giving me a side-glance. “I assume it wouldn’t, because it sucks when you don’t tell me stuff.”

I huffed and leaned back against the couch. So that was what this was about. How had the sneaky little Olive managed to turn the subject back to me again? She picked up the laptop and continued with her little speech.

“First, I hear about the breakup a week later when I can do nothing about it.”

“And what exactly were you planning to do if you knew about it earlier? Cry your eyes out?” I asked, but she ignored me.

“And then some stupid entitled jerk son of a bitch attacks you—”

“He didn’t attack me, Olive. Let’s not blow it out of proportion.”

“And you tell me about it the next day. After you go to the cops. Cops, Lucy! And he did attack you. I don’t care what those cops say, he assaulted you.” She started squeezing the bottle in her hand, so I carefully reached out and took it from her murderous grip.

“Let’s just say he was overly eager, and I did punch him after all, so one could say I attacked him back and it was all good. The only reason I didn’t tell you about it as soon as it happened was because I wanted you to have the best night. You were having fun. You’ve been waiting for so long for that movie; I didn’t want to mess that up.”

She raised a brow and gave me a hard look. “It was all good only because Adam took care of it.”

A party full of people and he had to be the one to save me, hadn’t he? My freaking luck. Not that I wasn’t grateful he happened to be there, but couldn’t it have been someone else?

The killer dick I was waiting to find, maybe?

“Took care of it?” I balked at her. “Whose side are you on anyway? He sent me to prison, for God’s sake, the least he could do was help me kick Callum’s ass. And I can take care of myself, thank you very much.”

“And no one should help you, right?”

“I didn’t say that.”

“You didn’t need to.”

I tried to stand up, but Olive grabbed my hand and roughly pulled me back down. “Jesus!” I exclaimed, half mortified and half amused. “I was just going to the kitchen to get rid of the bottle. A little feisty tonight, aren’t you?”

She gave me her don’t try me signature look, and I closed my mouth. Maybe she was right…just a little bit. I’d grown up expecting nothing from Catherine, not love, not kindness, not respect, just a whole lot of nothing. Even my own mother had decided to move on with her life without me, so I’d learned to take care of myself and not expect anything from others.

“I asked you if I could come and live with you guys for a while, didn’t I? That should count as asking for help.”

Olive was my exception; I sometimes didn’t mind asking for her help.

“It does count.” She nodded and snatched the bottle from my hand to put it on the coffee table. “But it’s not enough. And because it’s not, you’re gonna answer my questions right now. After that I’ll send you the book.”

That got my attention. “So you lied? You didn’t send it to someone else before me?” Was it so lame that I was hopeful?

“No, I did send it to Jasmine, this morning, and I was planning on sending it to you tonight, after we plotted the next one.”

I rolled my eyes. “Fine. As long as this Jasmine chick knows I’m the alpha beta reader or whatever the heck it is called, I’m okay with her reading it too.”

“Thank you for the permission,” she said sarcastically.

I gave her a big smile. “You’re welcome, my green Olive.” She shook her head, but I saw the small twitch of her lips. “Should we hug? I could use the softness of your boobies,” I asked, already leaning toward her.

“No, you don’t deserve a hug, not yet.”

“Ouch.”

“Let’s start with Jameson.”

I groaned and leaned back again. “What about that jackass?”

“Did you text him back? No, wait. I don’t trust you anymore. Give me your phone, I’m gonna check.”

“You should start writing again, stat,” I said, but still rose up to go get my phone for her. “You’re starting to act all weird.”

“No, I’m acting like a good friend.” She took the phone from my hands and thoroughly checked my recent messages and calls.

“Happy now?” I asked, holding my hand open.

She slapped the phone into my palm and nodded. “I am. Don’t text him. He can go to hell.”

“My sentiments exactly. Okay, next question.”

She twisted her body and faced me. “Tell me about Adam Connor. Are you sleeping with him?”

A laugh escaped my lips. “What? I don’t even like the guy. What are you talking about?”

“You stayed at his place after the incident with Jake.”

“And?” I waited to hear the rest of it, but she didn’t say anything more, just waited for my answer. “In case you missed it the first time, or the hundredth time I said it, I’ll repeat: I don’t even like the guy. He was there, so I asked him for a ride, or he offered one, I don’t even remember. And then since you guys were still at the party and I didn’t have a key, he invited me to stay at his place. It’s not like I haven’t stayed there before.”

“But this time around Aiden wasn’t there, was he?”

“Yeah, so, what does that have to do with anything?”

“Fine.” She sighed. “Be difficult about this.”

“I’m not being difficult. I’m telling you, he put some ice on my hand, and I went to bed.”

“Aha! He iced your hand? Now we’re getting somewhere.” She hugged a pillow to her chest and waited to hear more details. Unfortunately, I had none.

I started to tell her exactly that, but her phone started ringing and interrupted us. She held up her finger and ordered me to stay put as she talked to Jason.

Of course I got up and walked toward the sliding doors. It was a little over eighty outside and the weather was beautiful.

“I haven’t started yet. Did you want something specific? Wait a second, I’ll ask her,” Olive said into her phone and turned to me.

“Jason is going to have Alvin grab some Chinese. What do you want?”

I loved Chinese, but at that moment, I couldn’t even stomach the thought of it. Apparently I wasn’t a wine girl or I was still feeling off. She frowned at me then kept talking to Jason. When she was off the phone, she was on me again.

“Where were we?”

“Nowhere, because there is nothing more to tell.”

“You like him.”

“I don’t like him.”

“You like him like him.”

“Does it change the fact that I don’t like him when you say it twice?”

“You like him more than you want to sleep with him.”

“Please,” I huffed, offended. “I’d happily fuck his brains out, but I don’t even like him that much. Every time he talks I want to smack him upside his head.” Actually, I would’ve fucked him any hour of any day. If you heard that sweet, thick, deep voice of his, you’d jump in his bed too, or on any flat surface really; I could go at it with him anywhere.

Forget about the voice; if he could just shut up and stand there, you’d still jump in his bed, begging him to take you. Besides, it wasn’t my fault that I had woman parts; there was nothing I could do about that. His penis would fit perfectly into my vagina, and I had come so close to touching it. Come to think of it, I should have, even if it was just to see what his reaction would be. Too bad I’d chickened out because I was afraid of what he’d do next.

Long story short, Adam Connor was still a bastard in my book, but he was a hot DILF. But sleep with him? Nah, he was too tempting, especially when he was around Aiden. When I watched him interact with his son, the way he smiled at him or simply carried him to bed to tuck him in…boy, did it made me purr and melt faster than snow. Worst of it all, it made my battered heart skip a beat, which I did not like at all.

Olive closed her eyes and sighed a happy sigh. “I can already picture you two together. You’re kissing. Passionately. It’s a quick one because Aiden is there. But you are happy. Like crazy. And you love Aiden just as much as you love Adam. Adam definitely notices that and loves you all the more for it.”

“Okay, crazy lady,” I said, snapping my fingers to wake her up from her dream. “I’ll leave you with your dreams and slowly back away.” And I did exactly that; I opened the sliding doors and walked out, only to have Olive follow me.

“Come back here, I’m not finished.”

I headed toward the ladder.

“Where are you going? Lucy, you can’t run away from your dreams.”

I faced her, but kept backing away. “My dreams? Those were all yours. I never dreamed about the guy. Dreaming about him fucking me six ways to Sunday? Sure, I admit I did dream about that, but all of it was before I met him.” My back hit the infamous bush, and I turned around so I could climb up the wall. “And for your information, I’m going over to say hi to Aiden.”

Olive leaned against the tree and smiled at me, showing me her full set of teeth. “Keep telling yourself that, little Lucy.”

I straddled the wall and looked down at her. “You’ve officially lost your mind. Go write down a few words so your brain can start to function again.”

“Lucy, close your eyes and imagine yourself sitting next to a waterfall. A waterfall where Adam Connor appears out of nowhere. Naked. Or half-naked. You’re a calm little—”

I flipped her the bird and climbed down the rest of the way.

Shame on her for making fun of my relaxing tactics.

“Should I wait up for you, or are you planning on spending the night in Adam’s bed? Because if you do, you know you’re gonna have to give me details. I want the answers to everything you asked me about Jason. The size. The size is important. Measure the penis so I can picture everything in my mind.”

“You keep calling it a penis and I won’t tell you a thing. Bye, Olive!”

It was a good thing Adam hadn’t thought of moving the ladder away yet. Until he did, I’d feel okay with invading his privacy. It wasn’t like I was going to visit him or anything. I’d just missed the little guy and was hoping to catch him before his bedtime.

When I got close enough to the house, I could hear music. The doors seemed to be closed, but the sound was leaking outside. Rich people and their surround sound…

I stopped moving so I could listen and a few seconds later I recognized the unmistakable sound of Frank Sinatra’s voice.

Huh, so my jerk had taste. Well, not my jerk of course, but you know what I mean.

I stood on the side where I couldn’t be seen and spotted Adam near the bar cart. Had Aiden already gone to bed? I thought about knocking on the window to get his attention before he got his manly panties in a twist and accused me of invading his privacy again, but it was hard to take my eyes away from him. He was so damn handsome, the kind of handsome that made you start panting like a dog when you looked at him for more than a few seconds.

So I silently watched him pour himself a drink and read through the papers he had in his hands. He looked occupied—not in an I’m reading some documents kind of way, but an I have a million things on my mind kind of way.

I wondered what was making him look so miserable.

Truth be told, since he’d asked me to look after Aiden for a few days, I was seeing him in a different light. Sure, I hated him.

A little.

Kind of.

Strongly disliked him.

For the way he treated me that day and because I still wanted to jump his bones after what he did for me. But other than that, my heart melted a little bit every time I saw him—when he wasn’t being a bastard that is, like he’d been the other day.

Who gives people permission to touch their junk? If you asked me, I’d say it was a great idea because him talking into my ear like that…and giving me permission to touch him? Silly, silly boy. He knew nothing about me at all. If I’d touched him, I would’ve ended up fucking his brains out and for reasons even unknown to me, I didn’t want that.

Now, don’t be all like, but, Lucy, how could you hate such a fine specimen of the male form… The biggest reason I had to keep hating him was because of the way I’d felt when he had touched me the other night, when he wanted to put ice on my hand. I’d felt those annoying butterflies in my stomach that Olive had always said she’d felt when she first saw Jason, and it scared the crap out of me. While I’d felt different kinds of butterflies in my lady parts when I was going after Jameson, these had taken flight in my stomach and they were deadly to me, like an allergy that could kill me unexpectedly.

After watching him for a few more minutes, I stepped forward and knocked on the glass. His head came up from the papers in his hand, and he spotted me. He seemed to hesitate before he got up from the couch and came to open the glass doors.

“Hi,” I said when he was standing in front of me without a barrier.

He turned down the volume of Frank Sinatra with the help of a small remote control before he said, “I see you are creeping around in my backyard again.” He had a small smile on his lips, so I didn’t think he minded having me creeping around.

“If you don’t want me creeping around, as you so rudely put it, you should move the ladder away.”

“How can I help you, Lucy?”

“I’m good, thank you so much. And how are you doing tonight?”

He sighed and invited me in with a sweep of his hand.

“How nice of you to invite me in,” I commented as I stepped inside and he closed the door.

“Is there anything I can do for you, or did you just come over to get in your daily amount of—”

I cut him off before he could finish his sentence. “Before you say anything you’ll have to apologize for later, I’ll let you know I came to say hi to Aiden. I missed him this week.”

Adam looked at me for a long moment as if he was trying to figure out if I was lying to him or not. When he was satisfied with whatever he saw in my eyes, he ran a hand through his hair and motioned for me to sit down.

Wondering what was going on, I did as he asked and sat my ass down.

“So?” I asked when he didn’t say anything for several long seconds.

“Adeline didn’t drop him off, so I sent Dan over to see what was wrong.” He checked his watch. “He should be here soon. You’re welcome to wait if you want.”

I drew my legs up and got comfortable in my seat. “You’re not going to kick me out?”

“Aiden asks me about you on every phone call. I assume he’ll be happy to see you here and that way I’ll be saved from all the questions he’d ask if he didn’t see you immediately.”

That made me smile. “He loves me.”

Adam smiled back. “Weird, isn’t it?”

I frowned at him. “You’re weird. I love the little guy too. He is way cooler than his dad could ever be.”

Sporting a small smile, he shook his head and headed for the bar cart. I’d never seen him drink before that night.

“Something on your mind?” I asked, just to make conversation until Aiden got there.

“Too much.”

I grunted and reached for my phone when I felt it vibrate in my pocket.

Jameson: I wish you’d come with me.

You didn’t even ask me, you little shit!

It wasn’t the first time I’d heard from Jameson since I’d gotten his I miss you text at the premiere. He’d been texting random things the entire week. I drew a long breath and uncurled my legs from under me.

“I think I should go,” I mumbled, standing up.

Adam turned around with two drinks in his hands, whiskey from the looks of it.

“What’s wrong with you?” He ignored my words and handed me the alcohol. Even the heavy smell made me nauseous. I scrunched up my nose and shook my head.

“No, thank you. I’m not feeling so great, so…I’ll just see him some other time.” I put my phone back in my pocket and placed the whiskey on a coaster. His eyes were still on me.

“Sit,” he ordered as he sat down on the far corner of the couch. “He’ll be here soon enough.”

I looked outside and weighed my options: sit down and wait for Aiden or go back to Olive so she could question me more about my nonexistent feelings for Adam.

Spending some more time with the enemy it was.

“What’s wrong with you?” he asked for the second time just before he took a sip of his whiskey.

I sat down and had trouble looking away from his clear, alluring eyes.

“Nothing specific, just feeling off.”

“How’s your hand?”

I lifted it up and checked my knuckles. There was still a redness and they were kind of sore. It was a good kind of sore, though; knowing I had hurt the douchebag, I didn’t mind the reminder. And that reminded me…

“I should ask you the same question.” I dropped my hand and motioned to his with my chin. “What went down with you and Jake? Did he really have something going on with your ex?”

He lifted an eyebrow, but otherwise stayed silent.

I’d been curious about it ever since I’d read the story online. Was what they were saying true, or had he punched him because of what had happened the night before? According to Olive, he had gone after Jake for me, but I had my doubts. Olive was a romantic at heart, and she wanted me to fall in love again; of course she’d think like that.

Feeling all hot and flustered under his scrutinizing gaze, I snapped at him. “What’s wrong with you?”

“What do you mean?” He put his drink down.

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

That annoying eyebrow went up again. “Like what?”

“You know what, never mind.” I looked away from him and did my best to ignore him for the next five minutes or so until he got up to get himself another drink.

I was thinking about Jameson when a water bottle appeared in front of my face.

“Thank you,” I said sincerely and took it from his hand.

“You’re welcome. You look subdued, maybe you should see a doctor,” he suggested as he sat down closer to where I was sitting.

“I’m fine.”

“Suit yourself.”

I uncapped the bottle and took a big gulp of cold water. Then I closed my eyes and imagined myself some place else…maybe in the woods, or at a lake house where trees and calm waters surrounded me. I could sit on the deck, close to the water, and read Olive’s new book. I smiled to myself. I could fall in love with as many men as possible and the curse couldn’t even touch me. There was something special about falling in love with fictional characters through words. On that deck, with the birds fluttering around and the wind moving my hair, I’d be happy.

“What are you doing?” Adam asked quietly.

I didn’t open my eyes when I answered, “Dreaming.”

A long moment passed before he spoke again. “Where are you?”

“Lake house. Reading Olive’s new book. There is a soft wind. I like wind; it makes me happy for some reason. Feeling that soft touch on my skin, in my hair. The sun is peeking through the trees, so it’s not cold. The water looks beautiful. Calm and peaceful.”

“Is there an empty chair beside you?”

“You’d annoy me, so no.” I opened my eyes and looked at him. “No hard feelings.”

He smiled and reached for the papers he had put down when I came in. “No hard feelings, Lucy.”

Feeling a little better, I looked around at his home and sighed. It was getting closer to Aiden’s bedtime.

“Do you do that a lot?” Adam asked, his eyes on the papers in his hand.

“Do I do what a lot?”

“Go some place else.”

I shrugged. “You’re welcome to think I’m crazy.”

“I didn’t say that. Actually…” He stopped talking, threw the papers on the coffee table, and rubbed the bridge of his nose.

Curious, I asked, “Actually…? Actually what? Don’t be one of those people, finish your sentence.”

He shut his eyes and leaned his head back. “At the risk of sounding like a Hollywood brat…I used to lie in my bed and imagine I had a simpler life. Instead of being dragged around to parties where drugs and booze were lying around on glass tables, where I had to look after Vicky, my sister, so she didn’t accidently play with white powders thinking it was makeup or flour, so she didn’t reach for one of those wine glasses thinking it was her juice…I used to wish for normal parents. I wished I could have friends over without worrying about how my parents would act depending on their moods. Don’t give me that look,” he warned when he opened his eyes and found me looking at him.

I ran my hands up and down my arms and kept silent.

“I know what you’re thinking,” he continued, misunderstanding my look. “They gave me a good life. A good education. Opportunities I maybe wouldn’t have had if they weren’t my parents. I’m not saying my life was miserable or anything, but back then I wanted to be a normal teenager. With normal parents. Just a normal life, you know, without the paparazzi, without the bullshit of Hollywood.” His eyes hardened and he added, “You might think you know everything about someone because they’re in the public eye, but you can never know what’s going on behind closed doors.”

“I understand,” I said in a barely audible voice.

“Do you?”

I looked away from him. “I have to give you the backstory first. I don’t know who my father is,” I started, surprising myself. Was I actually going to tell him about myself? The words just wanted out, so I guessed I was. “According to Catherine, my grandma, my mom was completely in love with him. They were living together, but when he learned that she was pregnant with me, he packed his stuff and left. Apparently he’d already told her he never wanted to have kids, so he saw it as a betrayal. After I was born, apparently my mom decided she didn’t want to have me either and dumped me on Catherine. And Catherine…well, she took me in, but she is a very difficult woman.”

I glanced at Adam to see if he was even listening to me. When our eyes met, he lowered his head in a small gesture. “Go on.”

I huffed; it would’ve been easier to stop talking if he was just ignoring me. “Catherine…now Catherine never married either, but she was living with the love of her life and then they had my mom, so it was all sunshine and rainbows for a good long while, I guess. But when my mom was two years old, dear old Grandpa started cheating on Catherine and then left her for the other woman, actually getting married to her a month or so later. Catherine returned home, which wasn’t the best thing apparently because her own parents—who were not married, by the way—treated her like shit. Still, she raised my mom as best as she could, but turned very bitter in time. When my mom dumped me on her, they weren’t even talking to each other, so obviously the women in our family are pretty fucked up and there are no men in sight.”

I gave him another glance and found him waiting for me to continue. “So we’re cursed. And Catherine…well, she took care of me when my mom left, but like I said, she is very controlling and difficult. To everyone looking in from the outside, it looks like she is an angel for taking me in, but that’s not how it was. She wanted me to be a version of her. Nothing I did was right. There was only her way and when you didn’t follow her rules or do what she wanted you to do, she knew how to throw everything she ever did for you in your face. I don’t think she is mentally stable, actually, but she did take care of me instead of kicking me to the curb, so I do owe her, I guess.”

There was a moment of silence.

“Cursed?” he repeated my earlier statement. “Is that why you said you don’t do love the other day?”

“I said that?”

He nodded.

Me and my big mouth.

And he remembered?

“Huh…I don’t remember saying that to you, but yes. I don’t want to end up being a bitter woman like them. And it doesn’t look like we have any luck with love as a family, does it? So why force it? I’d rather be single and happy than fall in love with someone, pop out a kid…and then have him cheat on me or leave me when things get rough only to go and marry some other chick.” I shook my head and hugged my knees. “The women in our family don’t get marriage proposals. So, no, thank you. I’m much happier when I watch other people fall in love, makes me happier without all the heartache.”

“You’ve never fallen in love with someone?” he asked, as if that was the most ridiculous thing he’d ever heard.

“I didn’t judge you for wanting a normal life, now, did I?”

He leaned forward and put his elbows on his thighs, dangling those sexy forearms in front of me as his eyes pierced my own. “I wasn’t judging you, Lucy.”

Why did I have to get all flustered when he was looking at me like that? I reached for the water bottle and took another sip to pass time. “Well, it sounded like you did.” I gave a small shrug. “Anyway, with a woman like Catherine, I needed the escape. When I was in bed at night, I used to close my eyes and imagine being somewhere else.” I gave him a quick glance. “I didn’t imagine a different life, or someone coming to my rescue, but I enjoy closing my eyes and going somewhere far away. It calms me. Or sometimes I imagine I’m a waterfall, or the wind, or the sun. Essentially, by dreaming, I created my own sunshine for the days I needed it. It was my escape. I know it makes me sound like a crazy person, but it helps me calm down, so fuck you if you think I’m crazy.”

He let out a loud laugh, and I slowly got up from my seat. See, I had plenty of reasons to hate him. I knew it made me sound like a crazy person, I knew it, but that didn’t mean it didn’t hurt to see him laughing at me. I gently threw the water bottle on his couch and headed for the glass doors. Maybe Olive would let me cuddle up to her for a while. I was feeling a little sick after all. She wouldn’t be so cruel as to turn me down.

Before I could open the doors and step outside, Adam caught me by my wrist again—I swear the guy had a fetish of some sort. I looked back at him over my shoulder and tried to shrug him off, along with the tingles his closeness and touch were sending down my spine. I wasn’t angry or anything, just tired and, well, yeah, maybe a little hurt. “I’m glad to be your amusement for the night, but I think it’s time for me to leave.”

“Don’t,” he said, his thumb gently moving over the sensitive skin on my wrist. My brows drew together, and I looked down at where he was touching me, but his finger had already stopped moving, as if it’d never happened. “I wasn’t laughing at you, Lucy,” he said in a soft tone, and my head jerked up. We were standing a bit too close. He must’ve come to the same conclusion because he let me go and backed off.

I didn’t sway toward him at all. Not me.

He put a hand on the small of my back, and geez he had big hands—all the better to hold me with, I guess—and gave me a gentle push back toward the couch.

I sat on the edge and watched him grab his phone from nearby.

“Let me call Dan and see what the holdup is.” He glanced up at me from his phone and added, “You’ve waited this long, he’ll be sad if he hears he missed you.”

He looked genuine, so I decided to stay. “Fine.” I scooted back into my seat and grabbed a pillow to hug.

Dan didn’t pick up, and I could see the frustration in Adam’s face. Pacing in front of me, he tried another number. When that didn’t work either, he let out a long sigh and rubbed the back of his neck.

“I don’t like this,” he said finally, his hands working on his phone.

“Did you try your ex?”

“She isn’t answering. Neither is Dan. Adeline might be on set, but Aiden was supposed to be at home with his nanny.”

“Maybe they’re on their way?” I suggested, a little worry creeping into my voice.

“They must be,” he mumbled, putting away his phone. “I’ll give them a little more time. Sometimes Aiden takes a lot of time to get ready.”

We sat in tense silence as we listened to the soft murmurings of Frank Sinatra. The longer there was no little human running through the front door, the more anger seemed to emanate from Adam. The more I stayed, the more I felt like I was intruding on another family moment, which was a weird feeling after I’d already intruded on them on multiple occasions.

“So, what are those?” I asked, motioning toward the papers when I couldn’t take the silence any longer.

“New scripts.”

“Come on, I’m sure you can give me more than that.”

He glanced back at the front door once again, then turned around to reach for the papers. “New offer. I have a contract with the studio and I owe them one more movie. They sent over two scripts for me to choose from, but I’m not so sure about either of them.”

“Can I see?” I held out my hand and waited.

“This is one of those things you can’t mention anywhere else, Lucy.”

I rolled my eyes and wiggled my fingers. “Give it to me.”

He handed them over, reluctantly. I had better things to do than go around and spread rumors about the new movie Adam Connor would star in.

“How’s the agent thing going?” he asked as I looked through the first script.

I answered him without lifting my eyes from the pages in my hands. “I’m almost there. I narrowed it down to two publishers, and I’m waiting to hear back from them. I also pursued other deals—audiobook, etc. What’s this one about?”

He scooted until he was sitting very, I repeat, very close to me. I willed my heartbeat to slow down, because what the hell, heart? What’s wrong with you? We’re not supposed to like the guy, remember? No need to do cartwheels just because he is within touching distance.

His arm brushed my shoulder when he took the script from my hands, and I happened to inhale at the very same moment. What a coincidence, right?

I took a deep breath and felt a tingle on my arm where his skin had made contact with mine. First of all, stupid skin and stupid tingle. Second, he smelled like whiskey and something warm, wild, and deliciously masculine. It was the perfect invitation to nuzzle his neck and get lost in his scent and body…which was a very, very bad idea. I closed my eyes to ignore him, but that only intensified his scent and how close he was sitting to me. He smelled good enough to attack right then and there. If it had been someone else, I wouldn’t have even thought twice before I did exactly that, but with Adam, I forced myself to stay still.

You might think maybe scooting away from him could’ve solved the problem, but I was not a pussy; I would never shy away from a guy just because I wanted him. Screw that. If he wanted to play with me, I’d play him right back.

Trying my best to breathe from my mouth without looking like a weirdo, I leaned toward him and let my arm rest against his as he checked the script in his hands. He seemed so relaxed, which angered me even more.

There I was trying my best not to act like he was affecting me, and he didn’t even notice that I was having a mental breakdown from his proximity. Hell, I was seconds away from letting my inner singer out to play and singing him “Pillowtalk” by Zayn.

How fun it would be to piss off the neighbors with Adam Connor, indeed—especially when those neighbors were Olive and Jason.

My mind millions of miles away, naked in a king bed with Adam, I had trouble focusing on his words when he started talking.

“In this one I’m supposed to be a devoted husband to a socialite only to end up killing her and running away as a dedicated detective tries to catch me.”

“Boring,” I managed to say.

“Yea, that got a no from me too.”

“Shouldn’t your agent get something better for you?”

“He should, which is why I’m getting rid of him.”

I lifted an eyebrow and gave him a side-glance. “From what I hear, you’re getting rid of an awful lot of people. Is it true what they’re saying? That you are lashing out at people who work for you because of the divorce?” I made the mistake of looking into his eyes, and he held my gaze with a hard expression on his face.

“Looks like spying on someone isn’t enough for you, you also keep track of them through the tabloids.”

“Please, why would I even keep track of what’s going on in your life? I just happened to read about it when I was looking through Olive and Jason’s premiere photos. One link took me to another and then another…I wasn’t checking up on you, trust me. I lived in your house for a week, remember? There is nothing about you that’s exciting. Hell, even Dan has a more colorful life than you.”

He tossed the script away with unnecessary force and it landed on the floor. I gave him a quizzical look, but he pretty much ignored me, already focused on the next script.

“Is that the winner?”

“How did you come to know about Dan’s colorful life?” The question was harmless enough, but the way he was holding himself so still as if the answered mattered felt strange.

“Because we talked? He doesn’t hate me as much as he did when he first found me in your backyard. Can’t say for sure if he loves me or not, but at least he is engaging in conversation now. I even made him laugh a few times. We’re becoming friends, I think. I’m wearing him down.”

“When did you guys have time to talk this thoroughly?”

“When you sent him to the station with me. What’s wrong with you?”

“Nothing.” He shrugged my question off. “This one is about a brother and sister. They are con artists and work with this small group of people. My character is supposed to fall in love with his mark and then end up killing his sister when she goes after his love.”

“That sounds a bit more interesting,” I conceded.

He grunted and turned a few pages, handing the script to me when he was done. “The dialogue isn’t strong enough. The sister should be a stronger character if she is going after his love interest. She is made out to be this unstable person, which takes away from the character. Someone else has to go over it and change things around.”

I looked at it and couldn’t see anything jump at me. “Change what?”

He leaned closer to me and our legs touched.

Good Lord! He was practically abusing me at that point.

“Let’s do a read-through, you’ll see what I mean.”

“Read-through?”

“Read the lines to me, Lucy.”

“Who am I? Laurel?” I pointed at the name and looked at Adam.

“You’re Laurel, my sister. And I’m Damon.”

“Okay. You start.”

At the top of the script it said, Ext. The Cemetery – Night then said Laurel was walking over to Damon with a suspicious look on her face as he waited for her next to their father’s grave.

Suddenly he got up and offered me his hand. “Let’s stand up so you can get into your role.”

I snorted, but still took his outstretched hand to stand up. “I’m not going to be your costar. I don’t need to get into my role.”

“Come on, humor me.”

“You want me to do this because you think I’m unstable too, is that it? I’ll make the character more believable for you?”

“Don’t be so suspicious, Lucy. Just read the damn lines.”

The scene was just two siblings talking. What could be the harm, right? Who would skip the chance to read lines with freakin’ Adam Connor—especially lines that might very well end up on the silver screen.

“What are you going to read?” I asked, looking around to see if there was another copy.

“I already read through it twice. I’m good with that scene. Just start reading.”

The script in one hand, I smoothed down my shirt, shook out my shoulders, and read the damn lines.

“Why did you ask me to meet you here, Damon?”

Adam reached out and lifted my chin with his fingertips, short-circuiting my brain.

In the background Frank Sinatra was singing “Fly Me To The Moon”.

“You’re supposed to look at me when you’re speaking. And put a little more emotion into it. The scene is set; read through the lines to get a sense of what the script gives you.”

I willed my heart and a few lady parts to calm down then looked straight into his bottomless green eyes. “I’m not an actress…be happy with the amount of emotion you’re getting.”

Greedy bastard.

I looked down at the script, memorized the next few lines, and this time said them without looking down.

“Why did you ask me to meet you here, Damon?”

“I thought it would be fitting,” Adam continued on with his acting.

“They thought siblings meeting at the cemetery would be fitting?” I asked, giving the papers in my hand a skeptical look. “And what the hell does this mean?” I pointed at the writing between the lines.

“I thought it would be fitting,” he repeated, looking at me pointedly.

Jesus, what the hell is your problem, dude?

I rolled my eyes and continued. “We haven’t been here for what? Fifteen years? Why now?”

“We sat by his tombstone and made a promise to each other, do you remember?”

“This is where our life started; of course I remember, Damon.”

He nodded solemnly and finally looked away from my eyes. “And now we’re at the end of another road.”

“What are you talking about, Damon?” I glanced at the script then back up at him.

He released a deep breath, ran his hand through his hair, and took a step forward, getting a bit too close for my comfort again. “I can’t do this anymore, Laurel. I can’t be a ghost in the night, I can’t pretend like I’m someone else. I want more for us.”

I hardened my voice as much as I could and read the next lines. “This is all about her, isn’t it, Damon? This is all about Jessie. She is nothing more than a mark, or did you forget that already?”

Adam reached out and took the script from my hands for a quick glance then handed it back to me. I parted my lips to make a snarky comment about how much he sucked as an actor, but he pressed his finger to my lips.

Again with the touching.

Frank was still killing it in the background.

I frowned, but kept quiet.

“You can’t tell me you’re not tired of all the lies, Laurel. When is it gonna be enough?”

Breaking out of character, I sighed. “Are they talking to each other like this for the entire scene? Face to face?” Adam tilted his head so I got the message and went on with my reading.

“Not yet, Damon. Not when we’re so close to getting everything we wanted from the very beginning.”

He sighed and looked away again. “She’s pregnant, Laurel. Jessie is pregnant.”

And the plot thickens.

I read the next lines and snorted. “How can you be sure it’s yours? You knew she was dating that Jake guy up until a few months ago.”

When Adam looked at me, his features were tight. “It’s mine.”

I quirked an eyebrow. “Take care of it. Make her get rid of it. You can’t let this ruin our plan. We waited a long time for this.”

“Laurel is quite the bitch, apparently,” I mumbled under my breath as I turned another page on the script. Suddenly Adam’s hands were on my cheeks, and he was pressing a kiss to my forehead.

“What the hell?” I mumbled, looking up at him as I tried to scramble away.

Danger! Danger!

Abort!

He gestured to the script. “Read.”

And of course, right there at the top, it said, Damon kisses her on the forehead

Putting my game face back on, I tried to keep my cool.

He kissed me again, his lips surprisingly soft on my forehead, and I tried to stay as still as possible with his face so close to mine.

Then he forced me to meet his eyes. Yes, he forced me…I was pretty sure there was some sort of magic involved because I was barely able to breathe with his hands cradling my face and his eyes pulling my soul closer to him.

Asshole.

I swallowed, then cleared my throat for good measure.

“You’re my sister, Laurel. I love you,” he said with a soft smile on his lips. “I love you, but I’m done. Don’t make me choose. I can’t do this anymore, not when I have so much to lose.”

I glanced down at the script as my brain was having difficulty functioning properly. “What about me, Damon? What do you expect me to do? Go on with my life? Act like her family never ruined ours?”

Adam’s thumb caressed my cheekbone and my entire body started to burn up. Was that in the fucking script? Then his head was coming toward me, and I was bracing myself for a kiss on the nose or something equally innocent like that.

Weird sibling relationship, but whatever, right?

Our eyes locked and, never breaking eye contact, his lips softly touched mine. I froze.

Me. Lucy Meyer, the girl who would have loved nothing more than to kiss Adam Connor just a month before froze with that same Adam Connor’s lips on her lips. My traitorous body took a step toward him to keep the connection.

Definitely weird siblings.

For a few dangerously long seconds, he let me feel his lips on mine as they moved ever so slowly. Then there was a gentle nip on my lower lip and before I knew what was happening, he was kissing me for real, coaxing me to open my mouth.

Gently.

But I felt his tongue. I swear to you, I did.

I inhaled sharply and before I could react in any way, he was pulling back.

Let’s get this straight. I did not follow his lips. Neither did I sway toward him like a love-struck teenager. Nah, I’m not that girl. It was just a trick of the eye.

As soon as he let me go, I ducked my head and started turning pages like a madwoman. When I couldn’t find what I was looking for, I simply raised my hand and slapped him. Hard.

For a long moment, neither one of us moved. Frank was ending another song like a boss, and other than my heavy breathing, he was the only thing we could hear.

Finally, Adam asked, “What was that for?”

“What do you think?” I managed to croak out. Even though I’d been standing in the same exact spot for the last few minutes, I felt like I’d run a marathon—and that was from a small kiss where I didn’t even get to taste him properly. I cleared my throat. “You just kissed your sister.” I pointed a finger at him. “And don’t try to tell me that was a peck either. How do you think she’ll react?”

The record player started playing Frank Sinatra’s “It Was A Very Good Year”, my favorite, and Adam gripped my chin with his fingers and tilted my face up. It wasn’t a gentle chin grip either. His big, warm hand practically engulfed the lower half of my face.

It was definitely a panty-melting moment. Who doesn’t love a man—especially a man who looked like Adam Connor—taking control of your body—in a sexy way, of course.

“I didn’t kiss my sister, Lucy,” he murmured, leaned in, and then kissed me. Again. Like full-on kissed me. His fingers holding my face in place, he tilted his head and sneaked his tongue inside my mouth.

That kind of kissing.

So that’s what he tasted like. Warmth. Silk. Addiction. Sex. Danger. Insanity.

The script in my hand fluttered to the floor.

My brain was a complete mess, giving me all kinds of danger warnings.

He tilted my head to the right and practically ruined me with the way he was kissing me.

It was a kiss wrapped up in another kiss.

Does that make sense? No? It didn’t make sense to me at the time either.

Yes, Lucy! Yes!

No, Lucy! No!

It was like I’d had multiple personalities living inside my head all this time and they’d been waiting to get out of their hidey hole just for this special occasion.

But then again, Adam Connor was kissing me…what the hell was a girl supposed to do when faced with such a problem? Hate or not, you’d go for it too. You’d give it your all and you’d make sure you gave it to him good.

My hands empty, I grabbed his shirt and pulled him closer, returning his kiss with fervor. I could’ve written a poem about how good it felt to have him tower over me, and I wasn’t even the writer.

His grip on my chin tightened to the point that it came dangerously close to hurting me, but I was loving it. I hated him, but I was loving the way he was controlling the kiss. Controlling me. How could his touch feel so different than that asshole Jake Callum’s?

I was loving the way his breathing was getting out of control—just like mine. I was loving that he had sneaked his left hand around my waist and was pulling me toward his body.

Our tongues were in a battle, and I didn’t care who came out on top at the end as long as he kept his lips against mine.

I wanted him to lose his shirt so I could feel his skin under my touch, but that would have required breaking apart from his lips, and I wasn’t too fired up to do that. The earth beneath my feet could’ve cracked, and I still wouldn’t have let go of him. He turned his head the other way and deepened the kiss, forcing me to arch into him.

I was starting to think it was okay to not be kissed for more than a month if the kiss you’d get at the end of that drought was like this one. I was okay with anything that man would do to me.

And holy hell, he was devouring me as if he was quenching his thirst. I was seconds away from climbing him and trying my best to fuck him standing up. It would require a lot of maneuvering, but I could give it my best shot.

Unable to hold it back any longer, I moaned, and he slowed us down, giving my lips a few nips as I tried my best not to hyperventilate in front of him. His hand let go of my face and gently pushed my short hair behind my ear.

Just when I thought the torture of my senses was over, he leaned in and kissed my cheek, then a little higher, heading toward my ear. My head, acting on its own, tilted to the side to give him more space to work with, and he chose that moment to run his tongue along the shell of my ear, making me groan even louder.

All I could do was hold on to him. I was that gone. Can you imagine? My vagina was very happy, though.

“Lucy,” he whispered, and all the little hairs on my body stood up. Why did my name have to sound so damn good coming from his lips?

His nose in my neck, he was breathing me in, and my body was practically melting away in his hands. I felt like I was coming to life. Or floating out of my body. Or all of the above.

“Call me crazy, my little stalker, but I think I like you,” he murmured against my skin, his hot breath warming me from top to toe as he nipped at my skin.

“And I think I don’t like you at all,” I whispered back when I could think long enough to form words again.

“Hmm,” he hummed next to my ear, causing my eyes to flutter closed. What was he playing at? “Then you won’t kiss me back if I try to kiss you again, I assume?”

It was a stupid declaration. All kinds of kisses were welcome as long as they involved those lips touching parts of my body, and the asshole knew that, of course.

I tried to pull away, thinking he was itching for another slap, but his big hands rounded my waist and before I knew what he was planning to do—I’m not ashamed to say I was hoping for another one of those hard kisses—he started walking backward and taking me with him.

He fell onto the couch, and I magically climbed onto his lap. Again, I didn’t want to, of course, so I was blaming his big, strong hands. If he hadn’t been touching my waist, I would’ve totally walked out on him. However, since his hands were still on me, urging me closer, instead of walking away, I started to lean into him to have another taste of those lips.

Go big or go home, right?

With one of his hands still on my waist, he slid the other one around to my back and into my shirt.

I gripped the back of the couch with one hand and put the other one on his chest. It made me giddy to feel his frantic heartbeat under my touch. I had no right to feel giddy about his heartbeat. I should’ve gotten off his lap and run away.

What did I do? I stayed for more.

He rested his hand in between my shoulder blades. Skin on skin. Hot skin on burning skin. Making sure I was standing on my knees the entire time, I pressed my boobs against his broad chest and dove in for another brain-scrambling kiss.

He let out a long, satisfied groan that scrambled my brain even more so and ruined my panties. Then he moved his hand higher up so he could grip my neck, hold me to his lips. Controlling me. It was sexy as hell, and somehow sweet. Protective. It could’ve been even more sexy if he were about to feed his cock into me.

The visual made me release an even louder moan than before.

The lady beast in me was off its leash, and it was looking to devour the man who was between my legs.

He drew me back from his lips and gave my neck a squeeze to get my attention. My eyelids were dead weight, but I managed to open them enough to see his expressive eyes looking straight into my soul.

“You’re not as good as I thought you’d be.” The words just spilled from my mouth, taking me by surprise.

His lips parted, his eyes unreadable. Before he could get a word out, the front door opened and someone slammed it shut.

Aiden.

It was enough of a jolt to move me into action. I scrambled to my feet and wiped my mouth with the back of my hand. My shirt fell down, covering my back again, and I silently cursed Adam for making me feel naked without his hand on me.

He was still sitting on that damn couch and looking at me like he was seeing me for the first time.

“Adam, we have a problem. You’re not going to like this,” a voice announced, and then Dan the Giant Man stepped in from the hallway.

“I’ll just go to my room,” I mumbled before walking away quickly.

Dan was frowning down at me as I passed him, but thankfully didn’t utter a word. Halfway to the room, I realized I wasn’t staying there anymore. I could hear Dan and Adam talking in hushed voices. Face palming myself, I groaned and walked back out into the living room.

“Funny story,” I started, walking around them then just continuing out to the backyard without finishing my sentence.

I was over that wall and in front of Olive’s sliding doors in mere seconds. The doors were locked.

“What the hell?” I murmured and started banging. The lights were still on inside, so I knew they were up.

“Olive!” I shouted, getting closer to the glass to look inside.

Suddenly the thin beige curtains moved, and Olive jumped out of nowhere.

“Holy fuck,” I screamed, scrambling back. “Have you lost your mind? You scared the shit out of me.”

“I’m not letting you in,” she said, standing on the other side of the glass doors. I caught the satisfied quirk of her lips.

“What? Why the hell not?”

She crossed her arms over her chest and lifted an eyebrow. “Spill.”

“Spill what?”

Her eyes narrowed on me, and she leaned in closer to the glass, studying my face, I assumed. Then her eyes widened, and she gasped. “You kissed him! Your lips are all puffed up. You kissed him and you weren’t going to tell me!”

“Excuse me? I’m standing right here trying to get in so I can tell you about it!”

“You’re lying.”

“I’m not, Olive.”

“Then tell me what you did.”

“I didn’t do anything.”

She gave me a disbelieving look.

“Are you really going to talk to me through the glass?”

“I’m waiting.”

“Fine. Jesus. I never forced you to tell me something like this.”

She let out a loud laugh. “Are you sure? Think more thoroughly. You did way worse to me. I still remember you texting Jason on my behalf, saying I was single. One hundred percent.”

“You should thank me. You ended up marrying the guy, didn’t you?”

“Don’t change the subject, Lucy. Tell me what happened over there or I’m not letting you in, and I’m definitely not sending you a copy of my book. You should hear what Jasmine is saying about it. She thinks it’s fantastic.”

“I think you’ve been hanging out with me for far too long; you’re starting to act like me.”

“Spill. It.”

I held my hands up. “All right. All right. Calm your tits, woman. I thought Aiden would be there, but he wasn’t home yet, so Adam offered to let me wait for him to get there.”

“You’re doing good, keep going.”

Despite the situation, I laughed and got closer to the glass.

“Fine. He kissed me,” I whispered, just loud enough so she could hear me. “Then I slapped him because he was kissing his sister.”

Olive’s eyes widened.

“Then he kissed the shit out of me again. And I kissed him back. Then just when I was about to lower myself on his lap and feel the size of his dick before I could die from curiosity, Dan the Man came in.”

“You suck, Lucy. I have no idea what the hell any of this means. He kissed you and his sister, and you slapped him?”

I nodded, feeling proud of myself. “Well, close enough. He kissed me after I told him about Catherine and my curse.”

She moved closer, pressing her forehead against the glass, shock all over her face. “You told him about the curse?”

Another quick nod. “After the slap, he kissed me again, and, meh…” I paused for a beat and then shrugged. “It was better, I guess. At least he wasn’t gentle. The slap must’ve helped.”

“I hate you,” she said.

“And that’s exactly what I told him, too. He said he thinks he likes me, so I told him I hate him.”

A big smile stretched across Olive’s lips. “Adam Connor loooves you.”

I gave her a bored stare. “I didn’t say that, now, did I?”

“And you’re totally falling in love with him.”

I snickered and shook my head. “If you say so, crazy. Now open the door, I told you everything.”

She turned her back to me and leaned against the glass door, giving me a coy look over her shoulder. “I’m going to write a book about your love with Adam. It’s going to be epic.”

“I’m not falling in love with him, for God’s sake.”

“You will. And I’m gonna love every second of it.”

“I’m cursed, remember, Olive? Quit playing and open the door, it’s getting cold out here.”

“Please, we are in LA, it’s September, how cold could it get? And I’m sure Adam already warmed you up. Maybe I should text him. Where is your phone?”

“Olive! I swear to God…” I banged on the glass. “Open the damn door! You’re becoming a mini me, and I’m not liking it. There can only be one of us. You should be the calm, sensible one, not the one who leaves her friend out in the cold for coyotes to eat just so she can learn what’s going on! That’s what I’d do!”             

“I learned from the best.”

I was stuck between feeling like a proud mama and an annoyed one.

Her eyes were sparkling with amusement. “I’m doing research for my next book. Since I’ll be writing about you, I better get into character.” Then her face sobered, and she sighed. “Why do you do this to yourself? Go have fun with him.” She tilted her head, gesturing to Adam’s house. “You’re not cursed, Lucy. If he kissed you, it means he is interested even after everything you did.

“Excuse me? Um, weren’t you with me on that wall that first day? If I’m a stalker, so are you.”

“I didn’t get caught, now, did I?”

“Nice. What a great excuse. Now, open the door.”

“Tell me why?”

“Why what?”

“Why won’t you go back there and give it a try. See where it goes.”

Since she wasn’t opening the damn doors, I turned my back to her and sat down in front of the door.

“Lucy?” she prompted.

I looked up at the sky. “Because if I fall in love with him I won’t survive that fall.”

Adeline Young Lost Her Son at the Airport

These exclusive photos of Aiden Connor (5) crying at the airport while surrounded by paparazzi went viral in no time. Adeline Young arrived at LAX around six PM and as soon as she got out of her car with her team, she rushed into the airport, as you can clearly see for yourselves in the pictures.

So far, this sounds like just another celebrity spotting, right? Wrong. Before we go on with the story, we want you to know that as a team we had a discussion about these photos, about whether or not we should share them with you, and in the end, even though we think they are heartbreaking, we thought since every other news outlet was running with the story and you’d be able to see it everywhere online, it wouldn’t change a thing if we just skipped posting them. So after that disclaimer, we should also tell you that we won’t keep these photos up for long because what you see in these photos is never okay. Shoving a gigantic camera in a kid’s face while you’re screaming to get his attention and scaring him to death is never okay. We don’t care whose kid he/she is.

All of that being said, are the paparazzi who took the photos the only party to blame here? That’s a big no.

When Adeline Young arrived at LAX so she could board her flight to New York, she had her publicist Neil Germont, the right hand to Michel Lewis, and two of her assistants with her. As the group rushed into the airport to catch their flight, you can see another assistant getting out of the car and rushing behind them. That’s where things go wrong. The next shot is of Aiden Connor climbing out of the SUV on his own, clearly searching for his mother. The panic on his face speaks volumes, if you ask us.

You would think someone would come out and get him, right? That’s what we were expecting, because how is it possible to forget a kid in the car with so many assistants around?

The next snap of Aiden is the one that went viral last night. You can see him crying as the paparazzi surround him, and we’re not talking about two or three people taking pictures of you from afar here. If you look at the background of the photo, you can get an idea of the number of people surrounding him and pushing their big cameras in his face. Now if it were any of us in the same situation, even we would start panicking, but for a five-year-old, we can’t even imagine what a scary experience that must’ve been—having a large group of people you’ve never seen in your life yelling your name right in your face while you’re searching for your mother.

We’re even more sad to say that none of the photographers helped Aiden get to his mom. According to our source, Adeline’s assistant came back to get him when they realized he was not with them, and the whole ordeal only lasted for about a minute or two, but for a kid that age, it must have felt like an eternity. What rubs us—and many others—the wrong way is that it wasn’t even his mother, Adeline, who came to little Aiden’s rescue. It was an assistant.

We all know that ever since her divorce, Adeline Young has been a very busy woman as she is trying her best to get back in the game and score a movie deal while all eyes are on her, but busy or not, we are certain she will receive a fair amount of backlash for this incident.

We are still trying to reach Adam Connor’s new PR team for a comment. It’s not likely we’ll get any comment at this point, but we can’t wait to see what his next move will be.