I was tempted to open my social media—or perhaps Coco Luxe’s—to see if it had been flooded by unpleasant comments and messages but decided I couldn’t handle that. Instead, I grabbed my phone and sent Keysha a message to warn her about what had happened, so she’d be prepared for whatever she might face at the shop, then I laid back and listened to Alec and his agent talk damage control strategies.
Guilt churned in my gut. I knew it was hypocritical of me to feel guilty considering he felt guilty too and I’d assured him he had no reason to. The fact remained that if not for me, neither of us would be in this mess. If I hadn’t dated such a terrible guy, none of this would have happened.
Although that would mean that Alec and I wouldn’t have gotten together either, and I could never wish that undone, so I supposed we just had to deal with the consequences.
There was a knock at the door. I pulled away from Alec and went to open it. Mom and Dad stood on the other side. Mom glanced past me, noticing that Alec was on the phone.
“We didn’t hear anyone discussing it yet,” she said quietly. “If you leave here soon, you might be able to get home before too many people read the article.”
A little of the tightness in my chest eased.
“Thanks.” I held the door wide, so they could enter. “I’m going to pack.”
Behind me, Alec ended his call.
“I’m going to find that good-for-nothing asshole,” he growled, stomping past Dad and out the door. I doubted he’d find Thad. My ex was probably on his way back to the mainland by now, or perhaps he’d even flown out last night.
Mom helped me pack while Dad hovered awkwardly near the door. When Alec came back, he’d deflated a little and muttered something about not having been able to track Thad down. It was probably for the best. I didn’t want him to do anything that might get him into trouble.
“I don’t care about Thad.” I rested my head on his chest and closed my eyes, emotionally exhausted even though the day had only just begun. “Can we just go home?”
NINETEEN
ALEC
I opened the front door of my house and smiled at the couple on the doorstep. “Mr. and Mrs. Dufresne, thanks for coming.”
Mrs. Dufresne rolled her eyes. “I’ve told you to call me Daisy.”
“Thank you for inviting us,” Mr. Dufresne said, offering me a bottle of wine.
I took the bottle and thanked him. He smoothed his palms down the front of his neat, white-striped suit—he must have come straight from work—and asked, “Is Tally here yet?”
“Not yet. According to Keysha, they should be about five minutes away.”
“Perfect.”
I moved aside and they stepped into the foyer. The hum of chatter filtered through from the living room. “Everyone else is through there.”
They followed my gesture and preceded me to the living area, where most of my team, their partners, and my family were already gathered. I’d had to buy extra seating because the sofa and pair of armchairs I’d had came nowhere near to fitting everyone.
Mr. and Mrs. Dufresne joined my parents near the kitchen and Mom offered them each a drink. I’d forewarned all the parents about my plan for the evening, which had required me to come clean about how Tally and I really had been pretending at the beginning. It had been uncomfortable but I didn’t want them to be blindsided.
They’d taken it well, although I could tell Mom, in particular, was bothered by our deception. I hated that, but all I could do now was be honest and hope that would be enough to earn her forgiveness.
I placed the bottle of wine from Mr. Dufresne on the counter and wandered over to the door closest to the front of the house, so I’d be able to hear when the next car arrived.
“Nervous?” my sister, Jane, asked from her cross-legged position on an armchair.
“A little.” I spoke quietly. I didn’t mind Jane knowing that I was anxious—out of anyone, she would understand—but I’d rather not get ribbed about it by my teammates.
“You’ll be fine.” Her brown eyes were warm and encouraging. “You and Tally are perfect for each other. It’s going to work out.”
I hoped so.
I couldn’t deny that the fact Tally had been holed up in her apartment since we’d returned on Sunday worried me. According to Keysha, they’d had some hate on social media—which I was certain Tally was agonizing over—but nothing particularly troublesome happening at the shop itself, with the exception of a couple of cancelled orders that were small enough they didn’t really harm the bottom line.
Still, Tally seemed afraid to trust that things would work out.
