“Oh, uh, not really.” She quickly answers, fidgeting with her hands, clearly nervous.
“Or maybe it’s just a crush for now?” I ask her and smile.
“Shut up,” she mumbles, and I chuckle at her. Victoria and I keep talking and agree that we’ll tell our agents we’re not going to go through with the fake-dating plan.
They’ll need to find someone else to sell their stories to the press.
We part ways, and I follow Victoria to the door, giving her a friendly hug before heading to my room, taking a shower, and cursing myself for the tenth time because I don’t have Jessica’s number to reach her.
Chapter 12
JESSICA
Just as we finish dinner, several phones around the table light up. Working in media means getting push notifications for news sites and Twitter.
Everyone begins checking their phones for the latest breaking news.
“What is it?” I ask Molly who’s engaged in her phone, clearly looking at something intriguing.
“The first pictures of Luke Hastings and Victoria Jensen just dropped. After the gossip blast that dropped this morning, it looks like there was truth to it.” She turns her phone toward me, and I feel my stomach drop.
Right in front of me is a picture of Luke and Victoria, heading into what appears to be his team bus. He’s still in his race suit, and they seem to be in a hurry.
Almost as if they don’t want to be seen, trying to hide. It reminds me of how I’ve been around him myself.
Molly takes her phone back, and I feel my anxiety rising.
Have I really been that dumb?
Maybe he’s been with Victoria all along, and I was just his latest way to be entertained.
What if this all was just a game to him?
To humiliate me. I feel disappointed and angry, but I try to tell myself that I need to hear him out before writing him off. Maybe there’s an explanation for this.
There has to be.
This is Luke. He doesn’t strike me as the type to pull off something like this. He’s been wonderful in every way, and I need to have some faith in him.
Then Molly turns her phone toward me again, this time showing a picture of Victoria in his arms, sharing a hug, with Luke smiling into the embrace.
I feel sick.
My breath catches in my throat, and I feel overwhelmed with a feeling of betrayal.
I should’ve known that someone like him would never be with someone like me.
Even though we haven’t really talked about this thing between us, I was naive enough to believe he wasn’t seeing someone else while taking me on the most romantic date the day before and kissing me senseless.
Not to mention the gift this morning.
Why would he go out of his way to make me feel so special just to turnup with Victoria in photos hours later?
We finish dinner, and I’m grateful we’re heading back to the bus, where I can process my feelings alone.
???
I’m heading out to get some ice cream when a familiar BMW pulls up beside me. Luke rolls down his window and calls out,
