“All right, then. I’ll make a note and close your file.” Ryan’s tone suddenly turned cold and professional. “Thanks again for taking the time to chat with me tonight.”
I can’t say the same is true for you, but I’ll be polite.
“Likewise. I hope your kid feels better soon too.”
“Thanks.”
Feeling slightly sickened by the fact that the entire show was fake, she disconnected the call and let the mobile drop onto her lap. She rubbed her temples.
“Gemma?” Tim’s voice suddenly said. “Who was that?”
Her head snapped to her left. She hadn’t realized Tim had entered the car and heard part of her conversation. He held a brown paper bag in his hands. She could smell the enticing scent of meat and spices. As her gaze traveled up to his face, she could see his jaw was clenched and his eyes shined dangerously.
She swallowed hard. “It was one of the casting directors forCupid’s Arrow.”
His Adam’s apple bobbed up and down. His voice came out strained. “You applied to be onCupid’s Arrow?”
“Yes.” She quickly added, “But it was before I met you.”
“Okay.” He shifted his gaze out the window. A few moments of silence passed before he asked, “And what did this guy want?”
“He?.?.?. they?.?.?. the casting team invited me to Los Angeles. They’d short-listed me as one of their three finalists for next season.”
“Then you’ve spoken to them a couple times?” His brow furrowed into a deep V. His gaze was boring a hole in the window. “How long have you known they were semi-interested in you to be the next bachelorette?”
Her voice grew quiet. “A few weeks.”
“And you didn’t think to tell me?”
“No. There wasn’t a point. I didn’t think I’d ever get this far,” she huffed.
“But you did.” His head slowly rose, and his eyes met Gemma’s. They reminded her of the unruly sea in the midst of an approaching storm. They were a mixture of anger and sadness. “And now you’re going to dump me so you can go run off and fall for some guy from the show.”
“Tim, no, it’s not like that at all.” She started to get out of her seat, but her seat belt kept her firmly in place. She frantically scrambled to locate the release button.
“Was I only meant to be your fallback guy?” He chucked the food bag onto the seat. “You know what, don’t answer that. I don’t even want to know. I thought this time would be different, but clearly, I was wrong.” He started to walk away.
Gemma’s own level of frustration was growing.How could he think such a thing? Doesn’t he put enough faith in me to know that I care about him too much to hurt him? He hasn’t even given me a chance to explain things to him.
Finally freeing herself, she threw her door open and jumped down, ignoring the discomfort riding up her hip. She limped after him and put a hand on his shoulder. “Tim, I’dneverdo that to you. You’re supposed to know me better than that.”
“That’s the problem, Gemma.” He looked her up and down. “I don’t know you as well as I thought I did. I don’t know if I can trust you.”
“Then maybe I was wrong about you too. Instead of letting me rationally explain things to you, you’re choosing to assume the worst about me.” She took a step back. Anger beginning to flood her system. “Just for the record, I told theCupid’s Arrowguy that I’d met someone special and that Ididn’twant anything to do with them.” Her throat constricted. “Does that sound like something a woman who saw you as a fallback guy would do?”
His eyes widened, yet he remained silent.
Gemma had her answer. He still didn’t trust her. Her heart was breaking. Cupid’s arrow had missed its mark, and its sharp tip had embedded itself in her body. She dropped her head. “Were you ever going to tell me that you’d been offered the Sloths’ manager position?”
“What—where did you hear that?”
“It doesn’t matter. Is it true?”
“Yes.”
“And are you going to accept it?”
“Yes. No. I don’t know.” His voice was raw and strained. “I haven’t had enough time to think about it.”
