Page 93 of Work It Out
Blaine rolled his eyes. “No, dumb-dumb. He’s that attached to you.”
Her mouth fell open. “But they’ve been friends forever. Bros before hos and whatnot.”
“That’s an idiotic saying,” Blaine snapped. “And if you think Pierce would let anyone hurt you, and I do mean anyone, you haven’t been paying attention, Ray. There’s nothing any of us wouldn’t do for you.”
She glanced from one stony face to the other and back again as tears pricked the backs of her eyes. This was why her father’s betrayal couldn’t wreck her. This was her family. And they’d have her back no matter what, because that’s what real family did. Even if that family didn’t include Jake.
How he must hate her. He’d asked for one thing, one thing she’d promised to provide: privacy. And she’d not only failed him, she’d made him look weak at a time when being strong meant everything.
Samuel took her coffee mug. “We’ll figure things out, but right now you have to pack.”
“What?” He pushed her toward her bedroom. She clutched at the throw when it threatened to drop and scar Samuel’s eyesight further. “Pack what?”
“Uncle Stu has you on a one o’clock flight out of Flagstaff,” Samuel explained. “You’ll have a fight on your hands and not much time to prepare. He could file for a continuance, but he’d prefer to get out ahead of this, and it’s picking up steam fast.
“I don’t know how much you read, but your bio dick really ran his mouth. Stu’s already working on a countersuit for the USGA and one for your dad. He had no right to sell that story.” He followed her into her room, grabbed a pair of jeans and a tee out of her closet, underwear and a bra from her dresser, and shoved her toward the bathroom—all without so much as wincing. “The only way to control the narrative online is to write it first. You shower. I’ll pack a bag for you. You have to be out of here in half an hour to make that flight.”
“Are you sure you can do that?” Samuel wasn’t exactly known for his fashion sense.
“I can.” She turned to find Vicky in the doorway, out of breath and pink-cheeked. The younger woman threw her arms around Rayah.
She’d done an excellent job of compartmentalizing all the bits of her current living nightmare, but for some reason the second Vicky touched her, the pain and confusion around Jake’s disappearance slammed to the foreground like a linebacker.
“He left.” Rayah’s voice was as full of tears as her eyes. “I told him I loved him, and he left me.” Stupid as it was, that scared her more than the lawsuit. Lawsuits she understood, but this… For all she knew, he’d waited until she fell asleep and fled the state. She’d been terrified she’d freaked him out when she accidentally dropped the L-bomb, but he’d been so sweet. Of course, he was an actor. What if he’d merely bided his time until he could get out without her making a scene? What if he’d woken up to her story and decided she wasn’t worth the drama?
No matter the reason Jake was MIA, he wasn’t there when she needed him most. Yes, her found family meant she wouldn’t be alone this time. A few months ago, that revelation would’ve been enough. It would’ve been a miracle. But that was before she knew what it was like to have a partner, someone who always put her first. Except that had been an illusion. His world had imploded, too. This was the manifestation of his biggest fear, and it was all her fault. She hadn’t meant to ruin his life. He had to know that, had to know she’d do anything to mitigate the damage. But he obviously hadn’t wanted her support. All he’d had to do was wake her up. Instead, he’d left her. In her car. With her pig.
Bastard.
Her thoughts were a jumbled mess of what-ifs and blind conjecture. It wasn’t fair of her, and all of it hurt. There was probably a good explanation for where he’d gone. The men in her life always thought they had great explanations for why they had to hurt her.
Vicky squeezed her tighter as the first sob broke through Rayah’s control. “I don’t know where he is or what’s happening, but I swear, Rayah, he hasn’t left you. He loves you. I know he does.” But try as she might, Vicky sounded as unsure as the hollow ache in Rayah’s chest felt.
Chapter Thirty-One
HogWildAndPigCrazy.org
Care and Keeping of Your Mini Pig
Keep a close eye on your pet. They love to get up to mischief.
The hamsters were on strike. It was the only explanation Jake had for why Rayah’s car suddenly died on his way back from town. He’d barely had enough warning to coast to the tiny path that led to a little-used trailhead before a sharp curve in the mountain road. He’d found his phone and Rayah’s in the console, but both were dead. Not a single charger to be found, a dangerous problem he’d remedy as soon as he got himself out of this mess.
Oink.
He turned to his co-pilot. “We, my porcine pal, are completely porked.”
Grunt, grunt.
“Exactly.”
The hour was too early for traffic, not that anyone driving past would notice her gerbil ball from the road. He snorted. Bigbone didn’t exactly have a rush hour. Even in the middle of the day, he could be stranded for hours. He really didn’t want Rayah waking up alone, not after last night. She’d freak out and draw all kinds of crazy conclusions. Good thing he’d left a note on the nightstand.
After his tumble in the creek yesterday, both he and Rayah had cleared their schedules for today. It hadn’t been difficult. Neither of them had much in the way of pressing plans this week. Between exhaustion and their all-night sexathon, they’d both slept late. Jake would likely even now be either curled around her or inside her if it hadn’t been for Hogrid.
“This is all your fault.”
Hogrid shuffled over the center console and onto Jake’s lap. Tiny hooves pranced over his thighs, then the front two landed on his chest and a piggy snout snuffled in the direction of his chin. Jake picked the little dude up and settled him against his shoulder. “You’d better be glad you’re cute.”
