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“I’m just asking because I think you might want him here for this.”
“What is it?” Leah couldn’t fight the rising surge of anxiety. Made worse because she wasn’t sure Callum would be helpful right now. He was just being too weird.
Juniper came over with a jam donut on a plate. “Have some of this first, then google Callum.”
“Fuck.”
“Exactly,” Juniper replied, her eyes filled with concern.
Her heart hammering, Leah grabbed her phone, opened a browser and typed his name. “Oh,” she said quietly. “Slow news day, I guess.” Not content with plastering pictures of Callum and Diane everywhere, the tabloid magazines had manufactured some story about Leah being the spurned lover. Close friends of Callum Sinclair had said that while he cared about the mysterious, unnamed brunette, she couldn’t hold a candle to Diane. He’d long harbored feelings for the sexy lingerie model but had thought her off limits due to a past fling with the band’s drummer. “What a crock.”
Juniper put a mug of coffee in front of Leah and took the stool next to her. She rubbed her back. “That’s the spirit.”
Leah kept scrolling. “It’s just a lot of stuff about how I’m a nobody and Diane’s a goddess.”
“Yeah.”
Leah enlarged a photo of Callum and Diane on Diane’s porch, kissing under the porch light. They looked almost like brother and sister. In fact, Leah had seen him kiss Mikayla exactly like that. He was leaning in for a quick kiss. Not one other part of their bodies touched. Just their lips and his hand on her shoulder. It didn’t look to Leah like they were going to get down and dirty the minute they got inside the house. Still, it all felt a bit too much to take. She started shaking. Then the tears came.
“Oh honey, I’m sorry.” Juniper rubbed her back. “Maybe after this if Callum lies low a bit, it’ll die down.”
Leah nodded. “Yeah, sure. This is exactly what we wanted. All the heat off me. But it’s not this.” She gestured to the phone.
“Then what is it?”
“I think Callum’s going to break up with me.” The words were out before Leah even realized what she was going to say. But they were the truth. She did think that. Maybe that intense sex on the beach had been their last. And she hadn’t even known it! The tears came harder then. She only had herself to blame, she thought. Aimed too high, that’s what she’d done. Gone and fallen hard for someone so far out of her league he may as well be on the moon.
???
Callum pulled his truck into the drive at Nora and John’s feeling a shiver of anticipation. When he had returned from Sydney and seen Leah again, the strength of his feelings for her had hit him like a two ton truck. He’d felt overwhelmed. He’d needed to get away, clear his head. But he was ready now. Ready to tell her.We haven’t made any promises to each other, Callum.Well, that was about to change.
“You okay, son?”
“Yeah, I’m fine. What did you say?” Callum hadn’t heard a word John had said.
“I said, your mother’s going to be rapt with these fish.”
“Great. You need a hand with them?”
“Nah.”
“Okay. I’m gonna catch up with Leah.”
“Good. Let me know if you’ll be around for dinner.”
“Will do.” Callum opened the back door of the car for Bluebell, then crossed the lawn to the unit. He was trying to decide how he wanted to handle the situation. Should he take her out? Stay in? Walk on the beach? God, he just wanted to see her. Hold her. He sent a text message, asking if she’d come over in about an hour. He wanted time to shower and change. She shot back a quick reply. Yes. He took a deep breath, smiling to himself as he headed to the bathroom.
Nearly an hour later, he was sitting on the couch, scrolling idly through his phone while he waited for Leah. A notification pinged. He had an alert set up so that if any news outlets published his or Leah’s name, he’d see it. So far, Leah’s name had been kept out of the news. A fact he had been very grateful for. His heart tightened in his chest as he saw her name come up. Fuck. They were onto her.
He frowned as he clicked through to the site that had mentioned her name. What the hell was this? Something about him and Leah knowing each other for nearly a decade? A video? He pressed play. He pushed suddenly to his feet. What the fuck? His heart started pounding when he realized what it was. Years before, when he had pulled a girl up on stage and sang her happy birthday. That girl was…Leah? There was no mistaking it. She was a lot younger. Just a baby, really. Covering her face as she giggled while he sang to her. What. The. Ever. Loving. Fuck. She knew him? After the first bout of confusion faded, hurt swamped him. She knew him and she never said anything. Never mentioned it. The hurt quickly turned to anger. History repeating itself. Fuck, what a loser he was. What a liar she was.
Callum paced around the unit, watching the video over and over. Bluebell whined, sensing his agitation. Then he heard the screen door open and he looked up. Leah stepped inside, an uncertain smile on her face. The smile froze when she looked at him.
“Wh-what is it?”
“That’s what I’d like to know. What the fuck is this?” He shoved his phone at her. She took it with shaking hands, pressed play on the video. As soon as she realized what it was, her eyes flew to his face, the stricken look in them undeniable.
“C-Callum —”
