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Lara took a deep breath, her arms folded across her chest, her mind trying to catch up with what Charlotte had just said.
30
Charlotte followed Lara into the kitchen. She was acting weird, but it was late, and they were in a strange place. Charlotte just needed ten minutes to explain herself.
“Why did you think I wanted to see you?” Charlotte asked, her hands on the counter as Lara went to the fridge and pulled out two bottles of water, sliding one across the counter towards her.
“To end it,” Lara said bluntly with almost no emotion before she took a long drink.
“What?” Charlotte’s mouth fell open. “No. I just came from Jerry’s. I… He didn’t say anything this morning when I saw him. But I also didn’t ask.”
“Because you assumed it was my fault.”
“Yes.” Charlotte closed her eyes for a second, wishing she could go back and do things differently. “I was with Ada earlier. She knew you wouldn’t do this. That if you said that you hadn’t told anyone, then you hadn’t. So I went back to Jerry’s and outright asked him.” Charlotte swallowed the lump in her throat, still not quite believing it. “He tipped them off. And he wasn’t the least bit sorry about it.”
“What? Why?” Lara asked, anger flashing across her eyes.
“Some bullshit about it being better to know now. I don’t even know if he meant in terms of the media’s reaction or if he was talking about us and if we were the real thing. It doesn’t matter. I fired him. I can’t believe he would do something like that.”
“What?” Lara stared at her from across the counter. “You fired him?”
“Yeah. After something like that? I had to.”
Charlotte watched Lara come around the counter to stand in front of her.
“I was sick all day,” Lara said, her eyes searching Charlotte’s. “I thought we were done. And I get it. You’ve known him for years and me for just about a month. Of course you had a reason to trust him, but I wish you hadn’t dismissed my explanation like that.”
“I know. I should have listened to you. I just shut down.” Charlotte wanted to reach out, but she stayed where she was.
“I thought after the weekend…” Lara’s voice trailed off. “I thought you might have realized that we are really good together. That this wasn’t some fling.”
“You were never a fling, Lara.” Charlotte couldn’t stop herself from taking a step closer, her hand finding Lara’s at her side. “I was just trying to protect myself. I don’t expect you to forgive me tonight. And I’m sorry you got caught up in all this.”
A hint of a smile ghosted Lara’s lips. “Sexy mystery younger woman has a nice ring to it though.”
“I’m being serious,” Charlotte said, her heart beating faster as she tried to put her thoughts into words. “This is part of this. Of being with me. Photos. Paparazzi chases. Eventually your name will be out there. People will start digging into your past. It’s all fair game if you’re my girlfriend.”
“I know,” Lara said softly, a smile coming to her lips. “Am I?”
“Are you what?”
Lara’s eyes contained a warmth, a bemused smile on her lips. “Your girlfriend.”
Charlotte smiled, a laugh floating up from her throat. “Yeah. If I haven’t put you off completely. Yes. I would really like that.”
There was a tingling sensation in the pit of her stomach as Lara’s smile spread into a grin, her fingers interlacing with Charlotte’s. “Yes.”
The air around Charlotte seemed electrified, the heaviness she’d felt when Lara had answered the door looking so sad long gone.
Lara’s other hand slid around her waist as Charlotte leaned in to brush her lips across Lara’s, her hand on Lara’s neck as she deepened the kiss, needing Lara to know how much she wanted her.
Lara sighed into the kiss, and all of the stress and anxiety of the last twenty-four hours fell away as Lara grabbed her hand and led her up the stairs.
EPILOGUE
Lara’s feet sunk into the sand as she carried her surfboard under her arm, the taste of salty seawater on her lips as she waited for Tracy to catch up to her.
She brought her hand up to shield her eyes from the sun, barely making Charlotte’s aqua-blue umbrella out in the distance, a green windbreaker set up beside it even though there was only a light breeze today, but Charlotte set it up anytime she came down to the beach with Lara, giving her privacy from any beachgoers.
