The American woman listened wordlessly, letting him spill his guts, void his heart.
When he was finished, he ran his hand over his face. “You said it right. It’s a fuck-up.”
She nodded. “It’s messy, alright. Life’s like that.”
They sat for a moment in silence, watching the bartender quietly set clean glasses on the mirrored shelves behind the bar, the light reflecting and blurring in his hazy vision. She was taking her time to arrange the glasses perfectly in line, the exact same distance between each one. He fought the urge to go back there and smash them all out of place.
Then the woman beside him pulled out her phone and looked at the time. “Shit, I’d better go. Good luck with everything though.”
Like an emotional one-night stand, he knew she’d be leaving. But it had been weirdly cathartic. So he nodded, ignoring the way the room tilted a few degrees off vertical. “Yeah. You too.”
She slipped off the barstool and walked steadily to the door, and left without a backward glance.
“Who was that?” the bartender asked, as the door closed behind her. “She was in here yesterday too.”
He shrugged. “Some American on her way home.” He looked at his shimmering reflection in the mirror glass on the back wall, behind the bottles of tequila and vodka and Southern Comfort. So much for soft focus—even blurry, he looked like shit.
The bartender was texting on her phone, her bottom lip caught between her teeth. He held up a fifty-dollar note, and waved it to get her attention.
She looked over, and her frown deepened. “Sorry, I won’t be a sec.”
“S’alright.” He threw it on the bar. “Keep the change.”
Then he headed unevenly for the door.
His mother would be even less impressed with him when he turned up drunk, but too bad. Shakespearean tragedy always needed a villain, or a wayward son. Right now, he was playing both.
Chapter Thirty-Three
Standing in the shower, the morning’s events crowded Jacinda’s head, small snippets of blissful moments drowned out by the ones that followed. Liam’s face as he saw his mom…his mom’s face as she saw Jacinda. The overheard conversation that made his allegiance clear. Could she blame him, really? If it came down to family, or her, what choice did he have? Between the two of them, they had enough guilt to sink a ship…and if he didn’t want to sink his own family all over again, she could hardly condemn him for that.
Even though it hurt.
She groaned and got out, wishing only for the oblivion of sleep as she gave her hair a quick rub, squeezing the excess water out, then wrapped the towel around herself. Then she heard her phone ringing down the hall in her bedroom. She opened the bathroom door and went along to grab it.
Hannah. Thank God. “I’m so glad you called,” she said, in place of ‘hello’.
“Oh,” Hannah said. “Hi.”
“I mean, I’m always glad to talk to you, you know that.” She shut the door and sat on the edge of her bed. “But especially now.”
“Really? Why?”
She groaned. “You won’t believe what happened.”
“Is it something bad? Tell me.”
“So…” A cold drip ran down her back. “Liam’s mom walked in on us in bed this morning.”
“Wait—you’re sleeping with Liam?”
“I was. Not anymore.” She sketched out what had happened over the last couple of weeks, finishing with the conversation she’d overheard between Liam and his mom.
“Well, that stinks,” Hannah said. “But last I heard, you guys were arguing, and you were avoiding him, not sleeping together. Is it serious?”
She hesitated. Was it serious? “It seemed like it was heading that way. Maybe.” She let out a frustrated groan. “I don’t know…what do you think?”
“I think sometimes love is just right, no matter how long it’s been. And sometimes it’s shit.”
Alarm bells went off in Jacinda’s head. Hannah almost never swore, especially with such violence in her tone.
“What’s happened?” she asked. “Is everything alright?”
“Depends on your definition of alright.” Then she laughed, a harsh sound that sent a spike of worry into Jacinda’s chest.
“You don’t sound alright at all. What’s going on?”
“Remember how I said Todd was Austin a while ago, checking out new talent?”
“Yes.”
“He was checking it out really closely. Checking her out. And then he had to check her out again in Palm Springs.”
The hard, bitter edge to her voice was something Jacinda had never heard before. “Do you mean…?”
“Yeah. He’s been screwing around.”
She sat up, suddenly knocked out of her own pity party. “Oh God, Han. I’m so sorry. Here I was going on and on about my drama…”
“It’s okay.”
“It’s not okay. I want to kill him.” This was what she’d always worried about—that having fallen for Hannah, Todd wouldn’t see it through. Immersed in an ego-driven, unforgiving business, always looking for the next big thing, surrounded by people who’d do anything to succeed…his scrappy, risk-taking personality was his ticket to professional success, but made him a shitty husband. “How did you find out?”
“The woman called and told me. Said I should know what kind of man I’m married to. She was pissed because he ditched her when none of the labels showed any interest in her. Nice, huh? And he didn’t deny it, so…” She fell silent.
“Jesus. I’m so sorry. What are you going to do?”
“I don’t know. I mean, I do know one thing—I’m not staying with him.” She sighed. “At least we don’t have kids to complicate things.”
Jacinda bit her lip. “There is one complication though. Me.”
“Yeah, I did think of that.” She managed a laugh. “Who’s going to get custody?”
“Well, I can’t stay with him either. If it comes down to choosing between my best friend and my manager, it’s no choice at all. We’ll just have to figure something out.”
“Thank you. But…just don’t make any decisions now, okay?” Hannah replied, assuming a businesslike tone that wasn’t completely convincing. “He’s getting this tour sorted for you. Eli has a one-off show at the Greek coming up, and he’s going to announce the tour then. If you’re on board, he’ll want you to play a couple of songs.”
“Okay.”
“Okay what? About staying with Todd or doing the tour? Because I want you to do the tour. And I want you to do it the way you want to.”
Jacinda thought about it. If Danielle had found a job, she didn’t need anyone to watch Sam while she went for interviews. The kittens were taken care of, and Sam had friends his own age to play with. No one here needed her anymore. Not even the guy next door. It was time to get on with her real life. And Hannah was right—she’d do it her own way from here on, like she’d planned. Whatever she decided her own way would be.
“Both,” she said to Hannah. “And I’ll come back now. You’ve always been in my corner, all the way through. Now it’s my turn to be there for you. Come and stay with me for a while.”
Hannah made a sound somewhere between a laugh and a sob. “That would be really good.”
“Okay. I’ll check out the flights and let you know when I’m arriving.”
“Don’t rush,” Hannah said. “I’m fine.” But the quaver in her words said otherwise.
“You will be. We’ll make sure of it.” She switched to her best menacing voice. “Todd, on the other hand…”
This time, it was definitely a laugh. Jacinda smiled, but her heart was breaking for her friend. “Love you.”
“Love you too,” Hannah replied.
When they hung up, Jacinda pulled her damp hair into a ponytail, and tugged on yoga pants and an old Green Day t-shirt. She and Hannah went back a long way, and had so much in common, they were like sisters. The kind that didn’t fight. No way was she staying with Todd after he
did that to her best friend. Some men didn’t know what they had until it was gone. And some women didn’t need those men anyway.
* * *
Downstairs, she found Sam out on the deck, herding kittens.
“Look!” he said. “They’re outside!” He laughed as he diverted one away from the edge.
Jacinda bent down to stroke Velvet, who was keeping a close eye on her little family. “They’re growing up.” Then curiosity got the better of her. “Are you…going to see Liam today?”
“I went over already, but there was just a lady there. She said he was out.” He trailed a long piece of twine along the deck, trying to get the kittens to chase it, but they were still too little. “I’ll go back later. I can’t miss a lesson. Liam says we’re doing A minor next. He’s good at that one.”
“Sounds good,” she told him. Even though he had his own friends now, he was obviously still dedicated to his guitar lessons, and to Liam. “Where’s your mom?”
He shrugged, engrossed in teasing Suede with the twine. “I don’t know.”
She left him there and went back inside to look for Danielle, to talk to her about going back to LA. She found her in the kitchen, rolling dough into little balls.
“What are you making?”
“Snickerdoodles. Sam loves them.” She scooped another chunk of dough out of the bowl. “I thought you were going to bed.”
“I was, but Hannah phoned. She’s got some…stuff going on too.”
“Oh, is she okay?”
But before Jacinda could reply, someone knocked at the door. She looked over her shoulder, anxiety suddenly stirring behind her ribs. Surely he wouldn’t leave his mom to come and see her, after the morning’s trauma.
Danielle blew a strand of hair off her face. “Could you see who it is? My hands are all sticky and snickerdoodley.” She held them up.
“Uh…okay.”
“It’s probably the grocery delivery,” she added, seeing Jacinda’s hesitant face. “Totally worth paying extra to have it come to your door.”
She breathed out. “Definitely. I hate going to the grocery store.”
She straightened her slightly crumpled t-shirt, and went through to the entranceway. At this point, the world could take her as it found her. And the delivery guy had probably seen worse anyway.
She opened the door, wondering if Danielle had ordered ice cream.
Lainey Kingsley was standing on the porch.
Chapter Thirty-Four
Lainey’s eyes flicked down and back up again, obviously taking in Jacinda’s yoga pants, faded Green Day t-shirt, and makeup-free face.
“Did I catch you at a bad time?” she asked.
The concern in her voice was entirely fake.
“No.” Feeling the height disadvantage, Jacinda stood a little taller. Lainey was famous for her persistence—she’d broken some of the biggest music industry stories for Meltdown, the magazine she worked for—but coming all the way to New Zealand was ridiculous. Jacinda could only wish she was newsworthy enough to be worth the trip. She held her chin higher. “Actually, yes. I’m busy. Can’t it wait until I get back to LA?”
Lainey tipped her head, the light catching the diamond in her nose. “You look so different. Almost different enough that no one would recognize you.” Then she smiled. “Almost.”
Jacinda gritted her teeth. Don’t bite. Don’t give her anything to write about. “You’re just the same though,” she replied.
Lainey’s gaze was level. “Yep, same old, same old, still just doing my job.”
She decided not to ask why the hell Lainey had endured a twelve-hour flight just to pursue a delayed interview with her. But now she knew who the figure on the beach had been—Lainey, apparently doing her job.
“I’m sure,” Jacinda replied. “Well, as you can see, I’m not doing my job right now, but Hannah will let you know when I’m back in LA.”
With a thin smile, she wondered whether closing the door was worth the risk of an even more negative article next time round. But then she noticed Jess coming through the gate toward the front steps.
“Jacinda,” she called as she approached. “Someone’s—” She stopped as Lainey turned and stepped out from behind the clematis that hid one side of the porch. “Oh.”
“Hi,” Lainey said to her. “Finished work?”
“No, actually,” Jess said. “And I thought you were on your way to the airport.”
She shrugged. “Change of plans.”
Jacinda looked from one of them to the other. “What’s going on?”
“Some interesting things have come to light,” Lainey said. “I’m here to see if you’d like to comment on a story.”
Oh, shit. Maybe there was a reason why her nemesis had endured that flight after all. “What story?”
“The story about you and Ethan and the baby. And Liam.”
Jacinda’s stomach dropped. Her deepest secrets, in the hands of none other than Lainey Kingsley. How the hell did she find out? Her pulse racing, she looked at Jess, who shook her head.
“My source is very reliable,” Lainey added. “But I’d like your perspective, for balance.”
Source? She mentally counted up the people who knew the full story. It was a short list—Danielle, Riley, and, as of only a few minutes ago, Hannah. And Liam.
Obviously, it wasn’t Hannah. And Danielle or Riley would have told her if someone had been asking questions.
Liam, though…what would he have done?
Lainey was watching. “So, would you like to comment?”
Looking down, she could see that Lainey was holding her phone in her hand. She’d bet money it was recording their conversation. Don’t bite. “There’s nothing to comment on.”
“Is that what you want me to run with?” Lainey raised an eyebrow. “Because you know people will fill in the blanks.”
Inside, Jacinda was a tornado, but on the outside, she maintained a poker face, and a steady voice. “People will believe what suits them, whether a story is true or false. I have no comment.”
“Well, okay,” Lainey said, putting her phone in her pocket. “But don’t say I didn’t give you the chance.”
When Jacinda didn’t reply, she shrugged and went down the steps, bypassed Jess on the path, and went out the gate. Jess came up and stood next to Jacinda, and they watched as she got into a rental car and drove away.
When the car turned the corner, Jacinda grabbed onto the porch railing, her heart pounding, her mind going a million miles an hour.
“So she’s a reporter,” Jess said.
“Yeah. And she’s really good at it. Unfortunately.”
“I’m sorry I didn’t get here before her,” Jess said. “I was stuck at work, and I didn’t have your number, so I was texting Riley, but she didn’t reply.” Her words were tumbling over each other. “Finally a friend of mine came in for a drink, so I basically shoved her behind the bar and came over.”
“That’s okay. It’s not your fault,” Jacinda replied. She was still trying to think whose fault it was. “Let’s go inside.”
“Will this ruin your career?” Jess said as they went in.
Jacinda stopped and looked at her. “My career?”
“Yeah. Everyone knows you have an alter ego. A famous alter ego.”
“Everyone?”
“Pretty much. After you got up and sang, it wasn’t too hard to figure out. Even with the hair.”
“Oh.” So Riley was right. Everyone did know.
“Which I really like, by the way,” Jess added. “The blonde was a bit overdone.”
For a second, Jacinda was almost offended. Then she screwed up her nose. “You know what? I thought so too.”
They went into the living room, and Jacinda collapsed on the couch, trying to process the day’s latest surprise. None of them had been good.
Danielle came in. “Was it not the groceries? I need milk for my coffee.” Then she noticed Jess. “Oh, hi. I’m Danielle.”
“Hi,
nice to meet you,” Jess replied. “I’m Jess.”
“It wasn’t the groceries,” Jacinda said. “It was a reporter wanting me to comment on the story she’s running. About Ethan and Liam and me…and everything.”
Danielle’s mouth dropped open. “How did she find you? And how did she get the story in the first place?”
Jacinda looked at Jess. “Maybe you know about that?”
Jess nodded. “I was working the bar at the double K today. And Liam came in.”
With a sinking feeling, Jacinda knew she’d found the source. But something else had her attention too. “Liam went to the Kelp and King?” He’d said he would never go there—that it was Ethan’s turf. But today, he went…after the drama with his mom.
“Yeah,” Jess said. “And he just about drank us out of Jim Beam.”
“And Lainey came in?”
“She made a beeline for him. At first I just thought she was interested in him. I mean, even all unshaven and disheveled, and half-lit, he’s so hot.”
Danielle looked at Jacinda, but she just gave a wry smile. It was true.
“When you’re behind the bar, it’s kind of like you’re invisible, so people talk like you’re not even there,” Jess continued. “Mostly just the usual bullshit, you know. But something didn’t seem right with their conversation. Like she was trying to get him to trust her, cozying up to him so he’d tell her stuff.” She frowned. “And then he did. He never said your name, but obviously she knew who he meant.”
Jacinda pressed her fingers to her forehead, rising anger offsetting her sinking heart. She’d never been less happy to be right. She should never have gotten tangled up with him—this was what happened when you let lust override everything else. Faced with his mother’s condemnation, he’d obviously gone full circle, back to the resentment, blame, and guilt they’d started with. And she couldn’t condemn him for protecting his family, if it came down to her or them…but it was beyond shitty of him to spill everything out to a reporter.
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