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“The waves keep a good enough beat,” he said. Then he slid his fingers down my arm, taking my hand and putting his other one around my waist. We danced to the beat of the waves and my increasing heart rate under the Miami moon, and I wanted it to never end.
Chapter Eighteen
Atlanta, Georgia, had provided Rhettwith a cute Southern belle. She was married with two young daughters, and her husband had shown up to take a picture with Rhett and the girls before Mrs. Atlanta and Rhett went off on their date. It was proof that some people understood that these “dates” weren’t really romantic, but just an opportunity to spend a few hours with a famous movie star. Rhett returned from that one beaming because Mrs. Atlanta had, like Betsy, been a huge fan of his historical roles.
We were in Georgia for two short days, then turned around and jumped a few states to land in Fort Worth, Texas. My phone rang as I was putting my bags away in my hotel room, and I hit the speaker and set it on the desk.
“Hey, Mom.”
“Bethany! I’ve missed you. Where are you now?”
“Texas.”
“Seen any cute cowboys?”
“Not yet, but I’m sure we will tomorrow night. We’ll be at the rodeo for Rhett’s date.”
“You’re going too?”
I pulled out my shirts to hang them in the closet in the hope that they would de-wrinkle on their own. “We attend some of the dates. They got tickets for all of us to attend the rodeo. We basically sit behind Rhett and his date at some of these events and watch them.” I paused. “Which is a lot less awkward than it sounds.”
“Is it hard to watch him date other women?” Mom asked, her voice laced with compassion.
I dug out my laundry bag, grateful for these extra few days here so I could wash my clothes. “It’s not as hard as I thought it would be. I know he’s only doing it for charity. He is a really giving man.”
“Have you had much time with him?”
Universe, were you testing me? I wanted to tell my mom about how close I’d gotten to Rhett’s lips, but the NDA with my signature said I shouldn’t. She wasmy momthough. Was it still breaking a law to confide in her? Part of me was dying to share with her how my dreams had manifested, and then the other part of me wanted to keep whatever was going on between Rhett and me a secret. No one else knew about it. Not Charlie, not my mom, not Bridget or Adalyn. (Chad and Jax probably figured it out, but they didn’t count.) It was just me and Rhett, and there was something kind of magical about that.
“Beth?”
“I mean, I get to do his hair and makeup every day,” I said noncommittally. “It’s been kind of a wild ride, and all the traveling is much more exhausting than I expected.”
“I understand that,” my mother said. “Is he chartering private?”
“Yes, and that has made it much more comfortable.”
“Oh, good. Well, I’m in Seattle now. I wish I were doing the Texas route so I could come see you, but I’m heading to Chicago, and then I have a layover.”
“Enjoy your break.”
“I plan to. I have a date with a new book.”
“And I get to go watch people ride bulls, because apparently that’s a good idea.”
She breathed into the speaker, creating static. “They’re such brave young men.”
“Braver than me, certainly.”
“Putting yourself out there with Rhett was really brave, sweetheart,” she said, commending me in a way only a mother could.
She had no idea.
“Don’t be too disappointed if nothing ever happens between you two,” Mom continued. “He is a major movie star, and I’m sure there’s a lot going on behind the scenes that we don’t know about.”
Shereallyhad no idea about that.
“I’ll try to temper my disappointment, Mom.”
