Chapter 35
ADAM
T he rain continues to pour. Maybe Lionel is right about the myth, after all. Because my mood has never been stormier.
I’m almost tempted to break into the liquor cabinet. But I still won’t do that. Not after the promise I made to Lily. I can imagine her waggling a finger at my face. No sad drinking, Adam.
I close my eyes, resting my head on the wingback chair of the study. The fire roars in front of me. With my eyes closed, I can picture the night I found Isabelle in the forest, sitting here with her in my arms. The first night I truly let my guard down with her and knew there was something exceptionally incredible about the woman I held.
It almost feels like a dream now. She’s gone, and everything is back to the way it was. I’m alone, and I’ve ruined my career. Isabelle hasn’t contacted me in the last week, and how could she? We didn’t even exchange phone numbers. I could ask Jim, but that would seem desperate. I’ve stayed away from any news sites, knowing that any reports about her and Tristan would just drive me mad.
I figure she’s realized how ridiculous our little tryst was. It was a matter of convenience. She was stuck here, I’m a man, she’s a woman—isn’t that how all the storybooks go? They fall in love because there’s nothing else to do.
To me, it was real. If I’d met Isabelle any other time or place, I’d know that she was the one I was meant to be with. But I would never subject her to be stuck with a beast of a man like me.
A loud knock sounds on the front door. I listen for Lionel to go open it, wondering who would be here at this time of night, and in this rain. The snow has mostly melted, but there are patches of slush all around the castle. All the beauty from the snow is gone, replaced with dirty brown splotches and a gray sky.
I wait a minute but don’t hear anything from Lionel. The knock sounds again.
“Fine, fine, I’ll get it,” I mutter to no one, getting out of my chair. I trudge to the front entryway, pull the door open, and see…
Isabelle.
My Belle.
Soaking wet, with rain dropping on her head, and a huge smile lighting her face.
Before I can tell her to come inside and get warm, she yanks my shirt, pulling me outside in the rain with her, and kissing me square on the lips.
I’m still in shock, and it takes a minute to process what’s happening. Isabelle is HERE, not THERE, and she’s in my arms and her lips are on mine…and now that my mind has caught up to the present, I hold on to her tightly, never wanting to let her go.
I can’t believe I let her leave in the first place.
Her foot slips in the rain, and we both go down. We both land on our backs, but I keep one arm under her upper body to break her fall. Propped up on one arm, the other hand on my chest, she leans down to kiss me again, and I feel like I’m whole.
“You came back,” I whisper.
She nods. “I’m sorry I left at all.” She gently runs her hand down my face. “I’m just glad I’m here with you now.”
“Why? Do you think I’m dying?” I ask with a laugh.
She smiles. “No, I didn’t think that. But I shouldn’t have left you all alone to deal with the fallout. We should have been together. At least now we can be.”
I reach my hand up to her face and stroke her cheek. Her skin is so soft, and I’ve missed her terribly. So, I tell her. “I missed you so much.”
She blinks, and I think she’s holding back tears. “I missed you, too.” She leans down and kisses me one more time. “I love you, Adam.”
The weight of her words hits my chest, and it’s like my life is complete now. “I love you, too, Belle.”
She laughs and rests her head on my chest, and suddenly, the rain clears. The sun peeks out from behind the clouds. Isabelle sits up and looks at the blue expanse stretching over us, dotted with clouds. It’s like the heavens themselves have opened and shine down on us, warming my skin and lighting my beautiful Belle. “Well, that was interesting timing.”
I look up at her, illuminated by the picturesque sky and sun behind her, and think how much she’s been an angel to me, sent to heal me and my life. She appeared when I least deserved her and healed every piece of me that seemed unreachable. She is everything I need and more than I could hope for. In this moment, I realize something else.
“Isabelle,” I whisper. “My sight. It’s back.”
“What?”
“I thought it’s been returning. I’ve had little flashes here and there, but I wasn’t sure. But now…I think it’s back for good.”
Her eyes widen. “Really?”
“Really. Test it out.”
She covers my good eye with one hand and holds up the other. “How many fingers am I holding up?”
“Five.”
“And now?”
“Three.”
“What color are my eyes?”
I pull her hand off my face. “Brown. But I would know that with both eyes covered.”
She laughs and holds me again, leaning her head on my chest. “I can’t believe it.”
I wrap my arms around her, contentment running through my body. “Even if I were blind in both eyes, I would be happy to just be here with you.”
Before she can respond, Lionel’s voice sounds from inside the castle. “Mr. Stone? And…Ms. Lovett? Is that you?”
“Yes, it’s me!” Isabelle says cheerily. “It’s good to see you, Lionel. And thank you and the rest of the staff for your attempts to help.”
“Help?” I ask, turning to Isabelle. “What does that mean?”
She waves a hand. “We’ll talk about it later.”
Lionel has a faint blush but just clears his throat. “Mr. Stone, your sister is calling.”
Reluctantly, Isabelle and I stand and walk to Lionel.
“Perhaps you’d like to dry off first?” he asks.
“Yes.” I look over at Isabelle. “I’ll meet you in the theater? We’ll talk to Lily there.”
She nods and kisses me once more.
I tell Lionel to relay the message to Lily, take the fastest shower of my life, and head into the theater. I’m unsure what Lily wants, but I’m also anxious to be with Isabelle. To my surprise, Isabelle walks in a minute later. She settles in next to me on the couch, and I take a moment to relish the fact that she’s here next to me.
Isabelle leans her head on my shoulder and sighs. “All right. Let’s call Lily.”
I pull out my phone and dial her number, and Lily answers right away.
“Hey, Adam,” Lily says.
“Hey, Lily. I’m here with Isabelle. Everything okay?”
“Oh! Hey, Isabelle. Um, yes. Well, you might not agree, because you’re so worried about protecting me and all that, but everything is fine. I’m fine. You’re fine. Or, you’re going to be.”
“Lily. Stop rambling. What’s going on?”
Isabelle speaks up. “Is this about the articles?”
I turn to her. “What articles?”
Isabelle’s mouth opens, then closes. “You don’t know anything?”
I shake my head slightly, and Lily speaks. “I’m going to send you a couple of links. Don’t overreact.”
Those are two words I really don’t like. “What is happening?”
“Bye, Adam!”
She hangs up. I look over at Isabelle. “Do you know what that’s all about?”
Isabelle bites her lip. “I might have an idea.”
The phone buzzes in my hand. First is a link to an article. I click it and read yet another article by my dear friend Allegra at Inside Scoop. The article talks about five women who claim that Tristan Jackson manipulated them into falling in love with them, only for him to take something from them (money, an opportunity, a connection) and leave them heartbroken and alone .
Sounds familiar.
“Did you have something to do with this?” I ask Isabelle.
She nods reluctantly. “I was trying to build a case against Tristan.”
“And?”
She shakes her head slightly. “I’m so sorry, Adam. It didn’t work. It’s not getting the negative reaction I thought it would, and then Tristan published his own video, feigning ignorance and fake-apologizing for these women misinterpreting his intentions.” She squeezes my arm. “But I’ve already talked to my dad. I won’t do the movie with him. I don’t care what this does to my acting career. The truth—and you—matter more than getting ahead as an actress.”
I shake my head in disbelief. “I can’t believe you went through all of that for me.”
“It was for you, but it was also for those women. And to get some kind of justice against Tristan. I’m embarrassed that I thought it would work.”
I kiss the top of her head. “Just trying means more to me than you’ll know. And we’ll get you into acting, I know it.”
My phone buzzes in my hand again with a new text from Lily. It’s a YouTube video link. I click it, and upon reading the title, I start to panic.
TRISTAN JACKSON EXPOSED FOR MANIPULATING A MINOR
Instead of a reporter, I see my little sister’s sweet face fill the screen. Isabelle gasps beside me. “I didn’t think she was going to say anything…”
“She can’t!” I exclaim. “The contract.”
Isabelle shakes her head. “Lily told me she never signed it. It’s invalid, at least on her end.”
I don’t even have a minute to process her words before Lily speaks on the screen .
“Hi, everyone. My name is Lily Stone, and I’m going to tell you the story of how Tristan Jackson ruined my life.”
I can’t tear my eyes from the screen as I watch my sister detail parts of the story I haven’t even heard. How Tristan met her at a party in Hollywood that she had attended with me when she was only seventeen. How he got her number and started texting her innocuously, then slowly started feeding her lines about how she was so special and different from all the other girls. That age meant nothing, and she was wise beyond her years. How he promised that she was the only one he’d ever love. With each claim, images from her phone appear on the screen, proof of these messages that he sent her.
My stomach tightens as I hear her give all these details that she never expressly told me. I didn’t want to know everything. Hearing it directly from her mouth, anger in her expression and voice, also fills me with pride that she’s now strong enough to express herself.
Her eyes shine with tears as she continues. “I was so dumb to believe him, but can you blame me? All I wanted was to be seen and feel special, like I mattered to someone. And Tristan filled that need, but not because he truly felt that way about me. It was because he knew that I was naive and weak and easily manipulated.”
She takes in a shaky breath and continues. “Anyway, right after I turned eighteen, Tristan told me he wanted to get married.” She leans toward the camera. “Yes. Married. And his plan was to take me away the night of the Goldies. I was at a different event with my other brother, Henry, when I got a frantic text from Tristan saying that Adam had punched him on the red carpet and we needed to leave earlier than expected. So I rushed out of the event and met up with him.” She pulls her long hair over her shoulder and fiddles with it. “We got to Vegas, and I thought we were going to get married right away, but he kept delaying for a few days, saying he wanted everything to be ‘perfect.’ What I didn’t know was that he was waiting for Adam to show up. And he did.”
She tosses her hair over her shoulder and continues. “Adam came for me, along with our brother Henry.” She shakes her head and laughs. “It was as if we were in a movie. Adam storms in, accusing Tristan of taking advantage of me to get back at him. The whole time, I’m crying and swearing that Tristan loves me, that he’s wrong, until my brothers proved he was right. By offering him a check in exchange for me.”
Her eyes flick upward, and I can tell she’s holding back tears. Isabelle’s hold on my arm tightens. I just want to reach through the screen and hold Lily close, telling her that she doesn’t need to do this. She doesn’t need to tell her story. She can stay safe where she is, and we’ll protect her forever.
But she looks back at the camera and speaks again. “I’ve never been so humiliated in my life. Tristan found the right person who would fall for his wiles, and preyed on my innocence and naivete. For what?” She leans in. “All Tristan wanted to do was get back at my brother for some past disagreement between them. I don’t even know what happened. For years, he’s been fooling everyone in the industry into thinking he’s Hollywood’s ‘golden boy,’ and that he can do no wrong. But I’m here to tell you that he can. And anyone who thinks Adam Stone is the problem needs to hear this side of the story. Adam signed an agreement to never speak about this because he wanted to keep me safe. But I never signed anything. And if telling the truth is going to clear Adam’s name, then I’m happy to do something for my big brother, who loves me more than anything in the world.” She hesitates with a smile. “Well, maybe not anymore.”
I chuckle, knowing she’s referring to Isabelle.
“I hope you’ll respect my right to privacy,” Lily continues on camera. “But I know that’s not realistic to expect. I will not be responding to any requests for more information or interviews. Thank you for listening, and please share this video.”
The video ends.
“I can’t believe she did that,” Isabelle murmurs beside me.
I stare at the screen. “Me neither. But…I’m proud of her.”
Isabelle nods in agreement. “What are the comments saying?”
I click on the screen. “Lily turned comments off, which is probably a smart move.” I call Lily right away, and she answers.
“You watched it.” She’s not asking; she knows.
“I did.”
“Are you angry with me?”
Am I? I’ve been saying for months that she needs to be kept in our family’s apartment to stay safe. That we needed to shield her from the world and anyone or anything that could hurt her. That she couldn’t handle being on her own yet.
But now she proved that she can handle herself, that she’s brave and strong and willing to sacrifice herself to protect me.
The way I’ve done for her.
“No,” I finally say. “I’m not angry. I’m proud of you.”
Her voice is quiet. “Thank you.”
“But I’m also worried for you,” I add. “I don’t know if you understand what this will mean.”
“I have an idea. Don’t worry, I’m not watching the video to see how many views it has. And I won’t check articles about it. I’m sure people won’t believe my story, but we know it’s true. And maybe with my first-hand account, it’ll make enough of a difference to the movie production company to change their mind.”
“And Tristan–”
“We’ll deal with Tristan if we need to,” Lily says. “But it was my turn to protect you. ”
My throat constricts, tight with a sudden wave of emotion. “Either way, thank you for trying to clear my name.”
“Anything for you,” she says. “You saved me. I love you.”
I swallow hard. “I love you, too. You, uh, stay safe, okay? We’ll talk later.”
“Sounds good.”
We hang up, and I sit back on the couch in a daze. My sister came forward. The truth is out there.
“Now what?” I ask out loud.
“We wait,” Isabelle replies. “Together.”
I look over at the perfect woman in my arm, filled with gratitude that she’s seen me this whole time. Even if no one else changes their opinion of me, at least I have her. And that’s all that matters.
“And in the meantime,” she adds, “let’s watch a movie.”