Chapter 7
Chapter Seven
LIVIANNA/LILY
Now
Camera Flashes & Lush Lies
I strut straight into the chaos, as if I’m not already the story they’re trying to sell.
“What the—” I drop my phone between the seat and the center console as the paparazzi pound on my car window.
“Livianna, is it true you and Cash are engaged?” A woman in the crowd of photographers knocks on the passenger side window.
I just smile at her, take my engagement ring off, and hide it in my purse. It’s a traditional Irish wedding band crafted from platinum, with Celtic knotwork carved deep into its surface. There’s a Claddagh at the center, with two hands holding a large diamond heart beneath a crown.
It’s symbolic, enduring, and more about meaning than display. I love everything about it, but I’m not ready for the world to know. We’re hounded enough, and once the news breaks, this kind of thing will keep happening.
I glance around. “Shit. How do I maneuver through them? They’re everywhere.”
My phone buzzes, and I reach for it. It’s probably Jaxon. He was being quite protective of me on the phone just now, but I don’t understand why.
I get my phone and peek at the screen. Yep, it was him.
“You’re going to need to wait, Jaxon. Right now, I need to figure out how to get inside that restaurant.” I tuck my purse under my arm and prepare to make a mad dash for the front door. “Wish me luck.”
Paparazzi scream in all directions. “Livianna! Do you have a ring yet?”
A flashbulb goes off, nearly blinding me as I try to get out of my car. They’re pressed against the door, so I have to push it hard to get it to open.
I motion for them to move. “You’re going to need to back up. I can’t get out.”
Once I’m out, I lock up and address them. “Good evening. I hope you all enjoy the night. If you’ll excuse me, I have someone I need to meet.”
“Is Cash proposing tonight?” This guy doesn’t seem to care.
“Livianna, over here!” That one doesn’t either.
The voices converge until I can’t separate them into individual people anymore. Still, I keep a calm demeanor and rush to the front door.
My phone goes off again, and I know it’s Jaxon before I check. Two photographers flank me and continue snapping pictures after pictures. The call cuts to voicemail a second time as I reach the front door.
A young lady stands at a small counter. “Good evening. Welcome to Geoffrey’s.”
“Hi, good evening. I have reservations for two.” I glance back at the crowd gathering outside.
Some people are leaving, but at least four or five of them are hanging around.
The young lady host peeks around me. “They aren’t allowed to be this close. I apologize, Miss Hemings.”
“It’s not your fault.” I flash her a kind smile. She knew who I was and didn’t make a huge deal out of it. I already like her. “Do you know if my companion is here yet?”
“Not that I know of, but you’re welcome to look around.”
“Oh, that’s unnecessary. Please, just show me to our table.” My phone vibrates again.
I glance at the screen, and Jaxon’s name shines on it. I let it go to voicemail again. I’ll deal with Jaxon once I’m at the table and can speak without chaos surrounding me.
The host guides me through the main dining room. Geoffrey’s is exactly as I remember it. The atmosphere is inviting with the warm amber light, white tablecloths, and the inaudible murmur of a full house on a Monday night.
“Livianna?” A woman near the window raises her hand, beckoning me over.
Blair Avery, someone I know from a charity circuit I stepped back from after I left my show, is already pushing her chair out.
“Oh my god.” She air-kisses both my cheeks. “You look incredible. What are you doing here?”
“I’m meeting an old friend for dinner.” I point to a random area near the windows. “How about you?”
“Anniversary drinks.” She gestures toward the man at her table, who lifts his glass in our direction. “Geoffrey’s was our first date, so we come back every year.”
I wave to her date. “That’s a beautiful tradition. Congratulations to you both.”
“Thank you.” She points toward the front. “I saw the photographers outside. Why were they hounding you?”
I shrug. “The usual. They all want to know if I’m engaged to Callum, but earlier, it was about some woman from his past. You know how they are. They love to make up stuff or exaggerate.”
She drops her gaze to my bare left hand. “I have to ask. They’re saying Cash proposed, but I don’t see a ring.”
“You know better than to believe everything you read, Blair.”
She laughs, bright and genuine. “Fair enough. God, it’s so good to run into you. How are you, really? After everything?”
“I get better every day.” I notice the host is still waiting to seat me, so I hold up one finger to let her know I need a minute.
“You seem well.” Blair places her palm on my forearm. “Is Cash joining you tonight?”
“No, he’s in Long Beach on business. I’m meeting someone, and I should let you get back to your anniversary.” I adjust my purse on my shoulder.
“Of course. We’re long overdue for lunch, and I mean it this time.” She squeezes both my hands before releasing me.
“That would be wonderful.” I give her one last grin before turning back to the young lady who’s patiently standing off to the side, waiting for me.
I join her and we continue deeper into the restaurant, past the main dining room, and into a quieter section where the tables are spaced further apart. The lighting drops a half-shade warmer in this area.
It’s the kind of section where conversations stay at the table because no one can overhear you unless you’re yelling. I doubt there will be any of that tonight. At least I hope not.
My phone buzzes in my hand. Three missed calls from Jaxon and now a text sitting unread. The screen goes dark before I finish reading the preview.
“Here you are, Miss Hemings.” The host stops at a corner table and gestures to the seat facing the room.
“Thank you.” I set my belongings on the chair beside me and get comfortable.
“Your server will be over shortly to check on you.” She dips her chin and disappears back to her post.
The table is set for two. A single candle burns low at the center, the flame steady in the still air. I made this reservation and deliberately chose this table because the angle offers a clear line of sight to the entrance without putting either seat on display.
Knowing I need to tell Jaxon I’m fine, I open his text.
Jaxon: Please respond. You’re not answering your phone. Are you okay?
Me: Sorry, I was trying to get inside, and there were paparazzi all around. I’m seated now, and everything is going well. I know how to deal with them, Jaxon. Please stop worrying about me. I’m good.
His reply arrives before I can set my phone down.
Jaxon: It’s not you I don’t trust. It’s them.
Me: I understand your concern, but I’m fine. Enjoy your evening, Jaxon.
I set my phone on the linen just as it lights up again with my father's name on the screen. Pressing it to my ear, I answer before it rings twice.
“Hi, Daddy.”
“Hi, darling.” His voice is tight enough that I sit straighter. “Are you somewhere you can talk?”
“I’m at dinner, but I’m alone at the moment. Why? What’s going on?”
“Your mother and I left the house about twenty minutes ago and picked up a tail about two blocks out of the neighborhood. There were three cars following us, but we managed to lose them.”
“I’m sorry, Daddy. They’ve been swarming today.”
“We turned around and went back home, but I’m a betting man, and I think someone leaked your engagement.” He exhales. “Lorna’s rattled, but she won’t admit it.”
“That sounds exactly like her.” I scan the room for any signs of my dinner date. “Did they get photos?”
“Probably. I don’t know what equipment they were using, but the flashes were going off.” He clears his throat. “Livianna, I need you to hear me. Whatever they print, you know they can be ruthless.”
“I know that, Daddy.”
“About the proposal.” His voice drops, stripped to the cadence he uses when he needs to be understood. “I haven’t told a soul.”
“There’s no way I would ever believe that you would sell me out.” I let out a quiet laugh. “I know you’re my protector.”
“And now Cash will take my place. How bad was it on your end?”
“Bad enough. They were at the parking structure and followed me all the way here. I managed them like I always do, but they don’t like me, so I can only imagine what they’ll print.”
“Of course, you held your head high. That’s how you were taught.” A quiet pride settles into his tone. “You’ve always known how to handle yourself in the middle of a storm.”
“I learned from you.”
“Don’t flatter me.” He huffs, but the warmth underneath carries through. “Is Cash aware of what’s happening out there tonight?”
“No, he’s at a show. I’ll tell him later, after he gets home. He doesn’t need to be worrying about me when he’s working.”
“Good. And Livianna, be careful tonight. Call me when you’re home.”
“I will. Give Mom my love.”
“She’s already demanding to know everything the second I hang up, so consider it passed along.” He lets out a chuckle. “Goodnight, sweetheart.”
“Goodnight, Daddy.” I hang up, set my phone on the linen, and reach for my water glass.
Across the dining room, the man I’m here for appears, wearing a smile from ear to ear, and every muscle in my body goes still.
Holy shit! What am I doing?
The handsome gentleman in an Armani suit strides toward me. My stomach flips, and I want to run out of here.
It doesn’t matter if he’s the guy I was dating before Callum and I got back together. I’m engaged to Callum, and this meeting I arranged is wrong. He would hate that I’m here, digging up the past.
The man reaches the table. “Livianna. Wow, it’s a surprise that you reached out. I thought you hated me.”
“Hi Sebastian.” I stand, and we hug. “Why would I hate you?”
“We didn’t exactly end our relationship on good terms.” He releases me, helps me back into my seat, and then sits down. “I never understood why you didn’t like me. You and Cash were over, but you still had it in for me.”
Our relationship? So, he is the man I was seeing. Sebastian studies me with curiosity spinning in his eyes.
Let’s see what you’ve got, Sebastian.
I rest in my seat and keep my expression open. “You ended our relationship right before Callum and I got back together.”
“What?” He picks up the menu and sets it back down without opening it. “We haven’t spoken in years.”
Years? He’s not my secret lover. My chest caves in, but not because I have feelings for him. It’s because I have a hole in my heart that’s aching to be filled, and even Callum can’t help me relieve it.
The realization pours through me, cold and slow. Not one degree of it shows on my face.
Sebastian Holloway, my old co-star who Callum punched at one of his shows and who’s Zara’s constant shadow, sits across from me in a three-thousand-dollar suit and the particular confidence of a guy who has already decided this evening works in his favor.
Nothing about this is what I was expecting. I’m more confused now than I was before, but I am here, and answers matter more.
I reach for my water glass, take a measured sip, and set it back down precisely where it was. “You said we didn’t end on good terms. Tell me what happened from your side.”
Sebastian’s gaze narrows. “From your side? That’s an interesting choice of words.”
I square my posture against the back of the chair. “I'm trying to understand. You said you never understood why I had it in for you. I’m giving you the chance to tell me your side of things.”
He crosses his arms and leans back. “You want to talk about Trax?”
Trax? What the hell is Trax?
I play along. “Among other things.”
Sebastian unfolds his napkin across his lap and reaches for his menu, opening it this time. The deliberateness of choosing this moment to do something so ordinary sends a thread of unease throughout me.
“You said other things.” He reads without lifting his gaze from the menu. “What things?”
“I want to understand what happened.” I reach for my glass. “And what went wrong in our relationship.”
He closes the menu and sets it aside. “Let’s start with Trax. I was there with Zara. We stopped by your roped-off area to say hi, and Cash flipped out. He should’ve stayed out of it. I won’t tolerate him hitting me, Livianna. If he does it again, I will file charges.”
Shit.
What the hell did Callum do to Sebastian over the last five years?
I’m flying blind here, and I’m not sure that’s a good idea. It sounds like I would’ve been mad at Sebastian if he made Callum angry enough to hit him again.
I shift uncomfortably in my seat. “Sebastian, I’m sure Callum had his reas?—”
“Cash beat the shit out of me for trying to take you out for ice cream.” Sebastian’s face turns red. “How is that a good reason?”
“Um…it’s not.” I bite down on my lip. “He’s a jealous man. You know that, but he’s trying to be better.”
“That’s not my problem. He needs to learn how to control himself.”
“He does.” I force out a small giggle to hide my distress. “That was…a long time ago, don’t you think?”
Sebastian growls. “Trax was two months ago, and that wasn’t a long time ago. Sure, the ice cream incident at your house was five years ago, but still. He needs to learn to leave us the fuck alone, or there will be hell to pay.”
Holy Jesus. I’m in dire need of my memory right now. I go into damage control, just as my mom has taught me to do over the years.
“Sebastian, calm down.” I flash him a warm smile. “The history is complicated, but maybe there’s a way we can get on good terms again.”
“Can we?” He leans in, studying my face. “What is this meeting really about, Livianna?”