Chapter 5
Chapter Five
Ican’t believe I’m sitting in a cafe in Crescent Lake with Izzy Ross.
I must be dreaming.
Yet, I know I’m not.
Before seeing her again, I could recall every strand of her ebony hair, each coal lash that frames those gray eyes of hers, those pink lips… every curve of her form, and that floral scent I could never quite pinpoint that always made my mouth water.
Izzy is really here. With me.
This could be an opportunity. This could be how I get a chance with the Omega who got away years ago.
I never expected to run into anyone I knew here, especially not Izzy. But fate has other plans, it seems.
She usually does.
From the moment I’d first met Izzy in Los Angeles, I’d been drawn to her energy, to her beauty. But it wasn’t meant to be at the time.
She’d been in a relationship, and I… had been with her.
But now I’m not. And I need to know if she’s with someone now. Especially since I somehow found my pack brother here, of all places.
I realize I’ve been gaping at the poor woman like a cod, and snap my mouth shut.
Bloody hell, mate. Get it together.
“So,” I say, a bit louder than I’d meant to, “are you going to be here through Thanksgiving?”
Izzy nods as she sips her water, then twists the cap back on. “Yeah, I figured I could just hang here, low-key. No stress.”
You should spend the holiday with me. Say it, wanker. Speak!
“Erm,” I cough. “That sounds nice.”
Tosser.
She smiles, and it’s absolutely brilliant. I force myself to sip my tea to keep from staring at her again.
Letting out a slow, measured breath, I offer some information about myself, a primer to soften the blow of asking her the question I want the answer to.
“I’m sure you’ve seen that I had a… very public breakup a little more than a year ago.”
Her smile gives way to a solemn yet contemplative expression. “Yeah,” she says with a small wince. “It’s a little hard not to notice those things, even when you don’t keep up with Hollywood stuff.”
Her answer pleases me on some level. She doesn’t actively seek out celebrity gossip. Somehow, I knew that she wasn’t that kind of person, even though I don’t really know her.
My head bobs once, and I hold her gaze as I tell her the truth. “I didn’t do any of the things she’s accusing me of.”
Her warm smile returns, a hint of pity in her eyes, but honest, not performative. “I knew you hadn’t.”
I blink as I lean back a bit. “How?”
“I usually have a good sense for people, and you never struck me as the kind of person that woman is claiming you are.” Her head tilts. “I just don’t understand why you aren’t fighting back harder.”
Ah. And there is the crux of the issue. Why, indeed?
My lips purse a moment before parting to tell her, “I don’t think I have it in me to fight anymore. My reputation is tarnished beyond repair. I’m a pariah. And honestly, I lost all the love I once had for Hollywood. Why would I expend so much energy to get back something I don’t even want?”
Saying this aloud is terrifying and freeing. I hadn’t even told my closest of friends, not even my family. Yet, here I am, sitting with a woman I hardly know yet feel this unexplainable connection with, spilling my darkest secrets with ease.
Izzy’s hand slides across the tabletop to grip mine, holding my teacup’s handle. Her skin is soft and warm, and my body stills at her touch. A rumble threatens to escape my chest, and… am I… am I about to purr?
That can’t be…
“You don’t need to do anything you don’t want to, Asher.
” Her voice is soft, melodic. I hang on every word.
“I hate that your reputation has taken a blow because of someone’s lies.
You’re a kindhearted, generous man. Anyone who’s ever met you says so.
You’ve been known as the kindest man in Hollywood for as long as you’ve been a celebrity.
That’s the sort of reputation people would kill for.
” She sighs on a frown, removes her hand from mine, leaving my skin cold.
“And, unfortunately, it’s the kind of reputation people envy and would lie to ruin. As you well know.”
Insightful young woman. She’s not even a part of the Hollywood zeitgeist and seems to understand it quite well. Or, maybe it’s simply people she understands.
“Are you still with that streamer?”
There. It may not have been eloquent, but I asked the question burning in my gut all this time.
Her kind expression falters, changes to something darker, sad.
“No,” she says quietly. “We… broke up a while ago.”
Hm. I want to ask if there’s anyone new in her life, but the sad energy coming off her in waves is a pretty clear indication that she’s not over the Alpha gamer she’d been with when we’d met. Chances are, she isn’t with anyone new.
Izzy pulls up the sleeve of her coat and checks her watch. “I actually need to get back to where I’m staying. I have a few things to take care of.” She sounds perhaps a bit disappointed. “Would you maybe exchange numbers with me? We could do this again while we’re both here.”
My grin threatens to crack my face as I reach into my back pocket and pull out my phone. She AirDrops her contact information, which I save, then text her a quick response so she has my number, too.
And not at all because I don’t know how to AirDrop. Not. At. All.
“May I walk you to your place?” I ask, hopeful.
Her smile turns a tad crooked, a little glint forms in her eye. “I mean, sure? I won’t turn down a handsome escort.”
Handsome. She thinks I’m handsome.
With a youthful pep in my step, I bring my empty tea cup and carafe to the drop-off spot, toss my used tea bag in the bin, and turn back to Izzy, who’s waiting by the door.
The outside air feels even cooler now than it had when I’d walked here, even though not much time had passed. It’s strange how the seasons are so different only seven hours north or south in the same state.
I’m used to a damp chill from when I was growing up. After I’d graduated from uni, Mum returned to Leicestershire, so when I visit her outside of summer, it’s a weather shock.
I admit, I prefer the weather in Southern California, but you just can’t beat the views of the North.
“How long are you staying here?”
I turn my head to peer at Izzy. “I’ve been here for about a year now, actually. I haven’t decided if I’ll go back to Los Angeles or not.”
Her eyes widen a bit. “I hadn’t realized you’ve been living here that long.”
And that was by design. I didn’t make my move public, and I’ve gone out of my way to keep my head down. Although it doesn’t seem I need to in this small town. No one who’s recognized me has made a deal of it, nor has anyone posted pictures of me online.
This town has my respect for that.
We travel a familiar path west of Main Street, then turn to our left at the bottom of a tall hill.
The tall hill that I have been living at the top of for the past year. With my newly-discovered pack brother and owner of the Bed and Breakfast, Will Thomas.
When we reach the walkway that leads to The Cozy Crescent, Izzy turns to me with a smile.
“This is me,” she says, gesturing to the beautiful cottage that I know all too well.
And I’m back to gaping at her.