Chapter 25 #2
“I don’t.” He grabs my hand. “It’s not what I want. However, I would respect your decision if this was too much. Not having privacy is difficult.”
“How do you deal with this?” I ask.
“I used to feed it, like what Patterson said. When I was in my early twenties, in my hockey heyday, the more said about me publicly, the better. It was my brand to pluck through beautiful women. The scandals were calculated. Many were PR stunts that I got paid to play into. Then I got injured, and my career ended. That free time only gave me more time to get in trouble, so I moved to Boston, away from the party scene. I cleaned up my act, but …”
“But …” I repeat, listening with bated breath.
“My brother was in a bad place and needed me in New York. I missed the city, so I returned. The photos and articles began as if I’d never left.
Each time I go out with a woman, it’s documented.
The smear campaign this go-round has been unimaginable.
The board of my foundation was very clear that I need to lie low while I’m on vacation.
No women. No partying. No being in the public eye. ”
I grab his hand. “Why are you telling me this?”
“You need to know what you’re up against for the rest of the month. I promised no lying.”
I can feel the unease and tension in the air. “Why do you think this is happening?”
“Maybe I’m cursed?”
I playfully smack him. “Stop saying that. You’re not.”
“Karma?”
I tilt my head. “Maybe.”
“So, how do I fix that?” he asks.
“Put better karma in the world,” I tell him simply. “You get what you give in everything in life. It’s just an exchange of energy. Good karma out. Good karma in.”
“I wish I could see the world how you do,” he whispers. “It must be beautiful.”
“I wish I could show you,” I say, just as a few people walk past the car. “Can I be honest?”
“Always.”
“I’m scared.” It comes out weak. “Not because of the cameras. Or people learning I’m a witch.”
“Why?”
“Because I’m not ready for us to end.”
His thumb moves across my knuckles, and he smiles. “You said us.”
My heart does that flutter thing, and I chew on the inside of my cheek. “I did.”
“I fucking loved it.”
I give him a look and shake my head. “You shouldn’t say things like that.”
“I promised the truth.”
That sentence shuts me up.
He lifts my hand and presses his mouth to it. “I don’t want to waste any of the time we have left.”
I believe him.
I’ve spent my adult life reading other people’s futures while doubting everything I’ve pulled about mine.
My phone dings.
Winter
So, you might not want to come into the shop today or for the rest of the week. Just went for a coffee, and there’s a line wrapped around the block. I asked them what was going on, and, well, they’re looking for you.
I show him the screen.
“It’s your decision,” he says.
I return to the conversation.
Blaire
Okay. Please schedule readings for a future time.
Winter
I know you’ve been busy, but don’t forget, we have three new part-time employees starting tomorrow.
Blaire
Shit.
Winter
I’ve got you. I’ll train them and teach them your particular witchy ways.
Blaire
I’m just very concerned because it’s the busiest time of the year.
Winter
We will survive. Stop being stubborn. Josie and I can handle the shop. It’s for your protection.
I read her last text twice.
Blaire
You’re right. Ugh. I hate it when you’re right. How does Autumn deal with you?
Winter
She only calls or texts when she can handle a voice of reason.
“I guess I’m going to take off until Monday,” I say.
“Let’s get out of here,” he whispers, leaning over to steal a kiss.
I laugh. “Really?”
“I’ve never been more serious.”
“Where are we going?” I ask.
“Vermont.”
I blink at him. “In October?”
“I might be the Fling King, but I’m also a fall king. Love seeing the leaves change. I own a place twenty minutes outside of Woodstock. The cell service is shit, and the internet is nonexistent. There’s a cool covered bridge, a cider mill, and complete anonymity.”
It sounds like a postcard. I want to say yes so badly, but I feel something deep inside my body that says I shouldn’t.
“I can’t,” I say, the daydream drifting away.
He turns his head. “I don’t think anyone has ever told me no.”
“Happy to be the first.” I sigh. “I would love to. Vermont in the fall is a fantasy. But if I get on a plane and leave, they win.” I shift in the seat to face him. “That’s not hiding, Jameson. My problems will still be here when I return, ya know?”
“Blaire.”
“Let’s escape to my cabin in the woods.”
He goes still with his hand on the gearshift. “You want me to join you?”
That makes me smile. “Of course I do. We only have weeks left. I’m not going to let some cameras affect that.”
He laughs. It’s the first real one out of him since Patterson arrived.
“Okay,” he says. “I’d love to.”
“We need food.”
“Give me a few hours. I’ll shop and grab some clothes, then pick you up.”
“Yay! I’m excited.”
I lean over and slide my lips across his. Fingers thread through my hair, and he deepens the kiss.
“Thank you,” he whispers.
“Bring warm clothes.”
“Mmm, I will, but I don’t plan on wearing them,” he mutters against my lips.
“Hurry,” I tell him, then get out, walking straight through the backyard gate without looking back.
Charlie meets me at the door with his tail up.
I bend down, scooping him up under his front legs and pulling him into my arms. He’s fourteen pounds of orange fun.
I swing him one full turn in the entryway with his back feet dangling.
Flora used to do this to him when he was a kitten.
He’s never let me, until now. He hangs there like a sack of flour with his eyes half shut.
“Aw, did you miss me?” I ask into his fur and carry him upstairs like a baby.
He pops his paw toward me as I try to kiss him, so I set him on my bed.
He supervises me while I pack for five days. I stuff a few pairs of jeans and button-up shirts and my favorite boots. I slide my lingerie drawer open and pull a few sexy pieces from the top. I hold one up, and my door swings open.
“I knew you were dating him!”
Josie stands in my doorway in her pajamas with a spatula in one hand. Charlie leaps off the bed and runs for her.
Then she actually looks at me. “Wait. Are you okay?”
Nobody’s asked me that today, including myself.
“I don’t know yet. Being doxed is weird,” I tell her.
Josie’s face softens. “I’m sorry. If it makes you feel any better, eventually people move on and lose interest. Something else happens, and there’s always a new story pulling attention.”
“Thank you. I’m going to be away for a few days. Can you take care of Sir Charles?”
“Absolutely!” She bends down and pets him under his chin. He nibbles at her, and she yelps as he prances away. “He’s such a grumpy chonk!”
“He is.” I shove the silk into my suitcase.
“So, where ya going?” she asks, sitting on the edge of my bed.
“Up to the cabin,” I tell her, experiencing that jolt of excitement. “I feel guilty.”
“Why? You didn’t ask for this.”
“It’s the second week of October, Josie. Three new people start tomorrow. You and Winter are having to pick up the slack because my life is a mess.”
“Uh-huh. And we both agreed to help you. We’re being paid a stupid amount of money, and we live in this beautiful home rent-free. This is what we signed up for. I can’t imagine what I’d be doing right now.” She shrugs.
I smile.
“Jameson Cross looks good on you. Might think about keeping him,” she says, moving back toward the door.
I laugh. “It’s just a fling.”
She tilts her head at me. “You sure about that?”
Silence stretches between us.
“No,” I tell her truthfully. “But it can’t be anything more than that.”
“Why?” she asks.
“He has an entire life in New York. I’m never leaving Pine Haven. I don’t do long distance,” I tell her.
When I sat in his car this morning, I admitted I wasn’t ready for us to end. That’s the truth; I’m not.
“You should bring all the lingerie,” she says. “Have fun.”
Two hours later, I’m walking out the back door toward the Mustang.
He gets out, wearing a hat low on his head and sunglasses.
He grabs my bag and places it in the trunk next to all the food he bought.
I see bottles of wine, steaks, cinnamon-dusted pecans, coffee, and pumpkin bread.
He opens my door for me, and I climb inside.
We take the back streets out of town. Eventually, he removes his sunglasses and hat, then reaches for my hand.
“Coast is clear,” he says, kissing my knuckles, and I raise my seat.
“Hopefully, it stays this way.”