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Has he really forgotten the other elephant in the room? Or does he just not care? Maybe to him this whole video thing is no big deal, but to me it’s devastating. I’ve done my best to hold it together, but between that and the anger he’s directing at me, I’m starting to fall apart.
“Are you serious? We have a sex tape. My… my… I’m out there for the whole world to see. To…” I shudder at the thought of men looking at me, even more so at what else they might do with the video. “I may have kept something from you, something important, but that tape…” I don’t have the words to express how I’m feeling.
“I know.” His face sobers. “It was a stupid move on my part. I’m sorry.”
“Me, too.”
I turn my head and rest it against the window. Maybe he’s right. Maybe it’s too soon to talk about all this. So much has happened in such a short amount of time. At least, I feel like the ice has thawed slightly. I allow myself to focus on the scenery beside me—the large buildings disappearing in the background and the vast desert sprawling out before us.
The next thing I know is the sound of Carter’s voice, followed by the gentle touch of strong hands.
“Wake up, princess.”
“Hmmm,” I moan in response.
“We’re here,” he says softly.
My eyes fly open and land on his face. He’s close enough to kiss, and for just a moment, I allow myself to pretend I’m waking up in his arms again. He looks at me, with something besides anger in his eyes. It’s only there for second, but it’s impossible to miss.
As my eyes adjust to the light, I take in my surroundings. A quaint white house lies ahead, nestled between trees. The land behind it looks as though it goes on forever. It’s quite picturesque, even for this bonafide city girl.
Carter rounds the truck, opening my door and extending a helping hand. Taking it with caution, I allow him to help me from the truck. Ever graceful, when I stumble and land on him, his hand falls to my hip to steady me. Our eyes lock. Swept away in the moment, in his touch, I hope and pray for the one thing I have been craving since the night I met Carter—his lips.
Hoots, hollers, people shouting his name interrupt the moment. The commotion coming from behind Carter is practically deafening. Carter turns his head and curses when he sees the group gathered in his neighbor’s driveway.
“Welcome to Brantwood, Smalltown USA and gossip capital of the world,” Carter mutters. He turns back to me. “You do realize people are going to assume that you were the one in the video with me.”
“They would be right,” I remind him.
“No one ever has to know the truth.”
I love the protective tone. “Thank you.”
He nods. “Come on, time to meet the Wallace’s.”
“You say that like it’s a bad thing.”
“Not bad, necessarily. Just… a lot.”
“Mom? Dad? You here?” Carter calls out as we step into the house. I can hear the hesitation in his voice, almost as though he’s hoping they don’t answer. That maybe he has a few minutes to get his bearing before being ambushed by his family.
“Carter, honey! You’re home.” A petite woman with blonde hair pulled back in a tight bun enters the living room. She beams ear to ear as she pulls Carter in for a hug. Carter wraps his arms around his mother in a tight embrace, lifting her clear off the floor.
“Put me down,” she says, her laughter filling the room.
“Hi, Mom. I missed you.”
“I missed you, too, sweetie.” As he sets her on the floor, her eyes fall on me. Considering recent events, I can only imagine what she must be thinking. “Who’s your little… friend?”
The way she asks, says I’m right.
“Mom, this is…” Carter begins.
“I know exactly who she is, and you have a lot of damn nerve bringing her here,” a man, a carbon copy of Carter, or I suppose, Carter is a carbon copy of him, enters the room.
Carter tries to speak, but his father cuts him off abruptly.
“On top of all the embarrassment you’ve caused not only yourself, but your mother and me, you… you bring her here?” Her. The woman from the video. He doesn’t say it, no, but the insinuation is more than evident in his voice.
