Read Taking Something for Free Online Page A

all right.” She laughed. “Your arrogance is like nothing I've never seen before. And I live in Hollywood, so that’s saying something.”
    “You'll learn to love it.” I waggled my eyebrows at her. Those dark eyes of hers locked on mine and I felt myself get a little excited as I waited for her smartass remark. There was only one other person who had ever been able to keep up with me the way Gia was. Lila would have loved this girl. Unfortunately, I saw Gia's smile turn from genuine to fabricated as soon as we were interrupted.
    “Did you get everything on the list?” Sadie asked when she finally emerged from the booth.
    “Yep,” Gia answered.
    “Good,” Sadie acknowledged without so much as a “thank you.” Just a “good.”
    I shook my head. I might not have been the most moral person in the world, but as least I had manners.
    “So, Nick,” Sadie began, linking her arm around mine like a cobra preparing to choke its prey. “What time are you picking me up for dinner?”
    “Dinner?” I thought back on the day.
    Did I ask her on a date? Promise her a night on the town in exchange for seeing things my way?
    I didn't remember doing so, but it wouldn't be the first time I’d let my words run away from me.
    “I mean, I know you didn't outright ask me to, but I could tell you wanted to.” As Sadie batted her eyes at me, I could see Gia rolling hers. She'd perfected the art of eye rolling, and if it wasn't so cute when she did it, I probably would have been annoyed.
    “I'd love to,” I answered, not needing any persuasion. It was only going to take one date to convince Sadie that my word was gospel and that I only had the best intentions for her career. Not to mention, it wasn't going to hurt my reputation at all to be seen in public with her. “Seven?”
    “It's a date,” she lilted, sauntering toward the door. “Gia, give Nick my address,” she added before she left.
    I reached over and finished turning off the mixing boards as Gia jotted down Sadie's address on a piece of paper.
    “What's your end game here, Kline?” she asked, holding out the paper. Even though I'd reached up to take it from her, she held a firm grip.
    “Excuse me?”
    “With Sadie. What's your end game?” She shifted her weight to one leg and let her eyes give me the once-over.
    Is she on to me?
    My attention was immediately pulled to the shapely curve of her hip as she rested a hand on it. I hated to admit it, because it rarely happened, but she intimidated me. Where Sadie was long and lean, Gia had curves. And from what I could tell, they were in all the right places.
    “You don't think you're going to be Mr. Sadie Sinclair anytime soon, do you? Or are you just hoping the paparazzi will take an interest in you to boost your social status? I mean, seriously, do you think I'm stupid?”
    “I have no idea what you are talking about,” I said, tugging the paper free of her hand. “Did it ever occur to you that I might actually like Sadie?”
    She practically snorted in her effort to hold back her laughter. “Yeah. Okay.”
    “She's not that bad.” I tried to shrug while keeping a straight face. She sure as shit was that bad. In one four-hour session, I'd seen her boss Gia around like she was trying to medal in it, tell me I was being a visionless idiot, and throw a set of headphones across the room because, in her words, they were giving her a migraine “with their constant fucking reverberation.”
    She was high maintenance and not in the charming way Lila was—like she just enjoyed salon visits and new shoes. Sadie Sinclair was a world-class diva who got off on temper tantrums and putting everyone around her through hell.
    “Look,” Gia said, refocusing my attention to the matter at hand. “I could really give two shits about who Sadie is shacking up with, but let me give you a piece of advice. She's about one more bad relationship away from a nervous breakdown. I know she stood in that studio and told you that