Though I’d never been to a Harvest Festival, I was confident that this was the best one the town had ever had. The performances were electrifying. All of the games and rides ran smoothly, and the food… well, the food was amazing. Most of my day was spent receiving compliments and congratulations. Usually, I would have loved all of the appreciation, but today it only gave me a heavy heart.
Dan was giving me space. I understood his reasons, but right now, I needed to find him. The fireworks were about to start soon. Sandra Carmichael was in the middle of a very boring story about potato salad that I was smiling and nodding through when I sawDan walking toward me, smiling. He was carrying two giant caramel apples.
“Hey, Sandy.” He grinned at her. “Do you mind if I borrow this beautiful lady for a moment?”
“Of course, I don’t.” Her eyes darted between us, and her face spread into a sly grin. “Emmaline, I’ll tell you about how I chop my onions later,” she said knowledgeably. “It makes all the difference.”
“Thank you,” I whispered when she was out of earshot.
“Really?” He raised an eyebrow. “I’d be rather interested in her veg chopping method. Maybe we should call her back…” He turned his head in her direction before I reached up and grabbed his chin.
“Don’t you dare,” I hissed. “Is one of these for me?” I pointed at the apples.
“Oh no, these are both for me.” His beard twitched before he offered me the bigger of the two candy-covered fruits.
“Thank you,” I whispered.
“You’re quite welcome,” he said in a low voice. His expression softened, becoming more serious. “Are you enjoying the festival?” he asked, but I sensed that wasn’t what he really wanted to know.
“Yeah, it’s so—”
“Hold on a sec, love.” He pulled his buzzing phone out of his pocket and stared at the screen. My belly did a little flip when he called me love. “That’s my mum.” He sounded confused.
“Really? Isn’t it like three in the morning in London?”
“Yeah,” he whispered, still not looking up from his screen. “I need to take this. I’ll be right back.”
“Of course.” I nodded and watched him tap the phone screen before bringing it to his ear. He paced back and forth for a fewminutes, and whatever the conversation was, it sounded serious. When his call finally ended, he stood staring at the ground. I rushed over to him. His expression was grim, but when he saw me approaching, his grim expression turned to hurt and anger. It made my blood run cold.
“Dan?” I asked cautiously.
“You just couldn’t help yourself, could you?” He glared at me.
“What?”
“My mum was contacted by the media today looking for a statement about my accusations about Wesley. Why do you think that is?”
“I can explain—” I started.
“Can you? Can you explain why, three days after I confided in you about the darkest time in my life, it’s due to become bloody front-fucking-page news again?”
“Dan, I—”
“My family and friends will be harassed by the press again.” His chest was heaving and he glared at me. I couldn’t speak. “This explains the dozens of missed calls from unidentified numbers… And Melanie called me today. After nearly three fucking years.” My heart lurched at the thought of him talking to his ex-girlfriend, but this moment wasn’t about my jealousy.
“Dan.” I drew in a deep breath. “You deserve vindication. People deserve to know the truth.”
“I deserve not to have my girlfriend blow my life up weeks before my brother’s wedding.”
Shit. I hadn’t even thought about the wedding or how the publicity would affect his family.
“Why, Emma?” He was still angry, but his eyes were pleading with me. “Why would you do this? What were you thinking?”
“Dan—” I tried to reach for him and he backed away, making my eyes sting with tears. “You have done so much for me. I wanted to do something for you. I’m a PR rep. This is what I do best. I just wanted the world to know how brilliant, talented, and amazing you are.”
“Emma, how do you not understand this? I don’t give a fuck if the world knows how brilliant, talented, and amazing I am. I stopped caring about that shit the moment I laid eyes on you.”
“What?” I whispered, my voice thick with tears. “Why?”
