Chapter 17
Seventeen
“Come on, Gus. Don’t look at me like that. You’re killing me.”
Back in London, Gus was on Piper’s bed, lying next to her suitcase. He rolled to his back and played dead. All four arms straight
up into the air, head to one side, eyes closed, tongue hanging out for dramatic effect. This dog. She rubbed his belly and he flopped back over, then licked her hand.
She’d taught Gus that trick when they were in Imola and she was trying to stay busy. Then he’d done it for treats. Now he
was doing it to express his disdain for the events unfolding before his doggy eyes, apparently. Namely, Piper packing up her
things.
Imola seemed like it had happened an entire year ago. Back before Gus’s career as social media star had taken off. Before
Emilio shed his grumpy persona and began to open up. Before they got close. Before her heart grew to twice its normal size.
There would never be enough words to express what this time with Emilio had meant. There would never be enough minutes for
them to be together. Even though nothing was settled. Nothing had been decided.
Piper closed her eyes and pressed her hand against her stomach to connect with her own breathing. You are safe. Inhale. Exhale. You will get through this and figure out what’s next. Inhale. Exhale. And good call on the waterproof mascara.
Piper jumped when her phone rang on the bed. She peered down at the caller ID. Dad. They hadn’t talked in weeks. Piper raced
to press the green circle and put him on speaker. “Dad?” Emotion welled up in her voice. She had so much to tell him. And
more than a lot not to tell him. “How are you?”
“I’m good, Pipes. It’s so nice to hear your voice, sweetheart. I wanted to let you know I’m picking you up at the airport.
Text me when you land.”
“I thought Gabby was going to do it.”
“She’s stressed and busy. Plus, I’ve missed you, kiddo. I’ll come get you.” An uncomfortably long period of silence played
out on the other end of the line. “Plus, there’s something you need to know. And well, I don’t know, I felt like I should
tell you.”
“Whatever it is, tell me now. I already know Meghan’s pregnant. I can’t endure a transatlantic flight wondering what else
there is.”
“I just want to give you the heads-up that Kyle’s bringing, you know, her.”
Piper noticed how her stomach didn’t wobble. It wasn’t that she refused to let this bother her; it simply didn’t. “Of course.
Also, her name is Bridget.”
“Okay, well, there’s more.”
Emilio stepped into her doorway with a laundry basket filled with Piper’s clothes. Gus lumbered over to greet him. Emilio
leaned down to pet his dog. Tears stung her eyes. If Piper had an entire lifetime to see the two of them together, it would
never be enough.
“Piper? Are you still there?”
Emilio stood and quietly kissed her cheek, then set the basket down on the bed. He’d folded her stuff. She couldn’t even believe him. “I’m here. Just say it so I can pack.”
“Kyle and Bridget got married. A week ago. She’s pregnant, and they weren’t planning on that, so they went to a—”
“Stop stop stop. Stop talking. I don’t need to know the specifics.” Piper stared at her phone, her breathing shallow. “Good
for them.” Piper glanced at Emilio, who’d stepped into her line of sight.
“Are you okay?” he mouthed.
She nodded. “Dad, I need to go. I can’t wait to catch up. See you soon. Love you.” She pressed the red button to hang up.
“Are you sure you’re okay?” Emilio asked.
“Yes. You know, it’s better they got married. That there’s a baby.”
“How is that better?”
“Because I know he didn’t blow everything up for nothing.” Piper unzipped her suitcase and laid it out flat on the bed. Gus
promptly jumped up and stepped into one of the compartments, turning in circles to try to gauge a way to cram his too-large
body inside.
A melancholy smile bloomed on Emilio’s face. “Can you blame him? I don’t want you to leave, either.”
Just kill me. She drifted into his arms and the tears stung her eyes again. She inhaled his warm smell, curled the tips of her fingers
into his strong back, pressed the side of her head against the plane of his chest. She wanted to remember everything about
him. The future was so up in the air. She really wanted to be with him, to find a way to make it work, but it still felt like
an impossibility. Different lives. Different worlds. Different continents.
“I planned to come up here and tell you I can’t let you go to this wedding by yourself.”
Piper reared back and looked him in the eye. “Hold on. What?”
Deep furrows formed between his eyebrows. “I was going to invite myself to the wedding. But Isabel called when I was folding
your laundry.” He combed his hair back from his face. “You won’t even believe what happened.”
“Is everything okay?” Piper’s heart wanted to pound its way out of her chest. She couldn’t take any more news of consequence.
“Everything at Vermillion blew up. The news just broke. I guess they were trying to keep it quiet until the summer break,
or possibly the end of the season. All the top-level management have been forced out by their board of directors.”
“Including Tristan Highbridge?”
He nodded. “They all knew Tristan was guilty and they hid it all because they wanted to keep winning. Destroyed evidence.
Everything.”
Piper clamped her hand over her mouth. “Everything Mia said that night she and Xander came over. It wasn’t just gossip.” She
grasped his arms. “And you were right. All along. You must feel so vindicated.”
“I wish the timing was better. Like I said, I thought I’d invite myself to Florida. I want to be there to support you, but
no one from Vermillion is talking, so Isabel has about fifty interview requests for me. Mega has asked me to do it all. They
feel like between my performances in Spain and Monaco and the news that I didn’t fuck up by trying to hold Vermillion accountable,
that it will change the whole narrative on my career.”
“Yes. You absolutely should take your victory lap.”
“I don’t know if it’s that, but I do like feeling like things are looking up. I’m even doing an interview with Claudia Simon
for the BBC. She’s taking a break from her maternity leave just for this.”
“Wow.” Claudia was one of the foremost Formula One journalists. That was a very big deal.
“I still feel terrible you have to go to this wedding and endure the bullshit.”
Piper had been thinking about this a lot, especially as the wedding got closer. “It would be amazing to have you there. Really.
I’d love every minute of it, but I think I have to do this by myself. Let him know he didn’t destroy me. Sort of like you
got to do with Victoria.”
“But you were there to help me. I want to help you.”
“You did help me. You taught me a very big lesson. That this is a great big world, full of possibilities, and although I’m
not a bold and adventurous person, it was good to do a few things outside my comfort zone. I feel like I found more of my
voice. I feel more whole than I did when I got here.” I love you. It was on the tip of her tongue, but it refused to budge. She couldn’t say it. They’d only had a few weeks together. And
ultimately the thought of a long-lasting love with Emilio was improbable. Her heart could only take so much falling.
“Do you want to come to the Canadian Grand Prix? I could fly you up there.”
Her instinct was to say yes. Absolutely. Of course. But that would only bring another goodbye, when she was already growing
to hate the steady tick of the clock on the wall as it took away her time with him and Gus. “Can I think about it? After everything
in Monaco, maybe it’s better it we keep things quiet. For both our sakes.”
How many more hints could he drop that he didn’t want this to be the end? Damn this Vermillion news. He really had been prepared
to pack up his suitcase, fly to Florida with her and show Kyle how badly he’d fucked up by ever hurting Piper. Maybe that
was just his inner macho asshole speaking, but it was the way he felt.
Not that the Vermillion situation was the sole deciding factor. Piper had said she wanted to do the wedding on her own. Stand
on her own two feet. And he had to admire her fierce independence in the face of a difficult thing.
Then he’d invited her to Canada, and that was a maybe. He wasn’t sure what her hesitation was, but his gut said to follow
her lead. She’d been sucked into his life from the moment she got on the plane to come to London, and it had been a whirlwind
since then—rabid fans and his parents and the difficulty of being a public person who had to gauge what to say or where to
go or what to do. It wasn’t a great way to live, being under the microscope. The trouble was that it was the only way Emilio
knew how to live. And Piper? It was clear she hated it.
Maybe he needed to simply let her go. Let her see her family and get over the hurdle of the wedding she’d been dreading. See
if she wanted to come back or find a way to make it work. Because the truth was the Canadian Grand Prix wouldn’t be enough.
It was slapping a bandage on a gaping wound.
“You’re leaving and I feel like we aren’t having a proper goodbye,” he said, doing his best to steel his voice. “All because
of the Vermillion thing. Why is the timing so terrible?”
She nodded, taking the clothes he’d folded for her and placing them into the suitcase. “It’s okay. Long goodbyes are just
painful. Plus, we had a wonderful goodbye last night. I barely got any sleep.”
“It was incredible.” It truly was, although it had been difficult for Emilio to focus. He was so preoccupied with finding
a way to invite himself to the wedding. He was happy he hadn’t broached the subject last night. It might have ruined their
entire evening. “By the way, I just paid the invoice from Fido & Friends. And I wired your bonus to your bank account. So
the financial side of our relationship has been taken care of.” The reminder that this had all started as a job and turned
into so much more was disheartening, but he decided to look on the bright side. At least it had happened.
“Thank you.”
“You aren’t going to go back to working for Fido & Friends, are you? It just seems like you could do so much more. Work out
a deal with Nom Nom. Or be a full-time dog nanny closer to home.” The thought of her nannying for anyone else made him sick.
And as for him and Gus? He would call the company Harmony had recommended, but there was little appeal in a task guaranteed
to fail. No one would be as perfect for Gus and him as Piper was.
“I don’t know if I’m cut out to be a dog nanny.” She glanced over at Gus, then walked up to him and crouched down and kissed
his nose. “I’m too attached to this guy. I think I’m more of a dog walker. Maybe I’ll pursue the treat thing. I haven’t quite
figured it out.”
He swallowed back the tears that wanted to flood his eyes. He really needed to get better about expressing his emotions. Maybe
it was time to have that chat with his dad. “I’m sure whatever you choose to do will be amazing. And great. And if you need
anything at all, I want you to call me.”
“I’ll text you. See if there’s a time you can talk. You’re busy. You have a lot going on.”
His mind kicked into overdrive, imagining his future—the one where they were two separate people, walking the earth, completely
meant for each other if not for a few disparate and random life factors keeping them apart. He wrapped her in his arms, doing
his best to ward off the tears. Again. He loved her. He loved her and he couldn’t say it. It would be emotional blackmail.
She would feel obligated. He wanted her to feel free to choose the life she wanted. “I want you to remember you can do anything
and everything you want. Everything you need is already inside you.”
She laughed quietly, then he felt her tears on his shoulder. “That sounds like something on one of those motivational posters.
The ones they hang in office buildings.”
He squeezed her tighter, not wanting to let her go. “It’s not. Someone truly brilliant and pure of heart told me that. And
it helped me through a difficult time.”
Piper got incredibly quiet, but he could feel her trembling in his arms. She had to go, and he had to let her. Even though
it was the worst thing that could ever happen.