“What have you done?” he growled at her, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. It felt dirty.
She smiled sweetly. “What you should have done in the first place.” She turned and smiled sweetly for the photographers. “If you could give us some privacy, I know we'd both appreciate it. We're working things out.”
Wyatt saw red. “How dare you!”
“Oh, dear. I know that things are rough right now, but I forgive you. That other woman tricked you. I love you. We can still be together. I forgive you completely.” Lorna fluttered her eyelashes at him.
The click of cameras filled the air, all of them tuned on Lorna.
“That's not true,” he said, trying to keep his voice calm.
“Darling, I know that we've had some rough spots, but we can work things out. I want to work things out. I won't let that other woman lie to you. That's all she's done. You and I are meant to be. Don't be angry with me for making you see the truth. I'm only trying to help you.”
Wyatt stared at her. The words she was saying made no sense, yet the paparazzi were eating it up.
He realized no matter what he said, it would be misreported. Right now, she had the upper hand.
There was nothing he could do to fix this. Better to disappear before she could catch him in any more drama. The less pictures that existed, the better. Besides, he was too angry to think straight. Staying would mean giving the photographers more fuel for their tawdry fires.
He turned and pushed his way through the photographers, leaving them to snap pictures up as he went. He wanted to hit something. He wanted to throw and destroy every camera there, but he knew it wouldn't do any good.
The damage was done.
A picture of Lorna and Wyatt kissing passionately existed in the world.
Wyatt's head hung in shame as Thor in the SUV skidded to a stop in front of him. He climbe
d in, already dreading telling Cassie. He knew she would understand, but at the same time, it was one more incursion into her world.
If she were dating a regular man, this wouldn't be a problem. She wouldn't see her boyfriend kissing another woman as front page news if she was dating anyone but him.
This was the part of being a billionaire that sucked. He had no privacy, and everyone wanted something from him.
It was not the way that he wanted to live. If given the option, he would happily trade his billions for a more normal lifestyle. He didn't want to live in poverty, but the idea of merely being a multimillionaire without fame sounded like heaven.
The walk up to his apartment was long. He dreaded having to tell Cassie what had happened. He hated knowing she would see this picture. He knew she would understand, but that didn't change the fact that she had to deal with it. She would take it with grace and understanding, as she seemed to take everything his world threw at her. She would smile and tell him it didn't matter while her eyes grew distant and her mouth lost its smile.
He knew it dragged on her. She disliked this celebrity status as much as he did. It was one of the reasons that they got along so well. They matched one another in their desire to remain private and didn't need the general public to validate their decisions.
He took a deep breath before opening up the door. Inside he could hear laughter and the sound of music.
It made him feel more guilty. He was going to come in and ruin their fun. He gave serious thought to just going to the gym or on a run, but he knew Cassie would worry. She expected him home around now from the date, and if he didn't show she would worry that Lorna had somehow seduced him.
It was laughable, but then there was the picture showing the lie could look possible.
He opened the door, trying to keep a positive look on his face.
Inside, Cassie and her three friends sat on the couch, a bottle of wine and glasses on the coffee table. Old pop music he recognized from his high school years filled the room, and they were laughing as they talked.
“You're home!” Cassie shouted, jumping up with a smile. Her eyes shone with relief that he was back and no longer in Lorna's clutches. She ran to him, wrapping her arms around him.
Even though the kiss was not of his doing, he felt like he was contaminating her with his touch.
“How awful was it?” Brianna asked, standing up and picking up the empty wine bottle. The other two women helped her pick up and put the dishes in the kitchen.
“It went exactly as you'd expect,” Wyatt said. He turned and looked at Cassie. “I need to talk to you.”
Concern filled her beautiful brown eyes. “What happened?”