“I have it on good authority there will be a swarm of paparazzi coming into town any minute now.” Jake folded his arms across his chest.
Paparazzi? How did they find out where I am?
“Your ex-boyfriend called his daddy, and word got out about what happened to him.” Jake’s lips were pressed together tightly.
“Oh.”Shit.The last thing she wanted was to bring a locust into the quiet mountain town that didn’t even have a hotel or reliable Wi-Fi service.
“Yeah, so I talked to Marley, who came up with the idea of a fundraiser you just so happen to be hosting when they all show up looking for a scandal—an event to help get some of theseanimals adopted. Marley talked to Alina, who then rounded up everyone else. Free publicity, I think she called it.”
Gia listened, taking in the information. “That’s… actually a great idea.”
There’s no stopping them from coming, so we might as well put them to good use.
“We think it would turn the attention away from what that asshole did and make people focus on the good you’re doing here.”
She shook her head in disbelief. “But I did nothing… Marley did it all.”
“She won’t mind. Besides, if any of the cats get adopted or people donate money, it’s a win-win situation in her book,” Jake reassured her, pulling her in for a hug.
“This is such a mess. I’m so sorry,” she murmured against his chest.
Jake squeezed her tighter to his chest. “Sorry? For what?”
Panic flooded her chest. “Jake, they ruin everything. They’re going to bring bad news here, and I just—” It was getting hard to breathe.
“Hey, hey. It’s going to be okay. I promise.” He stroked her back in soothing circles.
Her breathing slowed, the edges of a panic attack ebbing away under his touch. His scent grounded her. Remind her she was safe.
“I know you’re worried, but we have a good plan. Everyone here volunteered their time to make sure it goes smoothly,” he said.
She pulled back, looking up at him, brows pinched together with confusion. “They did?”
He worked a hand into her hair, cradling her head. “Yes. They want to protect you as much as possible. You’re one of us now.”
One of them?
“And we protect what’s ours.” His voice was full of conviction.
Ours.
A warm and pleasant buzz filled her to the brim.
Jake was right. This small mountain town was theirs, and it needed to be protected from vultures like Alex and the paparazzi. She never should have told him where she was—though in hindsight, she didn’t recall ever telling her where she was from. There was no telling how he got the information, but if history was an indicator of his vindictive behavior, she would hazard a guess he tipped them off to her hiding spot as revenge for making him look like a fool.
Well, maybe he shouldn’t have drugged me.
It made her wonder how often he’d done it in the past. How many times did she lose track of time when she was with Alex? Too many to count, but now was not the place to relive those years of her life. She’d need to reconnect with her therapist and unpack those memories later.
Right now, her chief priority was helping to pull this off, raise some money, and re-home some pets.
“Okay, tell me what you need me to do.”
Blinding lights obscured her vision. Frozen, she stared into the lens of the camera aimed right at her.
“Gia! Over here! Look over here!” A flash and the sound of shutter speed capturing her image in real time. “Smile for the camera!”
The demand was outrageous. Here she was, standing in the middle of a crowded room, and they still wanted her to perform. Pushing down the anger rising in her, she remembered her role.
