Page 112 of The Write Track
“Dude.” Brody’s voice was low. “We can end this now. We can catch up with Bree and Bella and take off.”
“And break the contract, which will reflect poorly on all of us as authors.”
“Yeah, but when we tell them what’s been going on, they’ll have no choice but to understand.”
“You don’t think it will be blamed on Bella anyway?” I pinned him with a serious look.
“It’s not her fault,” was his automatic response.
“They won’t care. They’ll just know that she was the reason Preston did all of this and maybe decide she’s not worth the drama.”
Brody fell silent, and I could see that possibility rolling through his head.
“I won’t let him hurt her,” I said in a low voice. “Not this way. Not something that could derail her forever. It has to be the way we planned.”
Brody blew out a sigh. He didn’t like the drama but understood what I was saying and agreed. “Go to our cabin. Keep the lights off so nobody is suspicious. It shouldn’t be more than twenty minutes or so.”
I nodded in agreement. “I’ll be ready.”
SITTING IN BRODY’S DARK CABIN WASexcruciating. I did it though, filling my head with images of Bella’s smile as I waited. When Brody’s text finally came through, I was more than ready. The message was simple.
Brody:It’s time.
I left through the back door of the cabin and skated close to the structure. The lights were on in my cabin, and I could hear raised voices. Before I could move in that direction, I heard footsteps on the path to the left and froze in place.
“I’m not done talking to you,” Preston snapped as Bella hurried ahead of him. “I’m nowhere near done.”
“You’ve been done talking to me, at least in a way that matters, for years,” she shot back. “I don’t want to talk to you. Ever.”
“You’re going to change your mind,” he sang out as she hit the steps that led to our front porch. “You’re going to be begging me to come back in exactly thirty seconds.”
Bella didn’t bother to look over her shoulder. She moved forward, toward the sound of raised voices, and threw open the door with enough dramatic flair that all I could do was grin.
“What the hell is this?” she demanded.
From somewhere behind the cabin, in an area I couldn’t see, Hayley did what came naturally. “Language!” she barked.
I smirked but didn’t say anything. I didn’t move a muscle, knowing Preston would hear me when I finally broke cover. Itook a moment to study him, the smug way he stared in Bella’s wake filling me with amusement.
He was about to get his.
“This is so gross!” Bella said with a bit too much emotion. She was not a good actress. I was fine with that. I didn’t want her to be anything but her authentic self.
Preston let loose a little chuckle. He didn’t know he was the one being played. He had a spring in his step as he started for the stairs. He obviously assumed he was going to walk in on Bella’s heart breaking and scoop up the pieces.
He was about to be very, very disappointed.
I left the shadows and followed him, keeping my steps light. I wanted to reveal my presence at the exact right time.
Preston swept through the door with exaggerated movements—all he was missing was a cape—and I heard the moment he realized his plan had failed. “Who are you?” he practically screeched.
I allowed my smile to stretch across my face and took the steps two at a time. When I got inside the cabin, the scene I saw playing out was pretty much how I’d imagined it. The reality was surreal, though, despite those expectations.
Heather stood in a slinky lingerie set, staring at my father, who was shirtless in our bed. He had a book—one of Bella’s, which made me laugh internally—and he looked like a man who was enjoying the performance he was putting on.
“You’re sleeping with Heather?” Bella demanded, her performance becoming slightly more restrained. It still wasn’t enough to appear natural, but that part didn’t really matter. Not anymore. “Mr. Cooper, I don’t think Nathan invited you here for that.”
“Andrew,” he replied, not missing a beat. “I told you to call me Andrew.”
