“Everywhere you look on Capri is the next most beautiful thing you’ve ever seen,” I say. I don’t tell her I didn’t dare peek through the curtains this morning so Brady could stay sleeping. I pull my other leg behind me.
“I saw the images from yesterday. Exactly what we’re looking for.”
“I’m glad to hear it.” I hope this means the bonus is in the bag.
She nods and takes out her phone to show me some infographics. “The engagement numbers are beyond our expectations.” She swipes and smiles, then adds under her breath. “Not that we had any expectations at all.”
“Excuse me?” I ask, trying to remain calm and polite.
“Oh, nothing really, it’s just that…”
“It’s just that I know exactly what you’re talking about. I overheard a few of your executives in Barcelona.” I stop stretching and stand facing Aisha. I don’t want to be rude but I know what’s been going on and I don’t want her to think I don’t.
She looks from side to side. “Oh?” Her voice is not nearly as intense and loud as mine.
“I mean I know the only reason you hired Brady for this job. His parents arranged the whole thing. They used their money and connections to make Brady think he was hand-selected for this gig. But you and I have both known the truth all summer. You all think Brady is just some mindless party boy who needs a pacifier to keep him busy all summer.”
A sound erupts from the coffee bar behind the corner. A plate or mug must have slipped and broken, and it reminds me to control my anger. This isn’t Aisha’s fault. I take a beat and find a calmer tone.
“Hayes, I can’t say you aren’t right about how things were arranged. But that’s how the world works. You seem like someone who has already figured that out. But you’re wrong about how I personally feel about Brady. Frankly, in London things were not working out. Surely you could see that.”
I nod, trying to control my breath.
“But I saw how hard Brady was working to deliver. I’ve talked to Mrs. Gibson. She’s…” Aisha pauses to find the most professional word. “She’s challenging, but she wants the best for Brady. Sometimes the people who love us the most are wrong about who we are.”
“I’m not. I know who Brady is.” My voice is controlled but I know there is an intensity building. I simply want her to know the truth. “He pretends to be a brat because he’s vulnerable. He’s smart, and he knows how to turn everything into a good time. Not because he’s shallow. Because he cares about people.” I think about starting our journey this summer, and how even after everything I said to him in Chicago, he made one of his care kits for me. I can feel my insides turning warm with the memory.
“Hayes, I wasn’t sure what your actual relationship was when I finally met you in London, to be honest, but I don’t have any doubts now. You love him, and from what I’ve seen, he loves you. Thank you for sharing that love with us this summer. It was a gift.”
I don’t know what to say. Her words are kind and honest and I hear every one. Aisha leaves, scarves flowing behind her, and I jog out of the lobby. The air is crisp and cooler than it has been the past few days. I fill my lungs with it, hoping to get my head on straight.
My feet hit the ground and I head down the street toward the water. The shops are beginning to open. I breathe in and out, letting my legs extend and retract, trying to get my mind to focus. I’m uneasy about the intense emotion I displayed with Aisha. Brady makes me feel everything so deeply, so when I thought she was putting him down I couldn’t contain it.Left, right, left, right.The repetition is a mantra that help my body connect to my brain.Left, right, left, right.
I can feel my mind clear. But it’s not the connection between my body and brain calling the shots, it’s my heart too. I stop and stare up at the hotel hundreds of feet above me. It’s not Aisha I need to say all that wonderful stuff about Brady to. It’s Brady. And the only way for us to move forward and take the next step is to tell him the truth about what I found out in Barcelona.
I turn back toward the hotel and start running up the hill.
Chapter 46
Capri
Brady
My eyes flutter open and then I stretch my hand out across the bed, hoping to find the warmth of Hayes’ hairy thigh. Outside the room I hear the door to the stairwell shut. Next to the nightstand, I see Hayes’ earphones. I want to close my eyes and go back to sleep but I know how he enjoys his head banging Southern rockers so I throw on a pair of shorts and a t-shirt and head downstairs after him.
I walk past the coffee station and see Hayes stretching in the lobby, so I have time to get an espresso before he heads out. I see Aisha approach him and before I can walk over, I overhear Hayes say, “…only reason you hired Brady for this job. His parents arranged the whole thing.”
My heart stops. A chill runs down my spine. I can’t have heard what I thought I heard. I move closer to them but making sure I can’t be seen. I keep listening until I hear Hayes say that he has known the truth all summer.
For Us only hired me because of my family’s connections. And Hayes knew the whole summer.
I hear something about me being a mindless party boy who needed a pacifier for the summer, and I suddenly feel lightheaded. I go to put the espresso cup on the counter but my hands are shaking so much I miss the edge and the espresso crashes to the floor. Usually I would drop to the ground to clean it up, but I can’t think of anything else except getting back up to the room and hiding.
“Are you okay?” I look up and it’s Phil and Will from the pool. “We can clean that up,” Phil says. “Will, go get a towel from someone.”
The blond man follows Phil’s orders. “Thank you. Thank you,” I say. Then I turn and run toward the elevator. I can’t face them. They’ve seen all of those social media posts. All those lies. Do they know? Do they know I’m just some spoiled rich kid whose mommy and daddy still have to send him away to summer camp as an adult? I hide my face in the hand to cover my humiliation and pound the elevator button.
I get up to the room, slam the door behind me and fall on the bed. I don’t even try to stop the tears. I couldn’t anyway. Why should I? I’m only the immature brat everyone thinks I am. But I’m not crying because of that, or even because my parents did what they always do. I’m crying because Hayes knew.
