A hotel room. Dim lighting. Nicolas, shirtless, sitting on the edge of a bed. A woman draped across his lap, her arms around his neck.
The audio crackled, then cleared.
"You're getting married tomorrow?" The woman's voice was breathless, teasing, laced with something ugly. "And you're still here? With me? That's so cool of you."
Nicolas laughed, that same easy laugh Hazel had heard a thousand times. The laugh she had once thought was charming. Warm.
"Let me enjoy myself while I can," he said, his voice casual and dismissive. "Tomorrow I have to tie myself to her. And I can't even..." He made a face, his lip curling. "I can't even touch her, looking at that ugly face of hers."
The woman giggled, pressing closer.
"I'd rather have fun with you," Nicolas added, his hand sliding down her back. "Someone who actually looks like a woman."
The woman's voice turned sly. "Oh? And what if Leonardo finds out?"
Nicolas laughed again, louder this time, confident and careless.
