We waited for people to file out of the hall and, when we didn't see Bill, went inside. He stood by the podium. Someone had taken the picture down at least.
I stalked toward the front of the room. Bill's startled gaze flew up.
"How did you get that picture?" I demanded.
His expression turned to a sneer. "Wynter had it open on her computer when I went to talk to her. She had to speak to a customer, and I snapped a pic. You shouldn't leave stuff like that just lying around. Although I should probably thank her. I've wanted to expose Angela for what she is, and now I have."
Cooper stood by my side and slightly behind me, allowing me to take the lead on this. Energy was coiled tightly inside me. I wasn't sure how long I could hold onto it without lashing out at Bill. "You exposed a private moment between me and my girlfriend. You didn't reveal shady shit."
He blinked in surprise. "From what I saw, you're fucking her in her store. That's indecent, and she shouldn't be allowed tocontinue as a seller in this town. We hold ourselves to a high standard?—"
I clenched my teeth. "Let me get this straight. Your high standard is stealing someone's private photo and sharing it with the town?"
"That's not what this was. I exposed her for who she is?—"
Cooper cleared his throat. "If you're about to say what I think you are, you'd better shut the hell up."
Instead of shoving him against the wall and landing a fist in his face, I said, "You're the one who screwed up. No one will ever be able to trust you again. You stole something and violated Angela. Most of the shop owners are female in this town."
That was why she'd run. She felt vulnerable, exposed, and who could blame her? We'd shared an intimate moment, and Bill had tried to make it something ugly. As far as I was concerned, he'd failed. He'd only exposed himself for what he was, an ugly person who sought to make everyone else miserable. But no one could dim Angela's light.
The only problem was that she didn't see it that way. She thought I'd shared those photos. I curled my hands into fists.
"She doesn't belong here in this town. Eve will see that she's not the right fit. She'll cancel her lease. It will work out," Bill rattled on, but his tone wasn't as confident as before.
I wasn't going to hit an older gentleman, no matter how much he deserved it. I turned and walked away, Cooper hot on my heels.
Outside, I headed for the bookstore. Cooper was silent as he fell into step with me. My jaw ached from clenching my teeth, and I couldn't seem to uncurl my fingers.
There was a roaring in my ears as I opened the door to the bookstore. Mom stood talking to Aspen.
"Where is she?" I asked.
Aspen bit her lip. "She left."
I couldn't speak to her when Ayla was around anyway. But maybe she'd let me come over after she got Ayla into bed. I pulled out my phone, and Angela stopped me with a hand on my wrist. "She doesn't want to talk to you."
"I wasn't the one who shared that image. I mean, I was the one who sent it to Wynter, but not for the reasons she thinks. Bill saw it and took a photo." I ran a hand through my hair. "I wanted Wynter to edit it. I wanted to make Angela a book or a framed photo. It was something that was only supposed to be between the two of us. Wynter had assured me of privacy."
"I'm sure Wynter didn't mean for that to happen either," Mom said.
"I just want Angela to understand; I didn't intentionally try and hurt her. I would never—" I felt like my chest was caving in. Was I going to be able to fix this?
"I don't think tonight's the best time to talk to her. Maybe when she's had a chance to calm down," Aspen said, and Mom nodded.
They made sense, but something didn't sit right with me. I didn't want her going to bed thinking I'd intentionally expose her like that.
I was moving and had almost made it to the door when Mom asked, "Do you love her?"
I nodded tightly. "So much."
Mom nodded too. "Then go get your girl."
I opened the door and headed toward my truck. I'd been worried about how the meeting would go, but I'd never anticipated Bill would stoop so low. I still had no assurances that Eve would renew her lease. I couldn't fix that for Angela, but I could make her understand what happened.
By the time I made it to Angela's house, the lights were off upstairs. There was a dim glow from the kitchen, but that was a light that Angela left on all night. I pulled out my phone.
Hudson: Are you still awake?
