“Baby. She did more than make a move. Hold on.” Sam went back to his text chat with Walls and scrolled up until he’d found the screenshot he’d sent him the same day he and Amanda decided to give things another try. He forwarded it to her. “Look at the name in the text. You were with me when she sent that text. She was pretending to be you.”
“Oh my fucking God. She knows I hate the name Mandy too.”
“Do I get to kill her now?” he heard Helene say.
Sam went on with a humorless chuckle. “I just ignored it ’cause I thought she was just some random person trying to get at me.”
“This is all my fault,” Amanda replied. “I should have told you I was her assistant. If I had been honest with you from the beginning this never would have happened.”
“I’m not sure I believe that. Doesn’t sound like subtle or chill are her thing.”
“When you put it like that,” Amanda said before she let out a defeated sigh. A different kind of pain bloomed in Sam’s chest. This whole situation was beyond fucked up, but in that moment all he wanted was to be back in Los Angeles, holding Amanda in his arms. She had Helene and Ignacio, but he wanted to be there for her, with her as they sorted this out.
“I’m coming back.” He looked over at his brother, who nodded in agreement.
“No, Sam. Don’t. This is awful, but it’s not life-or-death. You do not need to rush back across the globe for this. Stay and enjoy your time with Jesse.”
“Nah, he’s with me on this.”
“He’s awake too?”
“The Pleasant brothers move as a unit. A G Unit, if you will.”
Sam smiled as Amanda finally laughed a bit. “That was a terrible joke, but okay. Tell him I’m sorry. Tell your whole family. I didn’t want this. For you, for me—”
“Baby, I know. No one is blaming you. I’m blaming fucking Dru. Just stay offline and try and lay low for a bit. Maybe don’t go out shopping with Helene.”
“I won’t,” Amanda laughed again. “I promise.”
Sam assured her he’d keep her updated on his travel plans and then they reluctantly ended the call. Sam tossed his phone on the bed beside his brother and ran his hands over his du-rag. What a fucking mess.
“I’m sorry, man,” he said to Jesse.
“It’s okay. I got the break I needed. And you’re not gonna enjoy yourself, sitting here stressing about her. We’re not getting a flight anywhere until the morning, though.”
“Yeah, I know.” He wanted to get back, but it wasn’t even four a.m. yet and they were looking at no less than twenty-five straight hours of travel before they were back in California. He wasn’t going anywhere in a hurry.
Jesse stood and clapped him on the shoulder with his massive palm. “Tell Walls silence is the plan for now and let John know what’s up just so he doesn’t panic.”
“Okay,” Sam said, trying to organize his thoughts, beyond the image of Amanda’s smile he often brought to mind.
“You’re really into her?” Jesse asked.
“Yeah, I am. It’s still new but—” Sam swallowed not shocked by what he was feeling now that he knew Amanda was okay. “I’m falling in love with her.”
“I could hear it in your voice.”
Sam watched his brother as he went back to his room, feeling like there was something he should say. “You’ll get there one day,” he called after him.
“I doubt it, but thanks for keeping hope alive,” Jesse said, before the door separating their rooms snicked closed behind him.
Sam got back in bed and shot John a quick email, letting him know that he and Amanda were in fact a thing, but no comment was the stance for now. Not a minute later his phone vibrated with his agent’s response.
Sounds good. Hope to meet her sometime. Looks like a sweet girl. We’ll talk when you’re back.
With that he felt like he should have some peace of mind, but he stared up at the ceiling, his mind scrolling through that TMZ article over and over again. He’d never been an object of gossip before. Not like this. Now he knew that he hated it and he hated it even more for Amanda.
He’d wanted to be an actor since he was a kid. He knew the shitty parts of fame that came along with it and he knew the Oscar win and the press surrounding it would put him out there in ways no one in his family but his grandmother had experienced. He was still processing the exposure and what it meant for himself and his career, what parts to skip over and ignore and what moments to embrace and put toward his personal growth.
He’d been working toward this and been trained for this for years and for him it was still a mindfuck. Amanda wanted none of it, but she wanted him and if he was going to be the right man for her, he had to do everything in his power to protect her.
* * *
Amanda had no idea how long thirty-six hours was until she spent twenty-four of those hours being part of the entertainment news cycle. She’d spent most of the day with Helene while Ignacio went out to a last-minute meeting at the studio, but when he came back she figured she’d imposed on the newlyweds’ hospitality enough. Helene made her promise she’d call or come back over if she changed her mind. She almost made her promise to take her up on her offer for any and all assistance, both personally and professionally.
She’d spent most of the night ignoring texts and then flat-out blocking numbers. When Dru made a point to send her screenshots of several of Twitter’s cruelest tweets regarding her physical appearance and clear gold-digging status, she decided it was time to block Dru’s number. She’d ordered takeout she knew she shouldn’t
