Love, Comment, Subscribe by Cathy Yardley

CHAPTER 33

It was two days later, and Lily was still there.

After their last momentous shot for the video, and the even more momentous sex they’d enjoyed, they had proceeded to have pizza, laughing and talking, before going back to bed and enjoying round two. It was all still dreamlike.

The next day, he’d told Lily he’d help her edit her video. She agreed, and they’d spent the morning clipping, putting in transitions, adjusting audio and lighting levels, and adding some funny subtitles and tags. It was finally finished, and it was just as he’d hoped: epic. They’d posted it immediately.

Then they’d gone back to bed after a quick sojourn on the love seat. And they’d christened his gaming chair—another first.

He hadn’t had this much sex in a forty-eight-hour period in his entire life, and he’d certainly never been with anyone as sheerly stunning, enthusiastic, and just fun as Lily Wang.

The best part was, he knew her. He’d had girlfriends before, although none had really worked out for longer than a few months, largely because of his workaholic tendencies—which never seemed like workaholic tendencies to them. They always thought he was being immature, that he was just “playing games” rather than creating content, that he was just “fiddling around” with his computer. Lily, on the other hand, simply got it.

And, even better, she showed no signs of leaving—and he liked that more than he wanted to say.

They still hadn’t put a clear definition on what they were, and it seemed too precious, too precarious, for him to push. He was half-afraid if he asked her about it she’d . . . He sighed, unsure. Chase him around and beat him with a pillow? Try to kill him again?

Or . . . maybe she’d be open to something more? And if she was . . . what was he offering her, exactly? Because he liked the idea of spending more time with her. In fact, if anyone could make him balance work and the rest of his life, it might be Lily.

There was also the little matter of her living two-plus hours away. He suppressed a groan. He didn’t want to live in LA, but he’d be damned if he asked her to move away from what was important to her. So where did that leave him?

She walked up to him, kissing him gently. “You’re doing that thing again.”

“What thing?” He tugged her onto his lap, pressing some kisses of his own against her lips.

She smiled against his mouth, then pulled back to rub a fingertip between his eyebrows. “The thinky frown. You’re doing that.”

“Thinky frown?” He grinned at her. “I didn’t know I had that.”

“You do it when you’re brooding over something.” She tugged him up. “Maybe you should work out. It’ll help you feel better.”

He pulled her closer, wrapping his arms around her and nipping at her neck, gratified by her little gasp and then purr of approval. “If you’re looking for some joint exercise . . .”

“Mmmm. I can definitely see that in our future,” she said, and he couldn’t help it. He held her tighter at the zing that went through him when she said “our future.” Which probably made him the sappiest, but he frankly didn’t care at this point.

His phone buzzed, and he groaned when he saw the display. Bastian and Jeffrey, asking for a Zoom meeting. He ignored them.

“Aren’t those your agents?” Lily said, when he turned the phone over so the next text didn’t show. “It might be important.”

“I doubt it.”

“Come on,” she teased, biting at his earlobe and causing him to shiver. A manly shiver, he internally amended. “Work first, play later. Okay?”

He sighed, then kissed her again. “It’ll just be a few minutes.” He’d make sure of it, even if he had to hang up on them.

She winked at him over her shoulder before flouncing away in a pair of denim short shorts and one of his button-up shirts. His mouth went dry and his body went hard, and he shook his head to clear it. The woman was amazing.

It made it that much harder to stay focused on the call, but he dutifully switched on the meeting. Thankfully, Bastian was there as well as Jeffrey. “Congratulations!”

“For what?” Tobin asked. “You mean for finishing the video series?”

“And going viral!” Jeffrey crowed. He looked like he was ready to throw his hands up and start dancing. “Have you seen the stats? The views? And your subscribers went up even more!”

“I did notice that.” He wasn’t religious when it came to checking his stats, unlike some other YouTubers—Lily came to mind, actually—but he did keep track.

“Tell me you’re going to continue working with her.” Jeffrey pressed forward as Bastian looked amused, rubbing a hand over his chin. “She’s like gold, and you two together are viral dynamite.”

“I haven’t seen you this fired up in a while,” Bastian added, a little more quietly but no less enthused. “I think she’s good for you, dude.”

“I’ll just bet she is,” Jeffrey added with a leer. “Her in the tub? And you two in bed? Holy shit, you’re a lucky guy. Wish I was at that shoot!”

“Jeff?” Tobin interrupted, before the man could continue mouthing off.

“Um, Jeffrey,” he corrected, looking puzzled.

“Make another comment about Lily, and I will beat the shit out of you.”

Jeffrey goggled. Bastian, on the other hand, lifted his hands in a calming motion. “Whoa. Sorry. That was inappropriate, Jeffrey.”

Jeffrey at least looked chastened, if a bit sulky.

“While I think the collabs you two have are very promising, it isn’t what we wanted to talk about,” Bastian continued. “We’ve got some deals on the table that we wanted to discuss.”

“I’m not doing the ninja thing,” Tobin said bluntly.

“No, I didn’t think you would, and honestly, I wouldn’t have advised it anyway,” Bastian said, shooting another glare at Jeffrey. “Which is why I found another vehicle for you. Sketch comedy, animated—you’d be the voice of a variety of characters. Have you heard of the Grayscale Brothers?”

Tobin tilted his head. “Actually, yes,” he admitted. “I like their work. They’re funnier than hell.”

“Well, they’re going to have a thing on Adult Swim. They’re looking for voice talent, especially diverse voice talent, and they like your work too. Is that something you’d be interested in?”

“What kind of commitment are they looking for?” Tobin asked.

Jeffrey shot Bastian an “Is he kidding me?” look, and Bastian shook his head almost imperceptibly. “They’d want you as a series regular, I think,” he replied.

Tobin clenched his jaw. That would mean a weekly commitment at least. Part of him felt excited about it. It could be a fun project—right in his wheelhouse. And it was always exciting and interesting to collab with people whose work he admired. But that creeping exhaustion was also hitting him.

“And there’s the live tour,” Jeffrey added, his tone still a little sour. “We’re going to need a yes or no on that soon. They can’t just hold your spot open, you know.”

Tobin grimaced. He did know that.

“Hell, maybe your girlfriend might be a better match,” Jeffrey said with a scowl. “She might not be funny like you, but she’s got a great—”

“Tobin . . . oh! I’m so sorry, I didn’t realize you were on a video call,” Lily said, walking in with a catlike smile.

Which was bullshit. The door had been open a little. He had no doubt that she’d been listening to what he was saying with his agents—including Jeffrey’s earlier gross comments—and was bursting in to basically give him shit. Which worked, since Jeffrey was now turning a tomatoish reddish-purple.

“Um, Lily,” Jeffrey said, clearing his throat. “I, uh, didn’t know you were at Tobin’s.”

“I’m sorry, we’ve never met. You must be one of Tobin’s agents.” She sounded placid, maybe just a shade derisive. Tobin fucking loved it.

“Jeffrey,” he muttered.

“And I’m Bastian,” Bastian said with his characteristic smoothness. “We’ve just been discussing how great your collaborations with Tobin have been.”

“Why, thank you! I’d like to think I bring a certain something to the project,” she said, looking down shyly before smiling with mischief. “And apparently Jeffrey agrees!”

Jeffrey choked.

Bastian muffled a smile, then let out a little cough. “Be that as it may. While your collabs didn’t necessarily make sense on paper, I always thought there might be a quirky twist that would produce results. I’d say you’ve both boosted each other’s profiles and hit on something that a lot of people are connecting with. That has opened up a lot of doors for Tobin here.”

“Has it?”

“I’m advising that you two keep doing videos together,” Bastian said, and Tobin scowled at him. “But, of course, that’s up to the two of you. I just see the numbers, and forecasting what you’ve been able to do . . . well. You understand this business. It’s a matter of leveraging attention and striking when the iron’s hot.”

“I totally understand,” Lily said, her beautiful face serious and attentive. “And I haven’t discounted any future collaborations with Tobin yet, certainly.”

“Maybe he has,” Jeffrey muttered.

Lily looked at Tobin, then back at the screen.

“Well, you’ll have time to think about it,” Bastian soothed. “If Tobin goes on this live tour in a few weeks, he’ll be gone for over a month.”

“But on the plus side, the recording studio for Grayscale is in LA,” Jeffrey tacked on. “So he’ll be in your neck of the woods more.”

Lily’s eyes widened. “Wow,” she said, studying Tobin for a second. “I had no idea you had so much going on.”

“I’m still mulling things over.”

“Don’t worry,” Lily said to his agents, with a flirty grin. “I’m sure we’ll figure out something. But for now, I need to get this man fed. Unless you needed to discuss anything else?”

“Nope.” Bastian looked cheerful, even if Jeffrey looked disgruntled. “Great meeting you, Lily.”

“And you, Bastian, Jeffrey,” she said, sounding like a perfect hostess. Tobin muttered a goodbye, then clicked off the meeting. He groaned, lolling his head back. Lily threw her arms around him, squealing a little.

“What?” he said. “You almost deafened me!”

“That’s so exciting!” she said. “I mean, that Jeffrey guy seems like kind of an asshole, but a voice-acting gig? And a tour? Between that and your stats, you are kicking ass!”

He smiled. It was nice. Granted, he had support from his friends, the Nerd Herd, and guys like Shawn. But Lily was different, and her appreciation made him feel warm and just comforted. “Thanks.”

“Maybe we could keep doing videos,” she pointed out. “It’s not a bad idea, you know. He’s not wrong—viewers are fickle. Now probably isn’t the time to get complacent.”

“I still need to think about it,” he said.

“Well, don’t think too long,” she said briskly, getting up and tugging his hands. “Work out. Then we’ll grab lunch. Then we’ll talk about it some more, maybe?” She winked at him.

He nodded, not feeling quite as happy as he had a minute ago.