Girl Gone Viral (Modern Love #2)(43)

Jas poured them both orange juice and coffee. “Let me know if anything’s missing. I can place another grocery order.”

“I’ll do a proper inventory later.” She placed the parfaits on a tray and cocked her head at the living room. “Shall we eat on the couch? The show’s about to start.”

He raised an eyebrow, and her gaze slid away from his face, though he didn’t know why. “You want to watch the Good Morning Live segment?”

“Of course. Don’t you?”

He’d planned on watching it, if only to keep up on what was happening. “Yes. Which is why you don’t need to put yourself through that.”

“Don’t be silly.” She sailed past him, and he had no choice but to follow.

“Katrina . . .”

“It’s fine, Jas.” She sat on the couch and switched on the TV. Katrina patted the place next to her. “Let’s watch.”

“AND NOW WE’RE going to turn to CafeBae and the viral romance that has captured the nation.”

Katrina placed her spoon down. Next to her on the old floral couch, Jas rested his orange juice on his knee.

Now that this moment had come, she felt oddly disassociated, like she was standing outside her body, watching this show. “You know, I was on Good Morning Live once,” she said casually. The camera panned over Ross in what she assumed was his house. The voice-over gave a summary of the nightmare, with the same rom-com spin, as Ross puttered around a kitchen shirtless and sat down with a staged plate of eggs and bacon. She knew it was staged, because only a masochist would cook bacon shirtless.

“When were you on Good Morning Live?” Jas asked.

“When I was maybe sixteen. It was a calendar that was being promoted, Teens against Tetanus.” She shrugged at his puzzled expression. “Yeah, I don’t know. I got groped by a correspondent during the segment. I told my agent, she told me to play nice, and I guess I wasn’t nice enough, because they never asked me back.” She’d also told her father, who had yelled at her to not make up stories. The joy of show business.

Jas placed his glass on the coffee table with a loud clink. “Where’s the correspondent now?”

“Fired.”

“Thank God.”

On the television, Ross leaned against the railing of his balcony and laughed at something the interviewer said, and it cut in their audio. “Why do you think you went viral?” the reporter asked.

Good question.

Ross stroked his chin. His stubble had grown since she’d seen him in person, and he looked rugged and masculine, and conventionally attractive enough to fool the internet, she supposed. “It’s a cynical world,” the liar said. “I think people want love and romance and happy endings.”

Katrina wanted those things, too, but she wanted them in reality. Not the fantasy these people were spinning.

“How do you feel about being the hero in this love story?”

Ross laughed. “You know, I think the real heroes are the ones who documented it for the world. Becca and her dear hubby.”

Whaaaaat. The video cut to the studio and Becca and her dear hubby—gag—whose name turned out to be Alan, according to the chyron on the bottom of the screen.

Katrina squinted at the brown-haired man. Oh right. The entirely forgettable guy who had been with Becca at the café. Nice, she had another person to focus her ire on.

“We were so captivated by the thought that we were witnessing love in real time,” Becca gushed. Alan nodded enthusiastically. “I suppose the rest of the world was too.”

“There was no love,” Katrina muttered. Jas took a measured sip of his juice, but was silent.

“I just want them to be happy, truly,” Becca said, and tittered. “And maybe invite us to the wedding.”

“They’ll have to invite the whole internet to their wedding,” Alan joked.

The video cut to Ross. “How did you feel when you first saw CuteCafeGirl, Ross?”

“Oh, I thought she was beautiful and stunning. Intelligent. And we had so much in common, right off the bat.” He pressed his hand to his hairless chest. Why was he still shirtless? Wasn’t he cold? “We’re both animal lovers, for one. And the more we talk, the more we find out about each other.”

She jerked. Jas stilled next to her. What? Had he said talk? Not talked?

“So you two are still in contact with each other?”

“Yes.” His dimples flashed. “Kat’s a little shy, but she’s as delighted as I am that our story has inspired so many people.”

“Is there going to be a fairy-tale wedding?”

Ross winked. “Time will tell.”

Katrina shut the TV off with a snap of the remote. “It’s . . . he . . .”

“What a motherfucking asshole.” Jas’s calm pronouncement had her turning to face him. He met her gaze. “He’s on TV saying you guys are still talking to each other. This is going beyond the lies he spun before. He’s . . . he’s enjoying this fame. So is the woman. And you had to leave your own damn home.” He launched to his feet and ran his hands through his hair until it was spiked up. “This is so unfair.”

She watched him, bemused. It was all stuff she’d said yesterday, when he’d sat so calmly and listened to her.