Dark Wild Night
4/5
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About this ebook
Lola and Oliver like to congratulate themselves on having the good sense not to consummate their drunken Las Vegas marriage. If they’d doubled-down on that mistake, their Just Friends situation might not be half as great as it is now.
…Or so goes the official line.
In reality, Lola’s wanted Oliver since day one—and over time has only fallen harder for his sexy Aussie accent and easygoing ability to take her as she comes. More at home in her studio than in baring herself to people, Lola’s instinctive comfort around Oliver nearly seems too good to be true. So why ruin a good thing?
Even as geek girls fawn over him, Oliver can’t get his mind off what he didn’t do with Lola when he had the chance. He knows what he wants with her now…and it’s far outside the friend zone. When Lola’s graphic novel starts getting national acclaim—and is then fast-tracked for a major motion picture—Oliver steps up to be there for her whenever she needs him. After all, she’s not the kind of girl who likes all that attention, but maybe she’s the kind who’ll eventually like him.
Sometimes seeing what’s right in front of us takes a great leap of faith. And sometimes a dark wild night in Vegas isn’t just the end of a day, but the beginning of a bright new life…
Christina Lauren
Christina Lauren is the combined pen name of longtime writing partners and best friends Christina Hobbs and Lauren Billings, the New York Times, USA TODAY, and #1 internationally bestselling authors of the Beautiful and Wild Seasons series, Autoboyography, Love and Other Words, Roomies, Josh and Hazel’s Guide to Not Dating, The Unhoneymooners, The Soulmate Equation, Something Wilder, The True Love Experiment and The Paradise Problem. You can find them online at ChristinaLaurenBooks.com or @ChristinaLauren on Instagram.
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Reviews for Dark Wild Night
211 ratings9 reviews
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5So far, this has been my favorite book in the Wild Seasons series! It was a super cute new adult novel. ❤️
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Loliver, beautiful and complex and introverted...I get that...
another lovely read..Loved the but about getting it all wrong so you do it again and get it right...
the key is to do, so you can fail fast...then success comes - Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5This is one of those cute, adorable romances with likable characters (and plenty of sexy). I enjoyed the whole thing. Lola and Oliver are good people. They are best friends wanting more. Life gets in the way a bit, but they're mature enough to get it right before it goes too far. Dark Wild Night was definitely worth my time, and Oliver is great book boyfriend material.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5"You just sucked my soul out of me."
I love humorous romances - stories that never fail to help me escape the tediousness of the day. Christina Lauren deliver with this novel. I also have a very large soft spot for nerds. Lola and Oliver are the best of the best nerds. One is a graphic novelist and the other owns a store specializing in - you guessed it- comic books. Lola and Oliver met, married, divorced and became best friends in the early stories of the Wild Seasons series. Lola is just as you imagined. She is introverted character lost in the world she creates. Suddenly her graphic novel is optioned by Hollywood and she is now noticed. But will her relationship with her best friend stand up to the strain?
The novel takes you on a story of missed cues and opportunities. When Lola and Oliver final realize the feelings between them are way more than friendly and for a VERY long time, the pages of the story ignite. Nerds can be sexy. Lola's character had the ability to become grating to me. You know, the whiny, indecisive push-pull girl. Christina Lauren gives her character just enough insecurity to be what we would expect an introvert to be but without dragging the storyline. And Oliver. Wow - he has his own issues. However his protectiveness and desire to watch Lola succeed is swoon worthy.
Book 3 could very well be a standalone. This is solely Oliver and Lola's story. But the friends make appearances from the first two books. I dare you not to go back and read them. If you are familiar with Christina Lauren's writing, this delivers. My favorite over all in the series. PS Not Joe needs a story. - Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5As a general rule, so as not to become the "sole romance reader" at the bookstore I work at, I don't read romance books. But back in September, I was going through Sarah J Maas withdrawal and was scooping up anything and everything I could get my hands on that she endorsed. And even though we shelve this book in romance at the bookstore, knowing that B&N shelves it in fiction gave me hope that it wouldn't be too mind numbing. Plus, I still held out hope that this might finally be a true New Adult book - relevant to actual young adults... well, I've ranted on this topic enough to not rehash it here.
Alas, New Adult has once again proved to be a huge disappointment. Dark Wild Night is not the New Adult I want, but the New Adult the world is stuck with. It's all sex, which is not to say I don't like a decent scene every now and then in my reading, but 2/3 of the book are simply descriptions of the different types of sex Oliver and Lola wind up having - which is not a spoiler, it's the whole basis for the plot. While Lola and Oliver are at least three-dimensional characters, most of the dialogue and descriptions of things felt forced and unnatural - I don't know anyone who talks or describes things in the way these two hapless lovers do. Basically, the phrasing sucked, and the believe-ability of the phrasing is pretty much the only thing these types of books usually have going for them. - Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I liked it, but it wasn't my very favorite of the series. Oliver and Lola were always sweet as friends and you could see the tension there. When their story finally came out, I was really excited about and it did not disappoint. I've been reading a lot of reviews saying that Lola should've realized things faster, but she had somethings to deal with and she took her time. Oliver such a sweetheart and hot and sexy geek. Yummy.
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Contemporary Romance featuring Lola and Oliver, a graphic novelist and comic book store owner respectively. Readers will recall Lola and Oliver from the first-in-series, 'Sweet Filthy Bastard' as the couple who did not get freaky on the night they got married in Las Vegas during a alcohol-induced Bacchanalia; and were able to get their marriage annulled quickly and cleanly. Since then, Lola and Oliver have had a great friendship; but her work schedule is threatening any attempts on Oliver's part to get out of the Friend Zone. The Wild Seasons series isn't the semi-erotic series that the authors' (two women who write under one pseudonym) Beautiful Bastard series is; but the sex scenes are explicit.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5There is always this very similar motif in every romance book. They met. They fell in love. They encountered an obstacle. They fight. They overcome it and fell in love again. The end. However, what special about Christina Lauren’s works is that they manage to make it incredibly pulling and lovable. And this 3rd installment of Wild Seasons? Simply amazing!I’ve been waiting so long for Lola and Oliver’s story, and they definitely didn’t let me down. I love every single moment about Lola and her witty reactions, alongside with The Amazing Oliver (he is awesome beyond words), and how their relationship developed from the night at Vegas. And they are geeks too, awesome ones, so I don’t know how anyone could manage to hate them. “Loliver” is just super adorable and toe-curling cute.This series has one of the most awesome side characters cast. Their friendship is crazingly amazing and admirable, and you just can’t go wrong with a group of wonderful friends, a comic store, and a hilarious “shopkeeper” Not-Joe (Christina Lauren should write a story about him soon, or else I will kidnap him for my own).Overall, I really enjoy this book. It’s funny, witty, and have all the steamy elements a romance book needed. Can’t wait for more from the authors!
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Review courtesy of Dark Faerie TalesQuick & Dirty: Fun contemporary story that has great characters, steamy romance, and the perfect amount of drama. I was nervous to read this one because I’m not an erotic fan, but I surprisingly really enjoyed it!Opening Sentence: I mentally draw the panels of the scene before me as we follow the receptionist down the marble hallway: the woman wears six-inch black heels, her legs go on forever, her hips shift with each step.The Review:Lola and Oliver got married one drunken night in Vegas eight months ago, but they quickly got an annulment the next day. That night might not have been the start of their marriage but it was the start of an amazing friendship.Lola likes to get lost in her own world and the ones she can create. She feels safer interacting with made up characters versus interacting with real humans. Sure she has some great girl friends that have gotten her through so much, but when it comes to relationships she is an epic failure. The longest she has ever been with a guy is a few months, and all of her relationships have generally ended badly. She just doesn’t feel comfortable around other people easily until she meets Oliver. He just seems to understand her in a way that no one else can. He lets her be who she is and doesn’t judge her for it. That is one of the reasons why they have developed such an amazing friendship, but Lola has been attracted to Oliver since the first day they met. She still wants him all this time later but will being with him mess up the amazing friendship they have together?Oliver knew that first night with Lola that she wasn’t someone he could have a one night stand with. He saw something in her that made him think she could be the girl for him but he also saw how fragile she was and knew that it would take time. Oliver is fine with being patient but when things between them start to heat up he can’t help but jump all the way in. He has wanted Lola forever and now he finally has her. But soon life gets in the way and things go from great to complicated!There were things I loved about Lola and there were things that bugged me a little bit. She is an intelligent, beautiful, organized person that reminded me of myself in many ways. Her creativeness was amazing and I really liked the fact that she was an author. I am obviously a huge book geek, so I have a soft spot for authors. The one thing I struggled with was how she dealt with some of her issues. I get being stressed sucks and I also understand having insecurities, but I just thought the way she dealt with things was a little dumb. With that being said, I ended up really liking Lola and enjoyed reading her story!Oliver is one very sexy man! He is sweet, charming, smart and He is a total comic nerd, which I found very endearing! Then add in the fact that he has a hot accent and I was a total goner for him. I loved his confidence and how understanding he was of Lola’s situation. He never pushed her into something she wasn’t comfortable with, but he push her to be honest and open with him. They have a very fragile relationship but once they figure things out they really are the perfect couple. They have a very passionate connection and some extremely hot chemistry!I was in the mood for a contemporary romance and I happened to win a copy of Dark Wild Night at a Sarah J. Maas signing because Christina Hobbs was moderating the event. Erotic romance is not usually my thing, but I’ve heard really good things about the dynamic duo Christina Lauren, so I thought I would give this a try. After reading this I’m not sure I would actually categorize this as an erotic book because that aspect of the story was almost non-existent. For the most part this was just an adorable contemporary love story that I really enjoyed! It had the perfect amount of drama to keep me interested. There was some great humor that made me laugh but it also delivered a great message! The only thing I might have preferred less of was the sexy times. Don’t get me wrong, I love steamy scenes, but it just had a few more then I prefer. I did not read the previous books in this series, but I would suggest that you do before reading Dark Wild Night. This book can obviously be read as a standalone, but I felt like I was missing some of the inside jokes and extra tidbits because I didn’t know the other character stories. While the secondary characters are really minor in the story, their relationships with the main characters are very important, so I wish I had known more about them. I liked this book enough that I do want to go back and read the previous two! If you are a fan of the series or you like sexy romance books you should definitely pick this one up!!!Notable Scene:She gives me an innocent shrug. “We’re playing poker.”“I’ll clean the floor with you,” I warn, before tilting my bottle to my lips and sipping my beer again.She watches me swallow. “ You can clean the floor with all your clothes while I watch.” I raise an eyebrow at her and she adds, “We’re playing strip poker.”FTC Advisory: I won a copy of Dark Wild Night. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,” or bribes were exchanged for my review.
Book preview
Dark Wild Night - Christina Lauren
Chapter ONE
Lola
I MENTALLY DRAW THE panels of the scene before me as we follow the receptionist down the marble hallway: the woman wears six-inch black heels, her legs go on forever, her hips shift with each step.
Her hips shift left.
Her hips shift right.
Her hips shift left.
My agent, Benny, leans in. Don’t be nervous,
he whispers.
I’m fine,
I lie, but he just snorts in response, straightening.
"The deal is all drafted, Lola. You’re here to sign, not to impress anyone. Smile! Today is the fun part."
I nod, trying to trick my thoughts into agreement—Look at this office! Look at these people! Bright lights! Big city!—but it’s a wasted effort. I’ve been writing and drawing Razor Fish since I was twelve, and every single second of the fun part, to me, has been creating it. The terrifying part is walking down a sterile hallway lined with glass-front cubicles and glossy framed movie posters to sign a seven-figure contract for the film translation.
My stomach seems lodged somewhere in my windpipe and I go back to my safe place.
Her hips shift right.
Her hips shift left.
Her long legs span from the earth up to the clouds.
The receptionist stops at a door and opens it. Here we are.
The studio offices are almost obscenely fancy; the entire building feels like the modern equivalent of a castle. Every wall is brushed aluminum and marble; every door is glass. Each piece of furniture is either marble or black leather. Benny leads us in with confidence, crossing the room to shake hands with the executives on the other side of the table. I follow him in, but when I release the glass door it swings closed heavily, and the jarring gong of glass abruptly meeting metal echoes through the room—a sound broken only by two startled gasps coming from across the table.
Fuck.
I’ve seen enough photos of myself in stressful public situations in the past three months to know that, right now, I don’t look ruffled. I don’t duck my head and apologize; I don’t slouch or wince even though, as soon as the door slams dissonantly shut, I’m tied into a hundred thousand knots inside. Apparently, I’m just good at hiding it.
The New York Times gave Razor Fish a brilliant review, but found me aloof
during an interview that I’d believed to be spirited and engaging. The Los Angeles Times described our phone call as a series of long, thoughtful pauses followed by single-word answers
whereas I had told my friend Oliver that I was worried I’d talked their ear off.
When I turn to face the executives, I’m unsurprised to find they both look as polished as the architecture. Neither woman across the table says anything about my less-than-subtle entrance, but I swear the slamming echo reverberates throughout the room the entire time I walk from the door to the table.
Benny winks and gestures for me to sit down. I find a soft leather chair, smooth my dress over my thighs, and carefully take a seat.
My hands are clammy, my heart thundering. I’m counting to twenty over and over to keep from panicking.
The panel shows the girl, chin up, with a ball of fire in her lungs.
Lorelei, it’s wonderful to meet you face-to-face.
I look to the woman who’s spoken and take her offered hand to shake. Her hair is blond and glossy, perfect makeup, perfect clothes, perfectly expressionless. From my early-morning creeping on IMDb, I’m fairly sure she’s Angela Marshall, the executive producer who, with her frequent collaborator Austin Adams, fought to win the rights to Razor Fish in the bidding war I didn’t even know was happening last week.
But her hair in the picture was red. My eyes shoot to the woman on her left, but she has soft brown skin, black hair, and enormous brown eyes. Definitely not Angela Marshall. The only person I’ve seen frequently in magazines and photos is Austin, but there isn’t another man besides Benny in the room.
Please, call me Lola. It’s nice to meet you…?
I let the question hang, because in normal situations I think this is where the names are exchanged. Instead, the handshake goes on forever, and now I don’t know where to direct my effusive gratitude. Why isn’t anyone introducing themselves? Am I expected to know every name here?
Releasing my hand, the woman finally says, Angela Marshall.
I sense that it was some sort of test.
So good to meet you,
I say again. I can’t believe…
My thought ends there and they all watch me, waiting to hear what I’m going to say. Truthfully, I could go on for days about all the things I can’t believe.
I can’t believe Razor Fish is out in the world.
I can’t believe people are buying it.
And I really can’t believe fancy people working at this enormous movie studio are making my graphic novel into a movie.
We can’t believe any of it.
Benny comes to my rescue, but laughs awkwardly. "We’re just thrilled about how this all went down. Thrilled."
The woman next to Angela gives him the Oh, I’m sure you are face, because we all know Benny made out pretty great in the deal: twenty percent of a lot of money. But that realization pulls the other one with it: I made out even better than he did. My life is forever changed with this single transaction. We’re here to sign a contract, to discuss casting, to lay out the schedule.
The panel shows the girl, waking up with a start as a steel rod is shoved into her backbone.
I hold my hand out to the other woman. Hi, sorry I didn’t get your name. I’m Lola Castle.
She introduces herself as Roya Lajani, and then looks down at some pages in front of her as she takes a breath to start whatever conversation happens in these moments. But before she can speak, the door swings open and the man I recognize as Austin Adams breezes in, letting in a blast of ringing phones, heels clicking down the hall, and voices booming from adjacent rooms.
Lola!
he says to me in a warm, cheerful voice and then winces as the door crashes shut behind him. Looking to Angela, he says, I hate that fucking door. When the hell is Julie getting it fixed?
Angela waves her hand in a Don’t worry about it gesture and watches as Austin ignores the seat next to her and pulls out the chair on my right. Sitting down, he studies my face, smiling widely at me.
I’m a huge fan,
he says without further preamble, without even introducing himself. Honestly. I’m just in awe of you.
I… wow,
I say, laughing awkwardly. Thanks.
Please tell me you’re working on something new. I’m addicted to your art, your stories, everything.
"My next graphic novel is out this fall. It’s called Junebug. I sense Austin leaning in excitedly and instinctively add,
I’m still working on it." When I look back up at him, he’s just shaking his head at me in wonder.
Is this surreal?
His eyes turn up warmly as his smile softens. Has it sunk in yet that you’re the mastermind behind the next huge action movie?
This line, in this situation—where I worry I’m going to hear a lot of empty praise—would normally make me hold my breath in order to tamp down a skeptical reaction, but despite being a big-shot producer and director, Austin already seems so genuine. He’s good-looking but totally disheveled: his reddish blond hair looks finger combed, he’s unshaven, in jeans and wearing a button-down shirt that he’s misaligned, leaving it longer at the hem on the right side than the left. The starched collar is tucked in on one side, too. He’s a very expensive mess.
Thanks,
I say, balling my hands together so I don’t start to fidget with my earlobe or my hair.
I mean it,
he adds, leaning both elbows on his thighs, still focusing only on me. I’m not sure he’s even acknowledged Benny yet. My knuckles have gone white. "I know we’re supposed to say that, but in this case it’s really true. I was obsessed from the very first page, and told Angela and Roya we had to have it."
We agreed,
Roya chimes in, unnecessarily.
Well,
I say, struggling to find something other to say than another thank you. That’s great. I’m glad that it seems to have grabbed a little audience.
Little?
he scoffs, leaning back in his chair and glancing down at his shirt before doing a double take. Motherfuck. I can’t even dress myself.
I pull my lower lip into my mouth to crush the laugh that is threatening to burst from my throat. This entire situation was sending me into mute-panic territory until he walked in. I grew up shopping at Goodwill, we were on food stamps for a few years, and I still drive a 1989 Chevy. I can’t even process how this is going to change my life, and the sterile Stepford Sisters across the table only add to the foreign atmosphere of the room. But Austin seems like someone I can imagine working with.
I know you’ve been asked this before,
he says, "because I’ve read the interviews. But I want to hear it from you, the true inside scoop. What made you start writing this book? What really inspired you?"
I have indeed been asked this before—so many times, in fact, that I have a standard, canned answer: I love the everyday female superhero because she gives us an opportunity to handle complicated social and political imbalances head-on, in popular culture and art. I wrote Quinn Stone as the everygirl, in the spirit of Clarisse Starling or Sarah Connor: she becomes a hero via her own bootstraps. Quinn is found by a strange, fishlike man from another time dimension. This creature, Razor, helps Quinn find the courage to fight for herself and her community, and in so doing, he realizes he doesn’t want to leave her to go home, even when he eventually can. The idea came to me from a dream where a big, muscular man covered in scales was in my room, telling me to clean up my closet. The rest of the day I wondered what it would be like if he really did show up in my bedroom. I named him Razor Fish. I imagined my Razor wouldn’t give a crap about my messy closet; he’d tell me to get the hell up and fight for something.
But that isn’t the answer that bubbles up today.
I was pissed-off,
I admit. I thought grown-ups were either assholes or fuckups.
I watch Austin’s green eyes go a little wide before he exhales, nodding subtly in understanding. I was angry with my dad for being a mess, and my mom for being such a coward. I’m sure it’s why I dreamt of Razor Fish in the first place: he’s abrasive and doesn’t always understand Quinn, but deep down he loves her and wants her to be looked after. Drawing him and how he initially doesn’t understand her humanity but then trains her to fight, and eventually defers to her… getting lost in their little story was the treat I gave myself when I finished dishes and homework and was alone at night.
The room is quiet and I feel an unfamiliar need to fill the space. I liked seeing Razor start to appreciate the ways Quinn is strong that aren’t classic. She’s scrawny, she’s quiet. She’s not built like an amazon. Her strengths are more subtle: she’s observant. She trusts herself without question. I want to make sure that’s captured. There is a lot of violence and action there, but Razor doesn’t have a revelation about her when she learns to throw a punch. He has a revelation about her when she figures out how to stand up to him.
I glance at Benny—this is the most open I’ve ever been about my life and my book, and surprise is clear on his face.
How old were you when your mom left?
Austin guesses. He’s acting like there isn’t anyone else in the room with us, and it’s easy to pretend there isn’t, the way everyone has grown so still.
Twelve. Right after my dad got back from Afghanistan.
The room seems to be swallowed by silence after I say this, and Austin finally heaves out a sigh. "Well, that’s shit."
Finally, I laugh.
He leans in again, eyes insistent when he says, "I love this story, Lola. I love these characters. We’ve got a screenwriter who will knock this out of the park. Do you know Langdon McAfee?"
I shake my head, embarrassed because the way he says it makes me feel like I should, but Austin waves away the question. He’s great. Laid-back, smart, organized. He wants to cowrite this with you.
I open my mouth at this unexpected revelation—me, cowriting a screenplay—and nothing but a choking noise comes out.
Austin keeps talking through my stunned reaction: I want to talk a lot, okay?
He’s already nodding as if prompting me. I want this to be everything you want it to be.
Leaning in, he smiles and says, I want you to see your dream come to life.
TELL ME THE details again,
Oliver says. I’m not sure you were speaking English the first time.
He’s right. I’ve barely caught my breath—let alone remembered how to make words—since I tripped into his comic book store, Downtown Graffick, already babbling. Oliver looked up when I burst in, his sweet smile slowly dissolving into confusion as I spilled a thousand incoherent words and my emotions all over the floor. I spent two hours on the drive back from L.A. on the phone with my dad, struggling to process the rest of the meeting. Not that it really helped because, here, saying it out loud in front of one of my favorite people makes it surreal all over again.
In the eight months we’ve been friends, I don’t think Oliver has ever seen me like this: stuttering and breathless and near tears because I’m so overwhelmed. I pride myself on being steady and unruffled even with my friends, and so I’m trying to get myself together, but goddamn, it is hard.
They’re
making
a movie
out of my childhood ideas.
Okay,
I start again, taking a huge breath and blowing it out slowly. Last week, Benny called and said something was going on with the film option.
I thought he sent it out—
Months ago,
I interrupt. Right. It’s always silence before the explosion, I guess? Because on the drive from his office to their office this morning, he told me it sold in this insane bidding war….
I press my palm to my forehead. I’m sweating. Look at me, I’m sweating.
He does look, eyes softening as he laughs, then shakes his head a little before he blinks back down at the box he’s cutting open. This is unbelievable, Lola. Keep talking.
Columbia and Touchstone won,
I tell him. We drove to the offices and I met some people today.
And?
He looks back up at me as he pulls a stack of books out of the box. Did they impress?
I mean…
I flounder, remembering how it felt when Austin turned his attention to everyone else in the room, and the meeting dissolved into a blur of acronyms and under-the-breath instructions to make note of Langdon’s schedule for the script kickoff and see if we can get the P&L to Mitchell by noon. Yes? There were a couple people there who were sort of quiet and stiff, but the executive producer—Austin Adams—is so genuinely nice. I was so overwhelmed that I don’t know how much I was processing.
I run both hands into my hair and tilt my head up to the ceiling. "This is all so insane. A movie."
A movie,
Oliver repeats, and when I look back at him, I see him watching me with his mysterious, warm blue eyes.
He licks his lips and I have to look away. Oliver is both my former husband and my current crush, but it will forever remain unrequited: our marriage was never really a marriage. It was that-thing-we-did-in-Vegas.
Of course, the other two couples who hooked up in Vegas—our friends Mia and Ansel, and Harlow and Finn—are happily married. But Oliver and I occasionally (especially when drunk) like to commend ourselves for being the only ones who did the shotgun Vegas wedding thing like normal people: with nothing but regret, an annulment, and a hangover. Given the emotional distance he’s always kept, I’m pretty sure he’s the one out of the two of us who really means it when he praises our choice.
And it isn’t just oh, we like the idea, let’s buy this option and sit on it,
I say. "They bought it and already have a director in mind. We talked about possible casting choices today. They have a big effects guy asking to be involved."
Unreal,
he murmurs, leaning forward to give me his undivided attention. And if I didn’t know Oliver better, I would think he just glanced at my mouth. But I do know him better: he just looks at every part of my face when I’m speaking. He is the best listener.
"And… I’m going to cowrite the script," I tell him, a little breathless, and his eyes widen.
"Lola. Lola, holy hell."
While I launch into a replay of the entire meeting this morning, Oliver goes back to unpacking the newest shipment of comics, looking up at me occasionally wearing his absorbed, little smile. I thought that over time I might figure out what he’s thinking, how he’s reacting to something. But he’s still largely unreadable to me. The loft apartment I share with my friend London is only two blocks away from Oliver’s comic store, and even though I see him nearly every day, I still feel like I spend half the time we’re together trying to work through what he might have meant by this or that single-syllable answer or lingering smile. If I were more like Harlow, I would simply ask.
So you’re looking forward to seeing it on the screen?
he asks. We haven’t talked about this because it all happened so fast. I know some artists aren’t wild about the idea of an adaptation.
Are you kidding?
I ask. How can he be serious with that question? The only thing I love more than comics is movies based on comics. It’s overwhelming but amazing.
And then I remember that there is an email with seventeen scripts attached in my inbox, for me to read as reference,
and a wave of nausea sweeps through my torso. It’s a little like building a house, though,
I tell him. I just want to be at the part where I can go live in it, and skip all the parts where I have to pick out fixtures and knobs.
Let’s just hope they don’t George Clooney your Batman,
he says.
I give him my best eyebrow wiggle. They can George Clooney anything of mine they want, sir.
Not-Joe, Oliver’s sole employee and a mohawked stoner we all feel a certain pet-owner level of fondness for, steps into view from behind some shelves. Clooney is gay. You know that, right?
Oliver and I both ignore this.
In fact,
I add, "if George Clooney is ever accepted into the Oxford English Dictionary as a verb, that activity is immediately getting added to my bucket list."
As in, ‘Have you ever been George Clooneyed?’
Oliver asks.
Exactly. ‘We went for a walk, and then George Clooneyed until around two. Good night.’
Oliver nods, putting some pens away in a drawer. I’d probably have to add that to my bucket list, too.
See, this is why we’re friends,
I tell him. Being near him is like a dose of Xanax. I can’t help but be calmed. "You would get that George Clooney as a verb would be such a monumental thing that, gay or straight, you’d want a piece of it."
He’s totally gay,
Not-Joe says, louder this time.
Oliver makes a skeptical noise, finally looking over at him. I don’t reckon he is, though. He got married.
Really?
Not-Joe asks, coming to rest his elbows on the counter. But if he was, would you do him?
I raise my hand. Yes. Absolutely.
I wasn’t asking you,
Not-Joe says, waving me away.
Who’s the front and who’s the back?
Oliver asks. Like, am I getting George Clooneyed by George Clooney, or am I doing the Clooneying?
Oliver,
Not-Joe says. "He’s George Fucking Clooney. He doesn’t get Clooneyed!"
We’re turning into idiots,
I mumble.
They both ignore me and Oliver finally shrugs. Yeah, okay. Why not?
Like, actually losing IQ points,
I interject again.
Not-Joe pretends to grab a pair of hips and thrusts back and forth. This. You’d let him?
Shrugging defensively, Oliver says, Joe, I get what we’re talking about here. I also get what the man-on-man sex would look like. What I’m saying is if I’m going to be with a guy, why not Bad Batman?
I wave a hand in front of his face. We should get back to the part where my comic is going to be a movie, though.
Oliver turns to me and relaxes and his smile is so sweet, it makes everything inside me melt. We absolutely should. That’s bloody brilliant, Lola.
He tilts his head, his blue eyes holding mine. I’m really fucking proud for you right now.
I smile, and then suck my bottom lip into my mouth because when Oliver looks at me like that, I can’t even be a little cool. But it would terrify him to see me swoon over him; it’s just not what we do.
So how are you going to celebrate?
he asks.
I look around the store as if the answer is right in front of me. Hang out here? I don’t know. Maybe I should do some work.
Nah, you’ve been traveling constantly, and even when you are home, you’re always working,
he says.
Snorting, I tell him, Says the guy who is in his store every waking hour.
Oliver considers me. "They’re making your movie, Lola Love." And the nickname makes my heart spin in my chest. You need to do something big tonight.
So, like, Fred’s?
I say. This is our usual routine. Why pretend we’re fancy?
Oliver shakes his head. Let’s go somewhere downtown so you don’t have to worry about driving.
"But then you have to drive back to Pacific Beach," I argue.
Not-Joe pretends to play the violin behind us.
I don’t mind,
Oliver says. I don’t think Finn and Ansel are around, but I’ll round up the girls.
He scratches his stubbly jaw. I do wish I could take you to dinner or something, but I—
Oh, God, don’t worry.
The idea of Oliver leaving his store to take me out to dinner makes me both giddy and totally panicky. It’s not like the building would catch fire if he left here before dark, but it doesn’t mean my body doesn’t feel that instinctive panic. I’ll just head home and freak out alone in my room for a bit, and then get exceedingly drunk later.
His smile melts me. Sounds good.
I thought you had a date tonight,
Not-Joe says to Oliver, coming up behind him with a giant stack of books.
Oliver blanches. No. It wasn’t—I mean, it’s not. We aren’t.
A date?
I feel my eyebrows inch up as I try to ignore the growing knot in my stomach.
No, it’s not like that,
he insists. Just the chick across the street who works—
Hard Rock Allison,
Not-Joe sings.
My heart drops—this isn’t just the chick across the street
but someone we’ve all remarked upon once or twice for her keen interest in Oliver—but I work to give an outwardly positive reaction.
Shut up!
I yell, smacking Oliver’s shoulder, and adding in a dramatic French accent, "A very hot date."
Oliver growls at me, rubbing the spot and pretending it hurt more than it did. He nods to Not-Joe. "She wanted to bring us both dinner, here in the store—"
Yeah, so she could bang you,
Not-Joe cuts in.
"Or maybe because she’s nice, Oliver says, a playful challenge in his voice.
Anyway, I’d rather go out and celebrate Lola’s movie. I’ll text Allison and let her know."
I’m sure Hard Rock Allison is a nice woman, but right now—knowing Oliver has her cell number, knowing he can just casually text her to change some plans they made—I sort of want her to get hit by a train in the blackened-soul way that you want horrible things to happen to the new girlfriend. Allison is pretty, and outgoing, and so tiny she could fit in my messenger bag. This is the first time I’ve been faced with the prospect of Oliver dating, the first time our friendship has been faced with this, at least as far as I know. We got married and divorced in less than a day and it’s clear he was never really into me, but we’ve never discussed dates with other people before.
How should I react here?
Cool, I decide after checking myself. Happy for him.
Definitely reschedule,
I say, giving him the most genuine smile I can manage. She’s cute. Take her to Bali Hai, it’s so pretty there.
He looks up at me. I’ve been meaning to go there for ages; you love that place. You should come along.
"Oliver, you can’t bring me along on a date."
His eyes go wide behind his glasses. "It’s not. I don’t—I wouldn’t, he says, adding quickly,
Lola. It wouldn’t be a bloody date."
Okay, so he’s clearly not into Allison. The knot in my stomach uncoils, and I have to stare at the countertop with mighty concentration to keep from smiling.
After a few deep breaths, I succeed.
I look back up at him and he’s still watching me, expression as calm as the surface of a lake in a canyon.
What are you thinking? I want to ask.
But definitely don’t.
Lola,
he starts.
I swallow, unable to keep from blinking—for just a second—down to his mouth. I love his mouth. It’s wide; his bottom lip and top lip are the same size. Full, but not feminine. I’ve drawn it a hundred times: with lips barely parted, lips pressed closed. With lips curved in his tiny smile or arced in his thoughtful frown. Lips with teeth sharply sawing across or, once, his mouth soft and open in an obscene gasp.
The count of two is all I get before I look back up at his eyes. Yeah?
It’s a year before he