Chapter Thirty-Five
Thirty-Five
SHE’D DONE IT AGAIN. SHE’D run when she should have planted her feet firmly on the ground, dug them in, and stayed rooted. Charlie could list a lot of attributes about herself with well-earned pride. But not this. Being a coward wasn’t fair to the people in her life that she cared for. Loved.
The only good thing, in this particular moment, was that she’d found pie.
Actually, Anderson had told her about Petal’s Pie Place and drove her across town to sample what they said was the best dessert in Michigan.
I just need to collect my thoughts, make a plan, figure this out.
She could begrudgingly recognize that there was growth in running, but only so far.
She wasn’t leaving Smile or Michigan. Or Grayson. Not like this.
When Charlie had texted her mom, Vivi insisted that she hadn’t told Isaiah where Charlie was. How the hell was he here today? If her mother hadn’t shared, and she believed her because Vivi was an awful liar, then how had he known where to find Charlie?
“Get you some more soda?” the waitress asked. She had purple and pink streaks in her hair, a nose and lip ring, and eye makeup that matched her hair.
“I’m good, thanks.”
The waitress shrugged and went over to the booth where some of her friends were sitting and slid in to chat with them, as she had most of the time Charlie was there.
Charlie picked up her fork and took another bite of chocolate caramel cream pie.
It might not be the answer to all of her problems, but it was definitely helping.
She’d stolen a boat. Biting back a groan of irritation with her own childish behavior, she pulled out her phone.
Action. She needed to do something so she could avoid wrecking everything.
Grayson’s text sat, unread, on her phone because she didn’t want to respond while her thoughts were still bouncing like a rubber ball, impossible to grab hold of.
She needed to phone Isaiah. Text him. Something. He’d not only come to Smile, he was staying at the lodge. And who was the smarmy guy with him?
Seeing no other way to get answers, she pulled up Isaiah’s contact and dialed.
He answered immediately. “Hey, Char. You hightailed it away from the lodge. Didn’t even say hi when we were less than six feet apart.
That’s cold, darlin’.” Before she could say anything, he continued.
“Your boyfriend seems a bit more rugged than your usual type. And not overly host-like. He rushed us up to our room, didn’t even offer to show us around the place.
I always thought you liked your men more polished. ”
Her fingers curled around the phone and she had to unclench her teeth to speak. “I like men who are honest about their intentions and who they are. But who I’m with is none of your business. Why are you here and more than that, how did you know I was here?”
The silence was long enough to make her heartbeat echo in her ears.
“I put Find my Friends on your phone when we dated. Forgot to tell you to take it off.”
More growth—she didn’t throw the phone across the pie shop even when anger sank all the way into her bones at his admission.
Her pulse short-circuited. She had trusted this man and thought she had reason to.
She gave advice to other people on how to live their lives and make powerful choices. And she’d been completely blind.
“I can’t believe you. What is wrong with you? You need to leave.”
“So, tell me about this guy.”
“Isaiah,” she hissed. “You need to leave.”
“I will. I promise. I don’t want you to be mad at me. I came because I was worried about you and you’ve been through so much, it seems like a waste for you not to benefit from it somehow. After all you’ve endured, you deserve something good.”
“So, you stalked my phone without permission and came to offer it?” She pushed the pie away, her stomach churning.
“Sit down with me and Jenning. He’s a top-notch producer. He was going to work on the reality show with your mom—you can even ask her—but, I’m guessing you heard, the engagement is off. But he still thinks he can pull something together with you, me, and your mom. It’s like a new start.”
Vivi had mentioned this. Charlie had no more interest now than she did then. Charlie closed her eyes, unable to believe that she’d gone from having one of the best nights of her life to another nightmare. When she opened her eyes, she did her best to remain calm.
“You need to leave. You’re not welcome here. I came here to get away from all of this. I want nothing to do with your friend, you, or a production of any sort, and I want you to go back home. Lose my number.”
“That’s not fair, Charlie. I cared about you. You couldn’t do anything for me before, but now you can. I just need a foot in the door. Give me a month. Let Jenning shoot some footage, do some interviews.”
“How are you not hearing me?” God, what if he found out about Bernie?
“Same as you’re not hearing me, I guess.”
With no other option, she appealed to his humanity. “Isaiah, if you cared about me, or still do, I’m asking you to drop this and go home. No one in Smile or at the lodge knows who I actually am and I just needed the anonymity and space to sort things out. I’m asking you, please, to let this go.”
She waited, holding her breath for a few extra seconds.
“I can do that. I will do that. If you agree to talk to me and Jenning tomorrow. One conversation and then I’ll go if we can’t convince you.”
The lack of options and control over her own life was blowing her mind. But at least this way, she could tell Grayson the truth. She could control the narrative and didn’t even have to tell him, yet, about the humiliating video.
“Fine. A half hour tomorrow. I’ll choose the time and where at the lodge, but you absolutely cannot talk to anyone there about me, or I will release my own statement to the media saying that you followed me here and tried to blackmail me.”
She’d do it right this second except she couldn’t blindside Gray, and she knew that Isaiah would do something worse if she didn’t say yes now. At least this way she felt like she had a finger somewhere near the control panel.
When she hung up, the waitress was looking at her oddly. Charlie ducked her head, wishing she were somewhere else. Wishing she were with Grayson.
No more running or hiding. She grabbed the keys to the boat and her purse, typed out a text to Grayson, telling him she was sorry and on the way back. Then, she figured it never hurt to bring a peace offering and ordered six pieces of pie, to go.