Tatum
I would have never imagined that Paige could look any hotter than when she was with me, but she did. Holy hell, she did. Her shoulder-length hair seemed to suit her way more than the long hair ever did. Maybe it was the new her? More self-assured, confident, and sexy as hell.
I ran outside, telling Paige that I had something to do. But what the hell I was trying to accomplish, even I didn’t know. My instincts had told me to confront the paparazzi, tell them everything they wanted to know, but now that I was outside and surrounded by them, it seemed like a completely foolish idea. There were too many of them, and I was convinced they’d twist my words.
“Why are you leaving, Tatum? Did Paige kick you out?”
“Did you two break up?”
“How long were you guys cheating before Colin found out? Does he know you’re in town?”
“How does it feel to be a home wrecker?”
“So Paige cheated first, huh? Never would have thought that America’s Sweetheart was really a dirty girl. Is that why you like her?”
“How’d you two meet?”
“How long has Paige been keeping you a secret, Tatum Montgomery?”
Holy hell. How Paige dealt with this kind of shit on a daily basis was beyond me. I wanted to pull my arm back and clock most of these assholes in the face for the thin
gs they were saying, the insinuations about her that they made, the lies they propagated.
Every one of these pricks knew who I was; they knew my first and last name. It was unnerving, to say the least. The whole scene made me feel like I was living in an alternate universe, but I was determined to stay cool, both for Paige’s sake and my own. She needed to know she could trust me to handle this kind of thing, and I needed to learn how to do exactly that.
My mom had warned me when I stepped off the airplane about the pictures in the press. I knew no one from Hanford meant to cause any harm, but it still happened. And now I needed to fix it. Sometimes I wish life came with a manual—I could sure as shit use one now.
Paige didn’t deserve to have her life in constant upheaval like this. She needed someone to defend her honor, and I wanted that someone to be me. I meant every word I said to her just then, and I wasn’t even pissed when she didn’t tell me she loved me back. I knew she did, even if she had herself convinced that she didn’t. I’d show her how wrong she was.
While Hollywood and this ridiculous scene might not be my most favorite thing in the world, I’d realized that Paige is. And she was worth all the bullshit I’d go through just to be with her. Unfortunately, I made her feel like she wasn’t worth it. My actions and words made her to feel like I didn’t think she was worth the trouble. But she was wrong, so very wrong, and I planned to prove just that.
With the paparazzi screaming in my ear, I watched as half of them ran to their cars when Paige slipped out the doors behind me and jumped into her car, sunglasses covering her eyes. Her head turned in my direction, and she gave me a little smile before making a quick right out of her complex. I stood there dumbfounded, feeling like a fish out of water as cars peeled out of the parking lot to follow her. My stomach churned at the sight, and I felt helpless as I realized she was being relentlessly chased.
Damn it, why aren’t superpowers real?
Scanning the single photographer left, I turned toward the guy, who looked to be about my age. I took a step in his direction, and his dark, beady eyes watched my every move as his fingers tightened their grip on his camera.
“So, why are you still here?” I asked, trying to keep my tone calm when my insides were anything but. “Why didn’t you chase Paige like all the others?”
He pulled a baseball cap from his back pocket and tugged it over his jet-black hair, his tanned face suddenly shaded as he nodded at me. “One of the other guys on my crew followed her, so I stayed here with you. Maybe you’ll tell me all about the cheating and give me an exclusive?”
I narrowed my eyes and swallowed the growl that wanted to escape at his accusations. “There was no cheating,” I said, my response clipped.
“So, why are you here, Tatum?”
“I came here for her,” I admitted before snapping my lips shut.
“Then why’d she leave without you?”
Good question. No, great question.
“Do you know where she was going?” I asked, wondering how much guys like this knew about her.
He shrugged. “Probably to Quinn Johnson’s house, but she could be going anywhere. To see her agents, or her parents in the valley. Who knows, really?”
“Thanks,” I said before walking away.
“Hey, wait!” he shouted, and I stopped. “Will you give me a quote? Tell me something? Anything?”