Chapter 23
Chapter Twenty-Three
ELENA
"I 'm going to have to let you go. There's a picture of you kissing Hudson, one of the bachelors. It's getting more views than what I posted."
I knew this was a possibility, but I still couldn't believe it was happening. I was powerless to stop our relationship from developing or resisting Hudson. "The article was a success. You said yourself that views and comments on social media are blowing up. Everyone wants to know the Kingston brothers."
"And you're dating one of the bachelors. That makes him not so eligible, doesn't it?" Valerie sneered. "You ruined everything."
"There are four other brothers in the article," I said lamely.
"The post blowing up on social media is the one with you and Hudson kissing on the beach with the headline 'Journalist Hooks Up with Most Eligible Bachelor.' You're the story. Not the article or the poll about which brother is the hottest. You." Valerie emphasized each word.
"I'm so sorry, Valerie. That was never my intention. I figured we could keep it quiet until after the article came out. The publicity would die down, and then we could go public."
"You were wrong. And you weren't exactly hiding anything. You were kissing him on the beach where anyone could see you."
That moment on the beach was private. My personal life had been thrust into the public eye. An intimate moment had been exploited. And the worst part was that Hudson didn't trust me anymore. He thought I was involved in the social-media posts and the publicity surrounding the story. The longer I stood here with Valerie, the farther away Hudson was getting from me. "I never intended for any of this to happen."
"Well, you should have thought of that before you hooked up with Hudson. You ruined your own story. No one will hire you after this. You're toxic."
The thing that could hurt me was that negative publicity was affiliated with my name on a byline. And it was a fluff piece, not what I wanted to do with my career. It could poison me for more serious journalistic opportunities. But I knew that when I took the job. I just wanted something to fill the time and pay for me to be near my grandmother. "You should have told me you were planning a social-media campaign. And you could have given me a warning about the changes to the article."
"I don't have to do anything."
"It would have been the right thing to do. I don't want to work with someone who would do something like this."
"I fired you."
I stepped back. "That's for the best. A good boss would have discussed all of this with me first.”
Before Valerie could say anything further, I moved away from her, and out the back door. I didn't want to talk to anyone else. I needed time to myself to figure out what just happened.
There were the social-media posts that whipped people into a frenzy over the brothers. Then the picture of me kissing Hudson. Apparently, women wanted to believe that the Kingston brothers were single. There were a lot of negative comments about me.
Then there was Hudson. He felt hurt and betrayed by the posts and the change in the article. He knew that I didn't have the final say, but I don't think either of us anticipated that she would change things so drastically.
It read more like a dating app profile than a personal interest story on the Kingstons. I was so embarrassed that I'd trusted Valerie. She'd taken my story and made it into something else entirely.
It had merely become a piece about how hot the guys were and which one was more attractive. It was a shallow story, and I knew Jonathan and the rest of the Kingstons would hate it. I needed to apologize to them. But I wasn't sure how to go about it.
When I got out of my car and walked up the sidewalk, the sky opened, and the rain came down in torrents. My hair was plastered to my head, but I paused and lifted my face to the sky. When the first rumble sounded, I snapped into motion and ran for the door.
Grams was already in bed, so I ran up the stairs to take off my wet clothes. I dried off and dressed in my comfiest loungewear. Then I sat on my chair to watch the storm.
Lightening zigzagged across the sky. Rain pounded overhead on the roof, and thunder rumbled loudly. I usually enjoyed storms, but my heart was torn in two. I felt betrayed and responsible for the fallout at the same time.
I'd wanted to write an article that showed who the Kingstons were, and Valerie took that and cheapened it. There was almost nothing in the final article about their volunteer work or their work ethic.
My head ached, and my eyes burned with exhaustion. But I needed to do something.
What if I published the original article with a short note about what happened? What if I used Valerie's social-media game against her? I didn't have much of a social-media presence, but I might still have access to the magazine's social media platforms even though I never did anything with them.
I grabbed my laptop and pulled up the original article. Then I signed into the Island Times social-media platforms. I wanted to post on all the apps at once. But I needed to get the words on the post just right.
I took a deep breath and typed.
It's important for everyone to see the original article before the editor-in-chief, Valerie Simmons altered it and made the Kingston brothers into something they aren't. When I began my research, I wondered who were the Kingstons who run the only contracting business on the island. What I found far exceeded my expectations. These men are serious about their work and loyal to a fault. Each one is involved volunteer work that is meaningful to them outside the business. These are hardworking men who want their business and the community to thrive.
At the beginning of this assignment, I was tasked with shadowing the eldest brother, Hudson. He was the responsible one, destined to take over the business. At first, he wanted nothing to do with me. But as I worked by his side, willing to do whatever he did that day, he opened up to me. A relationship formed between us, and I was powerless to resist him.
I knew this development could affect my article and my reputation, but I did it anyway. That was my fault. I can't regret falling in love with him. He was the one thing I never counted on. But I betrayed his trust. I didn't do my due diligence, and I allowed the article to become something it was never supposed to be. So here's the real story. I hope after you're finished reading it, you love the Kingstons as much as I do.
And Hudson, if you're reading this, I hope you can forgive me. I never meant for any of this to happen.
When the post was written, my finger hovered over the Post button. Once I hit publish, I would only be adding to the media frenzy. But the most important thing was that Hudson understood that I never intended for any of this to happen.
I'd hit Publish and hope it fixed some of the damage Valerie caused. I knew I needed to find Hudson, but I wasn't sure where he was. And I knew he didn't want to talk to me. I should let him calm down and wait until he was thinking clearly.
The man I knew wouldn't think the worst of me. He'd trust that I had our best interests at heart. I couldn't pretend that his accusations hadn't hurt.
I closed the laptop and turned off the notifications on my phone. I didn't want to talk to anyone. I didn't want to see what people were commenting on my post. I couldn't handle it. Not now, when I felt splayed open.
I rested my head on the pillow, listening to the slowing patter of the rain against the window. It used to bring me comfort, and maybe it would now. It reminded me of all the good times I spent with Hudson in the rain. The time we ran from the ocean to beat the storm, not quite making it. Our first kiss.
Something struck the window, and I started. Was it a branch from the wind? The thing was, there weren't any branches near this window. The rain was lighter now, and the lightning strikes were farther away, so I opened the door to the deck.
I walked over to the edge, placing my hands on the railing, and leaned over.
Hudson stood there, looking up at me. He was wet as if he'd been in the rain for a while.
"What are you doing here?" I couldn't believe he was actually here, that he wanted to talk. He'd been so angry earlier.
"I saw your post."
I let out a breath. "I wasn't sure if you would since you're not on social media."
"Shep showed it to me."
My shoulders slumped. "I'm sorry, Hudson. I never intended for any of this to happen."
He raised a brow. "Have you seen the comments on your post?"
I frowned. "I posted it and then closed my laptop."
"It's getting a lot of views."
"What are people saying?" My heart rate started to pick up.
His lips curved into a smile. "They like your article better."
The tension in my shoulder eased. "Really?"
"Will you come down here? I have something I want to say to you." His voice was low and pleading. I couldn't resist his request.
Without responding, I grabbed a sweatshirt and hurried downstairs. I threw open the door and jumped into his arms. He caught me, my legs wrapping around his waist as he held me tight. "I'm so sorry."
"It's okay."
"It's not though." My eyes filled with tears. "None of this is okay."
He carefully set me down so my feet were on the floor. "I'm sorry for jumping to conclusions, for not listening to you."
"I never lied to you. Maybe I was naive to think that Valerie wouldn't substantially change my story?—"
Hudson shook his head. "That's not your fault. You did everything in good faith, and she betrayed you."
"You believe me?" I searched his expression for any sign of what he was thinking.
He cupped my cheek. "You've never given me a reason not to trust you."
The relief flowed through me, making me lightheaded.
"I shouldn't have doubted you."
I blinked away the tears. "I love you so much."
"I love you."
He kissed me as the rain picked up again, coming down harder, but neither of us minded. When I pulled back, I said, "Valerie fired me because of that picture of us kissing on the beach. We ruined her plan of generating interest in the voting for the hottest bachelor. I took you off the market."
He grinned. "I want everyone to know I'm taken."
"And I told her I didn't want to work for someone who'd do that to me. She could have ruined my reputation in the process."
"I think you cleared that up by posting the real article."
"I hope so."
His brow furrowed. "But what are you going to do about a job?"
"I'll figure something out. But one thing's certain; I want to be here with you and Grams. I'm an island girl."
"You're my island girl."
I grinned. "Will you come up to my bedroom?"
"Are you smuggling a boy into your room, Miss Perkins?"
I curled my fingers around his. "Come on. Grams is out to the world at night."
Hudson allowed me to lead the way to my bedroom where I closed and locked the door. "Grams doesn't come up here. She can't do the stairs."
Hudson crowded into my space. "You'll have to be very quiet."
"I can do that."
He cupped the back of my head, tilting my face at the right angle to kiss me. He backed me up until my legs hit the mattress and we were both falling onto the bed. He kissed me until I yearned for more.
He reared up, removing his shirt. I worked on his buckle, shoving down his pants. He helped me remove mine, and then we were skin on skin, his cock nudging my entrance.
He paused, his hands braced on either side of my head, his fingers interlaced with mine. "I always want to feel this close to you."
"Me too."
He slid inside me. "Being with you is like heaven with never-ending storms."
I wasn't sure anyone had ever said anything more romantic before. We made love to the sound of the rain pounding on the roof.
No matter what happened with the article and social-media posts, we were stronger than ever, and that was all that mattered.