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“Hi, Bea. It’s Rose.”
At the sound of her boss’s quiet gasp, Rose raised a brow.
“Ye could’ve told me you’re datin’ Senator LeBlanc’s son.” Beatrice’s voice had shifted to conspiratorial, almost playful. Her slight Scottish accent almost made Rose smile—she’d always loved hearing it. “An’ is it true about the baby?”
“Oh, God,” Rose muttered. She sat down at the edge of the large white whirlpool tub, which would easily fit two people. “Where did you hear all that?”
“It’s… don’t go near a newspaper.”
Rose closed her eyes and lowered her head into her hand. “How the hell did they manage that?”
“Who? What’s happenin’?”
Inhaling deeply, Rose debated the best way to phrase her answer. “So essentially, a bunch of paparazzi followed us out of Luke’s mom’s fundraiser last night, and they already knew about the pregnancy.”
“So ye are expectin’!”
“Yes. I just found out, so I hadn’t told anyone yet, other than Luke. And Alex.”
“Oh, aye! I forgot about him! Where’s he in all thes?”
Rose leaned her head against the white-painted wall, wondering how her life had become so much of a disaster that her boss sounded as excited as she did when she gushed about the latest celebrity gossip.
“I left Alex. I’m with Luke.”
“Explains why he punched—well, I’m sure he had a good reason tae—”
“Yes, he did.” Rose’s voice came out sharper than she’d intended, and she took a breath before plowing onward. “So basically, Senator LeBlanc wants us to lie low for a little while, until this blows over. Would I be able to take a few days off?”
“Take as much time as ye need. Just please keep me updated.”
Rose knew Beatrice cared about her, and she tried not to be bothered that the way her boss had asked sounded more like she was eager for the next episode of a show than like she was actually concerned.
“I will. Thank you.”
She hung up and laid the phone on the white countertop, not wanting to face anyone else who might be trying to pry this morning, and returned to the bedroom. Luke sat at the edge of the bed, his hands braced on the knees of his sweatpants as he watched her expectantly.
“Where are we going?” she asked.
Chapter Fourteen
Luke heaved the suitcases into the trunk of his Miata. Almost everything Rose had carried with her to his home had fit into the suitcase she’d brought, and he still found it odd. She’d always carried at least a large purse when she was going out for even for a few hours, and he’d expected her to bring more with each trip she made to the apartment she’d shared with Alex.
The first time she’d gone back, she hadn’t brought anything new—he knew she’d gotten into a fight with Alex, and he couldn’t blame her for being too distracted to bring her books or her vast array of shoes or anything else. But when he’d taken her back before the fundraiser, she’d still only grabbed a few dresses, a few pairs of heels, and the contents of her nightstand. Luke knew she was still having trouble with the idea that she was leaving her home, and he hoped that over the course of this trip, he could make that somewhat easier on her. She would have somewhere to go. A new home. It wasn’t like she had to start over completely.
He couldn’t imagine what was going through her mind. He tried often, and he liked to think that she was happy with him. That she’d been enjoying herself the previous night before the paparazzi had cast an enormous black cloud over all their plans. But he couldn’t silence the fear that he was dragging her along on this grand escape from the people who disapproved of him while she wanted to be somewhere else.
He’d seen the damned reporters moving through the bushes at the other end of the long driveway a few times this morning, and he hoped they knew that if they set one foot closer than that onto his property, they would have a lawsuit on their hands.
He shut the trunk with a sigh, and as he turned away, he caught sight of a red Camaro pulling up the driveway. He froze.
Alex.
He’s crazier than I thought.
On instinct, Luke’s fists clenched. He knew he wasn’t in the right state of mind to deal with Alex, after everything that had happened with the paparazzi. He was on edge enough—even Rose’s boss had known the full story already, and it had been less than twelve hours, so Luke couldn’t imagine how far the news had spread—without dealing with his former best friend, too.
Luke turned back to his car, bracing himself with his palms pressed to the trunk. He pulled in a deep breath and told himself he could handle this. He could deal with Alex himself, and Rose wouldn’t even have to know he was here.
