18. Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Eighteen
Things were looking up.
The next morning, Simon couldn’t help but replay the prior evening. After their leisurely stroll along the beach, Jenna cooked them the most delicious kebab meal. He’d tried to help, but she’d insisted that he sit down and rest.
While he’d been sitting there, she’d given him her proposal for the changes to the front of the market.
He was impressed with the amount of detail she’d put into the visual presentation.
He also liked that she wanted to draw upon the artisans and merchants to fill the display shelves that would create the funnel customers would enter to reach the checkout counters.
And then this morning, Jenna had stopped by with breakfast again.
He’d told her she didn’t have to feed him, but she insisted on it.
She told him that if she didn’t bring him food then another Bluestar resident would do it—it was the Bluestar way.
With that thought in mind, he accepted her plate of pancakes and bacon.
But now he was on the back deck. He was having problems concentrating on his book. It was to the point where he had to leave both his laptop and phone in the house.
He stared at his keyboard writer. The screen was blank and the blinking cursor taunted him. The keyboard writer had the ability to handle two different files. He clicked on the button to bring up his work from the prior day. He read over what he’d written to try to get himself into the story again.
And so, he began to write again. At first, he struggled to find the right words, but the more he typed, the easier it was to find the words. Every now and then, he’d stop to jot down some notes for him to contemplate when he was revising the rough draft.
Gus nosed his hand. It was Gus’s way of letting him know he wanted to go exploring. Simon was starting to trust Gus again. And so, he gave Gus a stern warning not to wander off, and then he’d release him from his lead. Gus raced the stairs that led to the backyard.
When Simon looked up again, he had written almost a thousand words. Jenna was standing in front of him with a bag in one hand, a drink in the other, and a furrowed brow.
“Didn’t you hear me?” she asked. “I knocked, and then I called out to you.”
“Oh. Sorry. I was in the zone.”
She glanced down at his keyboard writer. “How’s the writing going?”
“Good. In fact, real good. Now I have to hope my agent and editor both agree.”
Jenna sent him a reassuring smile. “I’m sure they will. And if you ever need a second set of eyes, I could help you out with that.”
“Thanks. I’ll keep that in mind.” His gaze moved to the food she’d placed on the small table next to his chair. “How much do I owe you?”
She shook her head. “Nothing.”
“I can’t keep accepting your generosity. You have to let me pay you back.”
“You are.”
“How so?”
“We have a date tomorrow night to beat my brother at trivia. You’re my ace in the hole.”
“Aw...I see. So, all of this food is just a bribe.” He sent her a teasing grin.
Her smile lit up her whole face. “Now you’re catching on. I’ve got to go. I’ll see you later.”
“Thanks for the lunch. I appreciate it.”
“No problem.” And then she was gone as quickly as she’d arrived.
He wished she didn’t have to rush back to work. He would have enjoyed them spending a leisurely lunch together.
His gaze moved to Gus, who was looking forlorn since Jenna departed. “I guess it’s just you and me, buddy.”
He opened the bag, expecting another burger but was surprised to find an Italian hoagie. The wrapper said it came from a place called Hamming It Up. He made a point of remembering the name for a future visit.
After lunch, he got back to work. With the salty ocean breeze, he was relaxed. He switched back to his laptop to do a bit of editing and to add a new scene.
Gus started barking. It was the type of bark he used when someone was at the door. Simon stopped typing and listened. There was the faint sound of a knock.
Simon didn’t move. He knew that Jenna would let herself in, but when she didn’t show up, and Gus was still barking, Simon went to stand. His laptop slipped from his grasp and crashed to the floor. He inwardly groaned. As the knocking continued, he picked up the laptop and carried it into the house.
He moved to the door and opened it to find his agent standing there. He knew she was anxious for his overdue manuscript, but he didn’t expect her to show up in person.
Gwen was more than just his agent; she was his friend. Their relationship moved beyond a professional interaction when he’d been stalked by angry readers. She’d been very helpful, and he’d appreciated everything she’d done for him, which went above and beyond her job as his agent.
He tried to remember if she mentioned she was coming to Bluestar Island. He couldn’t recall her bringing up the subject. “Gwen, what are you doing here?”
She rushed forward and wrapped her arms around him. When she pulled back, she said, “I came as soon as I heard.”
He stepped back, allowing her entrance. “Heard what?”
After she stepped inside, she said, “I heard you were severely wounded during the storm.”
“What?” He was confused. “Heard this from whom?”
“It’s all over the tabloids. I tried to call, but I couldn’t get through.” Her gaze scanned him from top to bottom. “You don’t look good, but you don’t look like you were facing life and death.”
“That’s because I wasn’t. It was a stupid accident. Nothing more. Where did you read this?”
“I don’t know how you missed it. It’s the headline news on all of the tabloid sites. One of them even has you on life support.”
“Are you serious?”
She nodded.
“Wait.” He took the steps two at the time and then rushed into his bedroom.
He snatched his now fully charged phone. When he checked it, there were numerous phone calls including several from his parents.
He immediately called them. They sounded so worried. They were making arrangements to fly to Massachusetts. He told them it was all lies. He was perfectly fine. He failed to mention his bruised face, sprained wrist, and stitched-up arm.
Once he had his parents calmed down, he headed downstairs, where he found his agent and dog staring at each other. The awkward scene would have made him laugh if he wasn’t so annoyed about the news story.
“Who did this?” he asked.
Gwen looked at him. “I don’t know. Have you talked to your ex lately?”
He gave a firm shake of his head. He pulled up The Gossiper website on his phone. “It couldn’t be her.”
He’d only told one person his true identity—Jenna. But she wouldn’t do something like this, especially after he’d told her about his past. He refused to believe it.
After all, he had been in town a few times. Someone could have recognized him. Although his face wasn’t highly publicized. His agent and publicist had worked hard to keep his image off the internet as much as possible. And thankfully, he didn’t have that unique of a name.
“You know who did this, don’t you?” Gwen arched a precisely penciled brow. “Who is it?”
“I have no idea.”
She sighed. “The good news is that the tabloids don’t know your location. Or if they do, they haven’t printed it yet. Instead, they focused on your being in the hospital. They have photos of you in the hospital. Do you remember anyone taking your photo?”
He stopped to think about it. He’d been in a lot of pain that day, and his eyes had been watering. Someone could have taken his photo, and he wouldn’t have noticed.
He shook his head. “I have no idea who took the photo.”
Gwen gave him a side-eyed look, as though she didn’t believe him, but she wasn’t going to push the subject. “I take it you’ll want to leave the island.”
He once more shook his head. “I can’t keep running. It’s not like I’m a professional athlete or pop singer. I’m an author. Not that many people care about authors. It was probably just a slow news day.”
Sympathy shone in Gwen’s eyes. “I know how much you went through before. It was awful.”
“But this is different. The shock about the ending of my last series is over. Readers have, hopefully, gotten over their shock and anger.”
Gwen was quiet for a moment. “You like it here that much?”
He immediately nodded. “I really do. Let me show you around. Are you hungry?”
“Well, I haven’t eaten since this morning. I could eat something.”
“Good. Give me a second.” He headed back upstairs.
In his bedroom, he grabbed his wallet. He put on his sunglasses and then reached for his trusty ball cap. He hesitated.
He turned and left the ball cap on the chest of drawers. He didn’t need it anymore. He wasn’t going to live in fear of what people might do once they figured out who he was.
But that didn’t excuse the person for invading his privacy at the hospital and then selling that information to the tabloids. Old scars were peeled back, but he refused to go into hiding.
It was a good day.
Jenna had even gotten a co-worker to cover the front of the market so she could leave a half hour early. She stopped by the bookshop and picked up a book of trivia. She heard a rumor that tomorrow night’s theme was going to be classic sitcoms.
The book had a section on sitcoms. She thought she and Simon could quiz each other.
She really wanted to win. She felt like her whole future was going to rest on winning this trivia contest. She knew it wasn’t professional, but there were a lot of things about the family business that weren’t exactly professional.
What could you expect when a bunch of siblings were in charge?
And if Neil wouldn’t hear her proposal, then she would start exploring her options in Boston. After all, it wasn’t that far from the island. She could still see her mother and siblings regularly. It was a viable solution—should she need it.
And so, she rushed home. Except when she got there, the parking along her street was full. It happened from time to time since she lived along the beach that was open to the public.
After finally finding a parking spot, she walked back to her place. Her strides were long, and her steps were quick. She was a lady on a mission.
She wanted to put the finishing touches on her presentation. Then she would walk through it a couple of times before she did a practice run for Simon.
She changed her clothes and pulled her curls up into a ponytail.
Almost an hour later, she felt like she was ready to go through a practice run with Simon. She gathered her papers and laptop. She was about to open the front door when she heard voices.
She glanced out the window to see a beautiful woman with long blond hair and a perfectly made-up face. The woman was smiling, and then Simon appeared at her side. He was smiling too.
Jenna couldn’t make out exactly what was being said. It was muffled through the window. The woman seemed to be doing most of the talking.
As they started down the steps, the woman slipped her hand into the crook of Simon’s arm. He said something, and she threw her head back as she laughed. If Jenna didn’t know better, she’d swear it was his girlfriend.
In that moment, Jenna’s heart sank. But he’d told her that he wasn’t in a relationship. Although, he wouldn’t be the first man to lie to her about something like that. Tears pricked the backs of her eyes. She blinked them away.
She was reading this wrong. Right? Because there had been those kisses on the beach. There had been their cozy meals. There was definitely something growing between them. She hadn’t just imagined it.
She turned around and moved away from the door. She put her stuff down on the coffee table. She wanted to tell herself that it was his mother, but the woman was much too young. Maybe his sister, but he told her he was an only child.
And then there was the way the woman had looked at him, like he was the only man in the world. It was a look someone had when they were in love. This woman was in love with Simon. But how did he feel about her?
She didn’t want to know the answer to that question. There had to be a reasonable explanation. Perhaps a long lost friend.
Jenna looked down and realized that she’d dropped one of her papers by the door. She retraced her steps. When she went to pick up the paper, her gaze wandered to the window.
Jenna gasped.
She blinked, but the horrible sight was still there. The woman was kissing Simon. The breath hitched in the back of Jenna’s throat, holding in a horrified scream.
In that moment, Jenna felt her heart shatter. She’d known better than to trust another man, but she’d done it. And now she had no one to blame but herself for getting her heart broken.