“I didn’t think that, Luke. At least, I tried not to think it. I won’t lie and say a small bit of doubt didn’t play in the back of my head. I’m just tired of…”
I had been about to say “never seeing you,” but that wouldn’t have been true. Luke had been busting his ass flying back and forth to spend time with me. I knew what he did for a living. I knew he lived in LA. I knew our relationship would be a long-distance one from the start.
“You’re tired of what, sweetheart?”
Shaking my head, I whispered, “Nothing. It doesn’t matter.”
Luke pulled me into his arms. I buried my face into his chest and drew in a deep breath. I loved his smell. It was natural and manly with something slightly citrus. It was…Luke.
“If it makes you unhappy, it matters,” he says.
Drawing back, I smiled up at him. “I’m not unhappy.”
He pushed a piece of hair back from my eyes and cupped my face. “Do you promise? Because if you want to take our relationship public, we can.”
“No,” I said, wrapping my arms around his neck. “I don’t think I’m ready to let the rest of the world in yet.”
A stunning smile broke out over his face. “Well, I’m done with the movie, and I’m all yours.”
My heart did a weird little flip. “Until when?”
“November.”
“What?” I said, nearly jumping for joy. “You’ll be here in Boston until November?”
He laughed. “Yes. I have a few things I’ll need to fly out to LA for, but they won’t take more than a day or two at the most.”
I reached up onto my toes and kissed him. My happiness at having Luke to myself for the next two months pushed me right back into my pretend world.
The world that would eventually spin out of control. I just didn’t know when it would happen.
Luke
Five months later – January
“Fix this now, Laura,” I said to my agent as I stared at a picture of Bree and me walking into the front door of my building on our way home from lunch. The one time I had Hank drop us off at the front of the building so we could rush in because it had been so fucking cold. My agent had emailed it to me and asked if I wanted to make it public, to which I’d said no. I honestly never thought a photographer would be camped out there waiting for a chance to catch me. I hadn’t made it known I was in Boston, and it was bitterly freezing outside.
Since I’d been staying in Boston for most of the fall, I’d noticed more and more paparazzi hanging around my building. They’d gotten a picture of us out to dinner once, but Bree’s face was blocked. They never were able to figure out who she was. Still, word was getting out that I was seeing someone in Boston, and I knew the vultures could swoop in at any time.
I also knew Brighton was growing tired of the whole cloak-and-dagger game. She’d been going back to Boggy Creek a lot more often, even while I was in Boston. Seeing all her friends getting settled down and married was giving her a lot to think about. It was for me, as well. A hell of a lot.
“I’ll take care of it,” Laura said. “The photographer who sent it to me is one we can trust. I’ll let him know you’re not ready to go public, but once you are, he can have the first photo.”
“Fine,” I said in a clipped tone. “I need to go.”
I didn’t even give Laura a chance to say goodbye, I was in that shitty of a mood.
“Luke, you’re growing increasingly unhappy. When are you going to admit to yourself that maybe this isn’t the life you want anymore?” Hank asked after I hung up the phone.
I glared at him as he pulled into my building’s parking garage. “If I wanted your advice, I would have asked for it.”
When I opened the door, I was surprised to see Hank getting out as well. He normally pulled in and let me out. But now he walked around the car and stood in front of me.
“You’re not asking for my advice, but as your friend, I’m going to give it to you,” he said. “Brighton is not going to be there forever, and the longer you keep trying to live this double life, the harder things are going to get. And let’s not even talk about how many roles you’ve turned down. I’m your assistant, remember? I’m the one responding to the emails.”
“Not now, Hank.”
But he kept going. “You don’t find it strange that Brighton is going home to Boggy Creek more often? Or that she’s working longer hours and can’t meet you for dinner as much? Dude, I’m trying to get you to realize someone you love is slipping out of your hands—and you don’t even realize it. Brighton is as lost as you. Even I can see it. She’s scared, and the two of you can’t keep ignoring this. You’ve been together for a year now. That’s a long fucking time to have kept this secret, and I applaud you for doing so. But at what cost?”