“Then,” Harrison continues with a weary sigh, “someone identified the two of us. I hate to say it, Piper, but it was that troublemaking bitch.”
My mother nearly spits out her mouthful of wine, collapsing into a coughing fit.
“Who?” Monica exclaims, looking just as shocked that Harrison called someone a bitch, as perfectly fitting as it is, considering I know he’s talking about Amy.
“It’s not important,” Harrison says. “But they IDed us, and the rest is history.” He clears his throat. “I understand if you both need a moment to come to terms with this,” he says, looking between Eddie and Monica. “I also understand that I may lose my job over this, and I am prepared to handle the consequences.”
“No,” I cry out. “No, Monica, Eddie. Please. Don’t fire him. He’s not in the wrong. I’m the one who took him to this lake, I’m the one who invited him. It was all me.”
Eddie gives me a long look, the corner of his mouth twitching. “Piper. I appreciate you vouching for Harrison, but it takes two to tango, and I find it impossible to think that you tricked him in some way, shape, or form.” He looks at Harrison. “I’m not going to fire you, you arse,” he says. “You’re a grown man. And you’re a good friend. I trust you with my life, which means I trust you in everything. There are no rules about who you can date or become romantically entangled with. You know that. Or perhaps you don’t, because it’s never come up. All the more reason why you probably needed this to happen.”
Eddie then glances at me. “And I’m sure you knew the risks too, being with a public figure. I can’t say I’m surprised that this is happening to you, but I’m still sorry for it all the same.”
“It’s okay,” I tell him. “As I said, I shouldn’t have taken the risk. I should have thought it through. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.” I look at Monica as I say the last bit, but she’s still not looking at me.
“I’ll say it again: this still isn’t the end of the world,” Eddie says, shrugging. “Perhaps the world could use a distraction in the form of Harrison’s arse.”
“How did you know they posted a picture of that?” Harrison asks. He then looks to me. “And while it may not be the end of the world for me, if someone is already calling up Mrs. Evans and asking questions, that means things might get a lot more complicated for Piper.”
He’s right, of course. But when it comes to pictures of me and Harrison together, I don’t see how anything could harm me, except an invasion of privacy.
“Mom, are you sure you didn’t say anything too damning?” I say to her. “You realize that the person who called was probably from a tabloid.”
“I swear I didn’t,” she says. “I guess this all makes sense now. You’re famous because of the pictures; now everyone wants to know who you are. You’re the mystery girl, Piper.”
Except that I wanted to stay the mystery girl. I’d been so focused on not upsetting Monica that I didn’t for a second think about how my being with Harrison would affect my life.
But really, what can they say? “Local schoolteacher enjoys fling with royal bodyguard”? Other than the expected slut-shaming and a new focus on me as a person of interest, is this really going to change things for me?
“So how should we handle this?” Harrison asks.
Eddie shrugs. “Well, I’m going to finish dinner. Then we can all retire to the deck, open a bottle of champagne, and celebrate the fact that you’ve found each other.” He looks to his wife with a smug look on his face. “I hate to say it, but, Mon, darling, you owe me money.”
She gives him a small smile.
They bet on this?
Dinner is over fairly quickly, and as everyone prepares to head outside with champagne glasses, I pull Monica to the side.
“Hey,” I say to her. “Look, I’m really sorry. I haven’t . . . we haven’t been sneaking around for very long, and I’ve felt so bad about keeping it a secret from you. I know what you said about us, and I should have run it past you first. I should have been open.”
“Piper,” she says softly, putting her hand on my arm. “It’s okay. And I should have never said anything to you about him before. It wasn’t my place.”
“You said it would reflect badly on you, and now it might.”
“I know what I said. But I was wrong to say it. I’m so used to thinking about myself that I didn’t stop to think about you or Harrison. Whatever you guys are doing, however you feel about each other, it’s okay. Whatever you do is your business, and if it reflects badly on us, then so what? People who hate will always find a reason. The both of you are great people who deserve someone great in your lives. I mean that.”