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“Oh,” Everly said quickly. “Yes, that must be her.” The slicing in her chest eased, making way for her lungs to resume their regular function. “Blake said she’d be here and wanted me to meet her.”
“Who is she here with?” Megan asked. “I met her once, but she must be someone’s plus one.”
“Rob Oakley. They’re together now.”
“Oh!” Megan shouted. “That’s great news! Let’s go talk to her.”
Megan threaded her arm through Everly’s and grabbed a handful of her dress, bunching it to her side.
When Blake looked Everly’s way and caught sight of her, an uninhibited smile spread over his face. How could she ever even consider accusing Blake of unfaithfulness? He was loyal to his core, and, most importantly, he wasn’t David.
“Ev, this is Renee,” Blake said.
Renee extended her hand first. “It’s so nice to meet you.”
Renee’s greeting was full of kindness. Everly’s initial reaction to the woman’s closeness to Blake was a misunderstanding. He was a friendly person, but he wasn’t a cheater. His heart was pure gold. Heat flooded her chest and neck. She needed to slip away to make sure she wasn’t turning red.
“It’s nice to meet you too.”
Renee’s wide eyes stayed focused on Everly. “I’ve been so excited to put a face with your name, especially after reading your book on the flight in.”
All sound faded to a muffle as Everly’s blood turned cold. She’d misheard. Renee hadn’t read any of Everly’s books. No one had.
No one except Blake.
“It was amazing! You had me hooked from page one. Gunner is the perfect tragic hero. And Cassie. Ugh, you gutted me with her big reveal. The whole story is a masterpiece.”
Everly stared at Renee. The woman’s excitement was the polar opposite of Everly’s dizzying fear.
How did this woman get her book?
Blake wouldn’t have done that. Ever. Not while he knew she’d never breathed a word about the books she wrote to anyone else in the world.
Megan laid a gentle hand on Everly’s shoulder. “I didn’t know you wrote a book.”
“I’m sorry. What?” Everly asked Renee.
“Blake sent it to me and promised I would love it. He was spot on because it’s exactly what my team at Baker and Brown are looking to branch into next year. Do you have an agent? Blake didn’t mention it.”
Everly stared at Renee, unable to breathe. Blake gave the book Everly had entrusted to him to someone else. She’d spent countless hours pouring her heart onto a page, purging her heartaches, insecurities, and deepest fears into a book, and Blake had given it to a stranger.
No. He wouldn’t have done that. Ever.
Blake’s words were muffled. “Ev, she said she loved it. They want to meet with you to talk about a contract.”
When her lungs began to sting, she remembered to breathe. He’d done it. Blake had shared her story.
Everly looked up at Blake, and his sweet smile ripped her heart in two. How could he be smiling when he’d done this to her?
He didn’t understand, but how could he not? Everly had been very clear whenever they talked about publishing the books. She wasn’t interested, and that decision had never wavered. The stories were hers and hers alone–her safe space.
Except, they weren’t anymore.
Blake’s smile faded, and the warmth of his hand wrapped around her arm. “What’s wrong? Ev, are you okay?”
She’d told Blake she didn’t want to publish them. She was certain of it. But why would he then give away the book she trusted to him? Why would he be persistently pushing her to publish them?
He wasn’t listening, in the same way she wasn’t listening now. The thudding pulses of blood through her body drowned out the sounds of everything except her quiet fear.
