"Startled by what?" he pressed, his gaze unwavering.
"I mean, since when did you start taking an interest in this kind of celebrity gossip?"
"I wasn't interested at first," Julian countered, his tone perfectly flat. "But after seeing the story blow up, with every media outlet exploiting it under different headlines, it caught my attention. Besides, my mind was already consumed by thoughts of you … and Raymond."
"Of you?" Phoebe echoed, her throat tightening.
"It's not exactly easy for me to just forget what I feel for you," he confessed, staring directly into her eyes. "Especially after seeing how Raymond operates. He isn't just acting casual, Phoebe. He is making a deliberate show of closeness, and I can clearly see the shift in dynamics between the two of you."
