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Islammed the door after James entered the kitchen ahead of me. I was angrier than wet hornets. Or cats. Or whatever.
I was pissed.
“She’s going to be fine, Cal.” James disconnected the call he’d been on when we drove back up the drive and into the garage.
And you can bet your ass that I’d shut the fucking garage door before we got out of the truck. Although we hadn’t made it past the gates at the entrance to the property, James had pointed out the small fleet of news vans and fucking paparazzi vehicles cluttering up the narrow road in front of my home. Fucking vultures.
“Detail arrived and have the house locked down,” James informed me. “Naomi gave them cinnamon buns and coffee and sent them back to the car.”
“Where the hell did she get sweet rolls?”
“Don’t know, but I’m a little jealous. I’m thinking I’m going to put Raised Right on auto-delivery. Maybe something different every day.” James slapped his taut waistline, making a hollow drumming sound.
I knew what he was doing. He wanted to distract me from worrying about Catie. Using humor to let me know he was confident she’d be fine. But I couldn’t get my brain wrapped around anything except that her privacy was at risk. And I was the reason for it.
I braced my palms on the island’s stone countertop and hung my head. “This is all my fault.” Elvis trotted up to my side and plopped his butt right next to my boot. He whined a smidge but stopped the second I dropped one hand onto his head.
James had opened the fridge door, but let it fall closed. “That’s bullshit and you know it. This isn’t your fault. Not for an instant.”
“I should have left her alone. I should never have asked her out. What the hell was I thinking?” My customary answer might have been I wasn’t thinking. At least not with the smart head.
James slid a bottle of water across the counter. “You were thinking here’s a lady you want to know better. She’s funny and smart. Talented and kind. She has a cat, but we can’t really fault her for that.”
“Frank’s a damn good cat, too.” I twisted the top off the bottle and drank deep, guzzling half the contents in one long go.
“You know what your dad would say.” James shifted his weight until his hip was propped on the counter. “You can’t help who you love.”
“I don’t—” I stopped.
Did I love Catie? I loved everything about her, her smile, her red hair, her spunk. The way she ordered me around while working on the photoshoot but was still respectful. How sweet she’d been with Elvis, and with Elizabeth when offering to work on new graphics for the shelter.
James’ laughter was sharp and amused. “Oh please. You can lie to yourself, but you can’t lie to me.” He shook his head. “You love her.”
“I love her.” I whispered his words more to myself than to him, wonder underlaying the soft sounds.
It was possible I’d loved her since the moment I met her. She’d piqued my interest, then shut me down quick when we found out we’d be working together. And while I didn’t love the idea of waiting for any length of time, I respected the hell out of the way she stuck to her guns. Even when it was obvious that she wouldn’t have shut me down had I tried to cross that line.
Love had happed so fast I hadn’t even recognized it for what it was. And thanks to that lapse, I’d possibly put her in danger. “I’m an asshole. This is all my fault.”
James shook his finger at me, like a teacher scolding an unruly student. “That right there is the biggest pile of bullshit I’ve heard in my life.Youdidn’t post a picture on the stupid bird app leaking your relationship. Maybe you’re famous enough that the post went viral with speculation, but right now, no one knows who Catie is, except your close personal team. And not one of us is likely to toss her name around, feeding her to the…what did you call them? Swamp clowns.” He snapped his fingers with a grin. “I still prefer chucklefucks, but swamp clowns is appropriate.”
My phone rang. “Asher, what do you know?” I put the call on speaker.
“Good morning to you too, Cal. I’m fine, thanks for asking.”
In my head I heard my dad’s disappointed voice, telling me there was always enough time to be courteous and kind. I sucked in a huge calming breath. “Good morning, Asher. Thank you for getting on this so quickly.”
“Better,” he laughed.
James chuckled too and I shot him a scowl.
“I, uh… I’m gonna take Elvis out for a walk and check out the grounds. Make sure no one is trespassing.” James walked across the room and snagged a leash off the peg by the door. He shook it and whistled. “Come on, boy. Let’s go prowl the great outdoors.”
Elvis leaped up and started toward James, but jolted to a stop, looking over his shoulder at me. He tipped his head.
“Not coming this time, fella. Go with James.” I pointed to the man.
Elvis’s toenails scraped the wood floors as he scrambled to James, who bent and clipped the leash to the bright orange collar.
