He could hear his older brother seething on the other end as he struggled to get his anger in check. “So you knew she’d be trouble.”
“Trouble? No way.” He hopped up on the counter and reached for a glass of water. “If anything, she’s been the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”
“Then you haven’t seen the news yet.”
His mouth went dry. “What are you talking about?”
“Turn on the TV.”
“I can’t.”
“Why not?”
“Because there isn’t one in this house.” His heart started pounding, and his mind leapt in a hundred different directions, none of them good. “Tell me what’s going on, Adam.”
“She sold you out.”
The glass started to slip from his hand, and he set it down before he dropped it and the crash woke her up. “What are you talking about?”
“Just that. Apparently, she sold an exclusive story to some women’s magazine called Moderne about you, and the media’s been buzzing about it. The issue will be out tomorrow, but the editor, Elaine Halpern, leaked some photos of the two of you looking rather cozy together while ice skating.”
“Fuck!” Ethan jumped off the counter and paced the room, raking his fingers through his hair. “How did she get those?”
“From your girlfriend, obviously. She probably set you up.”
“Becca’s not like that.” And yet that little niggle of doubt refused to disappear. Too many things didn’t add up. Her secrecy about the story she had to turn in. The sudden funds to fly them first class to Barbados. The beach house that was completely cut off from all media.
“Okay, let’s forget her father still probably bears a grudge against us for the Michigan Avenue property—which I should’ve picked up on when you were asking about him. Let’s forget she doesn’t have the most stellar reputation, either, and is probably jumping at the chance to make headlines again. Can you imagine how much she’s getting paid to dish out the dirt on you?”
“And I’m telling you, Becca’s not like that.”
“Really? You don’t sound so convinced.” The clicking sounds on a keyboard followed. “It says here that the story will reveal details about your addiction, your recovery, and your upcoming solo project. If she didn’t provide those details, who did?”
His head swam, and he sank down onto the sofa before his knees refused to hold him up any longer. There was no other explanation. Becca had betrayed him. The fucking bitch had lured him there, told him she loved him, and made him admit he loved her, too, all while trying to keep him from learning the truth.
“Where are you now?” Adam asked, his voice devoid of the anger from earlier.
“Barbados.”
“Want me to book you on the next flight out?”
His gut recoiled at the pity in his brother’s voice, at the idea of Adam having to bail him out once again, but part of him was glad to have someone looking out for him. “Please.”
A few more clicks on a keyboard followed. “There’s one leaving in two and a half hours.”
“I can make it.” He’d take the Jeep they’d rented, even if it meant leaving her stranded. After all, she’d probably made enough money from selling him out to afford a taxi back to the airport.
“Got you booked.”
“Thanks, Adam.” He hung up, his hands shaking. For the first time in months, he was more than tempted to shoot up and just forget about the world, but he refused to relapse because of a two-timing woman. He knew he needed to confront her, to tell her it was over, but the center of his chest ached over the prospect of doing it.
He still loved her.
Which made her betrayal that much harder to bear.
But I have to do this.
He banged the bedroom door open, his hands clenched into determined fists.
Becca jumped up, her eyes wide with fear. “Ethan, what’s wrong?”
“I know what you did.” He tried to sound hard and furious, yet the moment his eyes raked down her naked curves, he found his resolve crumbling.
Damn it, I still want her.
He grabbed his bag and started stuffing his things into it to keep from touching her and losing all self-control.
“What are you talking about?”
“Congratulations, Becca. You finally had your big break. Your story about me is all over the news.”
“What the hell are you talking about?” She gathered the sheet around her and moved toward him, but he snatched his bag out of her way and went into the bathroom to grab the rest of his things.
“No wonder you were all closed off about that story your editor wanted you to turn in. You were figuring out the best way to betray me.” He came back in and pulled on a pair of jeans. “And I’m sure you probably paid that photographer at Wollman Rink to take photos of us, too, just to seal the deal.”
“Ethan, no.” Her mouth hung open in disbelief. “I didn’t do any of that.”
“But you knew, didn’t you? How else did your editor get those photos?”
She crossed her arms around her stomach and looked as though she was about to puke. A confession of guilt if he’d ever saw one.
“All this talk about protecting me, about respecting my privacy.” He yanked on a T-shirt and grabbed the keys on the nightstand. “It was all a pack of lies to gain my trust so you could sell me out the moment you had the highest bidder.”
Tears filled her blue-green eyes, and her chin trembled. “You really think that of me?”
He paused, and for a split second, he wondered if he’d jumped to the wrong conclusion. “What else am I to think when the magazine you work at is coming out tomorrow with an exclusive story all about me?”
She squeezed her eyes shut, releasing one lone tear in the process. But she clenched her teeth, and when she opened her eyes again, they were hard and cold. “This whole time, after I’ve gone out of my way to keep your identity a secret, you think I would stage photos and blab all your secrets to Elaine? What happened to you trusting me to do the right thing?”
“Obviously, I was wrong about you.”
She shook, but more from rage than sadness this time. Her finger pointed toward the door. “Get out!”
“Gladly.” He turned around and left before his gut checked him and made him look back. Maybe once he got home, he could sulk over his broken heart and beat himself up for being such an idiot.
But right now, he had a plane to catch.
***
Becca waited for the rumbling of the Jeep’s engine to fade before she let the sob choking her throat escape. No matter what she did, it was doomed to blow up in her face.
She’d turned in an article exposing her own story of addiction and recovery, and yet Elaine had chosen to weave her version about Ethan, no doubt fed by info from Daddy and Claire. And what was worse, Ethan had chosen to believe she’d sold him out.
The sobs intensified, and she buried her face in the pillow to muffle them. When she reached the point where she couldn’t cry any more, she crawled out of bed and into the shower. The hot water washed away the salt of her tears and eased the pain of her breaking heart.
Her flight didn’t leave until Wednesday morning. That gave her two days to come up with a plan to exact revenge against Elaine and her parents. But there was no hope getting Ethan back. As much as she loved him, he didn’t trust her when it mattered the most. And without trust, they had no future together.
Chapter Seventeen
Becca came out of the terminal at JFK with her hat pulled low and her eyes downcast. She’d gotten a glimpse of the cover of the latest issue of Moderne on the airport’s newsstands, and she didn’t want anyone to recognize her as she made her way to baggage claim to grab her suitcase.
A sharp whistle made her stop short and look up.
Jacob sto
od in line with the drivers holding cards with people’s names on them. He wore a silly grin on his face and held his own sign that said “Big Sis” in bright blue sloppy letters.
She made her way over to him. “What are you doing here?”
“What does it look like I’m doing? I’m here to give you a ride home.” He leaned over and whispered, “By the way, if you want to keep your travel plans a secret, don’t use Dad’s credit card. The minute he saw the charge, he knew what flight you’d be on and sent me to fetch you.”
“So I’m being kidnapped and brought before him to answer for my actions?”
“Ouch! Lighten up, Becca. It’s the first night of Hanukkah, after all.” He took her carry-on bag and moved them toward baggage claim. “Although I do kind of like the idea of being a bounty hunter.”
“I have nothing to say to him, you know.”
“Maybe it will be different this time.” He grabbed her suitcase from the carousel. “By the way, where’s Ethan?”
“He broke up with me and flew home two days ago. Accused me of blabbing all his secrets to the highest bidder.”
Jacob winced. “That sucks. I actually liked him.”
“Me, too. But you know how Daddy can be when he doesn’t get his way.”
“Are you suggesting he did something to break you two up?” Jacob led her outside to where he’d parked his Mini Cooper.
“Of course I am. After all, he and Claire were the ones who told Elaine we were dating.” She climbed into the passenger seat and waited while her brother threw her bags into the back.
Jacob got behind the wheel, but didn’t start the engine right away. “Listen, Becca, I don’t know all the details, but Dad sent me to pick you up because he wanted to talk to you about something, and I think you should at least hear him out before you tell him to fuck off again.”
“I doubt he has anything to say that will make amends for what he’s done, but whatever.”
As Jacob drove back into the city, Becca asked how things were going at Yale, how his classes were going, if he was dating anyone. The distraction soothed her sullen mood until they got to her parents’ house. She climbed out the car, dreading every step that brought her closer to confronting her father for the second time in less than a week.
The smell of frying latkes greeted her when she opened the front door. Claire appeared from the living room with her arms outstretched, pulling her into a hug. “Happy Hanukkah, Becca.”
She stayed stiff and aloof, not returning her stepmother’s affection. After all, she was a member of the party who’d fed information to Elaine. “Hi, Claire.”
Claire stepped back, a frown creating the slightest of wrinkles in her otherwise flawless Botoxed face. She looked to Jacob for an explanation, but he simply shrugged. The awkward tension continued to grow until she clasped her hands together and said politely, “Your father wishes to speak to you in his study.”
“Let’s get this over with so I can get home and start prepping my résumé.” She didn’t even bother taking her coat off before making her way to the room in the back of the house with the imposing polished walnut shelves housing rare first editions of classic works of literature mixed in with photographs of some of Shore Hotels’ more extravagant resorts. This would be a short visit.
The door was open, and her father sat behind his desk, reading something on his computer. He didn’t even look up until she cleared her throat. “Rebecca, close the door and have a seat.”
“No, Daddy, let’s keep this short, shall we? Congratulations. You not only managed to cost me my job—which you got me in the first place—but you also cost me a relationship with a great guy. So I hope you’re happy.”
She turned to leave, but the stern tone of her father’s voice stopped her. “I said close the door and have a seat.”
She shut the door and plopped down in the leather armchair he was pointing to, unbuttoning her coat in the process. “Whatever you have to say—”
“I will say it, and you will keep your mouth shut until I’m finished.” He came around his desk and sat down in the matching armchair on the other side of the small round end table. “I had another interesting luncheon with Elaine on Friday.”
“Where you probably told her everything else you could about Ethan so she could publish her exposé.”
“I said, let me finish.” He crossed his arms and squinted one eye as he studied her. “She said she’d given you that assignment, and you’d refused to do it. Why?”
“Because he was my boyfriend. We’d both worked so hard to keep our relationship out of the media spotlight. And more important, it was wrong. It was a violation of trust. But thanks to you and Elaine, he thinks I did it anyway.”
“I never thought she’d take what I told her over lunch to such extremes.” Her father looked down and away, sliding one hand down his cheek to his chin. “So I assume that the feature in Moderne caused some tension between you two.”
“He dumped me in Barbados, just like you wanted.”
“I never said I wanted that.” His voice stayed calm and steady, but anger flashed in his eyes.
“No, you didn’t, but based on the way you treated him at Thanksgiving, you don’t like him either. I bet you’ll do a little happy dance after I leave.”
“Rebecca.” He said her name as a warning and shifted in his chair. “Elaine, however, did forward me a copy of the article you turned in.”
She braced for the lecture on how her story of addiction and recovery would be a smear on the Shore family name, but her father remained quiet and pensive as though he was choosing his next words carefully.
“It was a very powerful piece.”
All the air fled her lungs. He was actually giving her praise. “Did I hear you correctly?”
He gave her one slow nod. “It got me thinking about what you said in my office last week about wanting to bring about change and raise awareness. At first, I thought you were suffering from some kind of delusion, but once I read that story….”
His mouth started twitching, and he pressed his finger against his lips to still them. “You are actually a very gifted writer, Rebecca.”
Her head swam. That was the second time he’d said something positive about her in the last five minutes. Any more praise, and the world might start spinning in the opposite direction. “Um, thank you.”
“It made me realize how far you’ve come and that maybe I should give you another chance. Furthermore, once I read that article, I told Elaine your talents were being wasted at a trashy magazine like hers and were better suited for more serious publications.”
She bit her bottom lip to keep from laughing at the shocked expression Elaine must have worn when he said that.
“And the funny thing is, she agreed with me.” Her father leaned forward, scooting his chair toward her. “She mentioned some of the topics you’d brought up at the staff meetings. It seems you have quite the drive for social justice and awareness.”
“I want to be something more than just some spoiled little rich girl.”
“And I’m beginning to see that you are.” He sat back on the chair and drummed his fingers on the armrests. “It seems you aren’t the only member of the family who wanted to make the world a better place. Before your grandfather died, he set up the Shore Foundation as a charitable trust. I’ve been too busy running the business to pay much attention to it, and I’m afraid the foundation has fallen to the wayside. Perhaps it’s time I placed someone in charge of it who could put it to good use.”
He paused and stared directly at her.
Her heart fluttered as the implications of his offer sank in. “You want me to take over the foundation?”
He gave another single, slow nod. “You seem to have the drive for it, and if you can continue to write passionate, persuasive articles like the one you turned into Elaine, I have a feeling yo
u might just make the world a better place.”
“And you don’t think I’ll screw it up or pilfer funds to buy drugs?”
This time, he shook his head. “No, I think you’ve shown you can be trusted.”
Her hands trembled, and her voice shook as she said, “I don’t know what to say.”
“Understandable. Of course, I haven’t disclosed the complete terms of this position. You will receive a small stipend for compensation, as well as any necessary travel expenses to set up projects you deem important. It will come with the standard Shore Hotels corporate benefits, and—”
She silenced him by throwing her arms around him in a hug. “I accept the job, Daddy.”
He balked at first, then very slowly wrapped his arms around her and returned the hug. “I’m very proud of you.”
Her throat choked up, and despite her best efforts to stop them, a few renegade tears slipped out. Her whole life, she’d felt like she’d always be a disappointment to her father. She never dreamed she’d hear him say he was proud of her. She pulled back and wiped her cheeks with the back of her hand. “I bet you’ve never had an employee break down in tears over being offered a job.”
“True, but then, I’ve never hired my daughter before, either. I know I’ve been hard on you in the past, but I truly believe the foundation will be in good hands now.” He patted her on the arm and gave her an apologetic smile. “Why don’t we join Claire and Jacob for some latkes?”
“Sounds fabulous.” She slipped off her coat and hung it up by the door before joining her family in the dining room.
The sun had set well over an hour ago, but the two candles in the Hanukkah menorah still cheerfully burned in the window overlooking Central Park. As soon as she sat down at the table, Mrs. Cordero appeared from the kitchen and set a plate of steaming hot latkes in front of her. Jacob passed her the sour cream and applesauce, and she shared her good news with the rest of the family.
But despite the excitement of celebrating the holiday with her family, part of her still mourned the end of her relationship with Ethan. Claire seemed to pick up on it first and asked about him.
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