Chapter 32
Chapter Thirty-Two
Deacon
I stood at the top of the hill with my phone to my ear, trying to understand Cody’s string of unintelligible curses.
“I’m just taking a couple weeks off, Cody,” I assured him. “You need to chill.”
“Just a couple weeks with no notice , Deacon,” Cody argued. “I have no idea how I’m going to spin this. Rehab? Mental health, something about mental health.”
“I’m sorry I had to cancel a couple obligations, but the schedule was light,” I justified. “And I just finished filming. I should be able to get a couple weeks off.”
“Yeah, on a planned vacation to Monaco or something where we get photos of you and Ivy sunbathing on a mega yacht. The team is completely freaking out over here,” Cody complained. “They think you’re completely in love with this bird girl and she’s going to Yoko your career.”
“I am in love with her.” Warmth bloomed in my chest at the proclamation, even as Cody muttered another string of curses under his breath. “And people really need to give Yoko a break already.”
“Oh god.” Cody groaned. “I really wish you hadn’t just said that to me. I’ve just finalized the plan for next quarter. We can’t get this time back after this all ends terribly. Think with your head and not your dick, Deacon.”
“I am,” I replied tightly. “I’ve been in love with her forever and finally the stars aligned and she wants to be with me too. She’s the one, Cody.”
“ The one? ” Cody made a gagging sound. “But you’re still going to act like Ivy is the one for the promotion of this movie, right? I’ve worked to the point of exhaustion on this plan. You signed off on it just a few weeks ago!”
My gut clenched. Acting was one thing, but I didn’t want to leverage my personal life into letting people think I was in love with anyone other than Dove anymore. That was a step too far. I didn’t want to pretend. Not when everything finally made sense.
“Your silence is deafening,” Cody snapped. “Please, Deacon. I’m sorry I’m being harsh right now, but I need you on board with this Ivy thing. Six years we’ve been working together. And now you’re one of the highest paid actors in Hollywood, and I know I’m not your agent, but I’d like to think I played a small part in that.”
“You did,” I admitted.
“So . . . we already have a whole promo tour planned based on you and Ivy being loved up. It’s what we agreed upon when you decided to produce a romantic comedy of all things. This was our compromise, remember?”
I pinched the bridge of my nose. “I remember.”
“So we stick to the plan.”
“We can find a new plan,” I pleaded.
“Get serious, Deac?—”
“No,” I growled, finally having enough.
He always did this. He always lured me in with guilt to keep me in line. And in the end, I always conceded. But nothing was more important to me than protecting what I’d just found with Dove. If she wanted me, I was hers. Simple as that.
“I don’t work for you, Cody. You work for me,” I gritted out. “I’m in love with Dove and I’m not going to ruin the rest of my future in order to sell some B-grade movie we’re only making because I promised Dove I’d use this place as a filming location, understand?”
The line was dead for a long time before Cody finally said coldly, “Understood. I’ll find a way to fix it.”
“Thank you.” I hung up and turned to find Dove frozen halfway down the path. A bucket of green waste was in her hand, her eyes filled with cautionary concern.
“You what?”
My mind reeled as I realized what I’d just said.
“I . . .”
Dove dropped the bucket and folded her arms. “This movie.” She searched the air as if looking for answers. “Deacon, please tell me that this whole movie wasn’t just so you had an excuse to give me money.”
I blew out a long breath. No point lying now. It was clear from her expression that she already knew the truth.
“You wouldn’t have taken it if I just gave it to you.” Her mouth fell open, and I scrambled to explain myself. “The fact you even called me told me how dire the situation was,” I pushed. “They were going to sell the zoo. You were going to lose your home , your family’s legacy.” I took a step forward, hands clasped and pleading. “And I was afraid you still wouldn’t take the money from pride alone, so when you called and asked if I could use the zoo for a filming location, I panicked and said yes.” I panted, barely able to get the words out fast enough. “And then I went to work green-lighting this thing because I wanted to make this happen for you. Please .” I took her hands in mine. “Don’t hate me for this. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you.”
To my relief, she didn’t pull away. “You know, I always thought the amount you were paying to use the zoo was insane.” Brows pinched, she shook her head. “I had a feeling you were padding the numbers to give us more, but . . . making a whole movie just for the zoo?”
“For you,” I clarified. “I’d do anything for you, Dove. Always. That’s how much you mean to me.”
Her eyes welled, and I was so relieved for a split second before she said, “I don’t want to Yoko your career.”
“You heard that too, huh?”
“I don’t want to kill your dream.”
“Baby,” I murmured, wiping a tear as it slipped down her cheek. “You could never do that.”
“Listen, Deacon, these last two days have been incredible,” she started. “But we need to talk about the elephant in the room.”
“I didn’t think you had elephants.”
“Not right now.”
“Okay.” I chuckled, making a mocking serious face.
“You know we can’t be a couple.”
My muscles constricted, fear spiking in me. “Of course we can.”
“You have an image to keep up.”
“First of all, fuck my image,” I asserted. “Secondly, the only image I want people to have of me is a man madly in love with his childhood sweetheart, of an actor who is hopelessly devoted to the love of his life. That is the image I want.”
“I like that image,” she said with a sniff. I hated that she was crying but loved that she was willing to show all of her emotions to me. I knew how rare that was. “But you and I have very different lives. I want?—”
“You want to make a big impact in the world of wildlife conservation,” I supplied.
“Yes.”
“You want to travel the world and see new places and discover new things.”
“Yes.”
I held her cheeks and kissed her, murmuring across her lips. “And I’m the perfect person to do all those things with.” I rested my forehead to hers. “You can be the permanent director of the trust—you’re the best person for the job,” I continued before she could protest. “And you could travel with me on promo tours and to film festivals and shooting on location all over the world while doing your conservation work.”
“You’ve thought about this.”
“Every day since you walked back into my life,” I confessed. “Every day, I started thinking of all the ways I could make you happy, of all the ways we could be together.”
Her tears fell heavier and I kissed them away. “Be mine, Dove Lachlan,” I pleaded.
“I already am,” she said and kissed me.