Chapter 18
Carly sipped at her coffee as she stared over the horizon, Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto the perfect compliment to the scene of distant, crashing waves.
When she told people at the resort that she was from California, they often assumed she had this very view—the magnificent ocean and all its splendor.
Of course, that wasn’t the case for the majority of Californians.
And as beautiful and plenty as the beaches might be in her home state, Myrtle Beach would always own a piece of her heart.
Especially now.
She closed her eyes to recall the glorious moments spent with Gage in her room last night.
Kissing Gage had become her new favorite pastime.
Once Carly discovered the thrill of surfing, she had a hard time thinking of anything else.
At that point, her small family lived close to the beach, and Carly spent plenty of school days counting down the hours, minutes, and seconds until she could hit the sand running, board in hand.
It had become like that with Gage. His kiss had that same addictive quality; each time it was a little different. Slow and lingering. Passionate and urgent. But one thing was very sure—every encounter with that man’s masterful mouth was bliss.
She sighed, brought the mug to her chin, and inhaled the aroma of freshly brewed coffee. Life was good. So what if she got kicked off the resort for a time? She was getting paid for it. And Gage planned to come over as soon as his lesson with Marcus was through.
A buzz sounded from her phone just then, pulling her away from the view and back toward the kitchenette in her suite. She snatched up the small device and flipped it over to see the screen. Jimmy calling.
Perhaps word had gotten out that she’d been cozying up to Mark Craven’s son on the beach. Maybe the beach photo of her and Gage had wound up on one of the magazine covers at the shop. A thick dose of dread shuddered through her as she pictured trying to talk to him about her relationship with Gage.
“No, I’m not doing that right now.” She’d already warned him that she was moving on.
He’d have to deal with it and move on as well.
With a quick tap, she sent the call to voicemail.
She pulled out a chair and sat next, staring at the phone to see if he’d leave a message.
He did. The notification that popped up on her screen told her as much.
Muscles tight, dread growing thicker, she reached out, swiped the screen and considered listening to the stupid thing.
Yet before she could even set her mind to it, the phone started ringing once more. Jimmy again.
Dread turned to outright panic at the sight. Something was wrong; there had to be. She swiped her finger across the screen and pulled it to her ear in a rush. “Jimmy?”
“How could you let this happen?” The hurt in his voice made her heart drop.
“What? What is it?”
“Don’t act like you don’t know.”
She shot to her feet and hurried back over to the window.
“Are you talking about my relationship with …” The thought occurred to her that she was probably still not allowed to reveal Gage’s name, so she stopped there and went a different route.
“I don’t owe you anything, Jimmy. You have to know that. You can’t just string me along—”
“I’m talking about Ava.”
Every muscle in Carly’s body clenched at the sound of her name. It seemed to be a subconscious defense tactic, guard yourself for the onslaught of pain. But to hear it at such an unexpected—not to mention alarming—fashion, she could hardly manage to pull in another breath.
She dropped to her knees and cradled the phone with both hands now. “What about Ava?” Were the sirens she heard outside or in her head?
“They know we had a baby, and they’ve plastered pictures of us holding her on like, ten different tabloids, Carly.”
“That’s impossible.”
“It gets worse,” Jimmy snapped. “Here’s the caption. Craven’s mystery mistress has a secret—a mysterious infant death from her teenage pregnancy.”
Carly’s head grew light as her vision threatened to black out altogether. She felt herself sway toward the window but caught herself by resting a palm on the glass. “I can’t believe it,” she said. “I can’t believe…and how would they get pictures?”
“They bring me into it by saying that the father of the infant has kept the same small-town job since he was sixteen years old.”
“I’m so sorry, Jimmy. I didn’t anticipate anything like this. I don’t…I don’t even know what to say.” And she didn’t, but Carly did know what to do about it. At least for the moment. She’d go home. Be near Jill and her mom and…and miss out on the last few days with Gage?
“Listen, I’ve got to figure out what I’m going to do. I’ll call you back.”
“This wouldn’t have happened if you wouldn’t have gotten mixed up with that man, Carly.”
The comment caused her to pull the phone from her face and stare at it in amazement.
Had he really just said something so stupid?
“Listen, Jimmy. I’m sick that this happened.
I never imagined anyone would stoop so low as to plaster such a personal thing all over their pages, but one thing I’ll never regret is the time I’ve spent with Gage.
I love him. And he loves me in a way you never could. Or would.”
She ended the call then, irritation giving her the fuel she needed to act.
It didn’t take long to throw her items back into her travel bag.
She wasn’t exactly sure whether she’d come back to the room or not, so Carly unplugged her phone charger as she headed toward the exit.
The mug holding her unfinished coffee let off steam in the sunlight from its spot on the side table, the rest of the place looked untouched. Like she’d never been there.
Carly tugged open the heavy door and headed toward the elevators. Once she was safely in her car, she’d call Gage and ask him to meet her someplace. From there he could help her figure out what to do. Perhaps his father could use his clout to put an end to this whole mess.
In the foyer, two sets of elevators awaited her. Carly pressed the button on one set, then hurried to the other side and pressed the other. A ding sounded, the doors to her left rolled open, and Carly carted her luggage inside. Another ding sounded, and suddenly she heard a familiar voice.
“You’ve got the wrong idea, Dad, I’m telling you.” It was Gage’s voice.
The door started to close, but Carly put a hand out to stop it. This was perfect; now she could hurry and say goodbye.
“I don’t have any interest in that woman,” he boomed. “How many times do I have to tell you?”
Carly yanked her hand back like it’d been burned, allowing the doors to close just in time. Suddenly the elevator sank, fast and certain, along with every hope she’d had where Gage was concerned.
That woman? Nausea rolled through her gut in a slow and thorough crawl.
He’d shown up at her apartment, hadn’t he?
That had to mean that he cared. Or maybe what it really meant was that he was hoping to do damage control now that her past had been splattered all over the tabloids where it threatened to taint his reputation.
What if Gage hadn’t sent that text to his father after all?
What if he’d been keeping his true feelings a secret this whole time?
Carly had skipped the valet service upon arrival and opted for the guest parking garage instead—thank heavens she had.
She didn’t want to stop walking for a second.
Or to speak to a single soul. She wished she had a pair of sunglasses as big as her face and a sign that said please don’t look at me, talk to me, or see that I’m here.
Her phone started to buzz from inside of her bag. Probably Gage realizing that she wasn’t in her room. Or at very least, not answering. It seemed, by what she’d overheard him saying to his father, that Gage wanted to get her out of his life, and quick.
Carly would give him what he wanted. She’d get out of his way. She only wished she could take the horrible gossip about her past along with her.
In a frantic rush, she pried open the back door to her rental car and shoved in the luggage. Next she sank behind the steering wheel and slammed the door closed. The loud sound of her panting breath filled the space.
It felt like the blood in her veins had been swapped out for acid, her insides burning as she considered the depths of Gage’s betrayal. Just moments ago, Carly had told Jimmy that she didn’t regret her time with Gage, but that was when she thought he was interested in a future with her.
Dealing with gossip for a man who’d committed to her was one thing.
But taking the brunt of such slanderous words for a man who’d been hiding his feelings for her all along?
That wasn’t something she was willing to take.
If she’d merely traded one unavailable man for another like she’d feared, Carly would be forced to cut Gage loose too.
One day, she’d manage to move on. One day, she might even love again. But for now, Carly couldn’t imagine how she would get through the pain.