Chapter 7 Ember
EMBER
I'd been hiding since yesterday evening when I got home from work, which was awkward, to say the least.
Following Dr. Bradley around knowing what we'd done felt scandalous even though no one knew a thing except the two of us.
And every time someone whispered something around me, I jumped to conclusions, assuming they thought the worst of me or that they'd figured out what we did.
After that photographer snapped our picture, he had asked me to go home with him, but I just couldn’t.
As alluring as the idea of great sex with him was, I just wasn’t in the mood, and I told him as much.
Shame felt like my permanent aura, following me everywhere I went.
I couldn't fathom the idea of talking to my best friend, either, because she'd been the one to encourage me to go for it and I knew that was the wrong move at that time.
Now I had to live with the consequences of my bad choice.
Including the tabloids that probably already had that photo of me and Dr. Bradley at the charity event.
And the things those men said at dinner…
My gut roiled with guilt and embarrassment while my phone buzzed yet again on my nightstand.
Id' been sitting with my head covered with my blanket for the past twenty minutes, too flustered to care who was calling, so when I picked up the phone and saw it was a video call from Amelia, I almost didn't answer.
I dismissed the notifications that my mother had called and Dr. Bradley had messaged and swiped across my screen to answer the call.
The minute her face appeared, she was squealing. "Oh. My. God, Ember! You didn't tell me your boss was so hot!"
I wanted to be giddy with her, believe me, but just the mention of my boss made more shame well up.
All the worst things I could imagine happening played on repeat in my head.
San Diego did a number on my mind and my heart, and I didn't want a repeat in any way.
What happened there was just downright bullying. Brad had no right to do what he did.
But this time, I was walking into it with eyes wide open. I just didn't know how to stop myself.
"Yeah," I said halfheartedly. "He's hot…"
"You sound like crap. Are you sick?" She popped a strawberry slice into her mouth and chewed obnoxiously while I sucked in a breath and propped my phone up on my nightstand so she could see me while I had a mini meltdown.
Because I knew that was coming.
"I'm fine."
"You're not fine, Ember. I know you when you’re fine and this is hot mess city." She waited, but I had no response because she knew me better than I knew myself sometimes.
So I sat there with my chin on my knees which were tucked to my chest in a bear hug. "Oh, my God…" she said in a breathy tone.
"What?" I asked, not turning to look at her.
Whatever epiphany she had, I was sure she was going to make me very aware of it.
I wanted to be back home in my parents' house.
I didn't know why I ever wanted to leave and come here.
Yes, I needed to get away, but I could've just hidden for a while longer, made my way some other place.
"You slept with him, didn't you? Holy…. My God, Ember, I wasn't actually being serious." She sucked in a breath and continued before I could defend myself. "I mean, I was but I wasn't… You know what I mean. Like honestly, your boss? And was it good? I mean a man that old probably has a lot of—"
"Christ," I breathed a little too loudly, pressing my hands to my face.
"Sorry," she mumbled. The line went quiet for a moment and she sighed softly and said, "I'm here, bestie. What can I do?"
Uncovering my face, I propped my chin on my knee again and then rolled my head to the side until I could see her and a grin stretched my lips until I felt it touch my eyes.
"It was actually pretty incredible," I admitted and forced the shame away. This was my best friend, and I told her everything. So I could afford to be vulnerable with her.
"Eeek! I knew it. Tell me everything." She grabbed another strawberry, and I dived into how it all went down, not sparing any detail except the way his dirty words made it so much hotter.
That was just for me.
"So basically, I'm afraid to go out in public now.
Like, they put that kiss on the news. It's supposed to be just a tradition thing, so maybe they do it every year, but you should've heard the way the men at the hospital charity event were talking about us.
It was sick. And God, Amelia, he's twice my age. Literally. He could be my dad."
"Well, he's not your dad," she said, snickering. "But he could be your daddy if you let him…"
I couldn’t stifle the laugh.
She always knew how to break me out of my funk. I didn't know why I ignored her calls earlier. I needed this.
"Thanks for cheering me up."
"Anytime, babe. I know you don't like those cameras, but remember this is nothing like what Douchebag Brad did. It seems like this Hearthkeeper gig is actually an honor or something.
And you've done nothing wrong.
You are a consenting adult.
So if you don’t want the heat, just use boundaries." She shrugged. "And if he fires you, then claim a harassment suit."
Someone knocked on my door and I looked up.
Suing Dr. Bradley wasn't ever going to be a thing, but shrinking back and dying a slow death in a dark cave somewhere might be. "Look, Amelia, I have to go, okay? Thanks for calling."
"Anytime, toots."
The call ended and my screen flashed before going black.
I struggled to my feet, leaving my phone there, and waddled out in my oversized sweats and sweatshirt to the door.
A glance through the peephole made me feel instant panic.
Nathan Bradley stood on my welcome mat staring up the hallway in his grey suit and silver hair.
My God, if my neighbors saw him, I was screwed.
I yanked that door open so fast it made my hair dance in the breeze and then I grabbed him by the arm and tugged him in even faster.
I almost slammed the door, but not before glancing both ways in the hall to make sure no one was watching.
"What on earth are you doing here?" I hissed, turning around, and he thrust the tabloid paper out toward me.
What I saw was worse than the shock of my boss showing up unannounced.
The photo from the fundraiser had been printed alongside a title that read, She Doesn't Just Keep Hearths Warm.
I felt my cheeks burning as I noticed the way Dr. Bradley's hand was almost touching my back in the picture, the way he was leaning in to whisper in my ear, and my smile. God, I was so relaxed with him.
"What the…"
"Okay, so take a deep breath. It's just a tabloid, but I wanted to be here when you saw it." He held his hands out to try to calm me, but I had to drop the paper and sit down.
My head spun.
I felt my vision blurring and I pressed two fingers to each temple.
This was how it all started with Brad too. He let things leak and then felt horrible when he knew it would go viral, so he came rushing to me to try to "fix things".
It'd been too late for months by then.
Our relationship had been a shell, and he only pulled that crap when I told him it was over.
His comfort was no comfort, and it was only a few videos on his private social media.
Then it exploded.
"Are you okay?" Dr. Bradley asked, kneeling in front of me. He took my hands and pulled them down from my face. "Ember, talk to me.”
"I just… It's… The cameras and the media." I was hyperventilating, talking in circles.
"Alright, slow down here." He guided my hand to my face where I forced myself to breathe through my sleeve, and when I was finally not lightheaded anymore, he asked, "Are you okay now?"
"I just… I had this thing that happened, where gossip went wild. I moved away from San Diego after that.
It was in the press and stuff, school message boards…" My cheeks burned and tears brimmed in my eyes, and I thought he was finally getting it. Publicity wasn't my friend.
His hands came up and cradled my cheeks while his thumbs brushed the tears from my eyes.
"Okay, so I never meant to make light of the situation. Alright? I swear I had no clue, and we'll fix this. I promise." His words were an attempt at reassurance, but they missed the mark.
But when he pulled me into his chest and held me, I felt slightly better. "I swear it, Ember. I never meant for this to happen. It got out of control and I'll fix it."
I leaned into him, breathed in the scent of his cologne.
He was trying, which was more than I could ever have said about Brad.
It didn’t make it easier, but it meant I wasn't alone in this mess.
So when he pulled away, I felt the absence of his arms around me and whimpered. "That felt good," I admitted, and he smiled.
"I didn't come here for that."
"I know… Thank you for telling me about this. I'd have found out when I walked into work and had a total meltdown." I wiped at my face and he pinched my chin in one hand, smiling softly.
"I think that would be cute. Then I could kiss your whole face and…" He stopped himself as embarrassment rose to my cheeks again.
Just the fact that he was talking to me like that made this entire messed up situation feel a little too real to me.
No one talks like that unless they’re involved.
"Dr. Bradley," I said softly.
"Nate," he responded. "I told you to call me Nate."
"Well, then… Nate… What’s going on between us?" My eyes danced around his face and I still couldn't figure him out. He stared at me with a mixture of affection and attraction and shook his head.
But the force pulling us together was hypnotic and magnetic.
He leaned forward and brushed his lips over mine, pulling back to look at my face, as if asking for permission, and when I did nothing he kissed me again, harder this time.
I leaned into Nate's kiss, surrendering to the magnetic pull that had drawn us together from the start.
Our tongues danced, sliding against each other as his strong hands gripped my hips and yanked me flush against his body.
I felt the rigid line of his erection straining through his suit pants, pressing insistently against my thigh, and a fresh wave of need pulsed between my legs.