On the Record

Chapter 10

BIN 54

The rest of the day passed in a blur of Brady Maxwell. It was like the seven months that she had gone without him had just been a haze and those precious moments with him were her clarity. She remembered all too clearly what it felt like to walk through the world feeling as if she had walked out of Technicolor into black and white. That was life with and without Brady.

By the time she was supposed to meet with Sava

“Where are you going?” Hayden asked curiously.

Liz shrugged. “I don’t know. She just asked if I wanted to go.”

“Strange.”

“Is it?” Liz asked, wrapping her arms around her middle. She couldn’t seem to get herself straight.

“I mean, I know y’all are friends, but I didn’t think you guys really hung out like that.”

Liz shrugged again. She didn’t know what else to do. “She asked me. I said I’d go.”

“Are y’all meeting anyone else?” he asked. He seemed to be trying for casual, but they had been together too long for her not to get what he was asking.

“I don’t think so.” She really had no idea.

“Not her brother?”

Liz’s eyes bulged. There was no fucking way that was happening. “No. Why would you think that?” she sputtered.

“He was just . . . looking at you is all.”

“People tend to do that when they’re introduced,” Liz said, trying to brush it off.

“I don’t know,” Hayden said, taking her nonchalance for it not meaning anything. But of course it meant everything. “I’m probably crazy and way off base, but I didn’t really like the way our politician was looking at my girlfriend.” He pulled her into him and kissed the tip of her nose.

She laughed lightly, hoping that she sounded disbelieving. She was sure she failed, but he couldn’t see her face, so maybe she pulled it off. “We’re talking about a congressman. A man who works for the House of Representatives. I’m pretty sure he wouldn’t look twice at a college reporter. You, Hayden Lane, are just imagining things.”

There. It was her first direct lie. How had she managed it so flawlessly?

“Well, you do look pretty gorgeous today.”

“Thank you,” she said, nuzzling into his chest to hide her face.

She felt like a total shit. She didn’t deserve him.

Liz ended the conversation as quickly as she could and hurried back to her house. She had no idea what to wear to di

For a second she thought about pulling out Brady’s necklace and wearing it, but it felt too strange. She had put it away for a reason. One afternoon in his presence wasn’t going to change that reason.

Sava

Liz felt better about her choices after assessing Sava

“Are you sure you’re not going into politics?” Liz joked in greeting.

“Don’t even get me started,” Sava

“Where are we going anyway?”

“Have you ever been to Bin 54?”

Liz shook her head. “No.”

“It’s a steakhouse just off of Raleigh Road before Meadowmont.” Meadowmont was a community where groceries, shopping, and fine dining were walkable from the apartments. It was too far away from campus for Liz’s taste, but it was still a nice concept.

“All right,” Liz said. She wondered what the pricing was going to be on a place like that.

They drove the ten minutes to the restaurant and Sava

“Okay. So, before we go inside I thought I’d just fill you in on why I’m being so weird and secretive.” Liz arched an eyebrow. “You know I don’t really talk about my family.”

“Yeah . . .”

“Well, I love them. They’re pretty awesome. But I don’t get to share them with many people because they’re in the spotlight. Since you and I kind of . . . I don’t know . . . bonded over that fact, I feel like I can trust you.”

Oh, no.

“So, don’t take this weird, because my fam is cool, but we’re having di

Di

“You can’t report about it or anything, obviously,” Sava

Liz didn’t know what to say. On one hand she was happy that Sava

Did that mean Brady was here? Would she have to sit through di

Shit! What if Clay was there? That might be even worse. Not to mention the fact that he knew her as Liz Carmichael. How exactly would she begin to explain that?

Not good.

“Liz,” Sava

“It’s okay. Sorry, just had to wrap my mind around meeting someone’s parents,” she said with a laugh that sounded more like a cough. She didn’t want Sava

“They’re totally chill. I promise,” Sava

Well . . . great.

Not seeing another alternative, Liz got out of the car. She smoothed out her skirt and adjusted the shirt she had tucked into the waistband. At least she knew that she looked pretty hot. There was that. She would have probably died if she had shown up wearing jeans to meet Brady’s parents . . . to see Brady.

At least she knew that there was no way in hell that she was going to break Sava

They walked in through the front entrance of Bin 54. The entire restaurant was gorgeous, with elegant circular tables, low lighting with candles, and mood-setting red walls. Sava