Maybe they’d be happy.
“Dad.” Her voice shook. “There’s something I have to do.”
He flashed her a knowing smile and nodded toward the door. “Go.”
She lunged at him, offering him one last hug. “I’ll make it up to you next week. Dinner. I promise.”
“I’ll hold you to it,” he said, and with that, she turned and ran from the ballroom.
Forgetting her coat, she rushed outside. The wintry air nipped at her bare arms as she darted to the sidewalk, arm raised, yelling for a cab.
One flew past, followed by another.
She stepped out into the street, nearly getting run over. Sticking her arm out, she screamed until the next one stopped. Sliding into the backseat, she didn’t waste any time rattling off his address.
With trembling hands, she dug her phone from her purse and pulled up Blue’s contact information, then dialed. As she waited for her to answer, she squeezed her eyes closed, unsure of what she’d say once she got on her on the line. She only knew she needed to tell her she was done—she wouldn’t be her puppet.
“Hello?” Blue answered.
“It’s Marti.”
“Marti,” Blue purred, almost as if she expected her call. “I assume you’ve seen the website?”
“What? No. Why would I . . .?” Marti’s forehead knotted in confusion. “Never mind. I need to talk to you about Logan.” Her chest puffed as she drew in a breath, filling her lungs. “I won’t do it. I won’t break up with him. I care about him too much to let him go.”
There was a beat of silence, then Blue’s hard tone. “I’m sorry to hear that because things may be a little complicated . . .”
Marti’s stomach dropped. “What do you mean, complicated?”
“Let’s just say I did a little digging and found some very interesting things I felt the public should know about your dear doctor.”
Marti’s heart rate spiked. Her mouth turned to dust. “What kind of things?”
“Maybe you should read it before you make any decisions. Sometimes people aren’t who they say they are.”
She hit end, cutting her off, and pulled up her web browser. Come on. Come on. Come on.
She waited as PopNewz loaded on her screen, then scrolled to the trending stories, and her heart stopped. At the very top was the headline Blue wanted her to see.
Logarti’s own Dr. Love Killed His Own Baby. Get the Inside Story on His Charity Hoax.
No. No. No.
This couldn’t be happening . . .
She stabbed the headline with a shaky finger, pulling up the article in its entirety, and with a soft whimper, began to read.
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
LOGAN
REGARDLESS OF THE FACT that Marti had pushed him away, Logan dressed for the wedding. He hated the thought of her attending it alone, especially when he knew how hard it would be for her.
Besides, a deal was a deal. And whether he liked it or not, she had fulfilled her end of the bargain.
Thanks to her and their fake relationship, Hidden Heartbeat would go national. They’d save lives. It was only a matter of signing the last contract and waiting for the checks to clear. Okay, so maybe his showing up at the wedding was about more than that. Maybe it was because he couldn’t help but hope she might change her mind about him. He checked her column the last three days for a story and found nothing from her. It’s like she went radio silent. That had to mean something, didn’t it?
Marti was used to the important men in her life giving up and walking out. So he wouldn’t. Not now. Not ever. As long as he thought there was a sliver of hope she felt an inkling of what he did, he’d be there, waiting.