I scoff and smile. “Suki and Mara are all over me to talk about it. I told them I’m not there yet. Maybe when my head doesn’t feel like a grenade just exploded inside of it.”
“Isaac’s picking us up in Cleveland.”
“My dad can pick us up.”
He shakes his head slightly. “Isaac’s doing it.”
I furrow my brow. “What aren’t you telling me?”
“It’s nothing major.”
“Lucien. What is it?”
“There are photographers at your dad’s place, and at mine. Isaac’s borrowing a van with tinted windows to get us to his house.”
I bury my face in my hands. “This just goes from bad to worse to so much fucking worse.”
He pats my knee. “It won’t last, Tal. When they don’t get what they want, they’ll move on.”
“Does Isaac live at a fraternity house?”
He grins. “It has a frat house vibe for sure. There’s never TP in the bathroom and his living room has a bunch of pinball machines in it.”
“Awesome.”
“It’ll all die down soon.”
“I’m sorry about all this.”
His expression turns serious. “Stop saying that. This will blow over.”
“I ruined their reception. Even after everything they’ve done, I didn’t want to ruin anything.”
“You didn’t ruin it. I’m sure it kept rolling after we left.”
A sick sensation rolls through my stomach. “And now I’ve screwed myself. I’m internet famous for getting drunk and ranting about spanking my ex. Right when I need to start applying for jobs. People will see me and be like, Oh, it’s that crazy woman from the wedding.”
The SUV stops at the airport entrance, and the driver comes around to open my door. Lucien passes him a tip and gets our bags.
“Our airline is this way,” I say, pointing. “Or did we have to switch airlines?”
“Yeah, we switched airlines. Just follow me.”
“Are you serious?”
Thirty minutes later, I gape at Lucien as he leads me toward a small, private luxury airplane.
“It was just the right timing. You know Hunter Beck?”
“I know of him, but I’ve never met him. He’s the billionaire who plays for Pittsburgh, right?”
“Yep. He’s a friend, and he’s spending the break at his place in Kauai. His plane can get us home and get back here in time for his flight back.”
My shoulders sink with relief. “That’s really nice of him. I was thinking we might be in coach and not even sitting next to each other, with the last-minute flight change.”
He grins. “Hunter’s your friend now, too. He also hates Macintire, and he said to tell you, ‘great fucking speech.’”
I smile weakly. “I’m probably uninvited from every family function for the rest of my life, so I’m not looking for compliments on it.”
