AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He couldn’t speak so just sent her a smile in return.
He tugged open the door and ran out, shouting, swearing and raging. Swinging for paparazzi without trying to hit them, giving them the show they wanted. His performance worked, they followed him, their focus on Rebelle completely forgotten. He knocked over equipment, barged cars, every inch the nastyViper they all wanted him to be. By the time he reached his car they had abandoned her completely.
He paused, desperate for one last look before he got in his car and drove away. She was in the doorway, her long gray cardigan pulled tight around her as she hugged herself, a small smile on her face as she watched his ridiculous behavior. God she was amazing when she smiled. He shot her a wink before getting in his car, blasting Disturbed again and speeding off, spitting up gravel as he went.
He watched in his rearview as the reporters all scrabbled to their cars to chase after him. He watched her get smaller and smaller, his chest aching, caving in on itself until he couldn’t see her anymore.
He drove to the airfield and boarded his private plane, yelling at the pilot to go. He was strapping in as the cars all pulled up and he gave them all the finger as the plane taxied away.
He spent the journey in contemplative, heartbroken silence. When he landed, he didn’t want to go to his home. For the first time since he was a child, he wanted his mom. So he had his driver take him straight to his mother’s new mansion.
Diane was standing in the doorway like she’d been expecting him, which he guessed she had or maybe she just knew he needed her. She opened her arms and even though he was nearly twice her size, he let her arms engulf him. The sorrow he’d been fighting back finally overtook him.
She patted his back, soothing him. “I know what’ll help. Let’s get you back to work.”
Chapter 24
Rebelle:Thanks for sending the new photographer around. She took some great shots, can’t wait to share them on socials and in the next newsletter.
She waited for those ticks to turn blue and drew a deep breath when they did. She saw Will typing. He kept pausing and typing and her anticipation at his response turned to frustration the longer it took for his reply to come through.
Will:You’re welcome.
“That’s it?” Rebelle yelled, startling Bryan from his snooze on her bed. She huffed and threw the phone down, watching it bounce on the mattress and fall to the floor. She lay back, draping an arm over her eyes in despair.
She couldn’t reach him. Whenever she messaged him, she got one word replies or sometimes even just an emoji which she found infuriating. She sent him updates about the not-so-feral kittens, he hearted the message. She told him about a meteor shower that was happening, he gave it a thumbs up. He refused to engage with her, and it bothered her more than she’d ever imagined it would.
She hated how much she missed him. She longed to see that stupid award-winning smile. She even stooped as low as Googling images of him just so she could see it. But it lost some of its gloss compared to in person, the effect just wasn’t the same. She missed hearing his booming voice and laughter that used to scare her. She missed his energy, the vibrance and sunshine that emanated from him and lifted her up in turn.
She missed his kisses, him pulling her against his hard body. The way his deft fingers and tongue would weave a spell of magicon her that she had thought long gone. Missed the way that he would worship her, giving her the confidence and space to take control like she needed. The way he loved how she commanded him. She would see it behind his eyes, in his expression how he loved it, reveled in giving himself over to her.
She watched clips on YouTube, desperate to have his deep voice around her. Playing clips of the show and old interviews. She had to fight back the tide of jealousy threatening to consume her every time she stumbled on old footage of him with other, stunning women. At least she hoped it was old footage.
Rebelle wanted him to come back. Wanted to beg him to come back and be by her side, running the shelter together because that’s what would be good for the business. She could see it now, now that she’d had the space, time had revealed how shecouldcontinue on her own, not letting anyone help her, but it would be a lonely road, one she never wanted to travel again.Been there, done that and I don’t want the fucking t-shirt, thanks.Or she could accept help and the shelter could flourish, exactly as it had done.
Rebelle heard her phone beep and she scrabbled to the edge of the bed, stretching to pick it up and Bryan huffed at her jostling him. Excitement pounded through her but deflated a little when she saw it wasn’t Will.
Christy:We all set for in an hour?
Tonight was the beginning of another new tradition: the monthly sleepover that the women had been doing for years and Rebelle finally had an invite. The only rules? Turn up in your pajamas and for the love of all that is holy, bring snacks. A fairly open brief in terms of what to bring and although Justine would be coming, she wasn’t staying and hadn’t had time to bake her signature brownies.
Rebelle stepped in and offered to make them but remembering the not-so-successful attempt at cookies a fewweeks earlier, she’d reached out to Beau and asked him to give her a baking lesson seeing as how he loved it so much. At first, she’d been a little skittish in his company but he was gentle with her, gave her space and something about his energy reminded her so much of Will that she just missed the stupid billionaire even more.
But having never spent a night away from the shelter before, she grew anxious.
“Come on, buddy,” Rebelle gestured to Bryan and let him out for the last time until she came back first thing in the morning. She stood on the deck of the trailer, watching as Bryan pottered around in the dark, trying to find the best place to pee.
She pulled her new flannel pajamas around her against the chill and tilted her head back, looking at the stars. The sky blazed full of them, flickering brightly and the vastness of them brought her peace. How could she have never paid much attention to them before? She was fascinated with them.
She caught one, winking brighter than the rest and her eyes flicked towards the telescope Will had left behind. She shivered at the memory of him behind her, his heat at her back, his body against hers as he guided where she should look. Her eyes fluttered closed imagining his warm breath on her neck as he inched closer. The way he compared her to a beautiful star. Her throat tightened and she went to the telescope, peering through, desperate to feel a connection with him.
She found the constellation and discovered the winking star was indeed Rho Cassiopeia. She stared at it, feeling so in tuned to it that she could reach out and grab it. Her body hummed like she could sense Will was near. So convinced of it, she spun around, expecting him to be leaning against his midlife crisis car, that dazzling grin spread across his face but all she saw was darkness.
Disappointment choked her and tears filled her eyes at the way sheneededhim before she stopped and pulled herself together. She turned away, ignoring the telescope now, and called out to Bryan. He trotted back into the home, collapsing next to Parfait who Rebelle hadn’t had the heart to put in the shelter for adoption. Call her selfish but she just couldn’t give the calico up, it felt like losing a pivotal connection to Will.
He had messaged her, asking if Parfait had been adopted and Rebelle confirmed that the cat had been, she just neglected to mention it was by her. Rebelle popped into the cattery quickly to feed the newest batch of kittens who squawked for their food.
She studied the completed cattery that was a combination of her and Will’s designs. There was a window so the cats could watch the birds from their pods. A huge part of the wall had rows of rope, like a giant scratch post for the cats so that when they got out of their pods, they could have a really good stretch and scratch. There were numerous cardboard boxes because according to Will, “Where they fits, they sits”. And tall cat towers dotted here and there for them to look down on everyone.
